Weekly Update 2-5-12

Dear Families,
Thank you for spending time with us this week to discuss your child’s progress and goals. Please feel free to come talk to your directors if you have any questions, comments or concerns.
We are now enrolling for preschool summer camp. Please see the summer contract under the “enrollment” tab for specific dates and options. Spaces are limited. Children who are under 5 years old at the start of summer are eligible to enroll. For children 5 and over, we recommend Children’s Adventure Company summer camp, with whom we share our facility.
As we let you know earlier this week, Margaret Riquelmy will be on medical leave from her classroom duties for the rest of the year. Just to clarify: she will continue in her function as administrative assistant part time as her health allows.
DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 6:30-7:30- SAPLINGS FAMILY FUN NIGHT-This is a great opportunity to visit with other parents in the Saplings classroom.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 12-1:00-VALENTINE’S DAY PIZZA LUNCH-Students will have the opportunity to enjoy a pizza lunch with their special pen pals in an all-school setting in the great big room.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20-NO SCHOOL! PRESIDENTS’ DAY

Weekly Update 1-29-12

Dear Families,
We look forward to seeing you tomorrow and Tuesday for your child’s conference.
In order to minimize classroom disruptions, teachers will no longer be fielding parent phone calls or texts during school hours. Please handle all communications through the school office-995-9869. Messages will be checked and relayed daily to teachers by 9AM, at noon and between 2 and 2:45. Thank you for your cooperation.
For those of you getting right to work on your income taxes and claiming your childcare deduction, Dragonfly’s EIN# is 14-1984036.
This will be the final week to weigh in on our parent survey. Please communicate your opinion by taking the short survey. Your feedback is important.
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/WEB22E756LB48H
DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:
MONDAY & TUESDAY, JANUARY 30 & 31-NO SCHOOL! PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES. Please sign up for an appointment in your classroom. Childcare will be provided during your child’s individual conference.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 3-4PM-CURRICULUM COMMITTEE MEETING-Anyone interested in joining the conversation about solidification and documentation of school-wide curriculum and assessment should join Matt Kelly (Dragonfly Board member and ####) and staff any and every first Friday of the month.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 6:30-7:30- SAPLINGS FAMILY FUN NIGHT-A chance to visit and play along with other Sapling families.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 12-1:00-VALENTINE’S DAY PIZZA LUNCH-Students will have the opportunity to enjoy a pizza lunch with their special pen pals in an all-school setting.

Weekly Update 1-22-12

Dear families,
We were glad to see those of you who made it to our Open House on Saturday. We hope you enjoyed your time with other current and prospective Dragonfly families, as well as our staff.
Our thanks to the firefighters of Station #1 for visiting us on Friday to share information about fire safety and demonstrating all their gear (and how scary they might look if they show up during an emergency). We have promised them a video of our own “Fire Song” so that they may share it with other schools, too!
Please have your child bring in a book this week to donate towards the Hooked on Books Program; that is the child admission price to this week’s Friday field trip. Thanks! If you’d like to volunteer as a chaperone to help us walk to NDI, please talk to your teacher.
We began our school-wide pen pals project last week. Each child will have a pen pal from another classroom with whom they will correspond. Then pen pals will have the opportunity to share pizza lunch together on Valentine’s Day.
Thanks to the many of you who have already taken our survey. You can still share your views by following the link:
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/WEB22E756LB48H
DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25-TUITION & MATERIALS/ACTIVITY FEE DUE-If you have elected to pay your materials & activity fee as a semester/twice yearly payment, $125 is also due along with your tuition this month.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 27, 10:00-12:30-”HONK!”-The entire student body walk to the NDI Dance Barns to see Santa Fe School for the Arts and Sciences perform this adaptation of the ugly duckling story. Entry for children is free with donation of a book towards the Hooked on Books program. Please bring a book to donate if possible. We will need a few parent chaperones. Please let your teacher know if you can help as we will need to RSVP with the number of seats we need.
MONDAY & TUESDAY, JANUARY 30 & 31-NO SCHOOL! PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES. Please sign up for an appointment in your classroom. Childcare will be provided during your child’s individual conference.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 6:30-7:30- SAPLINGS FAMILY FUN NIGHT-A chance to visit and play along with other Sapling families
Stephanie Smith
Preschool Director
Dragonfly School
(505)995-9869

