The ABC's of Kindergarten for
Mrs. Nichols' Class...
A
If your child is ill, please call the office (865-5119) and inform us of your
child's absence and the reason for it. This is for your child's safety. If a
student must leave early for a doctor's appointment, go to the office to sign him/her
out, the secretary will call him/her to the office.
A successful school experience is the responsibility of the child, the parent
and the school. Your child's progress, both academically and socially, is
influenced to great extent by daily participation. Regular attendance without
tardiness is a key.
Students should arrive between 7:05 and 7:20 a.m. Students should not arrive
prior to 7:05 a.m. since supervision by the school staff is not available. In
the morning, kindergarten through second grade students should be dropped off
in carpool, and they will go directly to the auditorium to sit with their
classes. At 7:20 a.m., students will be picked up in the auditorium by their
teacher. Students arriving after 7:25 a.m. will be marked tardy. Afternoon
dismissal is at 2:50 p.m. Please pick up your child promptly. Students are taken to
the office at 3:20 and you will need to come in to pick them up with the supervising
staff member.
The children will attend a 45-minute Art class once a week with our art
teacher, Anna Scott Lewis.
B
To help your child carry messages and information to and from school, you are
asked to provide a backpack large enough for a towel, folder, library book, and other essential items to fit at one time (not preschool size). Students will be given a "take home folder" for
me to send notes and information to you and for you to send notes to me.
Please have your child remove the notes and papers from the backpack and the
"take home folder" to share with you daily.
Birthdays are special occasions for young children. If your child wishes he/she
may bring a treat for the class. Please NO cupcakes or cakes. Cookies, donuts, rice krispy treats, etc. are preferred. Please have your child's birthday snack delivered no later than 12:00 p.m. We will have un-birthdays for summer
birthdays in August and May.
A free school breakfast will be served each morning in the cafeteria for students wishing to eat breakfast at school. If your child will be eating breakfast at school, please have them to school by 7:15, we start our day in the classroom at 7:30.
C
I will send a monthly calendar with birthdays & monthly events home at the
beginning of each month. The calendar will list events specific to our class.
Please email, send me a note or call in the office if you would like to request a conference.
Communication is important. Feel free to contact me whenever you have a question or concern. You can reach me by phone (office: 865-5119), by email: wnichols@caddoschools.org, or Dojo message (Dojo is preferred and quickest)
D
Dojo is the fastest and easiest way to communicate with me throughout the day. It is also how behavior is monitored and communicated.
Download the free app to connect with announcements and photos and important information just for our classroom.
Our classroom is a small community where teamwork and good relationships are
expected. We will spend time learning class procedures and practicing them.
Each student is expected to act within our standards of behavior. To establish
good order and help the children learn self-control, they will be guided to
respect themselves and their companions through specific directions, positive
reinforcement, suggested new activities and responsible actions.
Discipline is simple. We work hard as a class to make the classroom a positive and safe place for all. Our rules are:
1. Listen when someone is talking.
2. Follow directions quickly.
3. Raise your hand to speak.
4. Be a caring friend.
5. Always do your best work.
Respect yourself, Respect others, and Respect your school!
Students will attend Drama each week for 45 minutes with Mrs. Bamburg.
E
You can contact me via my email address:
wnichols@caddoschools.org
I will check my email often but if you need to discuss something urgently,
please call me at school instead.
Please complete and return the emergency card promptly (if you did not
complete it during registration). If your home or work phone number changes
inform the office so you can be located quickly if an emergency occurs.
Emergency closings: If schools are closed for a snow day or any emergency, local TV stations will
make an announcement, generally by 7:00 a.m.
Please send an extra outfit (shirt, pants, underwear, socks) in a Zip-loc bag
labeled with your child's name. This is just in case of an accident, spill or
sickness.
F
We plan several field trips that are both fun and educational for the
children. Parent drivers are not permitted, so buses will have to be
used for transportation. We often need parent volunteers on the trips and
chaperons will be chosen on a first come, first served basis. Please return
permission slips as soon as possible after they are sent home.
Fire drills are held on a monthly basis throughout the year. All students will
participate and are expected to walk quickly and quietly to their designated
exit. We will practice and become familiar with procedures before our first
scheduled drill.
We have a 45-minute French class every Monday. Our French teacher's name is Audrey Wolf-Garrett.
G
George the Giraffe is our class mascot. He loved getting to know all of the Safari Scouts and watching us learn each day.
H
I feel that the best way to help children is to make learning fun. Important
concepts can be learned by doing meaningful hands-on activities. There are
times when seat work is required and necessary, but for the most part our
classroom will be an active learning environment.
