The ABCs of Kindergarten
Attendance: It is important for your child to be at school. It provides crucial social, emotional and academic opportunities. If your child is sick, it is important that he/she stays home until he/she has been fever free for 12 hours and no vomiting or diarrhea. This will prevent the passing of any illness to others. If your child is absent, please send in a note or a message through Talking Points explaining the reason for the absence. This is required for the absence to be excused.
Allergies: For the safety of your child, notify the teacher of any allergies. Some of our activities provide yummy experiences with food.
Bell Schedule: Our morning bell rings at 8:50 and our dismissal bell rings at 3:50. All students should be in the classroom by 9:20.
Birthday Celebrations: We love birthdays! If you would like to send in a special treat on your child’s birthday, please let us know. Any cupcakes, donuts or cookies etc. must be store bought.
Brain Break: We will have rest time in the afternoons. An audiobook or music will be playing in the background. The children aren’t required to sleep. Partway through the school year this rest time will be replaced with a new learning opportunity. Send in a beach towel and write your child’s first name on it. Beach towels will fit in the cubbies.
Breakfast: We serve breakfast daily. Currently, the charge is $1.50. Please have your child at school by 9:05 to eat breakfast.
Cafeteria: Practice letting your child open items you will be sending to school. We will have staff members present to help. However, many students will be eating all at the same time. It will help if your child has utensils in their lunchbox. Peanut butter is allowed.
Calendars: On the first of each month, I will supply a classroom calendar in the back of your child’s take home folder. Important dates, events and information will be listed.
Conferences: Parent/Teacher conferences are extremely important to keep you informed of your child’s progress in kindergarten. We will meet for two scheduled conferences (at the end of the first and third quarter) to discuss your child’s work. Other conferences may be scheduled throughout the year if necessary. I will be happy to meet with you at any time.
Communication: We will be using Talking Points as a way for us to communicate through messaging. This is an app on the phone. You can contact me through email at rmwalker@wcpss.net
Discipline: Mrs. Doherty and I strive to have a positive learning environment in the classroom. At the beginning of the year, we will collaboratively set goals and expectations that encourage kindness and hard work.
Drop-off: We at Willow Springs appreciate our parents. We always want you to feel that you are welcome at our school. Drop off in the mornings can be difficult for some children as they transition from a parent to school. We encourage you to walk your child in on their first staggered entry day. We need to share important information with you. If possible, don’t send your child on the bus on their staggered entry day. When they all return to school, we ask that you drop them off at the carpool line. If this is still difficult, please send me an email. We have caring teachers and other staff members that can help with getting your child from the carpool to the classroom.
Emergencies: If phone numbers and/or email addresses change, please let me AND the office know so we may always be able to reach you.
Field Trip: We are having a field trip in the Spring. If you plan to chaperone, you must be approved as a volunteer.
Folders: Send your child’s daily folder to school each day. This practice teaches your child responsibility. Make sure to check the folder each day for important information. If you need to send me a note you can include it in the daily folder. Initial your child’s folder daily. Your child’s schoolwork will go home every Friday.
Flag: Our classroom flag is a bear. Remind your child to look for the flag.
Grades:
4 Extends targeted grade level standards
3 Demonstrates proficiency of targeted grade level standards
2 Needs support to meet targeted grade level standards
1 Insufficient performance of targeted grade level standards with support.
Homework: They will be checking out library books on a weekly basis. I would like you to read the books with your child. Monthly reading logs will be sent home to record the books read. We will have several home projects throughout the year.
Internet: Go to the school website at http://willowsprings.wcpss.net. Click on Academics and Programs, Kindergarten, and my name. My direct website is: https://sites.google.com/wcpss.net/ms-walkers-class
Jackets: When the weather turns cooler and your child needs to wear a jacket to school, please make sure that it is labeled on the inside tag with his/her name. We do not want them to get lost. Please practice zipping or snapping their jacket so that they can put on and take off their jacket independently. This will help speed up our transition times.
Kindness in Kindergarten: The importance of kindergarten centers around the fact that it allows children to explore and grow academically, socially, and emotionally through play-based learning activities. Sometimes, children will disagree, become frustrated and handle situations inappropriately. We will work through them and talk about our choices. We will only notify you if the behavior is repetitive or causes physical harm. All year long, we will be helping the children develop the skills to understand and manage their emotions, build positive and caring relationships, and make responsible decisions.
Library: We have an amazing Library at our school. First quarter, we will be checking out one book on a weekly basis. Second quarter, we will be checking out one book twice a week. Please return the books on the days we are checking out new books. I will put reminders on our monthly calendar.
Literacy: Kindergarten is an important time for literacy development. We will use a variety of strategies to help your child become a strong reader and writer including shared and guided reading, phonics, literacy centers, writers’ workshop, and lots of practice. We will be sharing the strategies with you throughout the school year.
Lost and Found: We have a lost and found located in a cabinet in the cafeteria. You are welcome to check in at the office and look for any lost items.
Lunch: Your child can buy lunch or bring a packed lunch. Currently, the cost for lunch is 3.00. You can send in money daily or add money to his/her account. Al a carte items are available to purchase. The prices range from fifty cents to one dollar and fifty cents. Some available snacks are ice cream, cookies, chips and carbonated juices. I highly recommend you put a restriction on their account limiting them to Fridays only or twice a week. Kindergarteners tend to eat ice cream and snacks first. This results in them not eating a balanced meal. If you don’t, the money on their account can deplete fast. To put a restriction on their account, you will see al a carte on the site you would use to add money to their account.
