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CNS March 2024 Newsletter
Dear CNS Families,
Soon, during our upcoming spring picnic/annual meeting on April 27, we will vote in new board members for July 2024, making space for new families to steward the future of the school. This yearly tradition is one of my favorites! In my four years here, I have served in various roles on the Board of Directors – President, Co-President, & Secretary.
In each of these roles, working alongside dedicated parents, teachers, and of course Rachel, I have seen firsthand the power of collective effort and shared vision in shaping the future of our school. It has been an absolute privilege to witness the remarkable transformation of CNS over this time.
From the establishment of our beautiful art studio to the launch of nature school programming, every milestone has been a testament to our commitment to providing the best possible learning environment for our children. And now, we’re embarking on the exciting journey of adding a new classroom space.
My role on the board allowed me to have a hand and a voice in all of these changes. As I move on, I want to extend a heartfelt invitation to each of you to consider taking on my role of Secretary on the Board of Directors. Your fresh perspectives, enthusiasm and dedication are vital to the continued success of our school. By becoming actively involved, you not only contribute to shaping the future of CNS but also forge meaningful connections within our community.
Amidst the excitement of new beginnings, there is also a twinge of sadness; I will miss the warmth of our families and the sense of belonging that permeates every corner of our school. Still, it brings me so much joy to know what lasting change my work at CNS will leave for future students!
Sincerely,
Liz Kelly
Board Secretary
What's New
Save The Dates
April 21 at 10am: The Spring Work Party
April 27 at 10:30am: Annual Picnic & Meeting (Rain Date: April 28 at 12:30pm)
June 1: Little Folks Fair
Spring Parent Coffee
The room parents are excited to invite you to the Spring Parent Coffees on the front playground after drop-off.
3s/Nature 3s & Nature K: Tuesday, April 2nd
4s/Nature 4s: Friday, April 5th
Additionally, we have a date for the toddler parents as well as anyone else who wants to get out of the house and give the kids something to do:
Toddlers/all welcome: Sunday, April 21, 9:30am
We are looking forward to catching up over coffee and pastries. See you there!
Little Folks Fair Sign Up is Open
The annual Little Folks Fair is Saturday, June 1 this year from 11am-4pm.
All families, including preK 2 families, must send one parent to the fair to volunteer. If you have a known conflict such as a wedding or travel, there are other opportunities for you to meet this commitment. Please email Amy Johnson if so.
Co-op members must be there early to help set up and may leave when the green is fully tidy, with the exclusion of Set Up Clean Up Crew which works different hours.
Those who signed up for LFF booth chair co-op participation roles, the role description indicates that you must send two parents to LFF. The LFF chairs will assess how necessary that is as we get closer to the event.
Some folks signed up for LFF additional support as part of their co-op participation role and will send two parents to the fair as part of that role.
New Classroom Space Designs
CNS is expanding our space by adding a new classroom, allowing us to enroll up to 15 more children per day, provide handicap accessible classroom space, and more.
This work is made possible by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant of $52,000 to Community Nursery School distributed by The Guilford Foundation on behalf of the Town of Guilford. Thank you to the Town of Guilford First Selectman Matt Hoey and the Board of Selectman for their vision and generosity in allocating the historic ARPA funding for nonprofit recovery to strengthen the town of Guilford.
We invite you to view the second draft of designs produced by Antinozzi Associates. Mike Antinozzi’s children graduated from CNS nearly 20 years ago!
You may share your thoughts to theboard@guilfordcns.org. Emails will be shared with the Expansion Committee.
Family Spotlight: The Onofrios
Amy & Antonio Onofrio are parents to Elena, who has a birthday coming up and is joining Mrs. Johnson’s 3s class!
As part of their coop job, they will be taking over the monthly newsletter— you can email them with any newsletter additions.
Both Amy and Antonio are RNs at Yale, with Amy working in Labor and Birth and Antonio as the Assistant Manager of Emergency Services. Both are also from CT but moved to Guilford in 2016.
Together they like to garden, play Legos and board games (especially "Eye Found It!", a Disney hidden picture game). They love going to Disney as a family; Elena's favorite ride is "It's a Small World", Amy's favorite ride is "Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind", and Antonio's favorite ride is Star Wars Rise of the Resistance.
Classroom Corner
Maple Syrup Making
Yale tree experts returned to CNS to help students identify tree to tap (courtesy of the Schildwaters).
The children monitored buckets, experimented with boiling sap in an instant pot and taste tested maple cream, maple candy and maple syrup.
Ready for Spring
This month students are welcoming spring and experimenting with primary colors!
These students are painting beautiful spring flowers.
Upcoming Events
CNS Co-op Participation Survey
We want to know how the participation model is working for you! Let us know by taking this survey.
Purchase CNS T-Shirts
All new CNS 3 & 4 students will receive a free t-shirt from the school. Adults should order their t-shirts online (they are needed for community events such as Little Folks Fair.
Questions or need financial support? Email Agata Rzucidlo.
Past News & Announcements
Nature School in the Spotlight: CNS' Appearance in the CT Examiner
This month, our Nature School was featured in the CT Examiner’s Education section, highlighting the growing need for an alternative approach to traditional Early Childhood Education.
Over the last decade, as academic demands on our youngest students have grown significantly, caregivers are finding public schooling for their 3-5 year olds more and more unsatisfactory. Schools like CNS’ Nature School are seeing an explosion in popularity as caregivers seek more flexible, play-based approaches to learning and more outdoor time for their children.
