Category Archives: Blog

I have worked in childcare for a long time. I taught at Brookside Day School for four years. I absolutely loved it. While I left full-time preschool to work alongside my father, I knew that one day I would teach again. I taught the children’s program at church for over 25 years. When I left […]

Kansas City culture is around us every time of the year; however, the family fun activities that kick start the cold weather take the cake. Between the beautiful light displays and busy holiday hustle, Kansas Citian’s have an abundance of entertainment. One of the most popular holiday spots is the historic Plaza in downtown Kansas […]

I’ve always been well aware that I experienced a happy childhood, and without question, Brookridge Day School is critical to why this is true!! My happy memories are very specific, which indicates Brookridge made quite an impression on me! I remember playing with blocks in the Happy Room.  Another favorite was playing “Red Rover” and […]

Over the course of the next few months we’re going to introduce you to each one of the talented and dedicated professionals that make up Overland Park’s Brookridge Day School. We recently had BDS Pre-K teacher Heather Vassmer take time to tell us a little more about herself. Meet Heather! How long have you been at […]

Museums are a great resource for families during the winter, especially in Kansas City. Activities abound for young children!

Over the course of the next few months we’re going to introduce you to each one of the talented and dedicated professionals that make up Overland Park’s Brookridge Day School. We recently had our wonderful music teacher, DONYA BOOTH,  take time to tell us a little more about herself. Meet Donya! How long have you been […]

Kindergartners at Brookridge Day School are given their own notebooks. Through these, they track their progress on milestones identifying letters, color words, number words and more. This is yet another example of the Brookridge Advantage!

What is genius hour? Genius hour is one-hour-a-week that I let my Brookridge Day School 3rd graders research whatever topic they choose to research! YES! THEY CHOOSE! Every week there is an hour dedicated to just that topic. They research and prepare a project. It can be a “how-to” topic, a famous person, a state, […]

Over the course of the next few months we’re going to introduce you to each one of the talented and dedicated professionals that make up Overland Park’s Brookridge Day School.  We recently had Principal Barbara Brown take time to tell us a little more about herself. Meet Barb! How long have you been at Brookridge […]

Over the course of the next few months we’re going to introduce you to each one of the talented and dedicated professionals that make up Overland Park’s Brookridge Day School. We recently had 3rd grade teacher Katie Shonkwiler take time to tell us a little more about herself. Meet Katie! How long have you been […]

Are you looking for tips to help your child accomplish tasks at home? The Easy as 1-2-3 formula is one that the teachers at Brookridge Day School use to help students accomplish tasks at school. The good news is that this formula will work for any task, in any setting, from completing homework to brushing […]

“Hey, I remember you!” I said to one of my former students, a student I had what seems a lifetime ago. Because I do remember my students. Of course I do. Who could forget? I remember the way she used to walk on her tiptoes and always had something to say. For me, she is frozen in […]

Fall is my favorite time of year.  The colors of the falling leaves, the crispness in the air and the cool nights remind all of us to enjoy this beautiful season as winter will be setting in soon. Fall is a great time to experience one of my favorite places, Louisburg Cider Mill. Your kids […]

What is a transition, you might ask? A transition is a way to move a child or group of children from one task to another. The trick to a successful transition is what you make of it in the classroom. The more fun you have with the children, the more they find it fun. If […]

These days, the world feels more unsafe than ever. While the events of Las Vegas inspired me to write this post, there have been so many incidents that also warrant this information. It is important to remember that these tragedies are rare. It hardly feels that way, between our catastrophic hurricane season and several violent […]

As first grade teachers, we are always trying to create a learning environment that is engaging, interactive, and inspiring.  Room 4 students recently studied the earth’s landforms, and as a culminating activity, we provided the kids with blue Cool Whip, green food coloring, vanilla wafers, chocolate chips, Hershey kisses, green coconut, candy corn, goldfish crackers […]

At Brookridge Day School, our purpose is to provide an environment where the whole child is nurtured. An aspect of this whole child approach is creating strong and positive relationships with each child. Behavior management strategies, used to improve these relationships, is something that has been on my mind lately. The number one component in […]

