Welcome to Kindergarten!
September (Online) Newsletter for our JK/SK Class
Dear Parents/Guardians,
A warm welcome to all senior and junior kindergarteners! We are excited to have you with us for the 2013-2014 school year, it’s going to be a terrific and active year in kindergarten! This is our first year offering the Full Day Kindergarten program, we are excited! The new program means that there are kindergarten teachers and designated early childhood educators in the classroom to meet all of your children’s needs academically, socially and emotionally.
This information package is designed to make your child’s adjustment to school a smooth and positive experience. Please keep this information so that you can refer to it throughout the year when necessary. We look forward to creating the best possible learning environment for your child. Following these guidelines in this package will help to establish and maintain routines important to the success of all the kindergarten children.
Attendance
If your child will be absent from school, please phone the school office to tell the dates and the reason for the absence. The secretary will phone parents of children who are absent for an unknown reason. If your child arrives at school late, he/she must report to the office for a late slip before coming to the kindergarten classroom. Please do not knock on the kindergarten windows or doors if you are late for school.
School Backpacks
Please be sure that your child has a large backpack (so it can hold lunch and a folder!) with a zipper opening for school. Entry, snack, lunch and dismissal routines become quick and easy for both the child and the teacher if children can open their backpacks independently, and remove and add items as they need.
Washroom
Please teach your child to be self-sufficient in the washroom. We will be able to assist with buttons, but we are unable to assist in the washroom itself. Please encourage your child to follow a routine. Enter … close the door … use the toilet … flush … wash and dry hands. If your child has an accident, you, a daycare provider, or an emergency contact person will be contacted to come with clean clothes and to help with the cleaning of your child. Please send a full change of clothes to school in case of an accident. We will put them in a labeled bag in our classroom.
Arrival
School staff will be on duty to supervise children as they arrive, starting at 8:45am. Please do not leave your child unattended in the Kindergarten yard. Randall P.S. supports the open entry method. This means you will take your child to the main school doors between the North and South Kindergarten yards starting at 8:45am. A staff member will let your child in the door, and they will be assisted to their classroom where they will be supervised. Our school bell goes at 9:00am, and all kindergarten children are expected to be in class by this time. If your child takes the bus to school, a teacher on duty will pick them up from the bus and walk them to class. Daycare students will be brought to class by the daycare teacher.
Dismissal
Kindergarten students will be dismissed in the Kindergarten yard starting at 3:25pm (the dismissal bell for the school is 3:30pm). We ask that parents wait outside of the gate for their child to be dismissed. Please complete the attached forms so that teachers are aware of who students are to be going home with at the end of the day. Teachers will only dismiss your child to the people you have specified on this list. If a different adult is picking up your child on any occasion, please let your child’s teacher know by writing a note in their Communication Folder. Students will be dismissed once the teacher has made eye contact with the person picking the child up, and given the child a high-five or a handshake. If your child takes the bus, they will be picked up in their classroom by a teacher on duty, who will accompany them to the bus. If you need to pick your child up during the school day, please report to the office and the secretary will call down to your child’s classroom.
Communication Folders
Each day your child will bring home a communication folder. This folder will be used as a communication system between home and school. School and classroom related notes, artwork, classroom materials and reading books will be sent in it. Parents can use it to send letters, notices, payments, etc. Please check and empty this folder daily.
Birthday Celebrations
You are NOT required to send anything special with your child on this day. We will sing a special birthday song to them as a class! Due to medical and religious restriction, we ask that no food products be sent to school. If you wish to send your child with something to share on their birthday, send in their favourite book for the teacher to read to the class (it will be sent back to you!).
Library Books
Your child will start to get a library book once a week, when they return the book the next library day; they will be able to pick a new one.
Toys from Home
Please encourage your child to keep toys and other home belongings at home. It can be difficult to separate children from favourite home items and keep them on task with classroom learning. Children also get upset if the toy becomes lost or broken.
Snack and Lunch
Parents are responsible for providing their child’s snack and lunch. The children should bring everything they need for their lunch, including spoons, as we do not have these supplies in the classroom. Please keep in mind that we do not have a place to heat up lunches or keep them refrigerated. As part of our effort to help children develop independence, please send a lunch that your child can eat with little or no help from the teacher, and containers that the child can open by himself/herself. The children will eat their lunch in the classroom and will be supervised by a lunch assistant.
Randall Public school is an ECO school. This means that it is our goal to minimize garbage in every classroom. We encourage parents to send snacks and lunches in re-usable containers to minimize garbage. This includes reusable/refillable water bottles which can be refilled with water if a child is still thirsty. Juice boxes are discouraged as the students usually take a few sips and the remainder goes to waste.
The lunch hour runs from 12:30-1:30pm. During that time, the children will have half an hour to eat and half an hour to play outside. For this reason, we strongly encourage that you send a substantial snack with your child, to be eaten during the morning when they are hungry (we have self-regulated snack time during centres in the morning).
Randall P.S. also encourages healthy eating. Suggested snacks include:
~Cheese and crackers
~Fruits and/or vegetables cut up into bite size pieces
~Granola bars, yogurt, apple sauce
~A small sandwich
As well, labeling your child’s snack with the #1 and their lunch items with a #2 will help ensure that the entire contents are not eaten at snack time. Please remember that children are encouraged to drink water or milk only at snack. Juice should be saved for lunch only.
***** Please be aware that we are a nut and nut-product safe school. Please ensure that all food brought to school does not contain nuts or traces of nuts by reading all labels carefully. If a child brings a nut product to school, it will be returned home in a sealed bag with a note reminding parents that this product may contain nuts. The child will not be allowed to open or eat the product at school. ****
Clothing and Indoor Shoes
Every child needs to have a pair of running shoes that they can put on and do up independently at school. Velcro running shoes are the best option. Please do not send lace-up shoes to school with your child. Please remember that these shoes will stay at school.
Also, students should have an extra set of clothes at school in case of an accident. Please label the bag (large Ziploc bags work best) with your child’s name on the outside. The bag should contain an extra pair of pants, a shirt, underwear and socks.
Outdoor Play
Part of the kindergarten curriculum is outdoor and gross motor play. Encouraging children to engage in gross motor activity outside promote a healthy and active lifestyle. Your child needs to be sent to school dressed in appropriate outdoor clothing for the season/weather. All children are expected to participate in outdoor activity.
Labeling
Please print your child’s name on the inside label of ALL outdoor clothing (coats, boots, shows, sweaters, snow pants, hats and mitten). We try our best to ensure that each child brings home the correct clothing each day and this is more easily achieved if clothing is clearly labeled.
Contacting the Teachers!
Throughout the school year, we will be available to meet with you before or after school hours. Please contact your child’s teacher for an appointment to avoid conflicts in schedules. Telephone meetings can also be arranged. Call the school at 905-479-2003 or write a note in your child’s communication folder. We encourage you to contact us throughout the year if you have any questions or concerns. It is important for your child to learn that their parents and teachers are a team, interested in their experiences and development at school. Together we will create a positive experience for everyone!
Thank you for your support!
Mrs Hall (OCT) and Mrs Mansur (DECE)
Email: sondra.hall@yrdsb.edu.on.ca
Website: http://www.yrdsb.edu.on.ca/page.cfm?id=S00000099&sc=455
Location: 50 Randall Ave, Markham, ON, Canada
Phone: 905 479 2003