ROCKET NEWS
JANUARY 2020
HOUR OF CODE
Soft Starts
Transitioning into the busy day isn’t always easy! Students enter the classroom with their own mental, social, and emotional demands. This is why some classes begin their day with a “Soft Start.” The use of “Soft Starts” allows the students to transition into their busy day by choosing a beginning of their day task, based on socializing, problem-solving, cooperating, and learning. Some students may choose to just talk with a friend or play with playdough while others may choose to work on puzzles, building activities, or explore with magnets. Activities can be geared around the different learning styles and interests of the students including: directed drawings, engineering/building, math, Language Arts, and science. Using “Soft Starts” helps the students prepare their brains to meet the demands of the day in a way that fits their own needs. While this may replace the paper to pencil Morning Work, the learning benefits of “Soft Starts” far exceed this task!
Winter Reminders
Also, please use extreme caution when navigating through the parking lot in the morning and afternoon. Keeping a safe speed and being mindful of others is important to ensure that everyone arrives and leaves campus safely.
Finally, be sure that children are dressed appropriately for the cold weather. Even when the temperatures dip a bit below freezing, children go outside for recess. The fresh air and time to run help to make the afternoons more productive. Hats, gloves, and a warm coat should be standard winter apparel. Please label all items with first and last names.
Tips From the Learning Lab
Literacy:
Work with your child to listen for beginning sounds in words. Be sure to focus on the sound rather than the letter name. Ex. When you are outside, pick a word and say it to your child… like “house”. Ask your child what sound, “house” begins with… continue with other words. If he/she does not know, tell him/her.
Numeracy:
Estimate and count. Give your child objects (start small at first) and ask your child how many he/she thinks there are and then have them count the objects. Talk about his/her estimate compared to the actual amount.
2020-2021 Kindergarten Registration
We will begin online kindergarten pre-registration for the 2020-2021 school year on Friday, January 10, 2020. The online registration is a pre-registration only, and students will not be considered enrolled until parents/guardians submit the required information during in-person registration in January 2020.
A child residing in Upper Saddle River who will be five (5) years old on or before October 1, 2020 is eligible to enter kindergarten. There are no exceptions to this date. To help facilitate your child’s registration, please follow this process:
Beginning January 10, 2020 go to the Reynolds website and click on pre-registration under "School News."
Complete the process, review important registration procedures, and download the required forms.
We look forward to having your child join us in the Upper Saddle River School District. For more information, please join us for Kindergarten Orientation on January 9th at 7:00 pm.
January Dates to Remember
- January 3rd- School Spirit - Wear Green Day
- January 6th-Family Night- No Homework
- January 9th- Kindergarten Orientation- @ 7:00 pm in Travers MPR
- January 10th- Kindergarten pre-registration opens
- January 20th- Martin Luther King Day - No School
- January 22nd- "We are Family" Kindergarten Show @ 8:30 am in Travers MPR
Note: See our January Calendar for Additional Events
Reynolds School
Website: http://www.usrschoolsk8.com/reynolds/pages/default.aspx
Location: 395 West Saddle River Road, Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States
Phone: 201-961-6300
Facebook: RobertReynoldsSchool
Twitter: @ReynoldsUSR