February is LOVE month aroundNoah’s Ark.

Be looking for lots of love shared during thisspecial month....God at work!! Special eventsfor you to be aware of involving February areon the calendar...please check it out.

We will have Valentine’s Day Parties onFebruary 14 & 15. Look for sign-ups on theclassroom bulletin boards to volunteer specialValentine Day treats & napkins.

We’d also LOVE to have you send/drop off aLOVE letter to your child for use in classtogether. The children LOVEmail...especially from YOU!!

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper...Tuesday,February 12 4-7 pmth

The fun will happen between 4-7 pm in the Trinity Room. Comeprepared to enjoy a great meal, have a caricature done by our ownalumnus: Megan Beck, walk through our Annual Art Stroll, participatein great children’s activities, and just plain have fun! We hope to seeyou there. Envelopes with tickets went home on Wednesday &Thursday, Jan. 30 & 31. Please return monies from ticket sales in thesame envelope by Monday, Feb. 11 .th

We are thankful for these sponsors to date: Indianhead Food Services ,Boxx Sanitation, Gross Motors/Neilsville, Festival Foods, The CoffeeGrounds, Moms on the Run, and Parkridge Distributing. We will betithing from this fund-raiser to the ELCA Disaster Relief projects:Hurricane Sandy.

See you on Shrove Tuesday....Ash Wednesday is the next day!!!!

Valentine’sParties are just aroundthe corner.

****We are asking thechildren to design a“box”/container for

their Valentine’s this year. We playmailman...and they receive valentinesfrom their friends. Shoe boxes workgreat...or buckets. Please make sure theslot on top is BIG enough for envelopes togo in. Valentine Party treat sign-ups willgo up today. We are hoping for a specialtreat & pretty napkins for our party...signup!

PLUS...please send your child a LOVEletter this month some time. It can bedelivered in the Noah’s Ark mailbox, orthrough the REAL mail. Your childrenLOVE letters...and especially like hearingyour special words!!

Noah’s Ark closed Monday &Tuesday, February 18 & 19 forthe Presidents’Day/MidWintervacation! Markyour calendars!

Noah’s Ark Preschool ...32 Year January/February 2013nd

Parent Activity Day...thanks!!!

THANK YOU so much for the amazing 29th

annual Parent Activity Day fun. Your activitieswere SUPER...and the children LOVED that youwere here. Isn’t it fun to know your child’sclassmates a little better...and their parents, too? Building relationships with your children andeach of you is our goal. The Teachers LOVED your visit...HUGS toyou all. (If you weren’t able to join us, pick another day & come be apart of the daily fun! We’d love to have you!!

Birthdays are fun!!We love celebrating your children’s birthdays at school! WE justcelebrated two summer ½ birthdays this past week...TWINS!!

February BirthdaysRhiana Fischer...4 on the 4 ...a GOLDENth

Kameron Kohlepp...5 on the 5 th

Olivia Morning...4 on the 17 th

Claire Gibson...5 on the 21 st

Lucy Day...5 on the 21 st

Ava Bauer...5 on the 23 rd

Jack Modl...4 on the 24 th

Aubri Christianson...4 on the 24 th

Audrey Pulvermacher...5 on the 24 th

Blessings and HUGS everyone!!

The PRAYER CORNER...Please include inyour prayers these:-Warmer days for outside play-NEW snow-our newest Noah’s Ark babies: Delaney(Presleigh’s sister) & Myles (Natalie’sbrother)-Our February Birthday children-authors who write GOOD books forchildren-LOVE enough to share-God’s healing touch for those who aresick, or who have fallen on this ice-our families-our friends

AMEN

SAVE THEDATE...coming upin May are ourannual SpringParty Programs.Save Monday orTuesday, May 6 &7...7 pm...in the TLC Worship Center.

FYI...please check to makesure you are up-to-date on2012-2013 tuition. Call or e-mail Amber for more info:amber@trinity-ec.org or 715-832-6601. We’ll be sendingreminders in February!

Please bring all childrenin during these coldwinter months...fortheir safety!!ALSO...it’s slippery onall surfaces...soSHUFFLE your feet.That’s what alumniparent, Dr. SueCullinan said on WEAUyesterday!

For school closings, I willsend e-mailsnotifying theNoah’s Arkfamilies. FYI...Wealways agreewith EauClaire PublicSchools. Ifthey are closed, so are we!Tuesday was an example...twosnow days this year already!!

Noah’s Ark Preschool ...32 Year January/February 2013nd

January Music & Finger plays...