Health: Please let me know of special circumstances, which may affect you child. These
could include medication that may make him sleepy, a death in the family, etc.
Also, please let me know of any allergies your child may have, especially food
allergies. We sometimes cook or do food activities to complement lessons in
kindergarten and it would be helpful to know when I plan our recipes.
Help at Home
Your child is expected to know these readiness skills:
*Full Name *Shape Names
*Parents' names *Basic colors * Counting to 10
*Printing first name beginning with a capital letter and the rest in lower case.
When time permits, work on these skills also:
*Identifying the letters and sounds of the alphabet
*Birthday (month and date) * Identifying numbers to 100
*Reading our sight words (listed on our website) *Tying shoes
Your extra help at home really makes a difference!
Occasionally, I'll ask your help in completing "family" project--it's called
that because the whole family is encouraged to get involved in doing it. For
example, in September, I will send home a "mini me" for your child (and you)
to decorate. We will hang them in our room for the remainder of the year.
I
Illness: The question of when to keep your child home from school is often a difficult one, especially when decisions must be made first thing in the morning. It is
important, however, to keep your child home if he/she is ill. This helps to
make them more comfortable and prevents others from becoming ill. Children
function more effectively in the classroom when they are healthy.
Because children learn to read by reading, they need plenty of opportunities
to read independently. Sufficient time and appropriate materials are necessary
to develop and strengthen reading abilities. By giving the children time to
read both at school and at home, we can work together to provide a
literature-rich environment and a life-long love of reading.
Independence is a goal for students because it builds self-esteem and self-confidence. Kindergarteners are very capable of many things on their own and I encourage them to do as much as they can for themselves in the classroom. Please work on the following skills at home with your child: zipping, ting, dressing, etc.
J
One strategy that will be used to help convey the vital concept that "print
conveys meaning" is the frequent use of journal of writing. In these journals
the kindergartners combine their emerging writing skills with their drawing
skills. As the children are exposed to a variety of phonics and reading
experiences, journal entries will move from drawings and "inventive" spellings
towards more conventional writing.
K
Keep updated by reading the classroom newsletter every week and checking the take home folder everyday for other notes and information.
Make sure your child's shoes are tied securely everyday. Tie them in double knots!
Students in our classroom are encouraged and expected to treat all members of
our class as well as others with kindness and respect. Bothering others,
bullying and interrupting learning will not be permitted.
L
We will eat lunch from 10:20 to 10:50 each day. Children may bring a packed
lunch from home or eat a school lunch. Please make sure students are able to unpack and open all items independently, The school lunch is free.
M
The kindergarten mathematics curriculum Zearn provide students with mathematical
experiences that help them develop number sense and a positive attitude
towards mathematics that will continue through their school career and their
lives. We employ a hands-on, problem solving approach.
Our music teacher, Mr. Terry Wright, will be teaching the children the basics of
music education and will be sharing many wonderful songs! We are scheduled to
have music for one 45-minute period weekly. Of course, I will be singing and
enjoying music with the children daily.
If you send any type of money to school (fees, book orders, picture day,
etc.) please make sure it is in an envelope marked with your child's name,
teacher and purpose and place it in the pocket of their take home folder.
N
Our weekly newsletter is generally sent home on Fridays. This will keep you
informed about what is happening in our class---the skills we are learning,
vocabulary words, poems or songs to practice, special activities and upcoming
events.
O
Open House usually takes place in September.
P
*Parent Involvement: Your support of school activities makes your child feel important and sends the message that you value school! We are always happy to have your help for special activities in the classroom. I will try to let you know at least a week ahead of time if I need help.
There are two main parties each year---Christmas and End-of-Year. The room
parents usually organize these events and coordinate volunteers and donations.
All are welcome to participate in the festivities! We will have some other
celebrations that I will organize and need committees to plan and prepare the
details.
Our class will have a 45-minute P.E. class each week with Mrs. Free. The
children are asked to wear tennis shoes on gym day.
We will discuss and practice safe procedures on the playground. Our playground
rules are as follows:
1. Sit on bottom only to go down slides. Do no climb up slides.
2. No picking up sticks, rocks, or any items on the playground.
3. Stay away from the bushes.
4. Large monkey bars on the playground are off limits to Kindergartners.
Q
Since so many of you are new to South Highlands this year, I'm sure that you
may still have some unanswered questions. Please feel free to call me at
school to leave a message. Or you can always write a note or email or dojo message me.
R
The children will have 2 recess times to play outdoors for 20 minutes each day (unless
it is raining or the temperature is below 40 degrees). Please keep this in
mind when helping your child to select clothing for the day. If your child is
too sick to play outside, he/she is too sick to come to school.
