School Open Tomorrow, Columbus Day

Dear Families,

We do have school tomorrow, Columbus Day.

Our nursery class will continue without interruption until the week before Thanksgiving.  During that week, there is no school for students.  Traditionally those days are used for parent & teacher conferences.  Early childhood families traditionally have 1 conference during the year, either during the fall or spring.  Some families choose to have two.  Kim, Dyanne, and I have also found that the official conference dates are not necessarily the ones that work for student, teacher, or parent and are working in different ways to see what rhythm works best.  For parents who want a fall conference, I will make some times during the day on Friday available in the weeks before Thanksgiving; I could also likely provide a Tuesday night conference.

On Friday, November 12, families will be invited to join us in the early evening for our Lantern Walk at the school.  I will let you know the exact time of the walk (probably around 5pm) once the kindergarten teachers and I have set the time.

Lynne will be away this week.  Carrie--who has worked with us already--will substitute for her.  Thank you for your patience this week if rain pants or coats end up on the wrong hook.  If it is very wet this week, we will likely hang up some of the wettest clothes on a separate drying rack.  Please look there at the end of the day.

In my attention to the children's emotional comfort in the first weeks of school, I feel I may have missed some variances from our traditional dress code (rain pants every day, slippers for inside, nail polish, and the like).  For your and my convenience, I am including text from our Children's Garden Handbook below.  In a young nursery, children tend not to notice variations so much; as they get older and move into kindergarten, they notice very much, so it will help set them up for more equanimity in kindergarten if we adhere to the dress code as best as possible now.   As always, I do provide mittens for children at school, so you need not bring those.


• Clothing
School is a place of active work and play where we often spend 1 to 2 hours outside
every day. (Rain or shine) To allow the child to experience nature and the elements
in an enjoyable, open way, clothing is extremely important. It is no fun climbing
mountains if your legs are cold. Clothing should be sturdy, practical and fit
properly. It is also important that the older children can dress and undress
themselves (5 and 6 yr olds). Please avoid clothing that has difficult zippers, tight
buttons or otherwise complicates dressing.

Please look through the WIWS parent handbook to see the guidelines for school
attire. Clothes should not include flashing lights, advertising, media images or
writing. In addition, make up, face paint, henna, tattoos, hair dye, and nail polish
are not permitted at school. If your child’s ears are pierced, studs should be worn.
No other jewelry should be worn at school.

Please label all clothing. Labels can be purchased from various label companies
online or you can use a permanent marker.

~ Waterproof Coat, Rain Pants and Rain Boots
The children will be expected to wear rain pants, rain boots and a waterproof coat
rain or shine from Michaelmas (September 29th) to May Day (May 1st).
Children will need to have rain gear at school all year. We will be wearing rain
pants even if it is not raining as children often dig in the mud and play in the water.
Please bear in mind that rain coats are often thin and cold and so children will need
warm layers underneath. In the winter, waterproof snow pants work well.
Please make sure boots fit well. Ideally they would have a liner so feet stay warm.
Walking boots or shoes will also work as long as they are waterproof. Shoes and
boots will get dirty and wet every day, it would be ideal to have an extra old pair
around in case they get wet.

Rain/snow pants can be bought from REI, Lands End, Hanna Andersen or other
outdoor stores. (They are hard to find on the Island.)

~ Hat
Please bring a warm woolen hat for the fall and winter and in the spring please
bring a sun hat.

~ Many Layers
We have found that children stay warmer with many layers instead of one thick
sweater. In the early morning our playground is quite cold but as the day progresses
we find that the children layer down. We suggest long underwear if possible and
ideally wool/silk long johns keep children especially warm. These can be purchased
at various online companies.

~ Socks
Please dress your child in thick, warm (ideally wool) socks. Socks should be tall
enough to stay up in rain boots so the children’s feet stay warm. Please have lots of
extra labeled pairs at school. (Four pairs would be ideal).

~ Mittens or Gloves
These should ideally be waterproof and allow free movement for the child.

~ Slippers or Inside Shoes
Slippers or inside shoes should support movement and activity, not inhibit it. Please
make sure the slippers cover the heel and toes. They should be simple, practical and
stay on the feet. They should not have any media advertisements or flashing lights.

~ Extra Clothes Bag (We will provide the bag)
This will need to be checked and filled regularly and should be CLEARLY LABELLED
Underwear (4)
Pants (2)
Shirts (2)
Socks (4)
Sweater (1)

Thanks for helping the children be present and engaged in the work and play of the classroom.

With warmth and light,

William Geoffrey Dolde