Author Archives: Carol Steinman

Au Pairs Participate in Touch a Trruck

The annual Touch a Truck benefit for the Westport-Weston Cooperative Nursery School Saturday March 23 had an international atmosphere again when, for the fifth year, au pairs from around the world participated in the fun, family event.  Au pairs from South Africa, Thailand, Germany, France and Namibia braved the cold weather and winds to face paint and tattoo the children who blew truck whistles and horns, explored bull dozers, busses, fire trucks and more, jumped in a bouncy house and had a great afternoon.

Kathy, Sofia, Janneke

Kathy, Sofia, Janneke

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Jana, Christina, Sofia, Kaysi, May and Franzi

Jana, Christina, Sofia, Kaysi, May and Franzi

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March Activities

Windy Days – March is known for its windy days. It would be a great day to fly a kite

Sidewalk Chalk– Take advantage of a mild day and head outside to draw on the sidewalk with chalk. Kids love to have their whole body outlined and then fill in the drawing with clothes and a face. If you still have ice or snow outside try white or colored chalk inside on construction paper or brown wrapping paper. The drawings can be made permanent, so they won’t rub off, by spraying with aerosol hair spray (best to spray outside, and certainly away from the children).

Saturday March 23 Westport-Weston Co Op Nursery School fundraiser Touch a Truck at the Coleytown Elementary School parking lot.  Join fellow au pairs and help face paint and apply tattoos!

Edible Snowballs

In most parts of the US the snow has disappeared, but you can cook ‘snowballs’ in the kitchen.
Ingredients
1 3-oz bag of natural microwave popcorn
2 12-oz bags of white chocolate chips
1 1/4oz container of white cake sparkles (edible glitter)
Prepare popcorn as directed on the package (do not let children open the bag as the steam can burn). Cool completely and remove any unpopped kernels. Melt the white chocolate chips as directed on the package. Carefully pour the melted chocolate over the popcorn, stirring gently until the popcorn is coated. Gently but firmly mold the coated popcorn into snowball shapes. Set on wax paper and sprinkle with edible glitter.  Enjoy!

March Cluster Meeting

With so many new arrivals and additions to our Westport cluster,  it was fun getting together at my house to meet and greet everyone and make some new friends!  IMG_0611IMG_0613IMG_0614IMG_0615

March Calendar

March 10 Daylight Saving Time Be sure to set the clocks forward one hour!  Don’t be late for work!

March 17 – St. Patrick’s Day – St. Patrick is said to have given a sermon from a hilltop that drove all the snakes from Ireland.  St. Patrick’s Day has been celebrated in the US since 1737.  Traditional icons of the day are the shamrock, leprechaun, the color green and the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

March 20 – Today is the first day of spring!  Take a walk outside and look for signs of spring – swelling buds on the trees, flowers poking up from the ground, more birds back in the trees.

March 26 Passover-Passover, also known as Pesach or Pesah, is a Holy Day, observed by several religions, begins today and lasts seven or eight days, depending on your beliefs.  It commemorates the exodus and freedom of the Israelites from Egypt.

March 31- Easter is an annual festival commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  It is always celebrated on a Sunday

Fun February Indoor Activities

Play Post Office: Preschool and young elementary age children will love to create their own post office at home. You need envelopes (you can use new ones or save the return envelopes from junk mail), a rubber stamp and inkpad, stickers and some paper. Children can write a note or draw a picture to put in the envelope. They can use the stickers as stamps and the rubber stamp to make the “postmark.” They can deliver the mail to bedrooms or you can create mailboxes by stacking a few empty shoeboxes on their sides.

Play School Young children love to play school. You can take turns being the teacher. Read a book out loud in front of the ‘class.’ Children who can’t yet read the words still like to ‘read’ to others. If you have a small chalkboard or white board, you can put assignments or lessons on the board. Paper and pencils are important for the work that needs to be done, but don’t forget to have recess!

Treasure Hunt Pretend you are all on a desert island looking for treasure. Make a map or place clues around the house leading the children through the hunt. This can be done with pictures for non-readers – draw a picture of the television, then at the television place a picture of the stove. At the stove place a picture of a bed, and so on to the end. The “treasure” can be a treat to eat, or a new game to play.   Read books about pirates to add to the fun.

Greenhouse Visit a Greenhouse today.  Plant a flower or vegetable in an indoor pot and watch it grow.  Let the plants and flowers brighten your day.

Education

Be sure to tell me where you are going to school this semester and which course you are taking.  Please give me  proof of the courses you have already taken.  All proof of education must state your name, ID number, school attended, course title, and number of credits/hours earned. If I do not have proof that your education requirement has been completed, you will forfeit the opportunity to extend.