Report cards are issued every nine weeks. These reports reflect the progress
your child has made toward various kindergarten objectives and uses a grading
system that reflects the developmental nature of kindergarten learning.
Have your child use the restroom shortly before coming to school. Your child
will be allowed to use the restroom at any time needed during the day - unless
it is during a lesson. We will also go as a group to the hall restroom after
lunch and before rest time. Please make me aware of any medical problem that
might require frequent restroom trips.
The resting towels will be sent home every Friday to be washed. Make
sure to return them each Monday.
The room parents' job is to be available for any number of things: to help
coordinate parties and activities; to seek volunteers for field trips and
events; and to help with fund raisers. Being a room parent is a great way to be
involved in your child's school life, and the more parents involved, the less
work there is to do! If you would like to help, let me know.
S
Shoes- closed toed, tennis shoes are preferred and best for everyday. Our playgrounds have wood chips that easily get into open toed shoes and sandals and can hurt little feet. Tennis shoes are best for running and playing and staying safe at recess.
The focus of the kindergarten science curriculum is on developing an awareness
of the world in which we live. Through scientific inquiry, concepts will be
presented in the life and earth sciences, including the study of animals and
plants, the five senses and general health, and the for seasons. These areas
will be explored utilizing a literacy based, hands-on approach.
Shared reading is an interactive process used with the whole class. As the
teacher reads a story, children join in on phrases or words that they know.
During subsequent re-readings, children read more and more of the text, until
they are able to read the story independently. Shared reading is an
opportunity for the teacher to model conventions of print and the use of
reading strategies.
Your children will eat lunch at 10:20; therefore at the end of the school day,
we eat a snack. We will have a snack calendar with each child's name, so that
everyone has a chance each month to bring a snack. We encourage healthy snacks
and please only send snacks that are individually packaged.
Make sure to send enough for 22 children.
The kindergarten social studies curriculum focuses on the students and how
they relate to others in their families, classroom, school, and community.
Activities will help children focus their natural curiosity for the worlds
around them.
The children need to send school supplies by the first day of school. If you pre-ordered them, they will be delivered to the school. Be sure
to also have a large towel labeled with his/her name for rest time.
Make sure the backpack is large enough to hold projects and towels and
folders. Sometimes during the year we will need additional supplies for
projects or activities - check the calendar or notes in the folder.
T
A plastic folder, put together by the teacher that houses EVERYTHING the students and parents need to keep up with what is going on at school. This folder has two sides, "left at home" and "right back to school". Please read all information that comes home in the folder. Our weekly newsletter, homework, Friday sheets, etc will all be sent home in this folder.
Why are they important? These folders help students establish good
organizational skills their first year of school---skill that can carry on
throughout their time in school. Take home folders will go home every
afternoon in your child's backpack. Empty the folder and return it to school
the next day. Students will place them in a designated basket when they arrive.
are printed with information about South Highlands.
Bringing toys to school is discouraged because they distract the children from
learning. If a toy is accidentally lost or broken, feelings will be hurt.
Books are okay to bring in, but please make sure they are clearly marked with
your child's name.
U
Kindergartners learn that they are special and unique. Kindergartners have opportunities to describe how they are alike as well as different from others. They share their culture and learn about different cultures within the class.
V
Visitors- South Highlands has a policy that ALL GUESTS (including familiar faces) are
required to check in at the school office using a photo id. We welcome and encourage family involvement. It is important that while this may seem inconvenient to frequent visitors, it is the goal and responsibility of the school to create a
safe learning environment.
W
Our class has a website which can be accessed at
http://www.southhighlands.com/
Wish List: Throughout the year we sometimes need supplies above and beyond our classroom materials (such as Clorox wipes, laminating pouches, etc.) These needs will be posted in the class newsletter and on our website. Extra items that you think we might be able to use are always welcome!
Our writing program builds on what each child already knows. Writing begins
with scribbles and proceeds to lines and circles, random strings of letters,
words and spaces and eventually sentences. Your children will be encouraged
and praised for all attempts and accomplishments in writing. Providing a
risk-free environment is paramount to your child's progress in writing. If
possible, please provide your child with writing tools, such as pencils,
crayons, markers and paper at home.
X
I am eXcited to have an eXcellent year with your little ones!
Y
It is in your child's and the program's best interest to have our parent
volunteers available without younger children. This not only allows your full
attention to be focused on the class, but also allows for some special time
between you and your kindergartner. Thank you for making childcare
arrangements for younger siblings.
Z
Zzzzzs.....Make sure that your child gets plenty of rest. Setting and keeping a bedtime is a wonderful gift you can give to your child. It will help them to be alert
and ready to learn each day!