Dear Lower School Families,
I am excited to welcome you to ASM for the 2026–27 school year!
Whether you’re returning to ASM or are brand new, as we start the year together, my goal is to ensure every child feels safe, valued, and challenged in a joyful and caring learning environment. I look forward to getting to know all of you and your children. It’s going to be a great year!
Below is important information for the beginning of the year. Later this week, I’ll send a second email with a few more details. Please reach out with any questions.
Lower School Daily Schedule
The Lower School day begins at 9:00 A.M. and ends at 3:45 P.M. Students can enter campus at 8:30 A.M.
Arrival: Beginning at 8:30 A.M., Grades 1-5 gather at Don Quijote Park before school starts. At 8:45 A.M., the whistle will blow, and students will make their way to their classrooms.
Beginning at 8:30 A.M., children in EC3-4 & EC5 may gather in the Early Childhood Hallway until their teachers open their classroom doors at 8:45 A.M. each morning.
School begins promptly at 9 A.M., and we ask families to arrive on time so that their children can make the most of their learning day at ASM.
Late Arrivals: If a student arrives after 9:00 A.M., they are marked tardy. Late students who arrive before 9:20 A.M. can still go directly to the classroom to be checked in. Children who arrive after 9:20 A.M. need to come to the LS office to be checked in and for confirmation of lunch plans.
Dismissal: Each day, our staff help over 400 Lower School students safely leave campus. It’s a busy, complex process, and to ensure dismissal runs smoothly, we ask every parent to carefully follow our procedures.
Dismissal is at 3:45 P.M.
Parents may pick up students directly from classrooms at the end of the day.
Students riding the bus EC3-G2 will be escorted by their homeroom teacher.
Students riding the bus G3-G5 will be escorted the first few days and then will transition independently.
With parent permission, students in Grades 3-5 can independently leave campus from the front gate. (However, they can not take a younger sibling (Grades EC3 - Grade 2 with them.)
Students participating in ASAs (beginning in October) will be transferred to their activity by their homeroom teacher. Parents may pick up students after their ASA, or they will be taken to the bus.
If you need to make a change to your child’s dismissal plan, please review the system and expectations on our Lower School Learning Program site Dismissal Changes.
Late Pick Up: Students are to be picked up at 3:45. If students have not been picked up by 3:55, they will come to the office for late pick up. Our office staff will call you if you have not arrived.
Who’s who in the Lower School Office
Rebeca Banon & Fabiola Piccioni
ls@asmadrid.es
Lower School Office
Dani Reynaud
danireynaud@asmadrid.es
Lower School Director
Whitney Mercer
whitneymercer@asmadrid.es
Assistant Principal EC3-G1
Kimberly Cobos
kimberlycobos@asmadrid.es
Assistant Principal G2-G5
Melissa Marsh
melissamarsh@asmadrid.es
Counselor EC3, EC5, G2, G4
Oceane Langreney
oceanelangreney@asmadrid.es
Counselor EC4, G1, G3, G5
Karen Campbell
karencampbell@asmadrid.es
Instructional Coach
Mamen Elvira
mamenelvira@asmadrid.es
María Pascual mariapascual@asmadrid.es
School Nurse
Early Childhood Center (EC3-EC4 & EC5) Information
The first days in our Early Childhood Center (ECC) are about building relationships between students, families, and teachers, and giving everyone a chance to see the classroom before the year begins.
ECC families will receive a welcome letter from their homeroom teachers on Friday, Aug 28th. Parents will also be provided with opportunities to sign up for our virtual Hopes & Dreams conferences and Classroom Meet & Greet. These are both required events that ensure a positive start to the school year.
EC3-4 (Formerly K1-K2)
Virtual "Hopes and Dreams" Meeting (30 min) Tuesday, September 1
You will receive an invite to sign up on Friday, August 28. Connect with your child's teacher and share your hopes for the year ahead.Student & Family Meet and Greet (30 min) Wednesday, September 2
Visit the classroom and meet your child's teacher.First Day of School Thursday, September 3
EC5 (Formerly K3)
Student & Family Meet and Greet (30 min) Monday, August 31, 3:00 P.M. - 4:00 P.M.
