February is Dental Health Month...we've talked about brushing our teeth and what kind of food is good and not so good to keep our teeth healthy.

Our color for the month is pink and the children had fun just creating their own collage with pink paper, glue and yarn.

Pictures of our Chinese New Year Celebration

The children enjoyed learning about Chinese New Year. Here are some pictures of our celebration. Thank you to the Stebbins family for providing a fun snack - the children thought the chocolate coins were "awesome!"

Information to help parents claim valuable tax credits...

The working families, whose children you care for, may be eligible for federal tax credits worth thousands of dollars when they file their taxes for 2009. These credits are more valuable than ever so make sure your families don't miss out! Here are the credits:

Federal Tax Credits:
• Earned Income Tax Credit, which helps provide a wage supplement for low and moderate-income families. This credit is worth up to $5,657.
• Child Tax Credit, designed to help families offset some of the costs of raising children. This credit is worth up to $1,000 per child for families who earned at least $3,000 in 2009.
• Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit, designed to help with child care costs that families pay in order to work. This credit is worth up to $2,100, but can't be more than the family's federal tax bill.
• Making Work Pay Credit, designed to increase families' take-home pay. This new credit is worth up to $800 for couples.
Oregon Tax Credits:
• Oregon Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit, designed to help with child care costs families pay in order to work. It is worth up to $1,800 but can't be more than the family's state tax bill.
• Oregon Working Family Child Care Tax Credit, worth up to 40% of
qualifying child care expenses.
• Oregon Earned Income Tax Credit, worth up to $339 for low income families.

Even if a family doesn't owe income taxes, it may still be eligible for a refund check!

Families can get FREE help with their federal taxes by calling the IRS toll-free at (800) TAX-1040 or (800) 829-1040. Or go to www.irs.gov/individuals/topic . For help with state taxes contact the Oregon Department of Revenue at (800) 356-4222 or www.oregon.gov/DOR/ .
Families can also contact the AARP Tax-Aide toll-free at (888) AARP-NOW or (888) 227-7669. To find AARP Tax-Aide help in your area,
https://locator.aarp.org/vmis/sites/tax_aide_locator.jsp .

Scholastic Book Orders

Dear Parents,

I have exciting news. You can now place your Scholastic Book Clubs orders online!

Browse all the great monthly Book Club selections at low prices and order online. Plus, our class earns a FREE Book every time a parent orders online.

Here's how it works:

1. Use the information below to access the Scholastic Book Clubs Web site.
2. Browse the titles with your child and place your order with your credit card.
3. Your order will come to me, and your credit card payment will go directly to Scholastic's secure server. There's no need to send money to school.
4. After I submit the entire class order to Scholastic, your order will be delivered to our
classroom for your child to take home.

To get started, go to the Web address below and enter our class’s personalized user name and password in the sign-in fields on the right side of the page. Note: You do not need to create your own user name and password.

Scholastic Book Club
User Name: Juliaschildcare
Password: reading4fun

Ordering online is the most convenient way to use Scholastic Book Clubs. You can order anytime, right up until the online order due date. You'll also get instant access to over 500 additional titles plus online-only specials and discounts. Currently, you will find the February Firefly and Honeybee catalog available.

And don't forget: Every time a parent places an order online, we earn a FREE book for our classroom library!

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,

JULIA FIEGER

Hearts and Hearts and Hearts

Pictures of the children working on their heart wreaths.......art is very, very serious business...

Just because they are cute!

Polar Bear, Polar Bear

Our literary focus this week has been the book Polar Bear, Polar Bear What Do You Hear. The children decorated a bag with a polar bear and inside are the animals from the book...have your child "read" their story bag to you!