Welcome to Banks Kindergarten!  I am excited about having your child with me this year.  Rest assured that I will love your child and I will help him/her have a happy and successful year of school.         

School Attendance

Your child’s regular and on-time attendance at school is crucial to his/her success. Children are expected to be here on time and stay the entire day.  Small children need a set routine.  Most kindergarten learning activities are group oriented and involve interaction with classmates.  Therefore, it is difficult to make up all work at home.  Please view kindergarten as a priority, and see that your child attends except in cases of illness or emergency.  We will call you if your child is vomiting or has a fever.

Absences:  If your child is absent, we need a written excuse on the day your child returns to school.  We are required to turn in all notes to the office, where the absence will be determined to be excused or unexcused.  As much as possible, please make doctors appointments in the afternoon, so your child can be here for most of the early part of the day.

School Hours

Morning:  If your child rides the bus, he/she will get to school in time for breakfast and be on time.  If your child is a car rider and plans to eat breakfast, we suggest bringing them to school by 7:15 so they will be back in the classroom from breakfast by 7:35.  STUDENTS WILL BE COUNTED TARDY IF THEY ARRIVE AT SCHOOL LATER THAN 7:35.  If you arrive with your child after 7:35, you must check your child in at the office.  Your child will obtain a tardy slip and come down to the classroom.  Breakfast will not be served after 7:45.  Please say good-bye to your child at the car if you bring him/her in the morning.  Children tend to do much better if they come in and get set for the day with their peers.

Afternoon:  Car Riders will be dismissed at 3:10 from the portable building.  Children who ride the bus will be loaded by teachers.

If you need to pick up your child early, you must sign him or her out at the office.  Mrs. Adams will call our classroom and your child will meet you at the office.  Students may not check out after 2:45.  If you send someone else to check out your child, be sure that person’s name is on the list that you have provided for us.

After School Care

If you need after school day care, this service is available.  Students may stay until 5:30.  For more information on after school care, please contact the office.

Transportation

Make sure I know exactly how your child will go home from school.  I will follow the transportation information that you provide.  If you plan for your child to travel home differently than he/she usually does, I must be notified of the change by a note, email, or a phone call from the parent or school secretary.  We cannot rely on your child to tell us this information.  Children sometimes get confused and relay messages incorrectly.  If we do not receive a note or phone call, your child will be sent home by his/her usual mode of transportation.

Lunch/Breakfast Money

Breakfast and lunch money should be paid for by the week or month.  Send lunch/breakfast money in an envelope (sealed well) with your child’s name on it, teachers name, the amount inside and what the money is for.  Put only lunch/breakfast money in this envelope.  This envelope will be taken directly to the lunchroom.      

Example:

Snack

We will have snack at 2:40 every day.  You may send snack or you may purchase snack from school.  Please be sure to send something or purchase something for your child to have.  If you send snack, do not send sodas and don’t send juice in glass containers.  Also, if you send pudding or a fruit bowl, don’t forget to pack a spoon in your child’s snack box.  Please teach your child how to open his/her snack.  Snack time is limited.  Each snack is 50 cents.  Each juice/water is 50 cents.  The daily rate is $1.00 for both.  If your child will purchase snack the whole week, please send $5.00 to cover the entire week.  ALWAYS SEND THE CORRECT AMOUNT.  Mark the envelope for snack as follows:

DO NOT PUT SNACK MONEY AND LUNCH/BREAKFAST MONEY IN THE SAME ENVELOPE.  THIS MONEY GOES TO TWO DIFFERENT PLACES. 

Other Money

Sometimes throughout the year, your child will bring money to school for various reasons.  Always send money in a sealed envelope with the following information written on it:

·        Child’s first and last name

·        My name

·        Amount of money enclosed

·        Purpose for the money (Zoo Trip, T-shirt, etc.)

Toys

Please – NO TOYS – Most of the children ride a bus and toys are not allowed on the bus.  Students bring them out during inappropriate times (breakfast, group time, etc.).  Any toys brought to school will be taken away.

Protected Reading Time

Kindergarten’s protected reading time is 10-11:30.  This means that we cannot be interrupted during these hours.  If you need to speak directly to me, please call during teacher plan time. (9:10) The school’s phone number is:  243-5990.  You may also email me at ssthomas@pikecountyschools.com.

Homework /Daily Folders /Communication

Check your child’s folder daily.  Your child’s homework will be in this folder.  Please help your child with his/her homework and sign it each night.  If your child doesn’t do his/her best, make him/her erase it and do it again.  Send the homework back in this folder.  We will look for it each day.  This folder is our means of communication.  We will look for homework, envelopes, and notes from home in this folder.  We will send any notes to you in this folder, so look for it to come home every day.  Your child’s daily work and art will come home in this folder as well.  Make him/her feel positive about it by praise and display some of it!  PLEASE CLEAN OUT YOUR CHILD’S FOLDER EVERDAY.  Only homework and notes from you should be sent back to school.  Keep the previous day’s work at home. 

Field Trips

We have one scheduled field trip to the Montgomery Zoo each year.  We ask that each child have one or both parents go on this trip.  If we have any other field trips during the year, we will let you know about them.  Trips to Brundidge or places nearby will not require chaperones.  Students will not be allowed to go on any field trip without a signed permission form from his/her parents.  Students will have to ride the bus with the class to and from all field trips.

Behavior

Establishing good classroom discipline is essential to each child’s success, confidence, and well-being.  Every child should feel that the classroom environment is safe and secure; free from all threats of physical or emotional harm.  It is important that each child learn to develop self-discipline and good work habits, to resolve conflicts peacefully, and to think independently.  Your child is expected to act in a manner that will ensure safety and consideration for the feelings of others.  Behavior calendars will be placed inside your child’s daily folder.  Please initial the box, every night.  This will let me know that you have seen it and that you have discussed this matter with your child.  Please help with any undesirable behaviors.  Students usually behave better at school if they know they will be held accountable for their actions at home.  Every parent wants their child to do his/her best behaviorally and academically.  You may want to let your child miss a favorite T.V. show, take away a specific toy, or maybe they won’t get to play outside.  Your discipline at home is up to you.

Below you will find some of the skills that we work on in Kindergarten.

Math

·        Recognition of numbers 0-20.

·        Recognition of 2-Dimensional and 3 Dimensional Shapes

·        Matching written numbers with the correct number of items 1-20.

·        Writing numbers 1-20.

·        Count on from a given number

·        Adding & subtracting numbers

·        Counting to 100 by ones, fives, and tens.

Reading

·        Recognition of letters.

·        Matching letters with their sounds.

·        Recognizing written words in our reading program.

·        Reading high frequency words  (Tested Weekly)

·        Retelling stories.

·        Segmenting phonemes in words.

·        Blending phonemes to form words.

·        Being able to read words by sounding them out.

Writing

·        Writing letters Aa-Zz.

·        Writing sight words.

·        Writing c-v-c words.

·        Writing short sentences.

·        Writing stories using phonemic spelling.

Science

Our school uses the following AMSTI units in Kindergarten.  AMSTI stands for Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Initiative.

·        Weather

·        Balls and Ramps

·        Trees

·        Living Things

I am excited about this school year and look forward to working with you!