T E D A K O P R E S C H O O L

N E W S L E T T E R

N OV E M B E R 2 0 1 7

MEET OUR NEW STAFFEugene Ho

Churasan Class

English Lead Teacher

Yuko Koki

CDC

Administrative

Staff

Eugene has joined the CDC as a lead English teacher in

the Chursan class from November 2017. He was born in

England and moved to Australia when he was 7 years old.

He has been a kindergarten teacher in Osaka for 7 years.

He likes to run and also enjoys cooking. 2 years ago

discovered the joy of snorkeling, so we think he will really

enjoy Okinawa! When you meet him you can welcome

him by saying “hello” or “G’day”!

Yuko joined the CDC as an administrator support staff

from October 2017. Her previous work experiences

include data entry and office work in a local insurance

company and various elementary schools, as a teacher,

both here and abroad. She is an Okinawaian native but

for the past 20 years, she has lived in Kenya, Turkey, Laos,

and Israel. Having given birth and raised children in local

schools in Kenya and Turkey, she can relate to our foreign

families who are birthing and raising children here in

Okinawa.

Field TripsPotato Digging

Kugani & Shinka

Friday, November 17

Konbu Park

Nuji

Wednesday November 8

Kafuu

Thursday, November 9

Birthday PartiesFriday November 24

We will celebrate all other children with October

birthdays with a story in a foreign language starting at

2:30. All family members and friends are welcomed

to join!

Parent Teacher

ConferencesSign up times will be available through

classroom teachers.

Kafuu Class- November 20

Kugani Class- November 21

Nuuji Class- November 22

Shinka Class- November 24

Kanasan Class- November 27

Churasan Class- November 28

Umusan Class- November 29

Class ObservationThis month we are planning a day for

parents to join the classroom during

English circle time to see your children

at school. Please mark your calendars!

Nuuji / Kafuu Class

Wednesday, November 15

9:45-10:15

Kunagi / Shinka Class

Thursday, November 16

9:30-10:00

Churasan / Umusan Class

Friday, November 17

9:30-10:00

Kanasan ClassFriday, November 17

10:30-11:00

7-5-3 Photo Day

Bueno Story Tellers

Shinka, Kafuu and Nuuji class Only

Monday November 13

Monday November 20

9:45-10:35

Winter ConcertDress Rehearsal/ Class Picture

Thursday, November 30

Concert

Friday, December 8

5pm

Fire Truck VisitMonday November 24

10:00-11:00Village Center Parking

Area

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF SHICHI-GO-SAN?

Shichi-go-san literally means seven, five and three and it is a traditional festival in Japan to celebrate the

healthy growth and well being of children ages 7, 5 and 3.

There are several ways to celebrate this event but most commonly, children dress up in traditional

attire such as Kimono for girls and Hakama for boys and they visit a shrine with their family. Many

families also go to a photo studio to take commemorative pictures. This annual event was originally

designated on November 15th however, it is common to have the ceremony on the weekends or

holidays in October or November.

We would like to get the CDC children to experience part of this traditional Japanese event and we

will be taking commemorative pictures of Shinka, Kafuu and Nuuji class children on November 13th.

The Shinka class children will be dressing up in traditional Japanese attire and the Kafuu/Nuuji class

children will be dressing up in traditional Okinawan attire.

We will start the photo shoot at 9:30am with Kafuu and Nuuji class and Shinka class will follow after

they finish.

We encourage you to comb or tie up your child’s hair however you want at home in the morning and

please dress your child in a red OIST T-shirt and a pants.

Shinka, Kafuu and Nuuji class children are going to love this traditional event for sure and they will

have a nice memory to share with friends and family of their time at Tedako Preschool.

Pictured Right: a commemorative Shichi-Go-San picture of Mami-sensei (age 7) in a Kimono and her younger

brother.

TEDAKO WINTER CONCERT

When the weather gets cold out, our preschool children

will warm your heart with their lovely voices. Come and

join us as the children will dance and sing songs in Japanese

and English Friday evening on December 8th at the OIST

Auditorium. The performance will begin at 5:00pm. Please

prepare the children’s clothes as requested by his or her

classroom teachers by November 30. On November 30,

we will have a dress rehearsal and take Winter Concert

Class Photos.

