Thank you all for taking the time to come to Parent and Student Orientations. It was beneficial for the children to meet each other before the first day of school. Since they were able to meet some new friends, it made the first day much smoother.

DROP OFF TIME: Please make sure your child is at school no later than 8:45. We begin the school day promptly.

DRESS CODE: Please remember to send your child to school in clothes that can get dirty. Also, make sure that they wear closed-toe shoes (no sandals and no crocs). Make sure your child is dressed in clothes that enable them to be completely independent. NO SILLY BANDZ ALLOWED!

MORNING MEETING: Our classroom begins each morning with a special class meeting. This always begins with a “greeting.” Starting from the first day of school, children are greeting each other by name. Sometimes we might pass a ball to a friend to say good morning, or use a simple handshake. Throughout the school year, we learn a variety of ways to say hello to our friends. This helps with social development, and children also learn their classmates names quickly and in a fun way. Before long, students often develop their own creative greetings to use during morning meeting.

During morning meeting, we do calendar, take attendance, report on the weather, and read our morning message. The morning message begins with: “Good morning. Today is Monday. The weather is ______.” We add various things to the message throughout the year. The repetitive format keeps the print predictable. Students participate in filling in parts of the message that are left out. Before long, children are writing their own messages during learning centers.

WRITER’S WORKSHOP: We began writing this week. All students were able to draw a story onto paper. Many children even added several words to their story! This week, we have been focusing on thinking about our idea, and then drawing and writing about it on their paper. Right now, all students are using blank paper. Next week, we will begin adding one line for our words. At this stage, your child is using “sound spelling,” which is writing the sounds they hear within a word. We are learning that words are made up of sounds, and writing them is a very important step in this.

CURIOUS GEORGE: We are beginning the school year with several stories about Curious George. Soon, our George stuffed animal will be making visits to your house. He will come home in a special bag with a notebook and book. In the notebook, please have your child write and draw about George’s adventure’s at your house. I really think they will enjoy having George over to visit!

CONTACT: Please remember that the best way to contact me is through email. I check it daily. krista@pembrokekids.com