3859 & 4200 Wheeler Street Houston, TX 77204 PH: 832/842/0500

Market Day

Eid & Diwali

Greek Celebration

Exploring Nature

CLC Calendar

CLC Parent Corner

Special Points

of Interest:

CLC Diversity Celebrations

October 1, 2013

Newsletter Volume 12, Issue 10

October 24th: Eid & Diwali

Eid- (The Festival of Fast-Breaking) During the month of Ramadan, Muslims observe a strict

fast and participate in pious activities such as charitable giving and peace-making. It is a time

of intense spiritual renewal. At the end of Ramadan, Muslims throughout the world observe

this joyous three-day celebration.

Diwali- (The Festival of Lights) Diwali is one of the biggest festival of Hindus, celebrated

with great enthusiasm and happiness in India. It is a five day Hindu celebration that

involves the lighting of small clay lamps filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil .

Food sampling– CLC will have traditional foods in the lobby from 8:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. for your

enjoyment.

October 28th: Ochi Day (“Oxi” or “Ohi”)

This celebration takes place on October 28th and is in honor of the Greek’s refusal of the 1940

Italian ultimatum. It is referred to as the Day of “No” in Greece and is celebrated to

commemorate the Grecian power of will. It’s a time of feasting, a time of joy, and ultimately a

time where the Greeks come together as one, to be proud of the fortitude of their ancestry.

Food sampling– CLC will have traditional foods in the lobby from 8:00 a.m.– 10:00 a.m. for

your enjoyment.

October 4th: Market Day

CLC will end our Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration with a

“Mercado”. The children will be selling handmade crafts from 4:00

p.m.-5:00 p.m. so don’t forget to bring some change!

Food sampling- CLC will have traditional Hispanic foods in the lobby

from 8:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. for your enjoyment.

The Original Greek Festival

October 3-6, 2013

Enjoy traditional food,

music, and dancing!

Annunciation Greek

Orthodox Cathedral

Children under 12 years–

free admission

http://greekfestival.org/

Volume 12, Issue 10 CLC Newsletter

Explore the Great Outdoors with your Child http://families.naeyc.org/

Children are natural explorers. Set some basic boundaries, and let the child discover. The learning will come. Children use all of their senses to explore. They look and listen to observe what is happening around them, touch what they can reach, smell the fresh scents of nature, and occasionally taste when given permission. They run, jump, dig, and climb as they discover new places.

For a child, everything is new—even the tiniest things are interesting and exciting. In today’s entertainment-driven world, exploring the outdoors is an opportunity for children to actively engage in learning. Here are a few steps you can take to guide children’s exploration of the great outdoors.

Explore safely. Join your children in the fun if they want you to, and keep an eye on them. Before you begin, dress appropriately and teach your child the basic safety rules of the outdoors.

Let children choose what to explore. Let children explore, and see what they do on their own without offering suggestions. Do they run? Build? Climb? Even an activity as simple as digging leads to exploration. Children learn how to dig, the way soil feels, the angle of the slope before loose dirt slides back down, and the difference between dry and wet soil.

Ask open-ended questions. As children explore on their own, remain involved. Ask about their discoveries. “What did you find? Oh, a bug? What does it look like? How does it move?” Discuss what you see—the shape of leaves, the color of the soil, the movement of the grasses. The more your child observes, the more the world around him will make sense. Discovering how to learn through observation is important.

Touch, lift, look under. Children need to touch the natural world to more fully understand it. In some cases, gently touching an object with one finger may be helpful. For example, gently nudge a frog or a grasshopper to help a child learn how animals move. When possible, though, examine an object from all sides. Looking carefully at the underside of a log and then carefully replacing it, for example, helps children understand that creatures live under the log and that not disturbing the creatures’ habitat is important.

Guide children to draw conclusions from the observations they’ve made. The best learning occurs when children come to conclusions for themselves. Try asking questions or describing what you see, feel, hear, and smell. “Do you remember what color the leaves were last time we took this walk? What do you see now?” This modeling will help your child learn to use her own senses when exploring.

To view this article in its entirety, please visit: http://families.naeyc.org/learning-and-development/music-math-more/

Houston Arboretum and Nature Center: Located on the western edge of Memorial Park, the Houston Arboretum & Nature Center

offers an escape from the hustle and bustle of city life and the opportunity to experience the natural world. This 155-acre non-

profit urban nature sanctuary provides education about the natural environment to Houstonians of all ages. Visitors can explore

nature by walking on trails including forest, pond, wetland and meadow habitats. The Discovery Room, inside the building, offers

hands-on interactive exhibits, microscopes, touch screens and more for learning about the habitats and plant and wildlife found at

the Center. http://www.houstonarboretum.org/about

Armand Bayou Nature Center: Visit this astonishingly beautiful part of the Texas Gulf Coast and "reconnect with nature". Become

aware of how Armand Bayou Nature Center (ABNC), nestled in the Clear Lake Area, is working to preserve the wetlands prairie,

forest and marsh habitats surrounding Armand Bayou. Visitors can learn about our plant and animal inhabitants, bird-watch, hike

on the Nature Center's trails or view our live animal displays of snakes, alligators, turtles, hawks and bison. A visit to the Center's

Martyn Farm will take you back in time to late 1800's farm life in Texas. http://www.abnc.org/

Nature Discovery Center: Russ Pitman Park is a lush 4-acre oasis in Bellaire offering individuals, families, and community groups a

place to stroll, play, picnic, and explore nature. The Nature Discovery Center itself is housed in the historic Henshaw House at the

north end of the Park. The Park's mix of prairie grasses, tall pecans, native understory and wide lawns is home to a variety of

animals, from butterflies and beetles to squirrels and birds. During spring and fall migration seasons, over 80 species of warblers,

vireos, orioles and more stop in for food, rest and water - giving us a great opportunity to see and photograph them. In addition to

the resident wild animals, there is a rabbit hutch and a bob white quail cage near the Henshaw House, and an aviary with doves

and pigeons near the fountain. http://www.naturediscoverycenter.org/russ-pitman-park

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CLC OCTOBER 2013

CLC Parent Corner

Volume 12, Issue 10 Page 3

Note from the editor:

Greetings! This is the 10th installment of the CLC’s E-News for 2013. For your convenience, an archive of all E-News is available at www.uh.edu/clc. If you would like to be removed from this distribution list, please email your name and email address to ccenter@uh.edu. Thank you and enjoy reading!

Early

Dismissal

Children’s Picture Days: Wheeler 10/8-10/9 & Cameron 10/10-10/11

Preschool Vision & Hearing Screening: 10/14-10/18

Eid & Diwali

Celebration

Fall Costume

Parade

UH Homecoming

Game

CLCAB

Meeting

Market Day

4-5 p.m.

Pumpkin Patch

October 7th -31st

Please feel free to bring a pumpkin to keep in the

CLC courtyard/playground pumpkin patch for the

children to enjoy.

Costume Parade

October 31st; 10:00 a.m.

The children will have a chance to dress in costume

and show off to family and friends in the

CLC courtyard/playground.

Greek

Celebration