1. Snowflake Snowflake2. This Little Light of Mine3. We are Marching in the Light of God4. The Mitten5. There Was a Chubby Snowman6. 5 Little Snowmen 5 Little Snowmen

Standing in a rowEach with a hatAnd 3 buttons in a rowOut came the sunAnd it stayed all dayAnd ONE little snowmanMelted away(Continue with 4 more...to

zero)

The Noah’s Ark Book Corner...

Here are a few of the GREAT books we’ve been sharingin January:

-“Red Sled”, by L Judge-“This is Not My Hat”, by J Klassen-“The First Day of Winter”, by D Fleming-“A Silly Snow Day”, by M Coleman-“Frosty the Snowman”...a classic-“The Snow Day”, by K Sakai-“Three Snow Bears”, by J Brett-“The Snow Man”, by R Briggs-“A Perfect Day for It”, by J Fearnley-“In the Snow...Who’s Been Here?”, by L George-“50 Below Zero”, by R Munsch-“The Snowy Day”, by E Keats

Your children hear LOTS of great literature every day! They LOVE to listen...we love to share good stories!!

January ART CENTER fun...

-Frosty paintings...a 2 step process: drawwith white crayon on blue/purplepaper...then paint with frosty mixture-Snowballl (sticker) names...all over ourclassroom (a small motor stickeractivity...with name recognition)-Mitten Prints...with sponge print markers-3D marshmallow art...GEOMETRY forkids-Snow people art with white chalk on darkpaper-Penguin cutting in the Cutting Pool-TEAM 3-D art with toothpicks & snowpeanuts-Sticker star fun...for Epiphany-Snowflake stamping...filling the paperwith shiny silvery stamped snowflakes-Ice Castle art....inside & outside (ascience project...and then art)-Squish art MITTENS

We’ve saved many of their beautiful artprojects during the month, so that they canchoose the ONE they want for the ShroveTuesday Art Stroll display! WAIT FORIT!!!!

OPEN GYM TUESDAYS

Mrs. Knickerbocker continues to greetparents and children(toddlers/preschoolers) in the TLC TrinityRoom/Gym from 10-11:30 AM for amorning of movement fun. She will sharea short story time/snack at the end of thesession each week. Cost is $3.00 perchild. No registration required.

Noah’s Ark Preschool January/February 2013

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OUTSIDE PLAY IN February...We will continue outside play on Wednesdays & Thursdays, as long asthe weather cooperates. We'll keep you updated!! We're hoping forsome more snow...so we can climb "snow mountains"!

Children need: snow pants, easy to wear/& put onboots, mittens/gloves, neck warmers/scarves, andjackets for our play.

Continue to put the outside play clothes in theirregular cubbies, as we will be dressing in theclassroom hallway from now on!

Please remember...BELOW ZERO temps keep us inside. (We hadTWO of those days already in January...BRRR!!

February Themes:

-Life of Jesus continues/miracles-Senses

-Pajama Day-Community Helpers/Postal Workers

-Lent begins-Valentine’s Day fun

-Dental health

Here’s what the Noah’s Ark children havebeen saying:

“The real batman is too old to fight crime!”“My water makes my hands look like

raisins!”“Gold, myrrh, and Frankenstein!”

“I have a mud sandwich!”“10 Pipers piping...that’s me!”

“My shirt is high-lighter yellow!”A conversation between 2 girls while

washing hands in the bathroom...”My daddy’s name is Andy andDaddy” “My daddy’s name is Adam & Daddy!”

Conversation at snack time is amazing these days. I bet your

dinnertime conversations are awesome, too!

2013-2014Noah’s ArkRegistration

Brochures are still available in theNoah’s Ark hallway!

Note the remaining call-inregistration dates:

ºTrinity Lutheran Church members(including TLC member Come & Play &

Friday Friends)**Tuesday, February 5 2013th,

8:00 A.M.ºSiblings of currently enrolled

students/non TLC members (includingnon-member Come & Play & Friday

Friends)**Thursday, February 7 2013,th

8:00 A.M.

ºOpens to the publicTuesday, February 26, 2013

8:00 A.M .

Ice Cream recipe...our YUMMYend-of-January treat:

In a quart size bag, add ½ c wholemilk, 1 Tbsp sugar, & a couple dropsof vanilla. Seal the bag, and then tapeit shut. Put it in another ziploc bag

that has 2 cups ice and salt.

Seal....and “shake it shake it shakeit...shake while you can. Shake it shake

it shake it...and pass it to a friend”!! Watch as it turns into ice cream...and

then enjoy!!

