Just as in the preschool, the monthly calendar is our guide to all the fun and informative activities for the month. I try to be as accurate as possible, but things always are changing. If there is a change to the schedule, I will let you know as soon as I am able. I will send the September calendar home on the first day of school.

You will receive a weekly note of class doings on Mondays. This note will be attached to your child’s homework. Please read the note for any specific information and changes that may take place.

If your child’s name appears on the calendar for a specific day, your child is the star that day. That means you provide the snack and juice for the class and your child may bring in a personal item from home for show and tell. Please make sure the juice is 100% fruit juice boxes or pouches, not bottles, and the snack is simple and nutritious. (Goldfish, Cheezits, fruit, crackers, yogurt, string cheese) Feel free to send a water bottle or lidded cup to school for your child if they would prefer water to have with snack. Please make sure that the lid closes easily and completely and that the cup will not leak. If there is no star on the calendar, school will provide snack to the children. Please let me know ASAP if your child has food allergies or restrictions. For show and tell your child must prepare three complete ideas and be able to share these ideas in complete sentences about their show and tell to share with the class. Please practice this. If they can’t tell, they can’t show. If there is anything else on the calendar for that day, for example, wear orange, bring in a star, bring in something that begins with the letter A, every child may do these various activities. These are not mandatory, but whoever brings something in may share it with the class. Students will be star twice a month. We have many birthdays in September and October. We do not have birthday parties in school. You may send a special snack for your child to share (mini cupcakes or cookies), but goodie bags, cake cutting and family are for the party you have at home.

I ask that you do not allow your student to bring toys from home to play with in school unless they are the Star of the Day. These become a distraction in class. There are many different things to play with in the classroom during their free time.

Kindergarten begins promptly at 8:30. All children enrolled in the program are expected by the school and mandated by the state to be in school by that time. (See Dianne to make early drop off arrangements) The time between 8:30 and 9:00 is an important social time as well as a transition time for the children. Attendance will be taken at 8:30; any student not present will be marked tardy.

When I am considering promoting a child to first grade, the state requires that I consider attendance, on-time attendance, and academic and emotional progress in my decision. Schools to which you are applying for kindergarten or first grade often request my daily attendance records, either through a report card or a letter from me.

Please make every effort to have your kindergartener eat breakfast. While they may not be hungry at home, it seems the minute they get to school they are starving. Snack time isn’t until 11:00 or so; that is a long time for a hungry child who still must complete a day’s class work.

I understand that mornings can be difficult. Traffic, other children, daily home situations, and a million other things all get in the way of our good intentions and as a parent I am very sympathetic and appreciative of all you do.

Dismissal is promptly at 12:00pm. Developing Minds has a late pick-up policy that you can discuss with Dianne.

Kindergarteners will have homework every week until at least Easter. Your student will receive a packet of homework on Monday (or Tuesday) and the packet is due back by the end of the week. You may of course return the homework packet when it is finished. All completed homework will remain in school until the end of the year.

Report cards are sent home three times a year, November, February and May. It is my intention that every student is preparing for first grade and they will be evaluated as such. It would be unfair of us to discuss your child moving on to first grade during the first and second trimester. At school choice time we can have a brief discussion. We must give our kindergarteners all the time they need to mature and find themselves before we can make any final decisions. Students are evaluated equally on academic, social/emotional, and physical progress. We can conference about your student after report cards if it seems necessary. I will let you know as soon as possible if I feel there is an issue. We will see each other every morning or I will write you a note if I have a concern; I would rather not wait to address an issue.

Kindergarten Schedule -- VERY FLEXIBLE

8:30 – 9:00Arrival, Free Play

9:00 – 9:30Circle Time

9:30 – 10:00Art

10:00 – 11:00Table Time

11:00 --11:30 Snack, Story, Clean-up

11:30 – 12:00Big Room

12:00 Dismissal

Open time in the morning is a very important time in our day. This is an important transition time as well as a time for practicing our social skills. Many students need the time to wake-up and settle in before jumping into the day. This is also a nice time for me to sit with a student who needs a bit of extra help or needs to catch up after being absent.

In Circle Time students say the Pledge of Allegiance, practice day, date, month and year, count to 100, practice the letter of the week, have show and tell, learn poems and songs and practice our sign language letters.

In Art we will explore a variety of different mediums. We will work on the basics of cutting, gluing and coloring. We will also have opportunities to paint and explore open-ended art activities as well as those that are theme based.

Table time is the longest part of our day. This is our “school” time. We will practice penmanship and writing. We will practice our language arts and reading or pre-reading skills daily. We will practice math skills every day as well as work on theme papers that allow us to use a variety of academic and small motor skills. These theme papers may also introduce us to ideas in science and social studies where applicable as well as reinforce language arts and math skills.

We enjoy our snack and story when our table work is finished. Students are expected to clean-up after themselves as they play, do their work and eat their snack. We do not go to the Big Room until our classroom is clean.

The last part of our day is spent in the Big Room. We are able to play with each other and any preschoolers who are staying for late pick-up or carpool. This is an excellent time to practice our social skills and use our large motor skills. We burn off a lot of energy that we have saved up during our school day.

The most important aspect of preschool and kindergarten is to have a happy and successful child. It is the policy of Developing Minds to ensure this outcome for our students. With that in mind, if we (the DMP staff) see a child struggling with either academic or emotional issues in kindergarten, we reserve the right to move that student to the pre-K/four year old program. We would do this after discussion with the parents, observation and one-on-one time with the student. Ultimately, though, the decision lies with the school staff.

Kindergarten School Supply List

1 small plastic school box with child’s name on the top – 4”x6” no larger

“Crayola Twistables” 24 pack of crayons not colored pencils

1 pair of small metal scissors

1 small bottle of white school glue

4 glue sticks

1 watercolor paint set

1 plastic folder to travel back and forth to school

1 large backpack—NO WHEELS—big enough to fit a winter coat

Change of clothes including socks--please change as the weather changes

These supplies must be in school on the first day, Thursday, September 10. We will be using them that day. These boxes will stay in school until the end of the school year. More or bigger is not better. Please adhere to this list. Having the same items as our friends is very important at this age. These limited supplies will allow all of us to do our best work and avoid unnecessary distractions. Please replenish these supplies as needed. Glue sticks and crayons seem to run out the quickest. I will send a note home to you when things are running low. You may want to keep a second box at home to help with the homework.

Please remember that the policies outlined in the DMP Parents Handbook also apply to the kindergarten class.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

I have read, understand, and accept the Kindergarten classroom policies outlined above.

Signature_____________________________________________ Date______________

Print Parent’s Name____________________________________

Print Child’s Name_____________________________________

Please return today at the end of Orientation, or not later than the first day of school.

2019/2020