Pink Panther Committee Newsletter February 2009 Welcome The committee and play workers would like to extend a very warm welcome to all of the new children and their parents who have joined the playgroup this term. Details of our committee are found on the notice board on the playroom wall and your feedback, thoughts and suggestions are always welcome. Fundraising Thanks to everyone who contributed to the Christmas hampers. £107 was raised from the raffle. We plan to buy a digital photo frame so that we can display some more photos of the children. Reminders Please ensure that all items of outdoor clothing and bags have your child’s name on them - there are a lot of coats on the pegs and it would really help the play workers if everything is labelled! Please also ensure that your child is dressed appropriately for the weather. We try and get the children out to play every day that it is dry. For information on school closures in adverse weather please call the Highland Council. Severe Weather phone number - 0870 054 6999 pin code 042230 When arriving at playgroup please come right into the playroom to remove your child’s coat. This should help prevent a bottleneck forming at the door and a long queue outside. Playgroup Activities The children have had a very busy time lately! We had our Christmas Party and Santa came with presents for everyone. Just before the Christmas break we had a very enjoyable trip to Howdens Garden Centre to look at all the decorations. Last week a lady from the Library came to tell the children some stories and each child received their Treasure Chest box of goodies. We also had a trip to the school library which all the children loved. We are hoping to add a regular library visit in addition to the weekly music and gym slots. We celebrated Chinese New Year and had the house corner decorated as a restaurant. There were different Chinese snacks which the children could with chopsticks – messy but fun! The children have been practising throwing and catching at gym and have also been playing lots of games to help with shape and colour recognition. Over the coming weeks they will be learning about numbers and counting. A final activity that the children are enjoying at the moment is Scottish Dancing which is proving very popular. Parental Involvement As part of our ongoing improvement plan we would like to invite all parents to a playgroup session. This is a fantastic opportunity for you to see what your child does at playgroup and is also a good chance for you to have an informal chat with their individual key worker. Over the next couple of weeks you will receive your own personal invitation to come in and see what happens at playgroup. (All of those that have already stayed will not be included in this). Younger siblings are very welcome - the children LOVE to show off their brothers and sisters to their friends. A reminder to all parents that if you have any hidden talents that you would like to share with the children (anything at all of interest!) just speak to a play leader about a visit to the playgroup. Upcoming Events We shall be putting up a notice board at the green gate in the garden detailing weekly activities, snacks etc to give you more of an idea what your child is doing each week. Half Term - Playgroup will be closed 12th, 13th, 16th & 17th February.