UNIVERSAL PRESCHOOL (UPK) COLORADOPublished: 02/08/2023
Universal PreSchool for Colorado children is rolling out statewide in Fall 2023. Springfield Preschool will be a participating agency for your child to enroll. This site is designed to help you know more about the program and how to register.
UPK is designed for students aged 4 to receive education at a minimal cost to families for up tp 15 hours weekly. PK providers are not required to participate, but Springfield’s program is registered with the state. Once a family applies at the UPK website, providers must determine if space, time, and staff are available to serve the student.
Some 3-year-old students will also be accepted into the programming statewide. The application process is the same as listed above. Students with disabilities will be the highest priority for providers to ensure educational services.
There is an application that families will fill out at the UPK Colorado website. This website is beneficial for all the information you may need.
The initial step to applying for UPK is to create an account at the website listed above. Once created, the account will guide you through the application process. Springfield invites parents and families to know more and receive support for the process at the following times/events.
Springfield application support details:
February 09-14, daily at pick-up or drop-off times. The event is at 387 Tipton (PK building).
Thursday, March 30, 2023, 6:30-7:30 PM @ Springfield High School 475 4th Avenue (new building). Childcare and snacks will be provided.
PARENT INFORMATIONAL FLIER:
What’s Happening:
The color of the Month is Pink. We want you to know that we will have recess nearly every day (unless the wind chill is below zero or the wind is so strong we can’t stand up.). We have strong men in our maintenance department who clear our playground and shovel our sidewalks so we can get out and breathe fresh air! Please continue to send heavy coats every day, and label everything! We can always use the motor room if the weather is unbearable.
Universal PreK—You may have seen or heard about UPK on the news, or in print. 2023-24 will be the initial year of the program. We have included the Free UPK flyer. PLEASE APPLY NOW! Apply Now! upk.colorado.gov The first ‘match’ is February 15th, so we want all our kiddos signed up. Ms. Deb will be at the front counter to help you if you need help this week and next! Of course, we are still working out the kinks and what that will look like for us, but we don’t anticipate any huge program changes for next year….. Stay tuned. The link and the flyer will also be available on the school webpage www.spre4.org.
Scholastic Book Orders will be ordered from preschool each month. For those of you who are computer savvy, you can place your order online! You just need to use this Online Code: GRXZC for Springfield Preschool. We will still get the bonus points for your order! Let us know if you like it! This month’s book order will be due 2/16/23.
Citizens of the Month—Congratulations to Citizens of the Month—PreK Blue Team is Remi Babbitt & Yellow Team is Theodore Birdsong. Congratulations to these sweet kids! Their teachers are incredibly thankful for how helpful and responsible Remi & Theo are! Citizens of the month will be getting a special shirt & certificate this time!
Valentines--Class lists are in your Tuesday Express if you didn’t get yours at Parent Teacher Conference on Monday! Let your children draw their friend’s shape on the Valentines he passes—if you write children’s names you steal his opportunity to pass them unless he recognizes what he writes. If the teachers end up passing them, that takes all the fun out of Valentine’s Day for the kids.
Valentine Parties—Red Team will celebrate on Monday, Feb. 13. Everyone else will celebrate on Valentine’s Day. Thank you so much for making memories on party days. Remember treats must be fresh fruits or veggies, or prepackaged, according to the SPS Parent Handbook.
Reminder-- If your address or phone number has changed, please inform the teacher. Please remind your child to get everything out of his/her cubby at the end of each day. Ms. Emily cleans cubbies out at the end of each week and does not want you to miss out on your child’s work!
What we are Learning:
We will all spend some time on the color of the month--Pink. You will be amazed by how many pink things we can think of! We will practice nursery rhymes daily—Roses are Red, Pat-a-Cake, Little Jack Horner & Polly put the Kettle on are this month’s featured nursery rhymes.
The Red & White Teams— We will be reading The Three Little Pigs and learning about them! We are also learning about being KIND. We are Catching preschoolers being Kind! In the Art Area, we have a post office to make our loved ones Valentines and give each other mail. In the Block Area, we are building houses. In the house area, we have a Flower Shop where we are counting, sorting, and arranging flowers! We will keep learning to use the planning board.
The Blue & Yellow Teams – We will keep working on the Calendar this month. We will continue working on numbers 1-10 in our “Get Set for School” books. We have new songs & a new song basket, new dyed rice in the sensory area, new dress ups in the house area, many new books, box puzzles and card games in the quiet area, and new magna-tiles and tinker toys in the block area!
Many thanks To:
*To Ms. Dottie and Ms. Luz for volunteering at preschool each week!
*Ms. Dottie for making all the children Teddy Bear treats!
*To Ms. Ginger & Ms. Kate for being our substitute teachers when we need them!
*To YOU for attending Parent Teacher Conferences this week, and some of YOU for coming back in to Child Find last week!
Date to Remember:
· Scholastic Book Orders in this Tuesday Express are due back February 16th.
· We will communicate any other dates to you if any arise.
Favorite Preschool Recipes:
*Peanut Butter Playdough
Mix equal parts of the following:
Creamy Peanut Butter
Powdered Sugar
Honey
Powdered Milk
Play with it/roll it/eat it!
As always, we are grateful for you and your children!
We love this job!
The Preschool Team
*Ms. Debbie * Ms. Kristen * Ms. Brittney * Ms. Froyla
Preschool Director/ECSE
deb.sharpe@spre4.org
Preschool Early Childhood
kristen.shumate@spre4.org
Preschool Teaching Assistant
brittney.martin@spre4.org
Preschool Paraprofessional
froyla.springsteel@spre4.org