Weekly Update 1-15-12

Dear Families,
You received an email invitation to participate in our Parent Survey this week. Your input is important to us, so please take a few minutes to give us your feedback. Just follow the link:
Thanks!
Attached please find last week’s Sprout cooking recipe for treasure muffins.
Kind reminder to please turn off those cell phones when on the Dragonfly campus. Your attention during student transitions and for teacher communications is essential.
DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:
MONDAY, JANUARY 16-NO SCHOOL in observance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day
TUESDAY, JANUARY 17-BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING. Please RSVP to this email for childcare during the meeting.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 11:30-2:30-BULB PLANTING- Juaquin Hershman and horticulturalist friends  will work with students to plant bulbs in the garden cold frames and pot up bulbs this week to deliver to our neighborhood shut-ins and the Mary Esther Gonzales Senior Center on Alto St.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 21, 10-NOON-OPEN HOUSE-Come check out every classroom in the school and bring your friends! This is a great time to visit and get to know other parents and staff. Activities and refreshments will be provided.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25-TUITION DUE
FRIDAY, JANUARY 27, 10:00-12:30-”HONK!”-The entire student body walk to the NDI Dance Barns to see Santa Fe School for the Arts and Sciences perform this adaptation of the ugly duckling story. Entry for children is free with donation of a book towards the Hooked on Books program. Please bring a book to donate if possible. We will need a few parent chaperones. Please let your teacher know if you can help as we will need to RSVP with the number of seats we need.
MONDAY & TUESDAY, JANUARY 30 & 31-NO SCHOOL! PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES. Please sign up for an appointment in your classroom. Childcare will be provided during your child’s individual conference.
treasure muffin
Stephanie Smith
Preschool Director
Dragonfly School
(505)995-9869
stephanie@dragonflyschool.com

Weekly Update 1-7-12

Dear Families,
Thanks to Juaquin Hershman, our helpful horticulturalist, for securing donations of flower bulbs from Payne’s Nursery and Home Depot. Our students will be planting in the garden cold frames and potting up bulbs this week to deliver to our neighborhood shut-ins and the Mary Esther Gonzales Senior Center on Alto St.
Expect an invitation to take our Parent Survey in your inbox this week. Your input is important to us, so please take a few minutes to give us your feedback. Thanks!
We are looking for helpers to post fliers around town for our upcoming Open House. If you are visiting anyplace you could hang a flier,please take a print version from your classroom or if you would like to make a special trip out to do some posting, please respond to this email so we can get you a list of locations. We hope that you will also make time to attend this event to have a look at every classroom in our school and enjoy some activities and refreshments!

DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:

FRIDAY, JANUARY 13-SAPLING FIELD TRIP TO THE RANDALL DAVEY AUDUBON CENTER

MONDAY, JANUARY 16-NO SCHOOL in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
TUESDAY, JANUARY 17-BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING. Please RSVP to this email for childcare during the meeting.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 21, 10-NOON-OPEN HOUSE-Come check out every classroom in the school and bring your friends! This is a great time to visit and get to know other parents and staff. Activities and refreshments will be provided.
MONDAY & TUESDAY, JANUARY 30 & 31-NO SCHOOL! PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES. Please sign up for an appointment in your classroom. Childcare will be provided during your child’s individual conference.
Stephanie Smith
Preschool Director
Dragonfly School
(505)995-9869

Weekly Update 1-1-12

Dear Families,

Happy New Year! We hope that you enjoyed a wonderful holiday with your children. We look forward to getting back to routines in the brand new year.