It is not a secret that I love books. I love reading them (to myself and others). I love making things with them (My Christmas tree was made of books last year). I love books!  But I also love what books can inspire others to do. There are books that promote critical and creative thinking […]

Last week our friends Johnny and Adam, from Percussion Magic came back to Brookridge Day School and our preschoolers loved every minute of it! They played the guitar and sang songs as we danced along. They showed us different instruments like the maracas, tambourine, claves and drums. Johnny and Adam made sure to explain and show us how each […]

Welcome to Brookridge! It’s the first day of school in the 2017-2018 school year!

The Room 5 teachers are having a blast incorporating “Summer Smarts” into our daily summer classroom schedules. They do their best to incorporate math, science or literacy into whatever the theme is for that week. During Crazy Sock Week, the kids used socks to play a pattern matching game. During Hat Week, Preschool Room 5 […]

Room 5 is taking full advantage of “Tasty Tuesdays!” Each week the teachers try to come up with a fun treat for the classroom to make matching whatever the theme is that particular week. So far, the kiddos have enjoyed making pigs in a blanket during our party pig bounce house week, and trail mix, […]

In Room 5 the dreaded indoor recess is no longer dreaded! We keep two cabinets in our classroom specifically dedicated to indoor recess only. That way, we know our kiddos haven’t played with it over and over again and they will be excited to get it out when the weather is questionable! In our cabinet, […]

The 3 and 4 year old children are really enjoying their Recycling Unit in Room 5! They worked hard with Mrs. McCarthy on a science project to make recycled paper out of paper that came from a shredding machine. They used water, shredded paper, a blender, and a screen to make the shredded pieces whole […]

When teaching is your calling, your life’s work and mission, the children truly fill the need of being appreciated. That said, as a principal of a school filled with talented educators, I am always looking for ways to show our teachers how much we appreciate their dedication to the children that they work with every […]

As your child’s preschool years come to an end you are undoubtedly thinking about kindergarten. It is important to choose the right school environment for your child, as well as understanding the skills a child needs to be successful as they move into kindergarten. A survey of kindergarten teachers revealed the top readiness skills that […]

Here at Brookridge Day School, we pride ourselves on high state assessment scores year after year. You might wonder what the magic is behind this.  Easy…state assessments are not our focus! We focus on confidence and effort and showing what you know. At Brookridge we have never and will never “teach to the test.” We […]

Learning does not end once your child leaves the classroom. It is important to always get your child thinking about school-related things even once they are out of the classroom or out of school. This does not necessarily mean assigning numerous worksheets, or even practicing writing or math skills. It can be something as simple […]

Keeping young children safe and warm during the winter is a team effort. Young children are unaware of the dangers of extreme cold weather and more likely to lose body heat more quickly than adults. It is our duty as parents and/or teachers to keep children protected at all times while they are under our […]

The buddy bench is a simple idea that started in Germany to eliminate loneliness and foster friendship on school playgrounds.  After reading about the buddy bench concept, a first grader in Pennsylvania wanted a buddy bench for his school. Now buddy benches are in schools across the country.   Earlier this year, one of our […]

With the changing temperatures these last few weeks, the kiddos in my classroom have been chomping at the bit for that first snow storm.  They discuss all of the fun things that accompany the cooler weather: the first snowflake, snowmen they will build, hot cocoa, holiday traditions, and so on. Now as a teacher, I […]

It’s never too early to start setting goals. In Kindergarten at BDS, we are learning how to set goals for ourselves. Some goals are academic while others are more personal (tying shoes). Kindergartners need to be taught how to choose and set goals that are appropriate for them. A lot of my students want to […]

I have always started my year out establishing a sense of “team” in my classroom. We begin with our classroom having a name of “Team Shonkwiler.”  That is how we refer to our class, the students, parents, and myself. We are all a team! The first day of school we work in groups to make […]

