Aviator Air News
Maple Dale Family Newsletter
A Note from Mrs. Zellner and Mr. West
Dear Maple Dale families,
As we approach the last week of school, please be sure to keep an eye out for teacher communication in regards to the last few days! Additionally, if you pop by Maple Dale, please check the lost and found in the cafeteria!
We will have one more Smore next week with "Back to School" information and then it is hard to believe that summer break will be here!
Enjoy your holiday weekend,
Mindy and Keena
Tuesday, May 28th : A Day
Wednesday, May 29th: B Day
Thursday, May 30th: C Day
Monday, May 27th
- No school, Memorial Day
Tuesday, May 28th
- Field Day Grades K-4* see below for more information
Thursday, May 30th
- Last Day of School
Interested in Volunteering? Below are links to volunteer at Maple Dale
Great news! We are offering a school supply kit program this year, so there’s no need to head to the store. Supply orders include the colors, quantities, and brands your teachers have approved for class. Get your Back to School shopping completed with one easy kit!
Place your order by: May 24th
Order online at ShopTTkits.com
Enter our school’s account number: 91023
Direct link to Maple Dale Order Page:
End of the Year Reminders
Medication Pick Up
Please know that medications can not be stored over the summer and must be picked by Monday June 3rd or destroyed.
If your child has an Emergency Medication such as an Epipen/AuviQ or Inhaler and you would like for me to send home with them the last day of school, please let me know.
New Medication Order Needed Yearly
Attached is the medication form needed yearly for all prescriptions including over-the counter and prescribed
Medication Order Form 2023-2024
Update Final Forms for any Medication Changes or Medical Conditions
Please keep Final Forms updated with current medical information and any changes
Resourceful Tool
Please take a look at our District Website below for all Health Related Information and Forms
I have been very blessed to serve your child here at Maple Dale this year. I hope you have a safe and wonderful summer and don't hesitate to email or call me if you have any questions.
Please let me know if you want to send the emergency medication home next Thursday or if you can pick it up.
Fondly,
Nurse Adee
--
Carolyn Adee, RN,BSN,MSM,LSN
School Nurse
Maple Dale Elementary
6100 Hagewa Drive
Cincinnati, Ohio 45242
Phone 513-686-1723
Fax 513-792-6112
The Value of Play and Free Exploration
I always find myself behind the power curve in the spring. Camps fill up quickly and I am just not thinking as far in advance as I need to! This year, however, my guilt was alleviated some by a recent read, The Anxious Generation, by Jonathan Haidt. While the book covers a great deal, a key message was that unstructured play is disappearing, but it is critical for a child’s healthy development.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says that play is “an activity that is intrinsically motivated, entails active engagement, and results in joyful discovery. Play is voluntary and often has no extrinsic goals; it is fun and often spontaneous.” AAP also says, “Play is not just about having fun but about taking risks, experimenting, and testing boundaries.”
Why is this type of play disappearing? An overarching societal focus on academic readiness is partially to blame. There has been a marked increase in the number of children attending full-day pre-school and Kindergarten in the past two decades. In addition, there are higher expectations of incoming Kindergarteners to know their alphabet or have academic experience already. Maple Dale has wonderful gifted programming available for children and this is not to say that parents should not envision this for their children! But as parents, we must also ensure our children also have the time and chance to play, especially since we know that play enhances curiosity, creative thinking, and ability to multi-task—all part of high academic achievement in the first place.
This type of child-centered play is also being replaced by the availability of personal electronic devices with access to video games. “Can I play?” so often means online now. However, it was not that long ago that children knocked on their neighbor’s door and asked, “Can you play?”
Finally, there are consistently increasing commitments to extra-curriculars like select/travel or competitive teams, even at very young ages. I don’t want to undercut the many remarkable benefits involved with playing organized team sports. But ideally, not at the expense of those derived from free playtime.
The benefits of play are countless. Play improves brain development; it increases synapse connections and brain plasticity. Play physically changes the pre-frontal cortex (PFC), the part of the brain responsible for executive functioning like working memory, flexible thinking, negotiation, and problem-solving. As children use their imaginations to invent games, solve problems like what rules to follow in that game and how to react when presented with different social problems (like peers not following set rules), circuits for this type of problem solving are literally being built in the PFC. The more opportunities, the better. Without play, this part of the brain is not changed in the same way.
With these circuits in place, children feel able to handle tricky social situations and thus, can have improved regulation in them, but this is not the only way play improves regulation. Lots of play is linked with low cortisol levels, an indicator of lower stress levels. In addition, studies have shown that children entering new situations (pre-school) experienced significantly lower stress levels after free play with peers/toys or one-on-one with a nurturing adult was ‘prescribed.’ For children, physical play has the same benefit as exercise in adults, the release of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, which are all associated with improved mood and regulation.
A final thought (but not the final benefit—there are so many more to be found in resources noted below), is that play inherently also involves taking risks and testing boundaries. From this, children learn what to expect from their environment. When children have explored and imagined regularly, they are less likely to feel anxious when engaging in something new because it probably is not totally new—they have experienced some version of it already through play.
So, whether you were on the ball and booked camps or were like me and didn’t meet the deadlines, please put some ‘free time’ on the schedule for this summer. Follow your kids in their exploration or take away the other options (curse you, Roblox!) and send them outside to knock on the neighbor kid’s door.
Resources:
Scientists Say Child's Play Helps Build A Better Brain : NPR Ed : NPR
Renee Bernecker, MSW, LISW-S, CTP
School-Based Therapist – Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
Maple Dale Elementary School
Phone: 513-686-1720 ext. 1302
FIELD DAY – TUESDAY, MAY 28 – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
Field Day for grades K-4 is right around the corner! Please join us on
Tuesday, May 28th (rain date is Wednesday, May 29th) for a fun-filled day of relay races, games, music, and popsicles! Volunteers are needed to help with the stations.
Here are the volunteer time slots for each grade level:
- 2nd and 3rd grade: 9:15-11:15
- Kindergarten: 12:25-1:20
- 1st and 4th grade: 1:15-3:15
Please click Field Day Volunteer Sign Up if you would like to help at a station! THANK YOU in advance!
Here is the EH Greene presentation for rising 5th grade students.
“EHG Get Connected Day'' is scheduled for August 5, 2024 from 8:30-3:30. Families should allot one hour within this time frame to visit stations throughout the Greene School in preparation for the new school year. These stations will include: school pictures, material orders, 5th grade computer pickup, team t-shirt orders, and more!
Our rising 5th grade student orientation program, Greene 101, is tentatively scheduled for August 6/7, 2024. This one-day program is optional, but HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for incoming 5th graders to help with their transition. Enrolled students will attend for one of the scheduled dates. Registration and payment for Greene 101 will be available through Final Forms. More information will be communicated this spring!
WHO: Any incoming 3rd - 8th grader
WHEN: June 10, 11, and 12th
WHERE: SYCAMORE HIGH SCHOOL
Time: 9am - Noon each day
Cost: $100
CLICK HERE To Register online: and make payment via VENMO - @Coach_CasieGarland or send a check
About us
Email: zellnerm@sycamoreschools.org
Website: http://www.sycamoreschools.org/Domain/12
Location: 6100 Hagewa Drive, Cincinnati, OH, United States
Phone: (513)686-1720
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mapledaleaviators/
Twitter: @MapleDaleElem