Kukuru: White Long Sleeve Shirts, white tights

Churasan: OIST T-Shirt, any color pants

Kanasan: White T-Shirt, black or brown pants

Umusan: Black Shirts, black pants, orange or yellow socks

Kafuu: Any shirt, winter boots, winter hat, long scarf,

mittens

Nuuji: OIST T-Shirt, winter boots, winter hat

Kugani: White long pants, white T-shirt

Shinka: OIST T-Shirt, color gloves

KUKURU SNACK TIMEKukuru babies enjoy eating. Before snack time, we wash their hands to get them ready for their

snack. Teachers support young babies by feeding them, while mobile babies get an extra spoon to play

with as they use their hands to try to feed themselves. At every meal, teachers try to introduce

children to what is inside their “Bento”(lunch box). For instance, teachers explain to babies the kind

of vegetable or fruits, colors, and other sensory things like cold, warm, sweet, salty, or sour.

Teachers also encourage the use of the baby sign language for “more,” ”all done,“ and “please”.

GROSS MOTOR DEVELOPMENTKukuru babies are practice sitting with and without support, crawling,

pulling up to a standing position with support, walking while holding

something for support, imitating teachers roll a ball. Babies also like to

climb on the slide.

When it comes to moving all over the room or walking around the room,

babies are interested in about everything they see in the classroom.

Their new, positive experiences stimulate their sense of movement to

take the next step.

.

BYE-BYE TO GERMS, HELLO TO GLOWING HANDS!

In the toddler classes, the children wash their hands very often.

After every outdoor play, before and after eating, and after

toileting. To teach children to wash his or her little hands, in the

beginning, the teachers will take little ones hands and wash/dry

their hands together. By repeating this experience, the children

make a habit of washing their hands regularly.

Learning this very important skill also effectively fosters children’s

independence and confidence. As proof, we sometimes see

children praising themselves by clapping their hands when they

feel they are doing it well. The bigger children also say “I can do

it!” and get it all done without a teacher’s help.

Please encourage and help your child to wash his or her hands at

home as well.

Our motto is “Bye-bye to Germs, Hello to Glowing Hands!” Chura

san, K

anas

an, U

musa

nC

lass

es

CHILDREN ENJOY INDIAN MUSIC AND DANCE AT OIST TEA TIME

OIST has a very international population and we like to

take advantage of showing the children at Tedako the

diverse culture here at OIST. On October 26th, the Kukuru,

Kafuu, Nuuji, Kugani and Shinka class enjoyed live Indian

music and dance during the OIST tea time. The songs and

music were arranged for Diwali. Diwali is the Indian festival

of light which signifies the spread of the light of knowledge,

hope and illumination in India. The children really enjoyed

watching these performances which included a flute

performance with traditional Indian compositions,

traditional Indian dance, and a Bollywood style

performance. It was fun to see the high energy

performances, but also fun to see children focused on the

movements as their hands and bodies imitating the

movements as they watched the performances. What a

wonderful experience for us all!

KAFUU AND NUUJI FINE MOTOR SKILLSToddlers learn primarily through playing and manipulating objects, so giving them

every opportunity to do so with a variety of toys and materials is an ideal way to

foster every aspect of cognition. Three-year-old class children are always

experiencing activities that require the coordination of many skills, including fine

motor control, hand-eye coordination and control over the body. They use their

hands to position and build structures with blocks and lego pieces and sort objects

into different sizes, colors and shapes. Building structures with Lego bricks supports

their development of small muscles in the fingers and hands.

Pictured Right:

Nuuji class 3

year old is

stacking the

blocks carefully

while making fine

adjustment using

her fingertip so

the block does

not slip off

Lacing requires both hands to link in movement and cognition Kafuu children practice their pincher grip (thumb and

forefinger) while exploring colors sortingChildren work together to create a lego city

Nuuji and Kafuu children enjoyed

potato digging in Yomitan-son this

month.

Children found potato vines from

the ground, dug them out and

were so excited to see the size of

the potatoes.

"Ooh, it is big"! "Oh! This one is

small! But it’s cute!” The potato

filed was full with cheerful

children’s voices.

