The New E3 School

Let’s Go on a Letter Hunt! We worked collaboratively to find upper and lowercase letters. Then we brought the letters back to the group, sounded them out and wrote each one down. We are working on letter recognition and so much more. Our teachers work tirelessly to give our children the skills they need to be successful in kindergarten and beyond. They make learning fun. WE are thankful for our children, families, teachers and leadership team.

Family Literacy Night! Every family received their library card, checked out books to take home, read stories, built reading forts and cozy spaces to read. It was wonderful to see our teachers, families and children playing letter and word games, listening to story times and modeling reading for our children. I remember building a reading fort with a white sheet over the dining room table, lining up my stuffed animals and pulling my Beagle under the table with lots of books. I read to my dog, stuffed animals and anyone who would listen. Sometimes I would just read quietly or look through the pages. We want to: ?? Ignite a love of books and reading. ?? Build the foundational skills that children need to become strong readers. ?? Make reading cool again. ?? Help our families build strong bonds through books. ?? Encourage children to read. ?? Teach children to be responsible for that book and return it. Read a book. Love it. Repeat. ?? The New E3 School READS.

We are writing our names on our library cards!! It is so exciting to check out books, take them home and share with our families. It is our responsibility to bring them back. There are cozy spots all around our school for family reading time. Read.Love.Repeat. @ the Lisa Robertson Literacy Lab + Library.

Exciting news! STREAMin3 is now the most widely used curriculum in VQB5 programs. This milestone reflects the dedication of educators, administrators, families, partners, and funders throughout the Commonwealth who have embraced our shared vision of providing high-quality, engaging early childhood education that helps every child thrive. From our roots with The New E3 School and E3: Elevate Early Education, to our partnership with the Virginia Department of Education, we're grateful for everyone who has supported our journey, every step of the way. Your commitment to quality for kids fuels our mission & truly helps shape the future of early learning. ?? #earlychildhoodeducation #ece #streamin3 #preschoolteacher #preschool #teacher #educator #play #playbasedlearning #classroom #earlylearning #curriculum UVA School of Education and Human Development Obici Healthcare Foundation ReadyKids ALLEGHANY FOUNDATION Virginia Department of Social Services

Have you seen our Art Gallery on TowneBank Street? Our preschoolers are creating a new exhibit! They started with blank bubble wrap and added ?????. We have a strong art-based philosophy embedded in our model. When young children create through art, they are improving fine and gross motor skills, working on hand-eye coordination, developing critical thinking skills, solving problems and creating a plan to express their ideas. They will hang their collaborative masterpiece in the Gallery next week. Special thanks to the Chrysler Museum of Art for helping us develop our skills and appreciation for art.

STEM starts early! Our Nature Playground was filled with dirt, conversation, questions and lots of fun yesterday. We ?? when the Master Gardeners visit and help us create a community garden in the fall and spring. Together, we learned the 4 C’s: Cooperation, Communication, Critical Thinking and Creativity. Here are a few of the STEM skills young children learn as they help a garden grow: Science- observe how plants grow, explore plant lifecycles and how weather changes impact a garden. Technology- use different tools, methods and techniques to help a garden grow and thrive. Engineering- think about how to design the layout and how much sunlight, water and soil the plants will need. Math- classify, count and measure the distance between plants and growth over time. Gardening activities at school and home build a strong foundation in science, technology, engineering and math that will last a lifetime. Not to mention, it teaches patience, responsibility and an appreciation for our environment.

It’s story time! One of our preschoolers is reading a book to her friends. They listened carefully to the story, talked about the characters, asked questions and predicted what would happen next. Reading aloud to our children from birth on up at home and in the classroom is a proven strategy that helps boost early literacy skills, build vocabulary, develop comprehension skills, expand the imagination and promote social-emotional development (empathy, problem-solving, conflict resolution and understanding feelings). September is get a library card month! Visit your local library, get a library card and check out books. It’s free!

What do you want to be when you grow up? Hint. Hint. ?????

What does he want to be when he grows up? Listen carefully to his why. A few hints: ??????

Did you know? Read alouds and storytimes have a positive impact on literacy + reading outcomes for young children.