Yolo County Conference

Thanks to the parents and other friends who supported Big Friends with fundraising and warm thoughts for our success. Some highlights:

• Luis and Dre for getting up on stage in the music workshop.


• Maria for her meticulous notetaking.


• Katie for her personal sharing in the Communications workshop.


• Jhannette setting our waitress straight at the restaurant.


• Shankar for not leaving that hotel until he found those extra blankets.


• Sky so dedicated to taking a picture of a beautiful tree for Kathleen (who still can't use her phone properly) that he rolled down the muddy hill and almost landed in the river.


• Kathleen and Keith polka down the sidewalk after the two and a half hour live theatrical performance of The Sound of Music. Oh, yeah - we climbed every mountain!

The experiences we shared absolutely met the goals of BASE, Life, and the Youth Act program. There was clear evidence of risk and rigor, and our Big Friends showed up professionally. The content: Keynote = 1 hour Jose-Luis Orozco Early Childhood Educator, author and musician Session #1 = 90 minutes

• Songs and Stories: Bilingual Education - Luis and Dre


• Infant-Toddler: Early Literacy Begins at Home - Katie and Maria


• Emotional Literacy and Social Skills Through Puppetry - Jhannette, Shankar and Keith

Session #2 - 75 minutes

• Environmental Education - Keith and Shankar


• Strategies for a Peaceful Classroom - Katie and Maria


• Mad Feelings - Jhannette, Luis, Dre

Session #3 - 75 minutes

• Music for Children and Families - Keith, Luis, Dre


• Effective Communication with Young Children - Maria and Katie


• Fostering a Sense of Wonder and Curiosity in Children - Shankar and Jhannette

Many, many thanks! And a reminder to all families that our Youth Act performance "Gentle Hands Make Happy Friends" is scheduled for Wednesday, April 13th at 3:30PM in the Big Room. ALL families, children (siblings and friends) are invited to attend. A wonderful opportunity to catch youth learning in action!

Everyone, Please Chime In!

We can all agree that the unofficial theme for Home Sweet Home 2011-2012 is "Making Beautiful Music Together". To continue developing our learning community, families are asked to partner to create the playground Music Garden Chime Frame. This is a Home-to-School Connection assignment for parents to facilitate over Spring Break or subsequent weekends.

Project: Two-three children from two-three families will make or purchase one set of chimes.

Exploring: Consciously listening to chime sounds to understand what individuals enjoy hearing.

Community: Gathering materials or purchasing chimes within our community empowers children to understand they have choices as a consumer.

Partnering: Families holding time and space to partner strengthens our larger preschool family - our choices are co-selected, co-owned, and appreciated by all.

Location: The children will present their choice at Sharing, explaining their decision. Chimes will then be hung on the shade frame outside.

Due Date: April 30, 2011

The first ever Home Sweet Home Silent Action “Sweet Moments” was a wild success.


Home Sweet Home parents, friends and relatives enjoyed scrumptious food prepared by the community, wine and champagne flowed freely, the Home Sweet Home band rocked the evening away playing everyone’s favorite classic tunes and as a collective we raised over $3500 for Home Sweet Home!

BIG APPLAUSE for Katherine for securing the donation of the church which turned out to be such a lovely backdrop for our sweet event.

It could never have happened without a ton of help and support from our community. Including but not limited to:
Dorinda, Katherine, Kathleen, Stephanie, Sharisse, Lea, Jakki, Peter, Deborah, Kris, Tania, Shivaun, Paul, Heather, David, Kathleen, Christa, Annalee. Our two volunteers Cesy and Sonia, Sky for the amazing Butterfly and Bear artwork handcrafted by our little ones, Carole, Luis, Shankar, and Allegra for donating their time to the daycare, and all the members of the Home Sweet Home band ‘Sweet and Sour”

We also wanted to include here a shout out to all those who donated ‘experiences’ and raffle prizes for the event

RAFFLE and SILENT AUCTION DONATORS
Alameda Aikikai
Alameda Bicycle
Alameda Theater
Arbonne International
Back to Health Chiropractic
Club Donatelli
Coco Zen
Crema
Happy Feet
Oakland Ice skating
Jason Lees
Method Home
Peets Coffee
Rock Wall Wine Company
Shay's Café
Tot Tank
Video factory
Williams Sonoma
Farmstead Cheese and Wine
Monkey Bars
Fruits and Chocolate
Anchor Steam case and Hat
Canadian company di erbe
Tessier Winery