Our director, Rachel Daniels, was quoted outlining the benefits to a Nature School approach. Instead of a “hyper-focus” on kindergarten readiness in the academic sense, CNS and Nature Schools are focusing on the precursors to these skills first: gross motor and fine motor skills - built up through hiking, climbing, jumping, balancing, and play-based learning.
We can adhere to Common Core standards while also allowing our children to set the pace for their learning in an outdoor environment. Our Nature School (and the ever-growing number of nature schools across the country) are showing caregivers that this can be a reality for their children!
CNS February 2024 Newsletter
Dear CNS Families,
As parents, many of us are spending January planning six months ahead, enrolling our children for school in the fall and booking summer sessions.
On the school administrative side we are also planning ahead. Looking to the 2024-2025 school year, we anticipate new openings on the CNS board (the board is comprised of current families, so as students graduate so do board members!).
The CNS board provides oversight, strategy and direction for the school. Parents join the board for various reasons; my reason for joining the board was to make a difference. I hoped (and still hope) to leave the school just slightly better off than when I joined.
If you have an interest in stewarding the long term vision of one aspect of the school and believe you will have students attending CNS for two more years, we’d love to hear from you! Please fill out this expression of board interest form and someone will reach out to you shortly.
Thank you,
Caitlin Garzi, CNS Board President
What's New
Current Year PreK 4 Openings
CNS has two openings in our preK 4 M/W/F program for 2023-2024. If you know of someone looking for a change, please direct them to the website or the director. Programming for 2024-2025 is now full.
There is still limited space in our M-F summer program. You can download the enrollment form below.
New Program!
Feb. 27, 6:30pm: Parent Mixer
Please join us for a fun evening to get to know your fellow CNS parents! Enjoy pizza, connect with other parents, bid on some great silent auction items and enter the 50/50 raffle while sipping some beers at Stony Creek Brewery.
LFF Grant from GSB & TGF
The Guilford Foundation (TGF) awarded CNS $2,500 towards The Little Folks Fair in a grant sponsored by Guilford Savings Bank. We are so grateful for the supportive Guilford community!
CNS Co-op Participation Survey
We want to know how the participation model is working for you! Let us know by taking this survey.
Family Spotlight: The Bendernagels
Victoria & Eddie Bendernagel are parents to Eddie, in Mrs. Outtrim’s 3s class, and Andrew, who is 16 months. As part of their coop job of “handy person,” they were instrumental in building the new yoga platform with materials funded by TGF & GSB!
Victoria was an engineer at Edgewell Personal Care, currently taking time to be a stay at home mom. Eddie is an Engineering Supervisor at Electric Boat in New London.
They moved to Guilford in the summer of 2017 with Victoria coming from NYC and Eddie from South Windsor, CT.
Together they like to take walks and go to the beach. They are a split sports household - Yankees vs Red Sox! Stay tuned to see what the kids decide as they grow.
Classroom Corner
Fun in the snow
There’s nothing like snow to add a new element of learning and fun to our toddler curriculum. The kids enjoyed sledding, making snow sculptures, and using snow in the play kitchen.
A Muddy time
After the snow melted, it gave us yet another gift: mud. Here students are using the mud to paint beautiful pictures outdoors.
Purchase CNS T-Shirts
All new CNS 3 & 4 students will receive a free t-shirt from the school. Adults should order their t-shirts online (they are needed for community events such as Little Folks Fair.
Questions or need financial support? Email Agata Rzucidlo.
Upcoming Events
Past News & Announcements
A Visit from Meigs Point's Ranger Russ
A truly special day for nature kindergartners and the 4’s!
Ranger Russ from Meigs point nature center (pronounced Megs, I’ve been saying it wrong for years!)
After Ranger Russ was done with his awesome presentation, the kinders were able to talk to him about their track prints that we cast and some scat photos that we were stumped on.
We learned some new terminology that we will be using in the field when we come across tracks. Ask your child about a walker, hopper, waddled and bounder. They also came up with wonderful track stories
We finished our day off with a brisk walk through the trails, journal writing, lunch/recess, literacy/math, partner work, trap building (moss, sticks and hole digging. Quite impressive!) snake drawings and a fancy restaurant was created
A magical day for sure
Your Guide to Dressing your Kids for Cold Nature School Days
Not sure what your kids should wear on cold Nature School days? Here’s your guide!
Layers
Layering clothes has to be the #1 thing that can make an 18 degree day feel like nothing or be miserable and create a safety issue
First layer
Base layer-this is the layer that keeps you warm. Tight thermal clothing; You don’t have to spend a ton of money. There are lots of different brands to choose from and some people just use pajamas as a base layer. Shop base layers.
Second Layer
Fleece layer- this will trap the heat in close to your body. Shop mid layers.
Third Layer
Snowsuit and or waterproof layer (depending on the weather).
The snow gear will not keep your child dry during wet days. The best thing to do is always add a waterproof layer on top of the snowsuit on the wet days.
Wet=Cold
Socks and Boots
Wool socks are best. Here’s a REI link for socks.
Boots-rubber boots on cold days won’t necessarily keep your child’s feet warm. Check in with them to see how they felt with their toes
Gloves
Warm layer and a waterproof layer for wet, cold days. Extra warm gloves always in the pack
Hat and Balaclava
Both of these are great options
Check in with your child at the end of the day to see how they felt with their layers.