The following documents are acceptable proof of your education completed

~Letter from the school on letterhead

~Completion certificate from the school

~School transcript

February Calendar:

February 2 – Ground Hog Day
Traditionally, the groundhog is supposed to wake up on February 2, and come up out of his burrow. If he sees his shadow, he will return to the burrow for six more weeks of winter. If he doesn’t see his shadow, he remains outside and starts his year, because he knows that spring has arrived early. In the U.S., the “official” groundhog is kept in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania and is called “Phil.” Though not based in science, it is a fun US tradition.  The movie, starring Bill Murray is hilarious! https://blogs.aupairinamerica.com/mdf/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2012/02/groundhog-300×214.jpg

February 3- Super Bowl Sunday!  The Super Bowl is the annual American Football championship and a popular time for friends to gather in front of the TV. Each year millions of people watch the game, the half-time show – or just the commercials!  People will be talking about the commercials for days. To learn more about football visit the “Life in the US” section of the Au Pair in America website http://aupairinamerica.com/resources/life_in_the_us/football.asp

February 12-Mardi Gras Mardi Gras, French for “Fat Tuesday” marks the end of Carnival and the beginning of the Christian fasting of Lent.  The biggest Mardi Gras celebration in the US is in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Rio de Janeiro in Brazil also has a huge celebration.  Ask a Brazilian au pair to tell you all about it.

February 13 Ash Wednesday – Ash Wednesday, in Christian churches, is the first day of the penitential season of Lent.  On Ash Wednesday some Christians have a smudge of ashes placed on their foreheads as a sign of penitence.

February 14 – Valentine’s Day is a time of love, friendship, giving, and caring. Americans use Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to tell friends and family how much they care.  Children usually exchange cards at school.  Have your host children make them; it is a wonderful craft activity to do with them.

February –18 President’s Day.   School is probably closed all week for February recess and President’s Day, which is a Federal holiday created to commemorate the births of former Presidents George Washington (Feb. 22) and Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12). Throughout America, Presidents’ Day is observed by big sales in the stores, closed schools and no mail delivery. Things to do with children: The United States has had more than 40 presidents. How many can the children name? Who has been president during their lifetime?  Take a look at American coins and bills; who are the Presidents pictured on each coin and bill?

February 23 Purim –The Festival of Purim is one of the most joyous and fun holidays on the Jewish calendar.  There are four commandments for Purim: the reading of the story of Esther, festivity and rejoicing, sending gifts (usually food), and giving to the poor.  It is customary to dress in costume for the celebration.  (Note: all Jewish holidays begin at sundown and end the following day at sundown.)

Create Something New Today:

Art Day
Make today an art day – try drawing, painting, creating with glue or clay.

Make a necklace today– use a licorice “shoelace” (the really long thin ones) and cereal for young children and then they can eat the whole thing.  For something less sticky, use string instead of the licorice.

Puzzle Day Do a puzzle or make one of your own. Find a fun picture in a magazine and glue it to lightweight cardboard. Cut into shapes.

Make a Pie: Pies are popular every day and are easy to make if you buy a prepared crust.   Try this easy recipe:

Chocolate Pie:  Purchase pre-made pie shell and Jell-O instant chocolate pudding.  Prepare the chocolate pudding, pour into pie shell, let set for an hour and voila! Top with some whipped cream and  dessert is served!

Pet Rocks:  Make an imaginative pet using a smooth stone. Draw a face with marker or paint. Decorate with feathers, sequins, yarn, buttons, or whatever else you can find.

Indoor Gardening:  Children love to watch things grow! Take a root vegetable (potato, carrot, turnip or beet) and cut off the top 1-2 centimeters. Hollow out the inside. Tie a string around the vegetable and fill it with water. Hang it in a window and watch what happens! Don’t forget to add water as needed.

Make your own snowstorm:  Find a clear glass jar, any size, with a tight fitting lid and no label. Cut a piece of aluminum foil into teeny, tiny pieces. The easiest way is to first cut strips then cut across the strips into little pieces. The smaller the pieces, the more it will look like real snow. It takes a lot of flakes (and patience) to make a good snowfall.  Don’t stop until you have enough to at least completely cover the bottom of the jar. Cut a small evergreen branch for your tree. Fill the jar with water, add the tree and one drop of dishwashing liquid and put the lid on. Turn the jar over, give it a shake and put it down right side up. Watch the snow fall!

Au Pairs Hit the Ice

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  • Au Pair In America au pairs from countries around the world, including Germany, Brazil, France, South Africa, Malaysa, Namibia, and the Netherlands, joined families and friends for an afternoon of ice skating at the Sports Center in Shelton. Some  had never been on skates before but everyone did rather well, and more importantly, everyone had fun!