The Crosby Family: Jack's New Preschool :)

I am so excited! Today, I finished enrolling Jack in his new preschool. He went this past fall to Cupertino's public preschool program, which was great and a blessing while we figured things out. However, I think he needs something more structured, and more days a week, so Justin and I decided that this was best. He will start off going Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:30am - 1pm, but they have room for him to expand his schedule as we get more comfortable with the routine (or after the baby comes.) He is starting on January 3!

I have looked at A LOT of preschools in our area, but I finally decided on Little People Christian Preschool, which is at a church about a mile from our house. When the weather is good and I am feeling okay, I can easily walk to pick him up (which will be a nice routine when the baby arrives.) Also, it's on Justin's way to work so he can do drop offs. Most importantly, I liked the Director and the feel of the school. Here is a little more information:

Jack will be in the Penguin Class. The starting age is 2.5, so he is right on track to start with the youngest kids in the class. When he turns 3, he will move up to the Duckling Class, and at age 4 until kindergarten he will be in the Robin Class.
The goals for the Penguins include introductions to the seasons, the months of the year, and the days of the week.
They will work on pre-writing and pre-reading including recognizing their name, number words, rhyming words, consonant sounds, and working with these skills through stories, poems, nursery rhymes, word games, and finger plays. They will also be introduced to Chinese words and symbols.
They will develop a mathematical understanding of 0-10, recognize positions (up, down, left, right), recognize shapes, match geometrical forms, and classify things by color.
Each week they have different breakout sessions for different skills, including muscle coordination and physical fitness, music, art, physical science, life science, earth science, and the Holy Bible.
They will focus on knowledge of the Bible including the following: Christmas and the birth of Jesus, Easter, forgiveness, parables, obedience, love and kindness, friendship, and promises.
Finally, the Penguins will learn responsibility. They will be responsible for transporting their own clothing, jackets/sweaters, and art projects for the day. They will demonstrate the ability to obtain, use, and put away materials and toys correctly. They will build cooperation and teamwork in clean-up responsibilities, and learn to wait in line and take turns.
The kids have a chef who comes in daily to prepare snack and lunch. The sample menu I received includes: chow mein, veggie lasagna, edamame, tomato soup and cheese sandwiches, spaghetti and turkey meatballs, teriyaki chicken, waffles and sausage, etc. I think I want to eat lunch there! The Director said that they don't force kids to eat things they don't like, but they don't want us bringing food from home unless there's an allergy. I don't think Jack will have any problems. :)
Finally - potty training. They require that all kids be in pull ups and that they all have set bathroom times (as well as any other time they ask.) They require the kids to manipulate their own pants (hence the pull ups.) I am really looking forward to seeing how this goes!

So that's the important stuff. I am really excited that we found a place that is small, loving, and that he seems to like (they were having the Music Man in for dancing and instrument time today when I took his paperwork in....and he did NOT want to leave!)

So that's our big news. I am really excited about getting into a schedule in January, and having time to get ready (physically and mentally) for the baby. She will be here before we know it! I think I have grown a lot in the past week or two...she's a lot heavier now and things like walking and sleeping are getting harder. Especially sleeping. I am sooo tired, a lot of the time. But it's all going to be over soon :)

Justin got me an iPhone for early Christmas present, so I am doing better at on-the-fly pictures. Here are a few!