Inside your pack
Waterproof layers(pants and gloves) should always be packed away
Extra second layer. Some kids opt to add a layer on during the day
Hat
Warm socks
Extra gloves
Seasonal appropriate change of clothes
It’s best to pack the bag with your child. Show them exactly where everything is going and what is in their pack.
Nature teachers are continually doing body checks during the day to make sure all parts feel comfortable. We will often ask them to add a layer or swap a layer if necessary. It’s important to have the appropriate gear on hand.
18 degrees and sunny is much warmer than 40 degrees and cloudy/rainy!
Nature school veterans, feel free to share your favorite brands, links and tips! It’s great to have a community that can help!
CNS January 2024 Newsletter
Dear CNS Families,
As parents, many of us are spending January planning six months ahead, enrolling our children for school in the fall and booking summer sessions.
On the school administrative side we are also planning ahead. Looking to the 2024-2025 school year, we anticipate new openings on the CNS board (the board is comprised of current families, so as students graduate so do board members!).
The CNS board provides oversight, strategy and direction for the school. Parents join the board for various reasons; my reason for joining the board was to make a difference. I hoped (and still hope) to leave the school just slightly better off than when I joined.
If you have an interest in stewarding the long term vision of one aspect of the school and believe you will have students attending CNS for two more years, we’d love to hear from you! Please fill out this expression of board interest form and someone will reach out to you shortly.
Thank you,
Caitlin Garzi, CNS Board President
What's New
Summer Programming Posted
Join us at CNS for an amazing, nature-filled summer! Sessions are open to any child entering PreK4s, Kindergarten or 1st grade with separate PreK-2 programming available. Summer session provides the opportunity for social development through both planned activities as well as relaxed, fun, open-ended play.
Feb. 27, 6:30pm: Parent Mixer
Please join us for a fun evening to get to know your fellow CNS parents! Enjoy pizza, connect with other parents, bid on some great silent auction items and enter the 50/50 raffle while sipping some beers at Stony Creek Brewery.
LFF Grant from GSB & TGF
The Guilford Foundation (TGF) awarded CNS $2,500 towards The Little Folks Fair in a grant sponsored by Guilford Savings Bank. We are so grateful for the supportive Guilford community!
CNS Co-op Participation Survey
We want to know how the participation model is working for you! Let us know by taking this survey.
Family Spotlight: The Bendernagels
Victoria & Eddie Bendernagel are parents to Eddie, in Mrs. Outtrim’s 3s class, and Andrew, who is 16 months. As part of their coop job of “handy person,” they were instrumental in building the new yoga platform with materials funded by TGF & GSB!
Victoria was an engineer at Edgewell Personal Care, currently taking time to be a stay at home mom. Eddie is an Engineering Supervisor at Electric Boat in New London.
They moved to Guilford in the summer of 2017 with Victoria coming from NYC and Eddie from South Windsor, CT.
Together they like to take walks and go to the beach. They are a split sports household - Yankees vs Red Sox! Stay tuned to see what the kids decide as they grow.
Classroom Corner
Fun in the snow
There’s nothing like snow to add a new element of learning and fun to our toddler curriculum. The kids enjoyed sledding, making snow sculptures, and using snow in the play kitchen.
A Muddy time
After the snow melted, it gave us yet another gift: mud. Here students are using the mud to paint beautiful pictures outdoors.
Purchase CNS T-Shirts
All new CNS 3 & 4 students will receive a free t-shirt from the school. Adults should order their t-shirts online (they are needed for community events such as Little Folks Fair.
Questions or need financial support? Email Agata Rzucidlo.
Upcoming Events
Past News & Announcements
CNS December 2023 Newsletter: Grants, Solstice, & 2024-2025 Programming
Dear CNS Families,
My name is Kris Bloch and I am the treasurer for CNS’s Board, a role that I have held for two years. My daughter Ruby is enrolled in PreK4s, NS4s, and several afternoon enrichment programs, and my son Henry is a recent CNS alumnus.
As treasurer, I am responsible for developing the school’s annual budget, in close partnership with CNS’s director and board. Put simply, budgets are about dollars and cents; at CNS, we aspire to align the budget with our values and allocate resources towards our priorities. Last spring, the board adopted a strategic plan that guides our budget process, and includes the following key priorities:
Keep tuition affordable to maintain broad access for the community;
Augment investments in our talented staff;
Increase capacity and financial aid to support enrollment growth; and
Diversify revenue sources to meet rising costs.
The board’s commitment to promoting equity and inclusion is embedded in all of these priorities.
Despite rising costs, the current school year’s budget holds tuition steady for the third year in a row. We approved a cost of living raise for our staff and tripled our investment in financial aid. We continued our investment in school facilities, which allows us to remain competitive and directly impacts our families. We increased funding for classroom materials, which allow teachers more flexibility to plan engaging activities for their classes.
Holding tuition constant while expanding investment in our community is no easy feat. We owe tremendous credit to our Director, Rachel Daniels, who has evolved CNS’s programming to make more efficient use of the school day, resources, and building, allowing us to serve a record number of families this year; developed new curriculum, such as Nature School and Art & Artists, that differentiates CNS’s offerings compared to other local schools; and relentlessly pursues grants to fund enhancements to our facilities and programs that we otherwise could not afford through our existing tuition and fundraising sources.
