ABC's of Kindergarten A
ABC's of Kindergarten A
ABC's of Kindergarten A
Kindergarten A
Absences-If your child is ill, please call the office (402-293-4560) and inform us of
your childs absence and the reason for it. This is for your childs safety. If a student
must leave early for a doctors appointment, go to the office to sign him out and the
secretary will call him to the office. The district requires a written note explaining
the absence when she/he returns to school.
Attendance-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 a great extent by daily participation. Regular attendance without
tardiness is a key. Please view school as a priority and children should be
encouraged to attend every day except in cases of illness or emergency.
Arrival and Dismissal-Pupils should arrive between 7:55 and 8:00 AM. Students
should not arrive prior to 7:55 AM (there is no supervision before this time!) No
child or parent should be in the building before this time. School begins promptly at
8:00 AM and afternoon dismissal is at 3:10 PM. Please pick up your child promptly. If
you are late, look for your child in the office.
You are encouraged to drop off your child at the front door entrance. Parents are
able to walk up with their child for the first couple of days. After the students have
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few days of walking up to the room, I would like to encourage parent to let the
students walk up by themselves. When picking up your child, please let them or me
Backpacks-To help your child carry messages and information to and from school,
you are asked to provide a backpack. Please have your child remove the notes and
papers from the backpack with you daily so that they can share in their
accomplishments from school and so you stay informed! Backpacks should be big
enough to carry a folder and a jacket for wintertime.
Birthdays-Birthdays are special occasions for young children. We will do special, in
class, celebrations for each child on her/his birthday. The district does not allow
children to bring birthday treats to school.
Book Orders-I will try to send home a book order once a month for you and your
child to look over. These clubs offer wonderful books at reduced prices---what a
great way to build your home library! Of course, you are never under any obligation
to order. If you choose to order, please make the check payable to Scholastic
Books. By ordering books for your family, you are also helping to build our
classroom library! THANK YOU!
Breakfast-A school breakfast is served every morning from 7:35-7:55 AM. The
students may charge their breakfast to their lunch accounts. The breakfast
menu generally consists of cereal or muffins with juice and milk. Students who
want to eat breakfast should enter school from the front doors, by the gym.
Once they are finished with breakfast, they can wait with the rest of the
kindergartners.
Calendar-A calendar of events and the monthly school breakfast/lunch menus are
available on our classroom website. I will also try to publish upcoming events in our
class newsletter. A calendar listing events specific to our class can be found on our
class website: http://kinderspot.weebly.com/
Computer-We use a variety of age-appropriate programs that reinforce math,
readiness and reading skills. Children will work on the computers every once every
eight days in the computer lab.
Conferences-Parent/Teacher conferences are held after school (usually from 3:457:45 PM) twice a year. Conferences are held in October and March. The school
will send home notes to let you know when your conference is scheduled. We will
discuss your child's accomplishments, strengths and overall progress. Please feel
free to schedule additional conferences at any time throughout the year if the
need arises.
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E-mail-You can contact me via my email address: jodi.evans@bpsne.net I will
check my email on a daily basis. If you need to discuss something urgently, please
call me at school instead or send a note with your child.
Emergency Information Paper-Please complete and return the emergency paper
promptly (if you did not complete it during registration).If your home or work
phone number changes, or your contact numbers change, PLEASE inform
the office as soon as possible so you can be located quickly if an
emergency occurs.
Emergency Closings-If schools are closed for a snow day or any emergency you
can check our classroom website for that information. Local radio stations or the
local TV stations (Channels 9, 8 and 5) will make an announcement, generally by
7:00 A.M.
Field Trips-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 chaperones will be
chosen on a first come, first serve basis. Please return permission slips as soon as
possible after they are sent home.
Fire Drills-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. Sometimes these drills cause anxiety for kids, so we spend a lot of
time talking about why we do fire drills. We learn that we do them so that we are
safe in case there is a real fire.
Friday Folder-Every Friday your child will bring home a Friday folder. This folder
will have important school papers and notes from me. Please check your childs
folder, initial it and return it with your child on Monday. Make sure backpacks are
checked nightly for notes that may come home during the week.
Gym-Our class will have gym classes every other day for 25 minutes. The children
are asked to wear sneakers on gym days and girls might consider wearing pants or
having a pair of shorts to slip on under their dress. Our Gym teacher will be Mr.
Brodersen.
Hands-on Learning-I feel that the best way to help children learn 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 any special circumstances which may affect your
child. These could include medication that may make him/her sleepy, a death in the
family, etc. Also, please let me know of any allergies your child may have,
especially food allergies.
Help at Home-I now that your nights are very busy, however it would be very
beneficial for your child to have the following skills mastered early on in the year:
**Full name
**Address
**Telephone number
**Parents names
**Basic colors
**Counting to 10
**Printing first name
When time permits, work on these skills also:
**Reciting the alphabet
**Shape names
**Birthday (month & date)
**Identifying numbers to 10
**Identifying letter names
**Tying shoes
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. Please remember that
your child may not come to school with a temperature. Children may not come
back to school until he/she has been fever free, without medications, for 24 hours.