They enjoyed their lunch and said,

"It was such a fun day! I want to

come again teacher!”

Children were very satisfied with

the souvenir of potatoes too.

Shinka and Kugani class will go

Potato Digging on November 17.

FALL POTATO DIGGING FIELD TRIP

KUGANI WELCOMES MINAMI NURSERY SCHOOL FRIENDS

In October, children of the 4-year old class from the Minami

Nursery School in KitanakagusukuVillage, came to visit the

Kugani Class.

In the beginning the children from both classes were very

shy and hesitant about each other, but all the children were

gradually seeking out new friends as time went on.The

morning started with English circle time and activities. In the

activity, the children created a handprinted rainbow; one

piece as a souvenir to the Minami nursery school, and the

other piece was decorated as a souvenir for their own

classroom.

After enjoying outside play together, they enjoyed a picnic

lunch outside. When the time for farewell approached, the

children did not want to part with each other, and were

saying "Why do you have to leave already?" "When will you

be coming back to see us?" This exchange with the Minami

Nursery School was a very memorable experience for the

Kugani children.

KUGANI NUMERACY SKILLSIn the class circle time, we are currently

working on simple addition.

We have some children who are weekly

circle time helpers. The helpers count the

number of children attending and add up

the numbers of friends and teachers. The

children are enjoying the calculation of

simple figures.We have both a Japanese

and English circle time daily. The children

can count in both languages. Another daily

routine that we have is ‘roll call’ before

going outside. From the front of the line

each child will shout out a number

1,2,3...17. Since we are working on simple

numeric calculation daily, the children in

the Kugani class are very good at counting

numbers! At the activity, we worked on

making a cornstalk mural for the barn yard

dance. The children's task was to count 15

grains of corn and paste onto their

handprint.The children were able to count

carefully one by one. Also, the children

were helping others who needed some

help counting.The children of Kugani class

are becoming very caring individual boys

and girls.

KUGANI KIYUNAFARM VISIT

In October, the Kugani children went to

the Kiyuna Farm in OgimiVillage.At the

farm, they were able see lots of livestock

such as goats, rabbits, pigs and cows. The

highlight of this field trip was that the

children were able to experience milking

the cows and butter making with fresh

milk.The children tasted butter that they

made by themselves, on delicious

homemade bread which the farmer had

baked earlier that morning. All the

children were enjoying the scrumptious

feast while having lively conversation, "It's

amazing I can make butter like

this." "Delicious". This was a very

meaningful and luxurious experience of

the senses for all the children of the

Kugani Class.

SHINKA NUMERACYNumeracy is an area that is covered everyday in one way, shape, or form in the Shinka

Class. From counting down the days to an upcoming field trip with a paper chain, to

breaking down the date and adding and subtracting its numbers, numeracy plays a huge role

in our daily classroom life. When we sing our months of the year song the children physically

hold up a finger that represents a month. (We use each leg to make 12 months, since we

only have 10 fingers!) Aside from the calendar and songs, these days the kids have been

learning about skip counting by 2's and 5's. We are sure to skip count them every time they

line up outside with a partner, and it has been catching on with them. We talked about it

during circle time, and some of the kids remembered and were saying "you do it", because

we do do it!

This month in our math center the children were able to familiarize themselves with

numeracy through a variety of fun seasonal number activities. They matched apples to the

numbers on their corresponding buckets, and for an added challenge, they were able to try

and add two sheets of apples together and see if they were able to do it! They also matched

numbered pumpkin flashcards to their corresponding pumpkin dot flashcards.

The class has also been learning about the clock a bit more, now that they are a little

older. They learned that there are 5 minutes between each number on the clock, and our

clock in the classroom is also labeled with the numbers 5-55 to help them understand the

concept a bit more. Some of the children really enjoy the clock, and change the time on our

cardboard clock to match the real clock on the wall, every few minutes!

Finally, the children familiarize themselves with numbers by checking their Class Dojo points,

they check it everyday and compare who has more points, who has the most points, and

who has the least points! At the end of each month we reset the points, but before that we

talk and check who had the most points for the month. The children love doing this.