I am excited to share with you that the board recently voted to approve tuition for the 2024-2025 school year, keeping tuition steady once again.
As always, we strive to be responsible stewards of the funds that have been entrusted to our organization, using them to further our mission and priorities while working to manage costs where we can. CNS’s cooperative model, which relies on family participation, is critical to maintaining our financial sustainability. Through your positive engagement in our coop model, we are able to create an environment where all students can learn to love school.
We know that you have many choices for pre-school education - we are sincerely grateful to you for choosing CNS for your children and your investment in our school in ways too numerous to describe.
We invite your input in our priorities or changes you’d like to see at the school, which can be sent to theboard@guilfordcns.org. All board meetings are virtual and this year we have posted the meeting links on the CNS website on the events page. All families are welcome to attend.*
Thank you,
Kris Bloch
*Rules for non-board member participation & agenda items are listed in the calendar invites on the website.
What's New
CNS receives outdoor mindfulness Grant from GFFE
CNS was awarded a $5,000 grant from Guilford Fund for Education (GFFE) to support efforts to expand our mindfulness program. The grant will fund an outdoor yoga platform on the back playground to be used by CNS students and equipment for the children. “Developmentally, young children's brains are in the here and now,” says CNS teacher Heidi Outtrim. “Yoga and mindfulness strengthens a child's ability to be present as their brains develop. As a result, we see improved emotional regulation, a skill that will benefit them through later childhood and adolescence.”
The new materials will expand on recent staff investments in early childhood yoga instruction certification, creating a dedicated space to practice mindfulness in the open air. Says Outtrim, “when [Yoga is] practiced in nature, children are better able to focus, relax and optimize sensory development.”
A winter work party led by Bonnie Braley will be organized for the construction of the platform, offering another opportunity for CNS families to meet their annual participation obligations. Once the platform is complete, children will be free to use the platform to practice mindfulness.
2024-2025 Programming Announced
2024-2025 programming and enrollment forms have been released. Programming remains relatively similar to our existing offers with just a few small improvements. Currently enrolled families are able to submit their enrollment applications during the priority enrollment period (Jan 1-14). We recommend submitting your form before the school opens to the public for enrollment; we anticipate programs will fill early.
CNS Co-op Participation Survey
We want to know how the participation model is working for you! Let us know by taking this survey.
Family Spotlight: The Jacksons
Michelle & Brian Jackson are parents to Hailey, in Mrs. Cruz’ 4s class, and Avery, in Ms. Sullivan’s toddler play group.
Michelle is an interior designer at Pottery Barn and brings her design eye to CNS with monthly imaginative play stations in the muscle room. Brian works in program finance at Sikorsky Aircraft.
Brian is originally from Madison while Michelle is from Cape Cod. They lived together in East Haven before moving to Guilford in 2017.
The Jacksons are big Boston sport fans. Hailey has been in attendance for Celtics & Red Sox games at an early age. They also love swimming, traveling, and their yellow lab, Sydney. Hailey and Avery have six cousins all under 12 and ALL GIRLS!
Classroom Corner
Solstice celebration
Nature School children of all ages gathered together with their families in the evening for a Solstice celebration. Families enjoyed the artwork made by their children by lantern light and enjoyed various crafts. During the school day this month, several nature classes worked together decorating winter wreaths courtesy of CNS-family owned Balsam + Berry.
Enriching Afternoons
Tuesday & Thursday enrichment classes have been exploring mindfulness. Here the students are practicing rainbow pose.
Cooking Science enrichment classes have been learning where their food comes from thanks to the bounty provided by the CNS greenhouse. These students picked their own veggies to make a salad.
Purchase CNS T-Shirts
All new CNS 3 & 4 students will receive a free t-shirt from the school. Adults should order their t-shirts online (they are needed for community events such as Little Folks Fair.
Questions or need financial support? Email Agata Rzucidlo.
Interested in 2024-2025 Board Service?
All board members are current parents of students at the school (hello natural term limits!). As we look ahead to the 2024-2025 school year, we anticipate new openings as students graduate. If you have an interest in stewarding the long term vision of one aspect of the school and believe you will have students attending CNS for two more years, we’d love to hear from you! There is an FAQ sheet below, and you can also chat with existing board members about their experience as you see them at school. A form to express interest in board service will be coming soon.
Upcoming Events
Past News & Announcements
🍂🍁CNS October 2023 Newsletter: Upcoming events, fundraisers, and more.
Happy October to our CNS families! We hope your family is fully settled into the school routine and have been fully enjoying the season.
Our children's teachers have been leaning into the natural world each day, guiding our little ones to look up or down at the wonders nature provides. They have been coaching our children in the rhythms and routines of the day: hand washing, checking in, greeting neighbors and listening to circle time.
Those of you who have been able to get into the classroom for your helper day have been able to see these special routines first-hand. Observing your child at school and meeting their friends is such a special experience and I am so grateful to CNS for providing this opportunity for all of us.
Outside of the classroom, I also hope you have been able to connect with CNS friends at our various social events or through your cooperative participation job.
We have two very exciting activities coming up. The first is the fall clean up, where parents work together to tidy up the school and the grounds.
The second is Raise Craze, our kindness fundraiser! You may have noticed the front playground is without swings. This year, we will use the funds generated by Raise Craze to purchase new swings for the front playground! With your help, we hope to install 6 swings + 2 toddler swings WITH an accessible swing.
We have many exciting upcoming events and ways to get involved. Please browse the events page to learn more.
