WELCOME TO KINDERGARTENWELCOME TO KINDERGARTEN

Miss Sax

Room S-3Please… Please…

Find your child’s seat.Find your child’s seat.

See the sign up sheets out in the hallSee the sign up sheets out in the hall

Take one each of the handouts on back tableTake one each of the handouts on back table

Take a look around the room!Take a look around the room!

The presentation will begin shortly.The presentation will begin shortly.

“Kissing Cards”

In the middle of each table you will find index cards, pencils, and heart stickers.

Please write a little “love note” to your child that they can keep in their pencil

box for days when they may feel a little sad or gloomy.

*The scrap paper is for you to take notes if needed.

My EducationMy Education

Rowan University

B.A. in Theatre/Dance• Concentration in Child Drama• Specialization in Puppetry

TCNJ

Certified K-6 Elementary Ed.

Teaching ExperienceTeaching Experience

Allen Roberts SchoolNew Providence, NJ

- 2nd year kindergarten teacher- 2 years as a 2nd grade teacher- 4 years as a 1st grade teacher

The Responsive Classroom The Responsive Classroom ApproachApproach

The Responsive Classroom is an approach to teaching and learning that fosters safe, challenging, and joyful classrooms and schools, kindergarten through eighth grade. The approach was developed by The Northeast Foundation for Children in 1981.

Principles of the Principles of the Responsive ClassroomResponsive Classroom

The social curriculum is just as important as the academic curriculum. How children learn is as important as what they learn: process and content go hand-in-hand. The greatest cognitive growth occurs through social interaction. There is a set of social skills children need in order to be successful academically and socially: cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, and self-control.

Principles Continued…

Knowing the children we teach individually, culturally, and developmentally, is as important as knowing the content we teach.

Knowing the families of the children we teach and working with them as partners is essential to children's education.

How the adults at school work together is as important as individual competence: Lasting change begins with the adult community.

Responsive Classroom’s Responsive Classroom’s Teaching PracticesTeaching Practices

Morning/Afternoon Meeting: A daily routine that builds community, creates a positive climate for learning, and reinforces academic and social skills.

Guided Discovery: A format for introducing materials that encourages inquiry, heightens interest, and teaches care of the school environment.

Academic Choice: An approach to giving children choices in their learning that helps them become invested, self-motivated learners.

Working with Families: Ideas for involving families as true partners in their child’s education.

Morning/Afternoon MeetingMorning/Afternoon Meeting

•Greeting•Sharing•Activity•Daily Message

Calendar ActivitiesCalendar Activities

•The Pledge of Allegiance•Date•Yesterday, today and tomorrow •Days in School •Counting on, tally marks •The Number of the Day•Weather•Graphing•Days of the Week•Months of the Year

Language ArtsLanguage Arts

Your child will…Appreciate literature and have a strong desire to read.Identify capital/lower case letters.Identify sounds of the letters.Gain knowledge of concepts of print.Begin to sound out simple wordsRead approximately 20 high frequency words.Read SIMPLE texts.Gain knowledge of literature concepts.

High Frequency Words

MathematicsMathematicsYour child will…

Count to 100 by 1’sCount by 2’s, 5’s, 10’sCount backwards from 20 to 1Gain number senseUse measurementTell time to the hourIdentify coinsRecognize and make geometric shapesMake number familiesRead and write simple fractionsBegin to add and subtract

Handwriting Handwriting Without TearsWithout Tears

Your child will…– Learn child-friendly language– Use multi-sensory, hands-on materials– Learn a good pencil grip

WritingWritingBy the end of the year your child will be a beginning writer.Students will write their full name with capital and lowercase letters. Students will be introduced to the writing process through Writer’s Workshop.Students will communicate their ideas through pictures and words.

ScienceScienceMonarch ButterfliesWeather Trees-Seasonal StudyThe Five Senses-Science Day Theme

Social StudiesSocial Studies

Families

Holidays

Take Home Folder

Please empty folder every day!

Used for communication between home and school.

Please replace the folder when it gets worn. Thank you!

HOMEWORKHOMEWORK

READREADREADREAD

READREAD……

for 15 minutes every night!for 15 minutes every night!

SpecialsSpecials

KCMondays - Gym* and Art

Thursdays – LibraryFridays - Music

KDMondays - Library

Tuesday – Art

Wednesdays - Gym

Thursdays - Music

*Sneakers with closed backs must be worn or your child will not be able to participate in

activities!

Absence PolicyAbsence Policy

If your child is sick or going on vacation, any missed work will be given to them after they return to school. Please make sure you contact the office about an absence.

Safe ListSafe ListThe safe list is a list of three to four people who can pick up your child from my backdoor. i.e. relatives, neighbors, or car pool group.If someone is picking up your child, who is not on that list, I MUST HAVE A NOTE WITH YOUR WRITTEN PERMISSION!

SnackSnack• Please only send in pretzels, plain crackers,

fruits or vegetables.

• No yogurt or dairy

• No water/beverages (water fountain)

• Each day students bring in a small snack. Due to time restraints of half-day kindergarten we only have about 10 minutes to eat snack.

Birthday TreatsBirthday Treats•To celebrate a child’s birthday, students are permitted to bring in a special snack to share with the class. Please be sure that the snack is nut-free.

•Please just let me know ahead of time that you will be sending in a treat, so I can make time in our schedule.

•Treat must be evenly divided into single servings (i.e. cupcakes, brownies, cookies, etc.)

•Summer birthdays will be celebrated in June and must be pre- arranged with Miss Sax.

Scholastic Book ClubScholastic Book Club

Owning your own books is special, and encourages children to be enthusiastic about reading.The price of the books are inexpensive compared to most book stores.The class earns free books for our classroom!

How To Contact Miss SaxHow To Contact Miss Sax

Emailing me or sending a note in with your child is the best way to communicate with me.You can also leave a message with the secretaries with your name and phone number. Ask them to put it in my mailbox.Warning: I do not always check my voice mail. If you left a message and I did not get back to you in a day, please write me a note!

Procedure for Inclement Procedure for Inclement Weather in KindergartenWeather in Kindergarten

The Kindergarten teachers will still dismiss students

from their classroom doors to the playground.

ConferencesConferencesJanuary

-Discusses and explains report card

June

– Measures benchmarks of kindergarten

– Portfolio assessments

Miss Sax’s Website

www.npsd.k12.nj.us

Please keep checking the website, as it’s updated often!

I look forward to a wonderful and successful year with you and your child!

Be sure to see the parent volunteer sign up sheets!

Thank You For Coming!Thank You For Coming!