The Cooperative Playschool - Play-based Preschool Education Since 1949

Thanks for a great weekend

Thanks to our parent volunteers and teachers for making this past weekend's events successful.

We attended the 4th Annual Mothers and More Preschool Fair where we met lots of great kids and parents who will be hopefully joining the Coop soon.

Another team was at the school, hosting an Open House with the teachers. Thanks to them, we'll soon be welcoming a new family for the Spring Semester, as well as (hopefully) finding some families for the fall.

And a MIGHTY thank you to ALL families for their help with Winter clean-up. The school looks great!

Getting to know you...

We're off to a great start on our year... I can't believe 2 months have gone by already!

I feel like I know most of this year's families already... but I'd still love to know more!

If you haven't already done so, please take the time to send Dayna your Family Profile and a family picture. Write whatever you want... just your names, or fill out Dayna's rockin' questionairre... whatever moves you.

These will be posted at the school, and the kids always love looking at each other's family pictures, and reading their family stories.

In the spirit of inspiring you all, I'll share our family profile, written last year:

Once upon a time, in a tiny village called Linden Hall, a Beautiful Lady named Kate and her Prince Charming, whose name is Tony,  welcomed their baby daughter to the world. They named her Aubrey Emily Sanfilippo, because they liked the name, and because the Lady’s best friend was named Emily, too. They were very happy together, with their dog Benny and their cats Bill and Purple. Aubrey was a good baby with blue eyes and long legs. She was very smart and funny, and she loved to make music. But still, they felt their family was not yet complete. So a small time later, they welcomed another tiny daughter to the family. They named her JoAnn Evans Sanfilippo, after the Lady’s Grandma and Daddy. JoAnn was a good baby too, and her round cheeks and full lips made them all fall in love with her right away. JoAnn loved to make art and to sing, and she was also smart and funny (smart and funny seemed to be a family trait). Finally, they knew their family was complete. One day, the whole family came to visit a magical place called the Cooperative Playschool, and they knew right away that it was the perfect place for them to find more families to play, learn, and grow with. And they all lived happily ever after.

Welcome, Ms. Mindy!

I am terribly remiss in not posting this news sooner.... sorry!

We are proud and pleased as punch to welcome Ms. Mindy to the Coop family as our new teacher of the "green team". We've only known her for a few weeks, but already she is family.

Here's a letter from Ms. Mindy introducing herself:

Dear Parents,

Hello and welcome to the three year old class! I am so excited to begin this school year with the Cooperative Playschool! My name is Mindy Miller and I am looking forward to working with your child this year!

I have been working with children for the past six years. In 2003, I entered Penn State as a returning adult student to pursue my dream of becoming a teacher. During this time, I began driving school bus while residing in Mifflin County.  The job fit perfect into my busy school schedule and still allowed me time to spend with my son. Two years later I relocated to State College. I graduated from Penn State in the spring of 2007 with a B.S. in Elementary and Kindergarten Education.

During my years in college I worked in the infant through preschool rooms at Nittany Christian School. After graduation I began substituting at Nittany Christian, as well as State College & Bellefonte Area School Districts.  I also spent a year employed as a long term substitute for the Central Intermediate Unit #10. I was a preschool developmental teacher working with children on the Autism spectrum.

I have two absolutely wonderful children. My son, Devin, is thirteen and began seventh grade last week. My daughter, Kinzley, just turned three in June!  We have a home in Park Forest and love living in State College.

Please feel free to ask me any questions your may have.  I can be reached at 814-(redacted) or you can email me at (redacted). I check my email every evening. Thank you for taking the time to read this.  I look forward to getting to know you and your child this year!

                                             Sincerely,

                                             Ms. Mindy

As Requested: The Full Job Description

A reader asked casually "Why post just a link? Why not post the whole description?"

As I could not think of a good answer, here it is in all its glory:

The Cooperative Playschool Job Description

Requirements:
The ideal candidate will have:
1.PA certificate in Early Childhood (N-3), or a PA Private Schools Certificate in Early Childhood (N-3), or be willing and qualified to obtain a PA Private Schools Certificate
2.Experience working in a preschool environment (3-5 year olds); preferably having knowledge of play based curriculum
3.Experience working with a co-teacher and/or parent volunteers
4.Experience supporting child directed play by acting as a guide and facilitator; providing the resources necessary for children to think, question, and discover; assisting the children in making connections across all types of learning; listening to the individuality of each child and encouraging corresponding activities
5.State Police, PA Child Abuse, and FBI Clearances, along with a current physical/TB test
6.Above all, a love for teaching, learning, children and fun.
7.Bilingual applicants are a plus, along with being comfortable working in a multicultural environment

Working Hours and Environment:
1.This is a part-time position that runs from September 1-May 31st
2.Teacher hours are 8:30-12:30, M-F
3.Students are at school from 9-11:30 each day. Candidate will work cooperatively with the other certified teacher, as well as with the working parents each day.
4.Typical enrollment is 25 children per morning

Compensation:
1.We offer a very competitive salary as well as funds for staff development

Brief Description of our School:
The Cooperative Playschool is a state licensed, non-profit preschool serving children 3-5 years old since 1949. It is “cooperative” in the sense that there is a board of directors made up of parents who help with the business side of the school; in addition there are 2-3 parents working with two certified and experienced teachers during each school day. We are a play-based school, where children learn through self-directed activities including plays and stories, theme-centered activities, art, making/preparing snack, dress-up and pretend, music, and outdoor play. For more about our school check us out at: cooperativeplayschool.com

A Morning With Bev Bos

A little late-summer reading. Enjoy!