What's New
Window Painting
CNS parents worked together to paint the Amarones window with a spooky Bluey scene. Vote for the window by liking the Facebook Picture!
CNS T-Shirts
All new CNS 3 & 4 students will receive a free t-shirt from the school. Adults should order their t-shirts online (they are needed for community events such as Little Folks Fair.
You can also order shirts for younger children or those who have outgrown their shirts below.
Questions or need financial support? Email Agata Rzucidlo.
Family Spotlight: The Wysoczanskis
Tim & Carly Wysoczanski are parents to Luke, in Mrs. Outtrim's 3s class, and Dylan (age 1).
Carly is leading the fall and spring clean ups this year for the co-op participation job, so look for her if you are joining the group on November 18!
Carly is an occupational therapist for birth to three and Tim works for the Meriden Fire Department. They moved to Guilford from Cheshire in 2019 and love spending time outside, pizza nights, and hanging at the beach 🌅
Upcoming Events
Classroom Corner
This season is all about the leaves! Their bright colors are perfect for creating nature art, from group pattern projects to individual artwork.
CNS students are also working with pumpkins, acorns, and other natural materials as they learn all about what the changing weather means for our forest friends and the environment around them.
Reminder
Please make sure to keep an eye on the CNS events page and the family portal (password loveschool).
Board meeting minutes are posted to the portal along with many other documents or messages sent throughout the year.
All board meetings have been posted to the events through 2023, along with many other fun community events.
Past News & Announcements
Community Support
An important part of a community is that it is there for support during major life changes. At CNS, we are a community. There are a number of ways we come together to support families as they encounter challenging times, organized by The Board.
Major life changes may include:
Change in school or care provider
Moving towns or houses
Divorce
Loss of a loved one
New siblings
A parent or guardian starting a new job
From meal trains to stepping up to cover your parent helper or work party obligations, there are many options available for the community to support you. Please email theboard@guilfordcns.org. You can request that your situation remain confidential or provide what you would like to share with the community.
It’s not uncommon for children to exhibit new behaviors while processing changes to their lives and routines. Toddlers are experiencing many life changes for the first time and are trying to understand how changes will impact their daily routines while also struggling to learn the life skill of emotional regulation.
If there is something that might be affecting your toddler at home or at school, we encourage you to reach out to your teacher or the Director through BrightWheel. Communications through BrightWheel are visible only to your child’s teacher and the director.
Your child’s teacher can work with you to make sure your individual situation is taken into account. Knowing what your child may be processing can also help teachers navigate classroom behavior.
Resources
BOOKS
FINANCIAL AID
LOCAL SERVICES
Hope After Loss grief counseling & support groups
LOCAL THERAPISTS WITH TODDLER EXPERIENCE
Alexa Sutherland at Shoreline Psychological
Rolando Martinez or Loren B. Sterman, pathwaysessex.com
David M. Meyes, play therapy
Mick Kelly, Guilford Psychological Services
You could help CNS save $9,000 a year!
Did you know❓
🚫 CNS spends over $9,000 a year on fees related to processing tuition payments by credit card
😎 You can help the school save by switching your auto-payments to your ACH or bank account.
👉 Instructions can be found here: https://help.mybrightwheel.com/en/articles/6321735-payment-methods-and-settings#h_fff3899c8b
💝🤝Alternatively, if you'd like to offset the 2.9% credit card processing fee, donations can be made online: https://www.guilfordcns.org/checkout/donate?donatePageId=63ee65f6e2eb506030bdb1b9
2023-2024 Family Directory
The Family Directory is now available on the CNS parent portal website.
Link: https://www.guilfordcns.org/cns-parent-portal
Password: loveschool
If your contact information or other details are incorrect, the Full Directory spreadsheet if fully editable and you can make any changes necessary yourself; you may also redact or remove your own details if you would like to opt-out.
This year, BrightWheel has added a Family Directory tab within the app. This information is not organized by class, so we will continue to create the Google Sheet; however, the BrightWheel directory is available if you would like to use it. Opt-out instructions are here: https://help.mybrightwheel.com/en/articles/8129695-using-the-parent-directory#h_af61d6f7c1
August at CNS: Family Handbook, Updated Participation Requirements, and More
Hello everyone in the wonderful CNS community,
My Name is Carl, the CNS board Participation Chair, and I'm excited to embark on my second year in this role. Taking over from my sister-in-law, Amy, who is now one of our amazing 3's teachers, has been an incredible experience. As a family, we wear many hats and, of course, parenting is a full-time job in itself.
When I first stepped into this position, I must admit, I felt a bit apprehensive. Balancing the responsibilities of parenting and work is already challenging, and taking on a board role at the school seemed like a significant commitment. However, my belief in the CNS vision and the importance of active family participation motivated me to take on this role wholeheartedly.
Throughout my first year, I engaged in meaningful conversations with parents and teachers, listening to your valuable input. I wanted to understand how our model could adapt to the changing needs of CNS families. This year, we are taking action based on your feedback.
To make participation more manageable for everyone, each family will now be required to participate in the classroom four times per year - twice between September and January, and twice between February and June. That number is the same regardless of the number of children your family has enrolled or the programs they are in; this approach ensures a more equitable experience and represents a significant decrease from the weekly in-class days some families had last year.