MUD PLAY!! SHINKA STYLE!Last Month the Shinka Class went on our much anticipated Mud Play Field Trip, at Nature Park, in Kin. It was the perfect day, not

too hot, and not too cold. Just right for some fun in the mud! The children who went last year were talking on the bus about

what they were going to first. Going down the slide was quite a popular attraction, but the kids also enjoyed swinging on the

swings, floating and relaxing on the inner tubes, and of course, throwing mud on their friends and teachers! After the kids had a

little water break it was time for tug-of -war! We separated into a boys group and a girls group (plus Mr. Neil!). The girls group

(all 4 of us), won the first round, but the boys group won the next 2 rounds! We will be sure to get our revenge next year! It was

a great time, and we can't wait to do it all again next year.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL INFORMATIONWhere will your child attends after Tedako Preschool or Kindergarten Program? The top 3 most popular choices of the CDC children are Amicus, OCSI and local

public School. The Compliance Section, CDC and the Resource Center have arranged a few events to share information about the local Elementary school

options for your child.

MEXT (Japan’s Ministry of Education and Technology) Lecture about Japanese Education:

• Friday, November 17, 2017

• Time: 4:00pm-5:30pm

• Place: Auditorium

• Details: Shun Shirai, Japan’s Director for Curriculum Planning Office, School Curriculum Division, Elementary and Secondary Education Bureau. Lecture will

be in Japanese with English translation.

• Cost: Free

• Reservation Required, Registration Link: https://groups.oist.jp/acd/mext-lecture-new-japanese-education

• For Questions, please email mextseminar@oist.jp for more information

Private Kindergarten/Elementary Schools Information Sessions

• November 21, 2017

• Resource Center (Village Center Location)

• Cost: Free

• Reservation Required: https://groups.oist.jp/welfare/private-elementary-school-information-sessions

• Okinawa Christian School International (OCSI) Information Session

• Presentation 9:30 by School Principal Megan Roe

• Q&A 9:45-12:30

• Okinawa Amicus International School

• Presentation followed by Q&A 2:00-3:00

Elementary School Tour by OIST Bus

• January 18, 2018

• 9:30 am-3:30pm

• Ride OIST Bus to Onna Elementary School, Amicus, Lunch, OCSI, & OIST After School Program

• Cost: Free (must pay for own lunch)

• Reservation Required, Registration Link https://groups.oist.jp/cdc/elementary-school-tour

CHILDREN’S INTERNATIONAL LIBRARYWe are building a library of mulit-language

children’s books as it is hard to find books in

other than Japanese for your child in here

Okinawa.

Ms. Cantereau, from the OIST Faculty

Affairs Office, donated her child's French books

to the CDC and we would like to lend them to

OIST families. So far, we have 19 French books

with hopes of building this library to include the

many different home languages of the OIST

children.

If you would like to donate any children’s books

for the international library, or if you would like

to borrow any books in the children’s library

the CDC International Library is located in the

After School Classroom in the Village Center

and open every Friday from 1:00 - 6:00.

The Parent Association for Tedako at OIST (PATO) is a grassroots group

of parents seeking to support the Tedako CDC and build community with

other OIST families. We have meetings 3 times a year to plan and discuss

various events throughout the year like Teacher Appreciation Week,

fundraisers, and the Family & Teacher Summer Picnic. We always are

looking to include more families! Please come and be a part!

The Parent Association for Tedako at OIST (PATO)

Please join our emailing list by emailing oist.pato.group@gmail.com or

check out this link to our new PATO Facebook Page

PATO (PARENTASSOCIATION FOR TEDAKO AT OIST)

We are very pleased to announce our committee for the 2017-2018 term.

