Class Resources
Philosophy:
Immaculate Heart of Mary Preschool is a traditional Christian preschool dedicated to providing a warm and nurturing environment in which we encourage each child to learn and grow through meaningful play and challenging activities. The focus of our program is to foster the social, emotional, language, motor, and cognitive development of all children, creating a desire for lifelong learning while we prepare them for kindergarten.
Hours of Operation
Full Day students attend school Monday - Friday from 7:50 - 2:40. Early Bird (Half Day) friends dismiss at the back door at 12 noon.
Arrival, Dismissal, and Closings
Arrival
The classroom doors will open at 7:50 a.m. for your convenience. However, we do not start our school day until 8:10. We will lock the back door at the 8:10 bell. If you arrive after 8:10, you must come in the main entrance and sign your child in late.
Dismissal
Early Bird students dismiss at 12:00 p.m. Full Day students dismiss at 2:40. Both groups of students will be dismissed from our classroom door that leads outside. Please pull into the PreK driveway and stand by your car. Teachers will dismiss students to parents from the classroom door. Beyond the Bell students will be taken upstairs at dismissal time.
12:15 Dismissals
When the IHM school calendar shows a 12:15 dismissal, PreK students leave at Noon. This keeps us consistent with the dismissal of half-day students.
Inclement Weather
In case of inclement weather, we will follow the decision of Baltimore County Public Schools for closings, late openings, and early dismissals. If Baltimore County is two hours late, we will open our classrooms at 9:50 a.m.
Supplies and Fees
Classroom supplies
The supply list is on the IHM school website. Thank you!
Backpacks and Lunchboxes
All students will need a backpack and lunchbox!
Activity Fee
An activity fee of $40 is required from each PreK student at the start of the school year. The activity fee covers the cost of craft supplies and items that are purchased for the many hands-on activities in the PreK program as well as special snacks, celebrations, and events.
Daily Needs and Attendance
School Attire
Your child is here to play, explore, and have fun which, at times, can be messy. Prek 4 students wear their IHM uniform of shorts or sweatpants and t-shirts or sweatshirts and they wear tennis shoes at all times. NO flip-flops, crocs, or slip-on shoes, please.
Meals
Twice each day, PreK students come together to pray and share a meal—a mid-morning snack for everyone, and a noontime lunch for full day students.
Snack Time
Due to food allergies and different preferences of young children, we are asking each child to bring their own snack on a daily basis. Your child’s snack must be dry (non-refrigerated) and individually packaged. Please pack your child’s snack separately from their lunch box. The children’s lunches are put into the refrigerator each morning. During snack time, it is best for your child to be able to go to their cubby and get their snack.
Lunch
Full Day students can bring their lunch from home. When packing your child’s lunch, please do not pack food that needs to be warmed up. The students’ lunches will be in a refrigerator all day and we do not have the means to heat up lunches. If your child only will eat warm lunches, please use a thermos and pack it separately from their lunch box.
Illness
Although we believe that regular attendance is crucial to your child’s progress in school, you are encouraged to put the health of your child and all of our students first by keeping your child at home to heal when they are sick.
If your child is going to be absent from school, we ask that you please notify the nurse, school office, or classroom teacher the morning of the absence. You may contact any of these people by phone or email. Please keep a child home for 24 hours after he or she has had a fever or has been vomiting. Although they may feel better, this time is needed for rest, recovery, and avoiding the recurrence of illness.
When a child returns to school, it is school policy that a note explaining the absence is given to the teacher. This policy also refers to a child that is absent for a family vacation or other non-health related reasons.
Communication and Parent Involvement
We are deeply committed to open and effective communication between home and school, and to fostering opportunities to welcome parents into their child’s day. In addition to the existing routes of communication described below, we invite parents to help us find other avenues to share information.
Daily Folders
A folder containing your child’s completed work, classroom reminders, class calendar, and communication from the school administration, Home-School Association, and community groups will be sent home every day. Please be sure to check this folder nightly. The folder should also be used by you to send communications from home. Folders are checked each morning for messages and return items.
Remind App
We use the Remind App for important messages, communication, and reminders. For sign-up information, please ask Ms. Kristin.
Volunteer Opportunities
Ww look forward to welcoming you into our room! There are a variety of opportunities to volunteer during your child’s PreK experience, such as classroom helpers, play dough makers, guest readers, and craft preppers. We also invite parents to join us for parties and field trips.
Other Family Involvement Opportunities
We love when families get involved in our wonderful school. We have two room parents for our class. These parents help to organize parties and plan other special days in our classroom.
All families are encouraged to join the HSA (Home School Association). Lots of great events are sponsored by the HSA. The Father's Club welcomes all dads and has great opportunities for both service and fun. Race for Education is our school's biggest fundraiser and we ask for many volunteers for this important event.
Special Occasions in PreK
In addition to the information below, watch the classroom calendar and website for monthly announcements about special celebration days throughout the year.
Field Trips
Field trips in PreK do require that each child be accompanied by a parent or chaperone on a one-to-one basis. In order to attend a field trip, to be a class parent, or volunteer in the classroom, parents MUST complete the Virtus training. This is a mandatory training that can be done on-line. The necessary paperwork must be on file in the office before a parent can volunteer or attend a field trip. You can access the information at ihmschoolmd.org - click the Resources button at the top of the page, then scroll down to Parent Volunteering. We encourage parents to complete this training now so that we are ready to go when field trips are allowed.
Birthdays/Holidays Children love celebrating their birthdays in class. Currently, we are not allowed to share snacks and treats among classmates, but we will acknowledge each child’s birthday at snack time by singing Happy Birthday and letting them share their birthday wishes. If your child has a summer birthday, we will celebrate it at a “Summer Birthdays” party at the end of the year. Holidays are also celebrated in class. As these special days approach, we will share our plans with you, and encourage parents to volunteer to help in the classroom or by making a donation to the party if restrictions allow at that time.
Show-n-Tell Wednesdays
Every Wednesday throughout the school year is a share day. Children should bring in item in from home to show the class. They will be encouraged to tell us about their items. We love show-n-tell days!!
Book Boxes
Your child will be bring home several mini-books throughout this school year - approximately 40. This year I am providing a box for each child to easily collect and keep all of these books in one place. I encourage you to read these books with your child at home!
Representing All Children
At IHM preschool, we plan lessons according to the interests of the children in our class. We know that children learn best when they are engaged in activities which interest them. Throughout the school year, we strive to get to know our students and plan lessons based on such things as zoo animals, dinosaurs, weather, superheroes, and healthy eating.
The cultural backgrounds of the individual students in our class are an important part of our lesson planning. We have books representing all cultures on our class bookshelves and in the school library. Students are each given the opportunity to be "Student of the Week." During their special week, students are encouraged to bring in pictures and items that represent their family and culture. Some examples of class learning/celebration days include activities for Black History month, MLK day, Cinco de Mayo, Chinese New Year, and Thanksgiving.
The primary language of students is considered when planning activities. We communicate with families to assure that we are meeting the needs of all students.