A Morning with Bev Bos

By Mrs. Kat, 2008

            This past May the Coop generously paid my tuition to attend a workshop with Bev Bos. Bev Bos was the mentor of Mrs. Nancy and came highly recommended as the ‘expert on play based programs’. I was not disappointed.  She was a dynamic, enthusiastic, talented, insightful preschool teacher/director who left me inspired and motivated.  Her departing advice was to “start with one or two areas and apply these ideas.”  She is the author of several books which will be available on the Parent Lending Library Shelf. Please sign out these books for one week and learn what a brilliant child advocate can accomplish at her own play based school.

            One of the biggest tenants of her program is to set up areas that encourage exploration and discovery. She has an amazing assortment of accoutrements in her block center that yield ramps, tunnels, marble runs, ping pong ball tracks and more. She asks that no toy be brought in front of the children with only one attribute. She decries the use of character toys because are locked into one identity and application.  She refuses to let art be anything other than an exploration of materials.  She made me cringe when she said “If there is an adult model of the project, then I question if it is really art.” While some ‘craft projects’ are acceptable, the bulk of her program focuses on developing creativity. I  left the workshop vowing to create a clay play area, build a large sand pit and add on to their block building centers.

            With the support and contagious enthusiasm of our Co-Chairs and Mrs. Lori we all took up her challenges and are doing our best to enrich your child’s experience here at Coop. Our first steps are to add a clay area and to have a large art exploration center using the bulletin board as an easel.  Her book Please Don’t Move the Muffin Tins; A Hands Off Guide to Art for the Young Child has many ideas and examples of ways to rotate new materials and mediums in and around the art center. Please feel free to sign up to be the facilitator at this center as an activity.  We will also be rotating the clay play area with the woodworking table to bring more exploration with a variety of materials.

            Our challenge to provide open ended sand play gave rise to the construction of a large sand pit near the playground fence.  Using a hose or filling the magic well with water and providing buckets gets these engineers inspired to build moats, lakes, waterfalls, and roadways.  We hope to bring out the cars, shovels, sifters, shells, treasure box etc. to this area and use it as long as possible.  Bev Boss has photos of children stripped down to their underwear in the cold November weather filling moats with water! This area will also become the site for our butterfly garden.  If you have perennials that need dividing this fall that are insect friendly, please give us some plants. We are hoping to construct a shed with the children’s help to store our gardening and sand play equipment.  If this inspires you please see the Co-Chairs or the Teachers and we will co-conspire to build a small lean-to shed together.  Bev’s book Tumbling Over the Edge,  A Rant for Children’s Play has many inspiring and creative outdoor and indoor ideas along these lines.

            Lastly, we are hoping to have your cooperation as snack parents to help us make that a meaningful activity, rather than something done in the kitchen before the children arrive. We understand that some of you don’t have the time or inclination to cook with kids, and there will be times when a bag of pretzels and some grapes will be our snack option, but we hope to have many parents embrace our goal of making the snack preparation a chance for the children to learn and explore and make discoveries too. Some of our ideas are : husk corn and serve corn on the cob; make butter in a jar;  make ice cream in a bag; bread baking in it’s many forms and incarnations (pretzels, bread, pita, doughnuts, fry bread,  chapattis, tortillas) ; making nut butters; making applesauce; using the apple peeler/corer to prepare apples for snack; scrubbing potatoes and making mashed or broiled potatoes; simple soups using a few vegetables the kids wash and put through a food processor or hand slice; mixing up trail mix, making pasta, preparing pizza, baking a pie, no-bake cookies, healthy muffins etc. etc.  The children will also be washing their own cloth napkins each week as part of our effort to cut down on disposables.  Mrs. Kat will provide a hand wringer washer for this weekly ritual, as well as a child sized clothes hanger. We hope to make every part of our day meaningful and play-based to give your children the best experience possible.

Teacher Wanted: Apply Now!

Our Beloved Mrs. Lori has tendered her resignation from the Cooperative Playschool. We are sad to see her go, and wish her luck in her future endeavors.

This departure has opened up a great opportunity for a new teacher for the "Green Team", the 3-4 year old classroom. Follow the link below to the job posting, and apply today!

http://pennstate.craigslist.org/edu/1286992563.html

The New Board is hard at work...

The 2009-10 Cooperative Playschool Board of Directors is hard at work, preparing the school for the new year. Shortly you will receive by post the 2009-10 Information Packet, containing valuable information about the upcoming year. Read it thoroughly, and save it for further reference.

In the meantime, join us on Wednesdays 10 to Noon for a playdate! It's a great way to meet other families and kids before the school year starts.

Also be on the lookout for upcoming news regarding painting the school and building our new storage shed for the kids. We are planning a work weekend in August. It will be a good opportunity for parents and kids to bond over purposeful work!

Coop T-shirts here! Get yer T-shirts here!

We are proud to present our Cafe Press shop, available anytime, for all you Cooperative Playschool merchandise needs.

This is a fundraiser for the school (we get $1+ for each item purchased), so of course we thank you very much for your support. Plus, you'll look great!

Don't see what you want? Email kate at communications@cooperativeplayschool.com, and I'll see what I can do about adding an item/size/whatever.

We'll link to this site permanently soon, but for now, visit us at

www.cafepress.com/CooperativePlay

Summer Playdates Announced!

Thanks for Recycling!

Rugrats Resale was a resounding success for the Co-op, and it was fun, too!

Thanks to all who donated, both Co-op folks and community members, and to the sale volunteers.

To those who helped with all that tagging: we were a small but dedicated crew, and we really appreciate your help.

A special thanks to Balfurd's for donating hangers for all those clothes!

This was so easy and fun that we have decided to do it again! The Fall sale is the second week of August. Keep a look out for dates as they are announced, and keep on saving your stuff! Want to get it out of your house NOW? Call Kate at 814-883-3174 and I'll store it for you.