Chair: Kelly Carrasco

Co-secretariat: Mohieldin Youssef, Yuko Hasegawa, Rory Cerbus (support till December)Co-treasures: Juanita Choo, Kun Xiao Xiao

Family Outreach (Support): Jyoti Dubey, Bethany Cerbus, Marta Haro, Tomoko Ishikawa, Hitomi Morrison, Oksana Burduzhan

LANGUAGE ENRICHMENT OPPORTUNITY

NOVEMBER SNACK MENUMonday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

AM CottageCheese/Blueberriesカッテージチーズ、ブルーベリー

Brown Rice Cereal/Soy Milk玄米フレーク、豆乳

Oatmeal/Raisinsオートミール、レーズン

Cheese/CalciumSenbeiチーズ、カルシウムせんべい

Pear 梨

PM Apple/WheatCrackersりんご、五穀 ク ラ ッカー

Persimmon/

Rice

Crackers柿、玄米棒

Banana/Milkバナナ、ミルク

Baked Sweet Potato焼き芋

Rice/

Furikakeごはん、ふりかけ

SUBSISTUTIONS:Due to availability or ripeness of fresh fruits or vegetables, substitutions may occur. 旬の果物や野菜が入手可能な場合はメニューを変更することもあります。Young toddlers will not be fed Senbei or Crackers. Special senbeis for babies will be substituted.月齢の低いお子さんには煎餅やクラッカーなどの固いものはあげません。赤ちゃん用の煎餅で代用します。

We will celebrate all November Birthdays and the children will enjoy cake and milk with their friends on 11/17１１/１７（金）には11月のお誕生会でケーキと豆乳をいただきます。

NOVEMBER LUNCH CALENDARMonday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

1

- Rice

-Pork Sauté

-Miso flavored Goya

-Okra w Yuzu flavor

-Clear Soup

2

-Rice

-Broiled Flat Fish

-Bean sprouts Champuroo

-Salad

-Vegetable Soup

Holiday

6

- Rice

- Grilled Hoki Fish w

G.Onion Sauce

- Stir fried Sengiri Daikon

- Japanese Style Okra Salad

-Potato Miso Soup

7

- Rice

- Pork w Tomato dressing

- Stir fried Rice Vermicelli

- Seaweed Salad

- Pumpkin Miso Soup

8

- Curry Rice

- Chinese Cabbage Salad

- Yogurt

9

- Rice

- Chicken Meatball

- Spinach Sauté

- Okra Salad- Ko-ya Tofu Miso Soup

10

- Rice

- Ginger Sauce Flounder Fish

- Cooked Vegetable

- Cabbage w Ume dressing

- Egg Miso Soup

13

- Rice

- Pork Chop

- Stir Fried Green Vegetable

- Hijiki salad

- Fu (wheat bran) Miso Soup

14

- Rice

- Kyoto Style Grilled White Fish

- Go-ya Champuroo

- Ko-ya Tofu Miso Soup

15

- Jyu-shii (mixed pilaf)

- Yakitori

- Shredded Carrots

- Chinese Cabbage Salad

- Green Veg. Miso Soup

16

- Rice

- Red Fish w Tomato dressing

- Braised Green Veg. w Tofu

- Eggplant w Vinegar Soy Sauce

- Wakame Miso Soup

17

- Rice

- Okonomi Omelet

- Western Style Kiriboshi Daikon

- Nanohana Salad

- Pumpkin Miso Soup

20

- Rice

- Grilled Hoki Fish

- Stir Fried Burdock Roots

- Okra & Corn Salad

- Potato Miso Soup

21

- Rice

- Cooked Pork w Shiso flavor

- Stir Fried Bean sprouts

- Green Bean Salad

- Onion Miso Soup

22

- Rice

- Grilled White Fish w Herb Sauce

- Sweet & Sour Pork

- Papaya Salad

- Wakame Soup

23

Holiday

24

- Rice

- Red Fish w Tomato sauce

- Western Style cooked Potato

- Kuzukiri Crab Salad

- Vegetable Soup

27

- Rice

- Japanese Style Pork- Chinese Cabbage & Mushroom

Sauté

- Pumpkin w Sesame Sauce

- Taro Miso Soup

28

- Rice

- Shiokouji Marinated Hoki Fish

- Western Style Kiriboshi Daikon

- Eggplant w Vinegar Soy Sauce

- Wakame Miso Soup

29

- Rice

- Deep Fried Prawns

- Stir Fried Lotus Root

- Green Pepper Salad

- Daikon Miso Soup

30

- Rice

- Seafood Dumpling

- Braised Pumpkin & Chicken

- Spinach Salad

- Winter Melon Miso Soup