With the extra time, all families will sign up for a cooperative administrative job that lasts for the entire year. These roles are crucial to the school's functioning and improve the experience for all of us here at CNS. The best part is that these tasks can be easily scheduled around your availability, allowing us to make connections with other families as we work together to administer the school.
We also recognize the need for flexibility, and most families will now only be required to send one parent to The Little Folks Fair (LFF) in June unless they have signed up for a LFF job in the co-operative administrative job list. This change is meant to make childcare arrangements more straightforward, enabling you to enjoy the fair with your children fully. Similarly, the school clean-up days will only require one parent per family in attendance, further supporting your childcare needs.
To ensure accountability and foster connections, we are introducing the Community Committee. This standing committee will regularly check in on family participation to ensure we all work equitably to meet our membership requirements.
I am genuinely excited about these changes to the participation model, and I hope you will embrace them too. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at theboard@guilfordcns.org.
Looking forward to an incredible year of growth and learning together!
Warm regards,
Carl Chu
CNS Participation Board Chair
P.S. For more details about the participation requirements, please read the 2023-2024 Handbook which has just been posted on the family portal (pasword loveschool). To sign up for a job using the below link, put your name in column F and your contact information in Column G.
What's New at CNS
The Family Handbook
The family handbook is now posted to the Family Portal, as is the Nature School Handbook.
Get Ready for School
The CNS director, Rachel Daniels, recently sent out a list of everything necessary for families to complete before the start of school-- including school supplies. Make sure you've checked everything off the list! New forms will be available at the end of August.
Member Spotlight, Maggie Moffett
Maggie and her husband Joe are helping to coordinate a CNS grant submission for town ARPA funds.
The goal of this grant is to enable CNS to expand our footprint to give more students the benefit of our play-based and nature inspired education.
This summer, Maggie has been calling architects and scheduling contractors, working to get schematics in advance of the grant deadline.
Maggie and Joe own a local line striping company and have also donated the labor and materials to line our parking lot-- coming soon, after we repave to fix all the potholes.
Maggie & Joe's son Hunter graduated CNS last year out of Mrs. Cruz's class and their daughter Madison starts at CNS in the fall.
Classroom Corner
The Summer Program at CNS is coming to an end! This month, the children painted rocks and worked with other materials from nature to build interesting and fun creations. What projects are your children bringing home?
What else is new? The CNS grounds are getting ready for fall. The House and Grounds board chair, Daniela Locke, is arranging mulch for the musical garden on the front playground.
The musical garden was funded in part by 2022 Giving Tuesday donations and in part by the school's capital improvement funds. Thank you to Kevin "Pop" Locke and the Locke family for their generous donation of mulch!
In the News
The Nature School program at CNS was featured in The Guilford Foundation (TGF) impact report. TGF funded the weatherproof gear closet used by our nature students last year, and the wooden bridge that leads to the CNS outdoor classroom. Both the closet and the bridge are intended to be used by future students for years to come.
This newsletter is published by the CNS board. Please send suggestions to theboard@guilfordcns.org.
Welcome to CNS families from the director!
Hello Families,
I hope you are all having an amazing summer! We are so excited to start a new school year with you and your child.
Over the summer there are several important things that need to be done before your child can begin school in September.
Submit your child’s medical forms, including flu shot records. Allergy and asthma documentation must also be provided, if applicable.
Complete your background check and fingerprinting
Set up your BrightWheel billing (checking account preferred)
Sign and return the Parent Permission Form (attached)
Sign and return the Family Handbook, photo release form, discipline policy, and Co-Op Participation Agreement, once they are made available
Ready your child’s school supplies
Medical Forms
Before the start of school I will need an updated medical form for every child. Your child's pediatrician has the form, but for reference, here is the form
The first page is for parents/guardians to fill out and sign, the remaining pages are for the physician to fill out and the immunization record must be attached.
If your child has asthma/allergies I will also need additional forms please let me know so I can make sure you have the correct paperwork.
A few additional details about immunizations.
Flu shots are required for children in preschool. Your child will need a flu shot by 12/31/23 to return to school in the new year. A reminder that there is no longer a religious exemption for vaccines, only approved medical exemptions. If your child has been vaccinated for COVID (not required) please be sure that is indicated on the immunization record.
Background Checks/Fingerprinting
The state requires all family members participating in a preschool classroom to be background checked and fingerprinted. If you completed this last year, there is no need to do it again.
There will be a communication coming asking for your full name, DOB, zipcode, and preferred email address. After I get that information I can check to see if you are in the system. If you are, GREAT! If you are not, I will use that email address to invite you to begin the background check process.
School Calendar, Parent Permission Form & Portal
For those who have not received a calendar, I will attach a copy to this email.
There is also a parental permission form attached that needs to be filled out and returned as well.
There is a Family Portal on the CNS website with a collection of forms and links if you misplace these, and the password is loveschool.
Billing & BrightWheel
At this point everyone should have received an invitation to join Brightwheel, our online platform for communication, billing, etc. If you have not, please respond to this email with the best email address to send the invite.
Once you are in Brightwheel, please fill out your child's personal information section. When you set up billing, please check to make sure that Sept. tuition was paid and that the security deposit was applied.
If you are setting up payment plans and do not have a preference between credit card and ACH transfer, please consider using ACH transfer as it saves our school a significant amount of money in absorbed fees.
School Communication
Please like and follow our school Instagram and Facebook page. We also have a private facebook group for current families. Families should use and interact with the private group as much as possible! This is a great way to coordinate and get to know one another.
