ABC Mouse

We now have ABC Mouse. This has interactive games and activities that will help enrich your child's intellect while having fun too. This also incorporates technology in our already active curriculum.  Click the link below to go to the sign in page. You will need the user name and password. This is only given to parent of the children who attend our daycare. Click on the link below if you have received the user name and password.

 http://www.abcmouse.com/home#abc/classroom

New Number & Soon New Name

As much as we like our name "Bitsy Homeschool Group", it will not attract nearly as many people. So with that, my children have been given the task to develop a new name. We will still keep Bitsy Homeschool Group for tax purposes, but our name will appear differently. More on that to come.

What's new! We have an official phone number. If you wish to speak with us regarding childcare for your child you can now call 804-318-1451. I am still trying to commit this one to memory. This could take a while. We are looking forward to this new milestone. Please spread the word of our daycare. 

Our mission is to provide quality family childcare with Christian values embedded into our daily routine. Through play, exploration, language and physical activity. We enjoy going outdoors (as weather permits) and exploring what the great outdoors has to offer. 

We do not have closings or delays due to inclement weather. Our hours are from 6am-9pm. We have competitive rates with other in-home family daycares. Call or email to schedule an appointment to tour our home for your child's over-all growth. 

804-318-1451 (Business)
804-937-9025 (Cell)
bitsyhomeschoolgroup@gmail.com

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!

As many have rushed out to the stores to purchase their loved ones these sweet treats and cards, maybe even flowers on this wonderful day called Valentine's Day, we would like to point out a greater love.

God sent His son to the earth to become a savior for the sinners. He gave His one and only son as the ultimate sacrifice. Through Christ Jesus, slaying the blood of a blemish free animal was no longer necessary to atone for your sins. Jesus paid it all through His blood and through His suffering. No greater love is the love a parent has for a child. God's love for us and what He has to give far exceeds the sweet treats, cards and flowers. In the hustle and bustle of the commercialism, please remember the love God has for us.

In keeping with my personal traditions with my own children and now my daycare kids, we learn a bit about the holidays as they come up. Here's some tidbits one might not know about the history of Valentine's Day. Enjoy.

THE LEGEND OF ST. VALENTINE

The history of Valentine’s Day–and the story of its patron saint–is shrouded in mystery. We do know that February has long been celebrated as a month of romance, and that St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. But who was Saint Valentine, and how did he become associated with this ancient rite?

The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred. One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons, where they were often beaten and tortured. According to one legend, an imprisoned Valentine actually sent the first “valentine” greeting himself after he fell in love with a young girl–possibly his jailor’s daughter–who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories all emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic and–most importantly–romantic figure. By the Middle Ages, perhaps thanks to this reputation, Valentine would become one of the most popular saints in England and France.

ORIGINS OF VALENTINE’S DAY: A PAGAN FESTIVAL IN FEBRUARY

While some believe that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death or burial–which probably occurred around A.D. 270–others claim that the Christian church may have decided to place St. Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February in an effort to “Christianize” the pagan celebration of Lupercalia. Celebrated at the ides of February, or February 15, Lupercalia was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.

To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at a sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification. They would then strip the goat’s hide into strips, dip them into the sacrificial blood and take to the streets, gently slapping both women and crop fields with the goat hide. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed the touch of the hides because it was believed to make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city’s bachelors would each choose a name and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage.

VALENTINE’S DAY: A DAY OF ROMANCE

Lupercalia survived the initial rise of Christianity and but was outlawed—as it was deemed “un-Christian”–at the end of the 5th century, when Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine’s Day. It was not until much later, however, that the day became definitively associated with love. During the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds’ mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of Valentine’s Day should be a day for romance.

Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages, though written Valentine’s didn’t begin to appear until after 1400. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. (The greeting is now part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England.) Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.

TYPICAL VALENTINE’S DAY GREETINGS

In addition to the United States, Valentine’s Day is celebrated in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France and Australia. In Great Britain, Valentine’s Day began to be popularly celebrated around the 17th century. By the middle of the 18th, it was common for friends and lovers of all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes, and by 1900 printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one’s feelings was discouraged. Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine’s Day greetings.

Americans probably began exchanging hand-made valentines in the early 1700s. In the 1840s, Esther A. Howland began selling the first mass-produced valentines in America. Howland, known as the “Mother of the Valentine,” made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as “scrap.” Today, according to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated 1 billion Valentine’s Day cards are sent each year, making Valentine’s Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.) Women purchase approximately 85 percent of all valentines.

Approximately 150 million Valentine's Day cards are exchanged annually, making Valentine's Day the second most popular card-sending holiday after Christmas.

http://www.history.com/topics/valentines-day/history-of-valentines-day

SNOW DAY!!!

For many schools, daycares and businesses, snow in the forecast means a day off for the kids. What about the parents? It would mean you have to take time off from work. Maybe it would mean loss wages. 

Here at Bitsy Homeschool we are never closed due to inclement weather. We do advise our parents to use their discretion and to place the safety of their families first, but if work beckons, then consider Bitsy Homeschool as your choice in daycare. We do not have delayed openings or early closings. Our hours are from 6am to 8pm, unless otherwise previously arranged. 

Snow is a time for fun; a time for making snow forts and snowmen. So long as it is not below 32 degrees, we will be outside playing in the white stuff God bestows upon us. 

So if you are caught up in the hoopla of cancellations and early delays/dismissals and find it to be detrimental to your working hours, give us a call. We would love to discuss our program with you. 

Fantastic Weeks

What a blessing it has been to have little bits running about the house once again. Between play and learning and quiet moments, the week has flashed right by. We are continuing to learn the letter "H" and our number "one". With the monthly theme of LOVE, we will be decorating the place with hearts and other artwork to remind us of how much God loves us.

Pictures of this weeks activities will be soon to come. We are painting on Monday. As the week progresses, we will be adding different textiles to our art. All bulky art and curriculum work will be sent home on Fridays.

This coming Friday is Valentines Day. We are having a little party. In the morning we will be making heart-shaped mini-cupcakes and covering "Heart" pretzels with chocolate and sprinkles. We will be having "pink" juice. If any of the parents wish to attend, you know the door is open. Party begins at 3:00. The children will be making Valentine cards for their family and friends to show them how much they love them.

You have a wonderful week. Be blessed and see God's love in everything you do.

We have started

What a great first day we had yesterday. We made "Love Bugs". These are little lady bugs with heart shaped dots on their backs. We read the story about how Jesus loves little children and how he always welcomed them to come and learn. Our weekly number is "one". Our weekly color is red. Our weekly letter is the letter "H". Our monthly shape is a heart.

Given it is February and Valentines Day is in February our monthly theme is Love. All of our weekly numbers, letters, shapes, etc will all be focused around this. Next month will be St. Patrick's Day and the theme will be on God's gifts. April will be Easter and a related topic.

It will only get better from here. Daily pictures and videos will be taken as the children perform the various activities we do throughout our day/week. With the weather getting warmer, and lately, dryer we will be getting outdoors a lot more often. If it is too muddy to play on the outside equipment, we will be taking walks. Because we are located in a quiet neighborhood, we are able to do this safely.

Tuesday we will be making a trip to New Kent Elementary to watch several children perform a speech about key people in Virginia's history. One friend will be talking about Daniel Boone. We are excited about this.

Other upcoming events include a trip to the Children's Museum of Richmond on the 21st. We are also looking to coordinate a possible group trip (including whole families) to an amusement park come May. Many more exciting things will be to come in the future so please stay tune and follow along with this blog.