As the Saplings begin their unit of study on birds, they kindly request the loan or donation of a window-mounting bird feeder and bird seed to help them with their observations. Also, if anyone has a used microwave oven they would like to pass along, we would appreciate a replacement for the one which finally died in our kitchen. Thank you!

Please welcome the newest additions to our Seeds class, Leo Connaughton and Ada McKinley, and their families to our school. The Seeds class is officially full!

DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:

MONDAY, JANUARY 2-TUITION DUE. Thank you to everyone who mailed in their payments over the break.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 13-SAPLING FIELD TRIP TO THE RANDALL DAVEY AUDUBON CENTER

MONDAY, JANUARY 16-NO SCHOOL in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

TUESDAY, JANUARY 17-BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING. Please RSVP to this email for childcare during the meeting.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 21, 10-NOON-OPEN HOUSE-Come check out every classroom in the school and bring your friends! This is a great time to visit and get to know other parents and staff. Activities and refreshments will be provided.

MONDAY & TUESDAY, JANUARY 30 & 31-NO SCHOOL! PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES. Please sign up for an appointment in your classroom. Childcare will be provided during your child’s individual conference.

Best wishes,
Stephanie Smith
Preschool Director
Dragonfly School
(505)995-9869
stephanie@dragonflyschool.com

Weekly Update 12-11-11

Dear Families,

This week Dragonfly students made and enjoyed snow ice cream.  Our ingredients were:snow, maple syrup and heavy cream (or soy or coconut coffee creamer or sweetened condensed milk) and vanilla. A liquid form of sweetener is necessary as sugar will not dissolve in the cold mixture. Stir together in a bowl, adding ingredients until you have your desired texture and taste. Add fruit or other flavor as you wish. This is so much fun, so simple and delicious! Try it for yourself next time there’s fresh snow.

We truly need some help for next week’s Night Tree event on Wednesday. We need a set up crew starting at 9:30 and a crew to clean up once we are done creating a disastrous mess with peanut butter around noon. Of course, being there during the event is also helpful, but the ends are the most labor-intensive. Please let your teacher know or respond to this email if you can help at the start or finish. Thank you!
Just a reminder for our four-day-week families: Drop-in days may be available in your class. Ask your teacher about availability. The drop-in day fee is $50.  Also, students may always attend events on their scheduled day off if they bring an adult along.
We are still collecting items for teen moms in school at SFPS. They could especially use maternity clothes if you are ready to relinquish some items. Please drop your items in the labelled box outside the office and we will deliver. Thank you!
DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13, 6-8PM-BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING: This month’s meeting will be held at Nancy’s house. Please RSVP for directions and if you need childcare.
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14, 10-NOON-NIGHT TREE SOLSTICE CELEBRATION. Don’t let the name fool you; this is a daytime event when we read the story of the same name by Eve Bunting and make edible treats for our animal friends in nature. We look forward to observing the animals this year as they enjoy our offerings on Thursday and Friday.
NOTE: Although this is a special day, it is MESSY. Please don’t wear your best clothes for this event. We will do our best to smock children working with peanut butter and lard.
MONDAY,DECEMBER 19-FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30-WINTER BREAK. NO SCHOOL!
Stephanie Smith
Preschool Director
Dragonfly School
(505)995-9869

