Dear Touchstone Families,
Last month we had a ton of fun with our Fun Fall Family Night. Students had the opportunity to make candy apples, slime, fish for prizes and play carnival games in the gym. Thank you to everyone who helped out to make the event so much fun. It was also fun to see everyone dressed up. The inside Costume Parade was a hit and the students really enjoyed showing their costumes off to all their friends in other classrooms. The Halloween Parties in the different classrooms were a huge success thanks to all the parent volunteers. All the students had a fantastic time. Check out the pictures from all the fun on the digital picture frame by the front door.
As we celebrate thanks this month, I want to take this opportunity to thank you all, as parents, for being a wonderful support to our community. Your work paired with our teachers’ hard work makes our school the amazing community that it is.
Teacher Madeline’s Class is engaged in a month long service project to learn about homelessness and giving back. They are working with The Union Gospel Mission to raise money by selling baked goods they make in class and handmade stationary. The class is also collecting a variety of Thanksgiving meal items to donate. Interested in helping out? Stop by Teacher Madeline’s room and ask one of the students for more information!
We are fortunate to have a very diverse community at our school. This month we are learning about how people are different and what makes each student unique. I encourage you to talk with your child about what makes them special and to celebrate what makes other people special as well.
I hope everyone has a safe and fun Thanksgiving Break!
Warmest wishes,
Gordon Kingsley, Principal
Join us for our next Open House: November 15, 2014, 10:00am-1:00pm
Tours: Please call 877-959-3745, to schedule a tour. We look forward to talking with you soon!
Free Discovery Day: See how much fun your child will have at our preschool. Please call for more details
From The Education Department
The Strong-Willed Child
We all bring our children into the world with a preconceived notion of what they will be like as they grow. Children, as we all know, set their own course and often present us with parenting challenges. There are some children who come into this world with the gift of a strong will and spirit. These are the children who may at times be labeled as stubborn, fiercely independent, bossy, defiant, demanding, or even difficult. Ironically, these are the same characteristics often associated with leaders, CEOs and entrepreneurs.
Strong-Willed Child: Stubborn, fiercely independent, bossy, defiant, demanding, difficult
Leaders, CEOs, Entrepreneurs: Determined, authoritative, decisive, nonconforming, confident, bold
It is interesting to note that some of the qualities we so quickly label with a negative connotation in children are the same qualities we admire in adults. Characteristics of strong-willed children often include:
- High creativity and intelligence
- Insatiable need to know “why”
- Desire to test the status quo and push limits
- Perfectionistic tendency based upon their own high expectations of themselves
- Need for a high level of validation and acknowledgment that they are being heard
- Resistance to change, unless they control the change
- Highly sensitive
As they question rules and push limits, strong-willed children often challenge us as parents, but there is a beauty and a gift of character in these young children. A healthy child-parent relationship means setting important limits, but not hindering the child’s freedom to stretch and question. The key to maintaining parental sanity and balance with strong-willed children is finding meaningful ways to communicate and connect.
Communication with a strong-willed child hinges upon a patient willingness to listen. Strong-willed children have a direction all their own. Often, cooperation from a strong-willed child can be accomplished by pausing to listen to their questions or their proposed alternatives. Listen, reflect, respond, and model is the mantra to adopt. Listen to what your child is saying, reflect upon how they feel or why they responded the way they did, respond with gentle guidance, and then model the behaviors and manners you desire to see in your child.
Connection with a strong-willed child centers upon taking a genuine interest in what interests them. Allow your child to share his or her passions with you, even during the preschool years when such interests may beMy Little Pony, or learning about dinosaurs. Find ways to have fun and laugh with one another in order to build a trusting relationship.
Finding balance with a strong-willed child is about setting limits and offering child-appropriate explanations as to why those limits exist. Allow your child to participate in establishing everyday routines, remembering that the path is less important than the end result. Strong-willed children will be empowered by those tiny elements of perceived control. Lastly, remember that head-to-head battles are not what we want to model. Strong-willed children will benefit by learning communication, cooperation, and compromise skills. Adults have to model these skills and empower children to adopt them.