Yum...this is “ice milk”...but you canmake a creamier version with Half &

Half or Whipping cream!

Noah’s Ark Preschool January/February 2013

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Noah’s Ark Pajama Day

On Monday & Tuesday, February 25 & 26, the childrenmay wear their Pjs to school. Yup...we may even take anap or two! PLUS...lots of PJ fun will be designed for

the day! Mark your calendars...expect to see yourteachers “lounging” around, too!!

We say THANK YOU to these special peoplefor:

-Noah Theiss...money for the Piggy & four books in honor of his5 birthdayth

-Cooper Erickson... a rescue helicopter for play time fun in honorof his 5 BDth

-Stella Williams...20 children’s puzzles with “winter” in honor ofher 5 BDth

-Abby Page...a baby doll for our loft house in honor of her 4 BDth

-Bennett Eiselt...two special books in honor of his 4 BDth

-Kaija Kapanke...pop beads and a “Llama...Shares” book in honorof her 5 BDth

-Emarie Burnett...rainbow pon poms & money for the Piggy inhonor of her 5 BDth

-All the families who bring their children to school each day-The families who shared snow clothes with those in need at NA

-Thank YOU God...for all your love!!

Hugs to you all!

February is Dental HealthMonth...I’m working on some

specialvisitors to

help uswith goodcare of our

teeth. Look for

moredetailslater!!

Screening....fun one-to-onewith your child!!

In your 2012-2013 orientationbooklet, you can find info on the

screening that we do with each of thebeautiful children of Noah’s Ark. Thesheets are light purple, and cover the

preschool development areas of social-emotional, self-help, oral language,

creative-self expression,physical/motor, and

intellectual/mental. During January &February we spend a lot of one-to-one

time with your children, observingthese areas. We also fill out screeningforms, that you will receive upon ourcompletion of this HUGE project. It

takes time, and we only devote aportion of our day to screening, so thatour regular schedule continues for the

children. If you have specificquestions, be sure to ask.

You will receive these materials beforeour parent-teacher conferenceson April 8, 11 & 12. AND it willbe fun for you

to read &discuss as afamily. Yourchildren areamazing!!

Noah’s Ark Preschool January/February 2013

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Love and Logic thoughts: www.loveandlogic.com

Greatest Gift We Can GiveYou hold the door for your spouse, and your children are watching.

A child at the grocery store drops his toy, and his mother has her hands full, so

you bend to pick it up and offer it to the child.l And your children are watching.

It’s a snowy morning, and your older neighbor is strugling to clear the driveway

to get to work So you and your son grab shovels and help her. Your children

are watching.

Your daughter is wating at the bus stop with her friends. When the bus arrives,

the kids start to climb aboard, but one girl drops her backpack and books spill

out onto the ground. Although she was almost ready to get on the bus, your

daughter goes back to help her friend. They pick up the books and laugh, and

climb aboard the bus.

Watching children develop empathy for others is such a delight. Empathy

opens the door to understanding others, appreciating differences, noticing and

caring. It is the antithesis of self-serving, whiny and narcissistic behaviors.

Daniel Goleman calls empathy “the foundation of all emotional intelligence.”

Empathy is noticing how another person is feeling, and for a moment standing

in his or her shoes. It requires a calm and caring state of mind, and is a step

that precedes service to others. In our busy lives, it is sometimes difficult to let

go of our own pressing worries and consider the perspective of another.

Helping our children develop the capacity for empathy is one of the greatest

gifts we can offer them.

About Noah’s Ark…

Noah’s Ark is a mission of Trinity Lutheran Church…an extension of Children’s

Ministry, and licensed by the state of WI.

Our purpose is to:

SHARE the Good News of Jesus

ENGAGE children in activities to discover how

wonderfully God has made them

ENCOURAGE children in Christian attitudes of

respect, kindness, service, hope, forgiveness, peace,

and love

CONSIDER what a great place church is to be, and

HELP children learn what it means to be a

disciple

Trinity Christian Preschool“Noah’s Ark”Trinity Lutheran Church, ELCA

1314 E Lexington Blvd

Eau Claire WI 54701

PHONE:

(715) 832-6601

FAX:

(715) 832-6700

JEANNE COOPER

noahsark@trinity-

ec.org

jeanne@trinity-ec.org

Ginny Lien ginny@trinity-ec.org

Jill Kasmarek

jkasmarek@att.net

Marlee Knickerbocker

jknick6054@aol.com

We’re on the Web!

See us at:

www.trinity-ec.org

Includes the latest Noah’s Ark monthly

newsletter and calendars!