Math: We will use a variety of manipulatives and hands-on experiences. They will be learning in whole group lessons, working with partners, as well as individual activities and in centers.
Newsletter: Once a month, you will receive a newsletter in your child’s daily folder. Weekly, I will send photos and/or highlights through Talking Points.
Open Communication: I strongly believe that open communication between parents and teachers is vital to a student’s success in school. Please feel free to contact me at any time with any questions you may have. Using Talking Points is the quickest way to get a message to me. Also, you can send in a note in your child’s daily folder. If your child’s transportation changes on the current day, please send me a Talking Points message. If you don’t receive a reply from me by 3:00pm call the front office and notify them of the transportation change. Our school phone number: 919-557-2770
Parties: We love parties and celebrations! We typically have several parties throughout the year. We will be having a fall festival, holiday celebration, Letterland Day and an end of year celebration. We love to have parents join us.
P.E.: During the weeks we have PE, your child should be wearing tennis shoes to participate in the physical activities. We will post our weekly specials on the monthly calendar that will be going home at the beginning of each month.
Play Centers: Free play is imperative to your child’s learning. This is a daily 30-minute block of time where he/she makes choices and engages cooperatively with others. In our classroom, we have the following developmental centers: art, library, technology, science, constructive play, math, ABC, sensory tubs and a teacher center. We welcome any unwanted toys you have at home to add to our play experiences.
Quarterly Assessments: We will assess each child in reading, writing, math, science and social studies towards the end of each quarter. We will share this information with you so that you are aware of how your child is doing.
Recess: We will have two twenty-minute recesses. Please send a water bottle daily.
Report Cards: Report cards are sent home each quarter. A student needs to have a score of 3 or higher to be considered proficient in that subject area.
Snack: We will have snack time daily. Have your child bring a snack each day. Make sure your child has utensils if needed. We welcome a supply of snacks to hold in the classroom for any students who forget their snack. We drink water in the classroom. No juice allowed. This helps keep bugs away.
Specials: Your child will have Art, Music, PE, Stem, Library and Global Literacy.
Staggered Entry: Your child will come to school one day on the dates of July 15th, 16th and the 17th. All students will return on Tuesday, July 22nd.
Supply List: Bring the supply list items on your child’s staggered entry day. This allows us time to organize them.
Star Student: We will be choosing one student each week to be the Star Student of the Week. They will complete an All About Me poster and share things about them throughout the week. This student will also be my student leader throughout the week.
Talking Points: This is an app that we will be using all year. It allows us to send text messages. This will be our main mode of communication and the quickest way you can reach me.
Transportation: Your child can be a car or bus rider. If you want your child to be a bus rider, they need to be registered prior to starting school. If you indicated on the registration form that you wanted your child to be a bus rider, the school has done that for you. Otherwise, you can go to wcpss.net and click on transportation. Your child’s transportation cannot be changed unless I receive a note from you, or you call the office. Please do not rely on your child to verbally relay the message. Please call the office with a transportation change for that current day.
Transportation Tags: On the first day of school, your child will be given a transportation tag that shows how your child will be going home. The tag will be pinned or hung on your child. All Kindergarten students must wear tags for the first 20 days of school. When your child returns home, please place the tag in their folder. This is very important so we can assure all children are where they need to be at the end of the day. If you are picking up from carpool, you must have the card visible for the staff to call the number. If you don’t have a card, you will be asked to come into the office to pick up your child. We will check the ID and verify you are the parent.
Treasure Box: We do have a treasure box in our classroom. We welcome any donations of unwanted small toys. The children will love them.
Technology: Your child will be using various media during the year. In our classroom, we have Chromebooks. The students will have access to Dreambox Math, Letterland, Starfall and Pebble Go.
Unique: Each child is unique and special. Our classroom, like a garden, will be a happy place where young minds are nurtured and encouraged to grow and bloom.
Volunteers: We love to have volunteers working in our classroom. All volunteers must complete a volunteer registration before working with children. This needs to be done each year so if you did one last year, you must complete another one for the new school year. This process will take several weeks for approval. I love to have parents and other family members in the classroom. More information will be provided throughout the school year.
Writer’s Workshop: Much of the year, we will be working on fine motor skills. This incorporates pre-writing activities to strengthen their finger and hand muscles. We will be writing daily. When they are ready, they will be encouraged to spell words phonetically using the sounds they hear in the word. At first, it may be difficult to read this “invented spelling” but as they continue to practice you will begin to see some conventional spelling. Please encourage your child to use the sounds that he/she hears in the words when they are writing. At this stage of development, helping them to try and sound out words and write creative stories is more important than aiding them in spelling the words correctly.
Wish Lists: I have an Amazon wish list. The items listed provide treasure box toys, playground and play center choices and materials for our learning experiences. Throughout the year, we will be needing a variety of supplies that help make our learning fun. I will send the wish list items in an email or a newsletter. Any donations are very much appreciated.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3IDK6JC804KGK?ref_=wl_share
“X”-tra clothes: Please send in an extra set of seasonally appropriate clothes in a labeled Zip-loc bag to be kept at school for your child.
You: You are your child’s first and most important teacher. If you ever have any concerns or suggestions, please let me know. I’m excited about us working together to best meet your child’s needs.
Year-Round: Because we are a year-round school, we may have slight changes in our schedules when we track back in. I will send home updates prior to each track-out to make you aware of any changes
Zillion Praises: We love to give your child “zillions of praises!”