Visit the classroom and meet your child's teacher.Virtual "Hopes and Dreams" Meeting (30 min) Tuesday, September 1
Connect with your child's teacher and share your hopes for the year ahead. The school will reach out to schedule.First Day of School - Wednesday, September 2
EC Uniforms: Our Early Childhood uniforms are currently out of stock and are expected to be available again in mid-October. Thank you for your patience. We will reach out with ordering information as soon as they arrive. In the meantime, students are welcome to come to school in regular clothes until the uniform is available. This is completely fine.
Grade 1-5 Information
Teacher/Class Placement - Friday, August 28 - On Friday, August 28, families with children in Grades 1-5 will receive a welcome email from their homeroom teacher.
G1-5 New Family Orientation - Friday, August 28 - 9:00 A.M.-2:00 P.M.
If you are a new family joining ASM G1-G5, you should have received information about our New Family Orientation! This event welcomes all new families to our school. While the event begins at 9:00 A.M., specific Lower School information for new families is scheduled from 10:00 A.M. to 11:00 A.M.
G1-G5 Family Meet and Greet - Monday, August 31- 3:00 P.M.-4:00 P.M.
This is an opportunity for G1-G5 families to come to campus to meet their new teacher and say hello to other staff and students. It’s an informal session aimed at helping all children feel settled to start the year. Teachers aren’t presenting or offering conferences during the Meet and Greet. It’s simply a chance to stop by campus and socialize a little to help prepare for the start of school on Tuesday.
Class Placement Process
Class placement is a task that the ASM Lower School teachers and leadership team take very seriously. It is a complex and thorough process essential to creating well-balanced classes. Because of the complexities involved in creating classes, we do not take parent requests. Thank you for your understanding.
Other Important Dates
New Family Welcome Coffee - Friday, Sept. 4
Hosted by the ASM Welcome Committee, all new families and EC-12th grade are invited to an informal coffee on Friday, September 4, from 9 to 10 A.M. at the Lancer Cafe and Courtyard.
Lower School Open House - Thursday, Sept. 10
We will begin the year with an in-person adult community event. Our Lower School staff will host an Open House for all parents (EC3 - G5) on the evening of Thursday, September 10, from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. This event will allow the staff and school to present important information about teaching and learning, for parents to hear more about the ASM program, and provide time for teachers and parents to connect in partnership.
Grade-Level Coffee & Connections
Whether you're new to ASM or have been here for years, each year brings new growth for your child and new families to connect with. To that end, the Director, Assistant Principals, and School Counselors will host Family Coffee & Connections for each grade level, welcoming families, building connections across the cohort, and discussing Yardsticks, a resource that explains what to expect developmentally at each age.
Coffee & Connections will take place on the Middle School Steps, 9:00-10:00 AM. See dates and grade groupings below.
Sept 15, 9:00 A.M.-10:00 A.M.
Grade 4 & 5
Family Coffee & Connections
Sept 16, 9:00 A.M.-10:00 A.M.
Grade 2 & 3
Family Coffee & Connections
Sept 17, 9:00 A.M.-10:00 A.M.
ECC & G1
Family Coffee & Connections
PhoneFree Lower School
As part of our commitment to student excellence and well-being, ASM is moving toward a phone-free policy across the entire school, from Early Childhood through Grade 12, effective September 2026. We want every student, at every age, to feel connected, engaged, and fully present at school.
In the Lower School, this has been our practice for many years. No devices are allowed except school-provided laptops or iPads. Lower School students should not bring smartphones, smartwatches, or other connected devices, and this includes ASAs, sports, and other after-school campus activities. If a Lower School student does have a phone for any reason, it should stay in their backpack while on campus.
Alongside this phone-free environment, we continue our digital wellbeing work, re-examining how technology is used across the Lower School so that screen time, from early childhood through Grade 5, stays purposeful and developmentally appropriate.
Parent Partnership Opportunities
Making sure parents feel connected to their child’s learning journey is an important part of our home-school partnership. Grade-level teams will offer multiple opportunities for parents to engage with our program. These events will include visits to the classroom to celebrate learning, invitations to learn more about curriculum-specific goals and to see them “in action”, a chance to attend grade-level designated whole-school assemblies, and even more targeted posting in Seesaw - our student learning portfolio - to connect parents to daily learning at ASM. We will also host virtual learning conferences twice during the school year.
Stay tuned for more information about procedures, communication, and events later this week. In the meantime, please reach out to us if you have any questions. I look forward to seeing everyone soon!
Warmly,
Dani Reynaud
Lower School Director
danireynaud@asmadrid.es