Independent Reading-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.
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Journals-One strategy that will be used to help convey the vital concept that print
conveys meaning is the frequent use of journal 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.
Library-The children go to the library three days within the eight day cycle. In the
library, Mrs. Potts will encourage them to love reading while sharing stories. The
children will have a chance to select a book to borrow for a week.
Lunch-Children may bring a packed lunch from home or eat a school lunch. The
lunch menu comes home at the beginning of the month and can be found on our
classroom website. The students are also required to know their lunch number, this
is something we will work VERY hard on during the first week of school.
Lunch Money-Your child needs to have a positive lunch account. If you need to
send money to school, please send it in an envelope with your childs name written
clearly on the front. Have your child give their money to me when they get to
school. You can also drop the money by the office. You will get a lunch note sent
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Newsletter- A class newsletter will be sent home every Friday, the newsletter will
contain information that you and your Kindergartener will need to know and share.
Reminders, family activities, calendar events, etc. will be provided for you in the
newsletter. The newsletter will also be posted on our classroom website.
Nurse-We have a health para, Mrs. Lostaglia. She will tend to minor scratches
and scrapes, as well as sudden illnesses. For more serious injuries, she will
contact you. Please be sure to send in any change of contact numbers in
case she needs to get in touch with you. We will be screening your childs
height, weight, vision, hearing, and teeth at the beginning of the year.
Oh, Wow!!!!!-You will be constantly amazed at the changes your child will be
making this year. We will be learning and growing DAILY! Kindergarten is the best
year of your childs learning career. It is the year all of their learning beliefs are
set in stone. Please help me in making this a very fun, beneficial, exciting, and
positive year!
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Questions-Since so many of you are new to Berth Barber this year, Im sure that
you may still have some unanswered questions. Please feel free to call me at
school 402-2934560(between 7:30-8:50 a.m. or between 3:15-4:00p.m.). Or you
Recess- The class will be going out for recess everyday unless it is raining or
extremely cold, below 20 degrees including wind chill factor. Please keep this in
mind when helping your child to select clothing for the day. For the most part, if
your child is well enough to be at school she/he is well enough to participate in
outdoor recess, if properly dressed. In the winter, students are allowed to bring
their snow gear. We ask that they bring extra shoes and socks to change into.
Report Cards-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.
Please remember that as the year progresses so do my expectations.
Restrooms-We have a bathroom in the classroom, using it frequently takes away
valuable learning time. Your child will be permitted to go as needed, but there will
be bathroom breaks throughout the day. Please talk to your child about basic
bathroom rules.
Room Parent-The room parents' job is to be available to help coordinate parties
and activities. Being a room parent is a great way to be involved in your childs
school life. Room parents work closely with our schools PTA.
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School Rules-Our school as three rules that are followed school wide. They are:
Be Safe
Be Responsible
Be Respectful
Science-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 objects in the sky
and plants, the five senses and general health, and the four seasons. These areas
will be explored utilizing a literacy based, hands-on approach.
Shared Reading-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.
Snack-Snack time is optional. We will have snack every morning. A healthy snack
would be best (no candy)! Please send dry goods, as liquids may spill and stain our
rug.
Social Studies-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 the children focus their natural curiosity for the
Toys-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 that they are clearly marked with your child's
name
Tardies-Your child is expected to be in the classroom by 8:00. We do keep track of
your childs tardies, so it is VERY important that your child is at school on time!
Transportation-If you plan to change how your child goes home at the end of the
day you must send a written note or call the office when changes are necessary
during the day. Do not rely on your child to tell me this information, because
children often become confused and relay messages incorrectly. If no written note
or call to the office is received, your child will be sent home by her/his usual method
of transportation.
Treat Cart-Each month, the student are able to purchase treats. Notices will
come home the night before to remind you and your child what can be bought and
the amount of money that will need to be brought. Its up to you as a parent, to
They share their culture and learn about different cultures within the class.
Visitors-Bertha Barber has a policy that ALL GUESTS (including familiar faces) are
required to check in at the school office. Bertha Barber welcomes and encourages
family involvement. It is important to remember that while this may seem
inconvenient to frequent visitors, it is the goal and responsibility of the school to
create a safe learning environment. Please also take into account that visits should
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X-cellent year-This will be an excellent year for your child. Kindergarten is full of
many firsts in your childs life. I am so excited that I will get to share those with
you and your family. Please remember to let me know if there is ever anything
that I can do to help you out!
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Younger Siblings-It is in your childs and the programs 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.
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Zzzzs-Make sure that your child gets plenty of rest. A kindergarten room is a busy
place and you will probably find your child exhausted at the end of the day. 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!