FAMILIES WHO DONATED:
Adam Cain & Jenny Ruef – handmade silkscarf
Ziggy’s Family – beatles basket
Étienne family – french conversation and runner pocket
Christa and Issa - Oakland Zoo Tickets
Artensia – breakfast experience
Christina - babysitting
Cierra – party planning
Cowboy Jared - party
Hodgkinson & Allison Family – museum visit with Lucy
Dina – yoga series
Jasper’s Family – jasper hearts wren outfit
Jakki – two Donatello Gift Certificates
Joe and Kimberly– tech support & sleep over
Kathleen – baking bread and cinderella party
Kris and Andrew - Sailing
Speed Family – zoo visit with her family
Lisa and Chris – art and craft basket
Nason street familes – wine basket
Shivaun & Paul – collection of CDs AND tea party for 8
Sky – art in the park
Stephanie – movie night
Tania - dental camera
von Stroheim Family – rock hike with Dashiell
Casey – Trapeze gift certificate
Jean Nolan – pearl necklace and watch

We are now able to purchase almost all our items on our 2010/2011 fundraising list! Here is a re-cap on our fundraising thus far and when we plan to purchase these items!

Inside Classroom Tools
Light Box - $180 (brown bear room, March)
Magna Tiles - $120 (brown bear room, March)
Hollow Blocks - $1200 (outside and inside brown bear room, March)

School Improvements/Safety
Loft space - $1200 (butterfly room, April build)
Shade Area for outside - $500 (already purchased in January)
Fixing of Shade Structure - $100 (April Build)

Outside Classroom Tools
Sod Box - $400 (April build)
Music Garden – Chime Project $200 (March)
Music Garden - Marimba $1200 (we will raise money to complete our music garden in June!)

Teacher Appreciation
Teacher Stipend - $400 ($100 per teacher to purchase any dream supplies they want for classroom, will be awarded at teacher appreciation lunch)
Teacher Appreciation Gift and Lunch – monies collected through room parents heather and christa

Staff Tools
Laptop - donated
Camera - donated
Printer - donated

Thank you ALL for your efforts to help Home Sweet Home reach our $6000 goal!

I hope the tradition of the Sweet Moments event continues for years to come!

Cheers
Dorinda and the Fundraising Committee

Youth Interns

Big Friends dreamed of and created Home Sweet Home an an enterpise for the Alternatives in Action Home Project in February 1998. Their vision and work has developed from a daycare experiment with eight children into the Reggio-inspired, licensed for 30 children preschool we enjoy today. This is the first year that Home Sweet Home is self-sustaining through tuition fees!

The opportunity for Big Friends to engage with children and families supports career development and an understanding of the larger human community. Big Friends report tremendous satisfaction and joy through their direct engagement with children. Children return the compliment! Big Friends contriute to builds, present at parent meetings, provide informal daycare needs for after hours events, serve on hiring panels, and support the staff evaluation process.

Alternatives in Action's Big Friends currently hail from ACLC, Alameda High School, Bay Area School of Enterprise, Encinal High School, and Life Academy. Alternatives in Action's Big Friends must attend training and development through enrollment in the BASE Child Development class or the West Alameda Afterschool Program.

Our exciting Home Sweet Home Big Friend Spring Calendar:
March 25-26 - Yolo County Child Development Conference - aka the Kathleen, Sky and Big Friends Road Trip to Davis, CA!

April 13th - Youth Act performance for NAEYC Week of the Young Child in the BASE Big Room with an audience from Esperanza Head Start, Home Sweet Home, Woodstock and Ruby Bridges! Artensia and Keith coordinators.

April 14th (15th) - Life Academy Senior Defense (12:30-6:00) Artensia and Kathleen will attend, and seek to recruit three HSH parents as judges!

May/June - Job Placement in the field of Early Childhood Education for senior Big Friends. Artensia, Cierra, Kathleen and HSH parents to support interview practice as BASE and Life Academy seniors prepare to attend job placement opportunities!