Dear Parents and Students,

We are looking forward to spending the 2025-2026 school year getting to better know each of your children! The journey from Kindergarten to First Grade is an exciting one, filled with curiosity, creativity, and a readiness to take on new challenges. This year’s Kindergarteners have worked very hard and have made incredible progress both academically and socially, and it is important to take a break to rejuvenate.  Hopefully, your child will have a good amount of unstructured time to play, run, experiment, use their imaginations, and do whatever it is that they are passionate about.  I hope there are many sunny days with special family activities, fresh air, and shared treats! In short, I can’t emphasize enough that the best way to help your child prepare for next September is to let him/her relax and have some fun!   

We also know that students can lose some of the skills and knowledge they have mastered in the previous grade without continued practice. We hope the assignments and recommendations made in this letter will help support our students’ sustained progress and growth over the summer months. In addition to the reader’s response journal, we also recommend that each student keep a writing journal to record their summertime adventures, which can be done independently or with question prompts. Additional practice with letter/sound recognition, spelling, letter formation, and sizing, as well as the proper use of capitalization and punctuation, is invaluable. One way to reinforce spelling with your child on those rainy days of summer is to play games like Scrabble Junior, which can be fun for the whole family. We are excited to read the writing journals at the beginning of the school year; journals are a special way for us to get to know all of you! 

And, of course, we want the students reading, reading, reading!!! It helps when reading is part of a routine: every morning, at bedtime, etc... However, it is great to encourage students to practice their reading during downtimes, such as long car rides, airplane rides, at the beach, and in between summertime activities. Reading should be something for children to look forward to and enjoy -  it's OK if they are too tired, or something simply derails the routine (it happens!). Please note the importance of varied reading experiences for your child. Children benefit greatly from being read to, as this models pacing, fluency, and expression. It is also important to have children read out loud to an adult, as well as silently to themselves. Parents/Caregivers should be sure to ask a variety of questions, including having children identify the main characters, setting, and main idea. It is also important for students to be able to recall specific details from the story. Finally, we encourage the use of  "Why" questions, such as “Why do you think the character chose to do that?”. We also encourage your child to make predictions and ask your child to put themselves in the character’s shoes, by asking "What would you have done?" 

To make it easy for everyone to stay on track, this letter includes all of the information you need to balance summer fun with summer learning! By early July, please help your child include structured time for academic practice into his or her schedule.  Links to resources are included in this letter, and downloads are also available by grade level. 

In addition to the math pages, students should use a notebook as a  Summer Reader’s Response Journal.  Your child should use this journal to keep track of the books he/ she reads over the summer, taking notes about characters, settings, plot, problem-solution, and, of course, creating pictures of their favorite parts of the book.   This is a perfect place for them to record their responses to what they are reading as well.  For example, students may write about why they like or dislike a character or what parts of the story they enjoyed and why.  He/she may also use this book for journaling about any special experiences that they have over the summer. Any writing is good writing!

Have a lovely, relaxing, playful summer!  We are looking forward to getting to see and know them more in September.         

Warmly,

Grade 1 Lead Teacher

We encourage you to have your child spend a little time each week on IXL this summer to keep their learning fresh and stay confident for the upcoming school year. 

Every student will keep a Reader’s Response Journal to continue practicing the comprehension skills and strategies that they have been taught in class when reading and responding to literature. 

Your child has two options for writing and drawing their Reader's Response entries.

On the first day of school, please make sure your child brings in the following:

• Completed Reader’s Response Journal

• A backpack (clearly labeled with student’s name) that is large enough to accommodate a Homework Folder measuring 9 in. X 12 in.

• Official K-F uniform items (clearly labeled with student’s name)

• A reusable water bottle (clearly labeled with student’s name)

Please note: All other school materials, such as pencils and notebooks, will be supplied by the school. Please also remember to label all uniform items with your child’s name!