Just a Couple More Days!

 

                                           

     One more day of testing and then school starts Tuesday.  The first day of Kindergarten!  The children I meet tell me they are ready to begin, and so am I.  I have many of our families already, and I am excited about having a fun year of teaching!

     Every day when your child comes to school, please make sure she has a nutritious snack, the Take Home Folder and backpack.  Talk about the lunch choices so the child will know what to order for lunch that day. 

     The first week, we will be very busy learning about the rules and expectations of our kindergarten room and school.  A few of the things we have to learn are how to order lunch, how to use our supplies, the appropriate way to use the bathroom and wash our hands,  the rules for recess, how to walk in the hallway, how to come to story time and listen, raise our hand and be respectful, and how to be a good friend.  So many things!!!  To help us learn, the first book we will read is, No, David!  David is going to help us learn how to be Peacemakers and not Peacebreakers. 

      School begins every day at 8:18 a.m.  Release time, except for Wednesday, is 3:30 p.m.  Wednesday is early release day and school is out at 1:50 p.m. 


                                                 

     This Thursday night is our Back to School Night for parents.  From 6:00 - 6:30, please meet in the gym to hear information from our principal, Mrs. Malvey and other people from our school.  From 6:30 - 7:00, please meet with me in our classroom where I will give an overview of our Kindergarten program and expectations.  I hope to see you there!

     I am looking forward to having parent volunteers in our classroom this year.  If you are interested, please go to the Thompson School District web site and register to be a school volunteer.  There are many ways you can help out this year, and it is a terrific way to meet other parents.   Research shows that parent involvement helps students to be more successful in school.

      You can begin having your child practice writing his name.  In kindergarten, we write our names with the first letter capital and the rest small letters.   Practicing at home will give the child more confidence and success at school.

Welcome to the 2012 - 2013 School Year

Welcome to our Lincoln Kindergarten class!  I am enthusiastic about starting another year of Kindergarten, and I can't wait to meet our new friends.

I know for parents and children, the first day can be full of many emotions.  There can be excitement, apprehension and anxiety.  Here is a web site you may want to link to for some ideas on how to prepare your child for the first day of Kindergarten.   I have listed some of the major points below.

         *  Talk about school in a positive way.  Stress that learning is important and fun.  Talk about what the child should expect from school.  What are some activities and what goes on at school?  Discuss why there will be rules at school and talk about what some of those rules might be.  Talk about eating lunch at school, playing at recess, making new friends and having lots of fun while learning.

                 Our class will be going to lunch every day at 11:30 a.m.  We will go to Art once a week.  And we get to go to P.E., Music, computer lab and library twice a week.

           *  Begin including routines and structures to your child's day.  You might even practice getting dressed for school, preparing the backpack and lunch, and walking or driving to school.  Practicing can help ease the transition into an environment where there will be many routines and structures.

          *  Teach your child to write her first name - first letter capital, the rest small.  Knowing this skill coming into Kindergarten may give your child confidence from the get go!

             *  Teach and encourage independence.  Make sure your child can dress and undress himself.  This includes zipping, buttoning, putting on shoes and tying them.  Your child needs to be able to take care of all bathroom needs. 

The main advice I can give parents is to relax and treasure the day.  Feel confident that your child will be cared for by our entire Lincoln staff.  

Kindergarten is a fun place to be!