Nearly all of the communication from the school will be done over Brightwheel, this is one of the few emails you will receive from me this year!
However, the majority of school activities are organized by parents and families. They will mostly use email to communicate with our school community. Please add theboard@guilfordcns.org and community@guilfordcns.org to your contacts to avoid emails going to spam.
School Supplies
For the first day of school, please make sure your child has the following (all labeled with the child’s name):
Indoor shoes
Nut-free snack
A water bottle
Appropriate outerwear, including outdoor shoes, and play clothing
An extra set of clothes in a labeled bag
Lunch, if staying for enrichment or a lunch program
A school bag will be provided at meet and greet.
If you need labels, please purchase them via Mabel’s Labels as a portion of the proceeds goes to CNS.
Clothes
Clothes should be school clothes. By which I mean play clothes. Play clothes need to be items that will get paint, dirt, water, and food all over them. Every day. Children are meant to explore and investigate the world around them and clothes need to make that possible, not be a barrier to that experience. Many of the art supplies we use are washable. Some are not. Some claim to be washable, but are not (I am looking at you, blue liquid watercolor). Please send your child to school in clothes that will allow them to have messy, sensory, and independent experiences. And that might mean you send them in high-end couture. That's fine! Just as long as you are comfortable with it coming home covered in blue liquid watercolor.
Shoes
The children will be wearing indoor shoes inside the building. These are soft soled shoes/slippers that they can put on themselves. This keeps our school cleaner, quieter, and helps foster independence and responsibility. Outdoor shoes need to be safe for climbing and playing outside. Rain and snow boots should be worn when the weather calls for it, as we do go outside in nearly all weather.
A few links for indoor shoes:
Accessories
Please limit the number of accessories worn to school. They can be distracting, lost, and sometimes hazardous.
Outerwear
Children spend time outside EVERYDAY. Unless the weather is dangerous, they will be outside. Time outdoors in nature is core to our mission, and children thrive in all weather. Please send your child with clothes appropriate for the temperature and predicted precipitation. Please label all outerwear!
Snack
All children eat snack at school, and snack is not provided by the school. A couple of pieces of advice:
Snack should be small! One or two items only. A granola bar. Strawberries and a string cheese. Fifteen course snacks are more than children can eat at that time.
We are fostering independence in our children. Snacks that they can open themselves are best. Many parents "start" the snack for their children (example: tearing the corner of the granola bar wrapper so a child can open it themselves).
Please send your child to school with a labeled water bottle that they can open and close on their own.
Our school is nut-free.
Lunch
If your child will be eating lunch at school, much of the same advice applies. Containers or packing that the child can open themselves (although teachers will always help!) Lunches are not refrigerated so cold packs work well if necessary.
Backpacks
This year we will be using cubby bags. This is a tote that will be given to your child so that they can carry everything that they need to and from school; their snack, lunchbox, water bottle, and artwork and projects home. We are switching from the type we used last school year. Your child will receive their bag at the meet and greet.
Dates
Teacher Meet and Greets - Sept. 5th and 6th. Invites coming in August!
First Day of School - Sept. 7th and 8th
There is a lot of information above, please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions. There is also a CNS family handbook that will come later this summer, as well as details about cooperative participation.
Enjoy the summer weeks ahead!
Sincerely,
Rachel Daniels, CNS Director
July 2023 Newsletter - School Calendar & More
Hello and welcome to CNS families new and returning!
July is the start of a new academic year, though if you're like me, you're still in summer mode, possibly even enjoying the expanded summer programming at CNS this year.
As we gear up for fall, we're excited to share the 2023-2024 academic calendar, available on the CNS Family Portal (password loveschool). The Family Handbook is still going through its annual revisions and will be released in August. Please be on the lookout for emails from Rachel Daniels, CNS Director, regarding required paperwork for the start of school.
We're entering into the 2023-2024 school year with so much momentum; CNS is fully enrolled with waitlists for every program--despite our expanded program offerings. We're also coming off two record fundraising years, putting us in an excellent position to act on our long term plans for the school.
This year, the CNS board has some big goals. We want to execute on many of the opportunities identified by last year's long term planning committee, including expanding our space to welcome more students and meet the need of the growing population of preschoolers in Guilford. We also aim to offer more programming options that will maximize the full use of our space. We’ll be rethinking what it means to be a member of the cooperative, and also the benefits of cooperative membership.
None of the above will be possible without the active participation of all of you, our cooperative members. Each of you have unique skills and passions; we welcome any ideas you have for applying your expertise to our school. CNS would not be where it is today for our children without the special skills dedicated by our past members.
We hope you will join us in our work to improve the school for the generations of students to come, and for our local community.
Sincerely,
Caitlin Garzi
President, CNS Board
PS. For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Caitlin and I’m the president of the board this year. My daughter, Jane, is starting in the 3s program in the fall & my son, Robby, graduated last year and will be heading to Calvin Leete. We have so many dedicated board members steering the school; you can read about all our board memberson the websiteand you will be hearing from each member individually as the school year goes on.
CNS Highlights
Private Facebook Group
Each year CNS creates a private Facebook group for members to informally connect with each other.
Supplies Needed!
Looking for a concrete way to support CNS?
The school is in need of the following supplies to support Nature K. If you purchase anything, please mail or deliver it to the school and notify the director.