While it is not easy parenting a future world-changer, the steps you take today will make for a happier tomorrow for you, your child, and future to come.
Lauren Starnes, PhD- Director of Early Childhood Education
November News
Dear Touchstone Families,
Last month we had a ton of fun with our Fun Fall Family Night. Students had the opportunity to make candy apples, slime, fish for prizes and play carnival games in the gym. Thank you to everyone who helped out to make the event so much fun. It was also fun to see everyone dressed up. The inside Costume Parade was a hit and the students really enjoyed showing their costumes off to all their friends in other classrooms. The Halloween Parties in the different classrooms were a huge success thanks to all the parent volunteers. All the students had a fantastic time. Check out the pictures from all the fun on the digital picture frame by the front door.
As we celebrate thanks this month, I want to take this opportunity to thank you all, as parents, for being a wonderful support to our community. Your work paired with our teachers’ hard work makes our school the amazing community that it is.
Teacher Madeline’s Class is engaged in a month long service project to learn about homelessness and giving back. They are working with The Union Gospel Mission to raise money by selling baked goods they make in class and handmade stationary. The class is also collecting a variety of Thanksgiving meal items to donate. Interested in helping out? Stop by Teacher Madeline’s room and ask one of the students for more information!
We are fortunate to have a very diverse community at our school. This month we are learning about how people are different and what makes each student unique. I encourage you to talk with your child about what makes them special and to celebrate what makes other people special as well.
I hope everyone has a safe and fun Thanksgiving Break!
Warmest wishes,
Gordon Kingsley, Principal
Join us for our next Open House: November 15, 2014, 10:00am-1:00pm
Tours: Please call 877-959-3745, to schedule a tour. We look forward to talking with you soon!
Free Discovery Day: See how much fun your child will have at our preschool. Please call for more details
From The Education Department
The Strong-Willed Child
We all bring our children into the world with a preconceived notion of what they will be like as they grow. Children, as we all know, set their own course and often present us with parenting challenges. There are some children who come into this world with the gift of a strong will and spirit. These are the children who may at times be labeled as stubborn, fiercely independent, bossy, defiant, demanding, or even difficult. Ironically, these are the same characteristics often associated with leaders, CEOs and entrepreneurs.
Strong-Willed Child: Stubborn, fiercely independent, bossy, defiant, demanding, difficult
Leaders, CEOs, Entrepreneurs: Determined, authoritative, decisive, nonconforming, confident, bold
It is interesting to note that some of the qualities we so quickly label with a negative connotation in children are the same qualities we admire in adults. Characteristics of strong-willed children often include:
As they question rules and push limits, strong-willed children often challenge us as parents, but there is a beauty and a gift of character in these young children. A healthy child-parent relationship means setting important limits, but not hindering the child’s freedom to stretch and question. The key to maintaining parental sanity and balance with strong-willed children is finding meaningful ways to communicate and connect.
Communication with a strong-willed child hinges upon a patient willingness to listen. Strong-willed children have a direction all their own. Often, cooperation from a strong-willed child can be accomplished by pausing to listen to their questions or their proposed alternatives. Listen, reflect, respond, and model is the mantra to adopt. Listen to what your child is saying, reflect upon how they feel or why they responded the way they did, respond with gentle guidance, and then model the behaviors and manners you desire to see in your child.
Connection with a strong-willed child centers upon taking a genuine interest in what interests them. Allow your child to share his or her passions with you, even during the preschool years when such interests may beMy Little Pony, or learning about dinosaurs. Find ways to have fun and laugh with one another in order to build a trusting relationship.
Finding balance with a strong-willed child is about setting limits and offering child-appropriate explanations as to why those limits exist. Allow your child to participate in establishing everyday routines, remembering that the path is less important than the end result. Strong-willed children will be empowered by those tiny elements of perceived control. Lastly, remember that head-to-head battles are not what we want to model. Strong-willed children will benefit by learning communication, cooperation, and compromise skills. Adults have to model these skills and empower children to adopt them.
While it is not easy parenting a future world-changer, the steps you take today will make for a happier tomorrow for you, your child, and future to come.
Lauren Starnes, PhD- Director of Early Childhood Education