“Do everything in the name of Jesus.” Colossians 3:17
Grateful. Thankful. Blessed
Sonshine Christian Academy
November 2022 Newsletter
3601 GARRETT ROAD, DH 610-623-8588 MARGIE.SONSHINE@GMAIL.COM
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13
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Mark these dates on your calendar:
November 1st- Picture Day (Newborn, Infants, Blossoms, Toddlers and Rosebud 2)
November 2nd- Picture Day (Caterpillars, Butterflies, Fireflies, Bumblebees, Grasshoppers and Siblings)
November 6th- Daylight Savings ends (clocks back- gain an hour of sleep) - Children and adults will need extra grace and patience all week dealing with the time change
November 8th- Election Day
November 22nd- Whole school Thanksgiving Feast- more info to follow
November 24th- Closed – Thanksgiving
November 25th- Closed- Mental Health Day
November 28th- Staff meeting @ 5:30PM- Please be prompt at pick up
Looking ahead: Christmas Nativity Play- Friday, December 9th @ 4:00PM
(More info to follow)
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Encouraging Attentive Helpfulness: Learning from Indigenous Perspectives
A child who is healthy and literate, lives in security and is able to express his or her views, is a child who not only develops in harmony with his or her community, but also strengthens that community.
– Marta Santos Pais, Director of UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre
"Indigenous knowledge is informed by a balance between body, mind, heart and spirit. Thus, literacy and learning for Aboriginal people is much more than reading, writing and arithmetic; it involves ‘embodied learning’ and ‘performed knowledge.’ This knowledge seeks to nurture relationships between the individual, the family, the community, the nation, and all of Creation," writes Martha Llanos, Peru’s National Representative for the World Forum for Early Care and Education.
Llanos continues, "Early Childhood programs have been based primarily on what are thought to be scientifically appropriate for young children, with limited consideration for the traditional childrearing contexts. This often creates a gap between what the program providers think should happen for young children and what parents are used to doing. It is a challenge to develop programs and policies that can interweave that 'scientific' evidence with effective traditional childrearing practices and beliefs."
In her book, Hunt, Gather, Parent, Michaeleen Doucleff shares one such approach from a Mayan community: "This skill—of paying attention and then acting—is such an important value and goal for children that many families in Mexico have a term for it: it’s being acomedido… It’s not just doing a chore or task because someone told you to; it’s knowing which kind of help is appropriate at a particular moment because you’re paying attention." Instead of offering incentives, praise or rewards, Mayan parents help children internalize attentive helpfulness by asking children to help with real work, working side-by-side rather than directing, accepting what the child is able to do and encouraging their efforts.
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2022-2023 Sonshine CLOSURES:
December 26th, 27th, 28th, 29th & 30th- Christmas Break
February 20th- President’s Day (Staff- Professional Development Day)
April 7th- Good Friday {Staff Mental Health Day}
May 29th- Memorial Day
July 4th- Independence Day
July 31- August 4th- Staff Vacations and Building Repairs
August 25th- Classroom set up day for new school year
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One Purpose
“There are varieties of service, but the same Lord.” 1 Corinthian 12:5
