HOWDY FAMILIES AND FRIENDS! 

We are happy to see returning families and welcome new families this fall semester! The children are beginning to acclimate to their new environments and build strong relationships with their teachers and peers. 

With the start of a new year, we have many fun events planned throughout the semester. Mark your calendars and make plans to join the fun. We will kick off the fall activities with Picnic on the Playground. This has become a family favorite event. Join other BGCC and CSCC families on Sept. 21 between 5:00 PM and 7:00 PM for some fun on our amazing outdoor space. Food will be available for purchase or feel free to bring your own picnic dinner. We will hope for cooler temperatures! Flyers will be posted soon with more information. Be sure to browse through the Scholastic Book Fair Oct. 21-25. You can add to your child’s collection of books and support the Center by purchasing a book for the classroom. October will end with Fall Family Fun Night on Oct. 24. There will be fun activities for the children again taking advantage of the wonderful outdoor play space.  

Remember to wear Maroon every Friday in support of our Aggies! Whoop! 

September Center Spotlight 

Meet Alyssa Leininger, one of three new assistant teachers to join our amazing team of teachers! 

Howdy! I’m Ms. Alyssa. This year I’m excited to be an assistant teacher in the Aggie Ring classroom. I have worked privately and professionally in the childcare field for over 10 years. Much of that time was spent working with children under the age of 3. I’m from a small town outside of Bryan/College Station called Navasota. I graduated Navasota High School in 2013. I have 3 younger brothers.. (so I guess you could say I’ve been in childcare my whole life.) In my spare time I love to go shopping, drink iced coffee, and eat Blue Bell ice cream. I’m looking forward to helping your child(ren) learn and grow during this school year.

Alyssa will be working alongside Ms. Martey in the Aggie Ring classroom. Mrs. Martey is an original employee of the Texas A&M University Children’s Center (now known as the Becky Gates Children’s Center). For 24 out of the 26 years, she has been a toddler teacher. What initially brought Martey to BGCC was the potential to impact children and families in a university childcare environment. Having such a diverse early childhood education environment being built from the ground up was an exciting opportunity for growth to her. She hoped it would connect with the education department at Texas A&M as it now has today.

The Aggie Ring classroom is one of three Toddler II classrooms along with Kyle Field and Spirit of Aggieland. Some of the children are just turning two-years-old and some will soon be able to say “I am 3!” The children spend much of their day learning through hands on activities where they engage all their senses to learn more about the world around them. You may find them singing and dancing, blowing bubbles, playing with playdough or foam soap, painting or coloring a masterpiece, working on gross motor skills on the playground by riding trikes, climbing on boulders, moving items from one place to another and not even realizing through all this fun that they are learning! How great it is to be TWO!

The focus the first 30 days in each classroom is helping the children get to know themselves – what makes them unique, sharing what is special about their families, and getting to know each other.  

Take a peak below into activities from the first week of school in the Aggies and 12th Man classrooms. Our name is something we should all be proud of. 

Aggies 

After reading The Name Jar, we talked about how special our names are and how each person’s name may be significant and unique. Our names are an important part of our identity. They carry deep personal, cultural, familial, and historical connections. They also give us a sense of who we are, the communities in which we belong, and our place in the world.  

12th Man

This week, we kicked off our penmanship adventure with a fun and personal activity – writing our names. What a better way to start than with something uniquely theirs. The kids quickly took to the task, each carefully writing their name with pride. After mastering their names, the children let their imaginations run wild, drawing their favorite things.

Family Advisory Board 

Thank you to families who have returned your interest form to be a part of the Family Advisory Board (FAB) for the 2024-2025 school year. The Family Advisory Board is composed of parents representing all BGCC families and seeks to create positive family experiences, acts as a sounding board for family concerns, and provides advice to BGCC administration as well as supporting our mission. If you are interested in serving on the FAB, please submit the form to [email protected] no later than Sept. 3. The FAB will meet two times during the fall semester and two times during the spring. The date for the first meeting will be set soon and will be held on Zoom. Find the link to the form HERE. 

Classroom Family Directory 

The Classroom Family Directory includes contact information provided by the parents who opt to participate. The directory allows for families to connect and build relationships with other BGCC families. The contact information is private, and we ask you do not share with others. A form for opting in or out of the directory was included with the new enrollment information. I you haven’t returned your find and would like to be included in the directory, you can find it HERE. Return the completed form to [email protected] and/or [email protected] no later than September 7.  

Babysitter List 

As soon as we complete the fall hiring process, we will update and email out the BGCC Babysitting list for you to use as needed. This list is comprised of TAMU students willing to babysit outside of normal BGCC operating hours. Remember, the babysitting list is used to arrange a private agreement between you and another person outside of BGCC hours and should not be shared with others outside of BGCC families. We are not responsible for private agreements between a family and staff member.  

Reminders… 

• Renovations to classrooms are scheduled to begin Sept. 16. Additional details were included in an email from me on Friday, August 22. Administration will provide updates as the process moves along.  
• School pictures are scheduled for Oct. 3-5. Pictures are done by Karen at Lasting Memories. Fall semester pictures will include a solid-colored background and will be individual and sibling pictures only. Karen will return in the spring to take individual, group, and graduate pictures. A schedule for classroom picture dates and times and information about when pictures will be available for purchase will be emailed to you when we get closer to picture days.