Preschoolers thrive off of sensory experiences and our Room 5 kiddos crave them like crazy! Each week the teachers in Room 5 try to put something new and different inside of a bucket (or on the classroom sensory table) for their students to smell, touch and see. One of the most popular sensory items that […]

What your child most wants – and needs – is to be with you with no goal in mind beyond the joy of spending time together. She wants you to take pleasure in her, play with her, and listen to her. Nothing bolsters her self-esteem more! So why not pull out a board game or […]

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with family and friends!  Room 5 has been having a lot of fun incorporating turkey-themed projects and activities into their daily lessons. Ms. Tope has had a great time getting the kids interested in counting by using feathers to catch their attention! Using feathers in the sensory […]

During November, many of us will gather with family and we’ll feel thankful for our turkey dinners and our many blessings. Teachers will talk about the Pilgrims and the Native Americans and how they thanked each other for their kindness. It’s also a good time to think about how we teach our children to feel […]

Welcome back!  Hopefully, you were able to read Part 1 of this two-parter on how to engage reluctant readers.  If you missed it, please click here to read it!   Role Model:   Finally, let kids see you read! Role model reading by actual reading, not talking about reading or only encouraging it. Many youth […]

As the holiday season looms closer and I am making my gift lists for families and friends, I think about books. Yet, let’s be honest…I am always thinking about books. I am an avid reader and I love to encourage literacy, so guess what my friends and families might be getting for the holidays? Yep, […]

Pull up any ‘StoryBots’ video on YouTube and a yellow StoryBot will show up and cheer at the video’s start. That is how I feel about StoryBots- like I could cheer! So what is a StoryBot? This interactive website is one of the best in education. StoryBots is a multi-platform learning program for children ages […]

Room C’s classroom theme this year has been COLORS. A few weeks ago, the Fun Friday theme for summer also happened to be COLORS! The kiddos in Room C really enjoyed spending the week reviewing their colors, working on new and fun art projects, and showing Ms. Tope what they’ve retained throughout their year. Not […]

The main focus in Room C is for the students to learn social and emotional skills. One of the most important things we can foster is “self-help” skills. These skills are very important for the beginning preschooler and really help a child to become more independent and get in the mindset of “I can do […]

Want to keep your child’s academic skills sharp this summer? Play a board game. We recently had game day at our school and I realized how many skills are involved in playing a game. Children enhance their small motor skills when they roll a dice, spin a spinner or move a board piece. Valuable lessons […]

Every Friday is FUN at Brookridge Day School’s summer camp, and the Room C kiddos are loving it! On Fun Fridays, the children get to visit Room D with Mrs. Stewart, where she has set up different games and activities for the kids to do; each week brings a different theme and activity. This week […]

The Brookridge Day School event of the summer will be Friday, June 3rd.  The Book Fair will be open from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm while the picnic event will be from 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm.  The children must be accompanied by an adult for this event.

Our optional summer activities are offered throughout the summer and help customize your child’s summer experience here at Brookridge.  With each month’s newsletter, we will include the details for that month’s field trips and optional activities. How does it work? Simply check the activities you wish for your child to participate that month, total the […]

We like to stay busy- very busy- and summer begins next week!  Our Summer at BDS program runs from May 31 through August 3, 2016.  Families can choose between full-time or part-time attendance to best meet their needs for the ten weeks of summer!  We offer a summer program brimming with activities and fun, with […]

Let me begin by stating that I am by no means an expert on potty training. Yes, I have been assisting parents and children with potty training for the majority of the time I’ve spent in education, but I am not a parent nor do I have a Ph.D. in potty training. But let’s be […]

Over the last year, I have had such a great time learning how my kindergarten kiddos absorb different information.  As a kindergarten team, we try to teach to the whole child and incorporate lessons that do just that.  I have found the most success during our science block (which lends itself nicely to using all […]

For some children and adults, making friends comes naturally. This isn’t always the case for our children. Fortunately, making friends can be modeled. Has your child ever come home from school and said, “I don’t have any friends to play with,” or “I don’t want to play with so-and-so because…” Even if this hasn’t happened […]