Dear St. James’ Families,

What fun it was seeing all of the Dad’s, Grandpas, Grandmas, and significant others here last week. The children obviously enjoyed having their special person in for a morning of fun!

The Carnival was a huge success as well, it was so much fun to see so many of our children and families who came out to enjoy the beautiful weather and event. Thank you to Allison Solomon, Cindy Jenness, and everyone else who worked so hard to make this one of the best days at St James Preschool!

This week is a busy week at the Preschool. We start the week off with Parent Chapel at 9:20 on Monday, then we will have Walk in Wednesday on the 26th, and then end it with Group Pictures on Thursday and Friday. Your child’s teacher will let you know on which day the class is assigned to have their pictures taken.

Thank you for all you do and for allowing us to love and teach your children,

Susan Viers

Character

We all want so much for our children. We want them to be smart, to make good choices, to succeed. Most of all we want them to become people of good character – kind, just and virtuous, respectful of others. Character is a key component to a good life, and like anything else of value, it is not something that just happens. Character takes work and must be practiced, not only in the home, but also in school so that it becomes the way we live. How we want to be known as a person is the way we must be every day, and our role as adults is to demonstrate that for children.

Schools, as well as homes, should make good character a priority and expect it from everyone. How adults treat adults is just as important as how children treat children because our children are watching, and taking in everything they are exposed to whether it is good or bad. We must be aware to be good examples for our children, always keeping in mind that we are unavoidable role models for them. In a nutshell, we must do more than talk about character with children. We must practice it with them.

Eight Essential Character Traits for Kids:

• Empathy
• Curiosity
• Sociability
• Resilience
• Self-Awareness
• Integrity
• Resourcefulness
• Creativity

Children who learn to reach out and empathize with others, seek fair resolutions to conflict, have a clear sense of what is right and what is wrong, and look for the good in others will be successful adults. At school and at home, we are all responsible for creating an environment where children can develop habits of honesty, generosity and a sense of justice. It is our opportunity as adults to help shape our children’s world and to deepen our own character.