Weekly Update 12-4-11

Dear Families,
My apologies to those of you with Microsoft email addresses since you didn’t get last week’s update due to a rejection of my mail. If you ever miss the mailing for any reason, you can find the update on the school’s homepage.
Just a reminder with the weather as it is right now: We observe all weather-related delays and closures set forth by SFPS. A 2-Hour delay means we open our doors at 10:00. You may check for updates on the Dragonfly homepage  http://www.dragonflyschool.com or at 995-9869. You can get it from the horse’s mouth at http://www.sfps.info Please remember that any day we are here at school, children will spend time outdoors, for the most part regardless of the weather. Please be sure your child is prepared with adequate clothing, including hats, gloves and snow boots. Don’t forget those indoor shoes (the snow boots are uncomfortable for all day).
Thank you all for observing our rule of no cell phone use on campus. It is meant to provide a safe and attentive environment for us all.
If you would like to join in efforts to provide for teen parents at our local high schools, please donate new or gently used items for babies and maternity to the box outside the office. In addition to clothing items, they could use gas cards to get to school and food cards to get dinner on the table. Thank you!
DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:
MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 10-NOON-BUDS FIELD TRIP TO THE MAIN LIBRARY.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 10-NOON-SEEDS AND SPROUTS COMMUNITY PLAY DATE
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 9-SAPLINGS CLASS FIELD TRIP-Ice skating in Los Alamos. Setting their sights on winter! Parents needed to make this field trip a reality. Please let your teachers know if you can help by lacing up ice skates and holding a hand.
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14, 10-NOON-NIGHT TREE SOLSTICE CELEBRATION. Don’t let the name fool you; this is a daytime event when we read the story of the same name by Eve Bunting and make edible treats for our animal friends in nature. We look forward to observing the animals this year as they enjoy our offerings on Thursday and Friday.
NOTE: Although this is a special day, it is MESSY. Please don’t wear your best clothes for this event. We will do our best to smock children working with peanut butter and lard.
MONDAY,DECEMBER 19-FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30-WINTER BREAK. NO SCHOOL!

Weekly Update 11-27-11

Dear families,
We hope you all enjoyed a lovely holiday.  Thank you for joining us to eat Stone Soup on Tuesday. We were  happy to host so many family members for this traditional Dragonfly event. We are thankful for you all.
DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 28- TUITION DUE

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 9-SAPLINGS CLASS FIELD TRIP-Ice skating in Los Alamos. Setting their sights on winter!
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14, 10-NOON-NIGHT TREE SOLSTICE CELEBRATION. Don’t let the name fool you; this is a daytime event when we read the story of the same name by Eve Bunting and make edible treats for our animal friends in nature. We look forward to observing the animals this year as they enjoy our offerings.
MONDAY,DECEMBER 19-FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30-WINTER BREAK. NO SCHOOL!

Weekly Update 11-20-11

 

Thanks for being a part of 

Dragonfly School!

 

 

 

Dear Families,

We are looking forward to seeing all of you here to enjoy Stone Soup with us on Tuesday. Entertainment begins at 11:30 in your classroom and then we’ll all proceed to the great big room for lunch together around noon. We could definitely use some help with set-up (right at drop off or show up at 11:00) and clean-up after the event. Please let us know if you are available to help by responding to this email.
We are thankful for you!

The Aspens and the Seeds worked well as a team cleaning our reach of the river today. We filled a couple of trash bags of garbage, collected sanded glass for projects and held hands a lot. The Aspens were competent as teachers, helping Seeds get their fingers into their gloves and giving useful  information. The quote of the day came from our oldest student (age 11) and was directed at our youngest student (not yet 3). “That is a leaf. Leaves belong in nature. Trash goes in the bucket.” (see photo) On a similar note, the Saplings found fossils as an example of things they were thankful for in nature on their hike to Tesuque Creek.

It was suggested to me that we help you locate our bake sale donors to enable you to better patronize those businesses who have contributed to the school. Whoo’s Donuts is located between Whole Foods and Chocolatesmith on Cerrillos. Pizza Centro is in the Design Center and also in the Agora in Eldorado. Fresh for Less Produce is on the corner of St. Francis and Cerrillos.

DATES TO LOOK OUT FOR:

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21-COOKING STONE SOUP-Ever tried to make soup from a stone? It’s easy if everyone adds a little of what they have to the pot. Bring a bit of vegetables, grains, beans or herbs to add to the mix. We have set aside potatoes, tomatoes and pesto from the school garden for this event.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 11:30-1PM- STONE SOUP LUNCH- We are inviting parents and grandparents to this annual event. Come enjoy some entertainment, eat soup and our school-made bread with the entire school community. Please come and bring your grandparents!

WEDNESDAY- FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23-25-NO SCHOOL! THANKSGIVING BREAK

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 28-TUITION DUE