Upcoming Dates
Sept. 5 & 6: Meet & Greets
Sept. 7 & 8: The first days of school
Sept. 16: Guilford Parade
July 24: Book club Monday, July 24 at 7:00pm. Email to join.
Member Spotlight: Liz Kelly
This month we would like to spotlight Liz Kelly.
Liz's dedication to CNS has played out in her thoughtful engagement with staff and her prolific work hiring many of the current teachers and aides at CNS.
Liz served as board president for two years; this year, she is assuming the role of Secretary where she will continue to provide critical support to the school & the board, offering continuity and training to the new president & vice president.
Liz is the owner of Guilford's Mother Luna, which offers supportive programming for new mothers and their young children. Her son, Sam, is entering Nature K and her son Ben attends Melissa Jones.
Classroom Corner
Summer program is in full swing! The summer started with flower painting and stamping; last week children learned about pollinators and made dough bees out of turmeric and other ingredients.
Announcements
We're Hiring!
Please email Rachel Daniels if interested.
Board Meeting Minutes
June board meeting minutes are available here. Going forward, all meeting minutes will be posted on the Family Portal.
Newsletter Idea or Suggestion?
Email theboard@guilfordcns.org
2022-2023 End of Year Note from the Board
Dear CNS families,
It's June. That means another school year has come and is soon to go, and with it, at least 72 drop offs, nine parent-helper days, one Little Folks Fair, and countless other CNS experiences.
This year has been transformational. Not just for the school, but for us, as parents, families, and a community. We hope, as you think back to the fall, you see the change in your children. The growth they have experienced, the independence they have gained, and the friends they have made.
And for you, we hope you also look back and see growth in your community and friendships made. The connections we make here together will strengthen our children throughout their school journey.
Beyond our own relationships, the work we've done this year for CNS will help shape the school and the children who attend it for years to come. Together, we added new programming, more opportunities to connect as a community, and improved our grounds.
Next year we have over 70 families joining the school-- a 40% increase. We are offering our first Kindergarten class. With our new programming, we are also hiring for new staff positions (please email Rachel to apply) and increased financial aid.
We'd like to extend a big thank you to our school Director, Rachel Daniels, for her relentless dedication to the school and her work to deliver quality programming for our children. Thank you as well to all our wonderful teachers and aides. Special thanks to Marissa Capasso, who will be missed as our 2s teacher.
In addition, thank you to our board members who have donated so much time and energy to the school, especially our exiting board members, Crystal Gaudio, Maggie Sullivan, and Brittany Stalsburg.
Thank you as well to our LFF co-chairs, Brittany Stalsburg, Jessica Herrington, and Laura Bell. Early results are showing record proceeds for this year's fair. As you know, LFF is our sole source of funding for financial aid and also contributes to capital improvements-- things like the new musical playground you might notice on the front playground this week. Hosting LFF is work, that's for sure, but it's so, so worthwhile. And Brittany, Jessica, and Laura rocked it this year!
Thank you to Kim Schmid for her work on our long term planning committee and her previous years supporting the school as a board member, and for her service chairing the Winnie The Pooh station at LFF year after year.
Lastly, congratulations to the CNS families who celebrated the arrival of their little ones this year: Nigel, Eleanor, Heath, and Jack. Here's to our future CNS students!
As you reflect on the year, we hope you can look back and see the value in your commitment to the CNS co-op experience. With so many competing priorities, carving out time to grow roots in your community is no easy feat. But we believe that your community investment will pay dividends for many years to come.
For those of you who will rejoin us again next year at CNS, we look forward to seeing you on the playground and at drop off. And for those of you who are moving to new schools with your families, we wish you well on your journey! We hope to see you at the stepping up ceremony this week.
Sincerely,
Liz Kelly & Caitlin Garzi
CNS Board Co-Presidents
P.S. Read the CNS board May meeting minutes.
Thank you to our exiting board members!
We would like to both recognize the accomplishments of and extend a big thank you to exiting 2022-2023 board members! The 2023-2024 board term begins July 1.
Brittany Stalsburg
As the CNS Enrollment officer, Brittany will be known for leading the charge to double financial aid for the 2023-2024 school year.
Her work enabled students to experience a nature-inspired, play-based education who otherwise would not have been able to attend school, and helped the school as a whole make strides towards our mission to embrace diversity & inclusion in the classroom.
Brittany also co-chaired the Little Folks Fair, leading the fair to a record-breaking fundraising year. LFF is our sole source of Financial Aid funding, so Brittany's work this year will continue to enable future students to benefit from our programming.
Crystal Guadio
Crystal, the CNS House & Grounds board member, made her mark on the school in just one short year by installing the Musical Garden on the front playground.
While the rest of us were resting post-LFF, both Crystal & Rachel returned to the school on Sunday to supervise the installation of the new playground equipment, which will be used by CNS staff next year as part of a new music curriculum.
Crystal will also be known for solving the parking lot pothole problem & lining the lot (thank you to the Moffett family of Moffett line striping for their donation of materials & labor), and for her time on the pollinator garden & greenhouse.
Crystal and her husband David led the charge to temperature control the barn for student use. Their contributions to the school grounds will be used by students for years to come!
Maggie Sullivan
While Maggie may be leaving her role as Secretary of the CNS board, she is remaining at the school as an incoming 2s teacher and 4s aide.
The school could not be more lucky to have Maggie leading our 2s programming & supporting our 4s students. Special thanks to Maggie for joining the board mid-year and continuing to support the school!