I am very excited to begin the new school year with your children!  We are going to be very busy exploring and learning many new things everyday.  I hope that this letter helps with some of the questions you may have regarding the procedures of the classroom as well as the school.  I look forward to a productive and adventurous year!

Parent/Teacher Communication

I believe that for this year to be successful we need to have an open line of communication throughout the year.  Feel free to contact me at any time with questions and/or concerns.  The kids will be bringing home a folder every night.  This folder is labeled "Return to School" on one side and "Take Home" on the other.  If you have a note for me about transportation, questions, or concerns you may put it in the "Return to School" pocket of the folder.  We will check the folders in the morning for any notes.  The items that are in the "Take Home" pocket can be taken out and left at home.  Please help your child take responsibility for their folder each day. Make sure it is checked on a nightly basis for notes, reminders, school work, and homework. The incompletion of homework and not being prepared on a daily basis will be reflected on the student report cards.   Here are other ways that you will be able to reach me on a daily basis. 

  E-mail:   kbrown@villamadonna.net    I will be checking my e-mail periodically throughout the day and will try to respond as quickly as possible.

Phone: (859)331-6333 ext. 109-This will take you to my voicemail so that you can leave a message.  I will also be checking this periodically throughout the day and will try to respond as quickly as possible.

Conferences:  If you feel that you need to meet with me, I will be more than happy to find a time to have a conference.  We will be doing formal conferences later in the year, but if you would like to discuss questions or concerns I will be available.

* * * We will also be posting a weekly newsletter on the website as well as sending home a copy of it in folders on Fridays.   Please check the website on a daily basis.

Learning Centers

You will notice on the weekly schedule, a time dedicated to centers.  This part of the day is a crucial learning experience for the kids.  It promotes student directed activity as well as learning to work cooperatively with each other.  This time will give me a chance to circulate and help when I am needed.  The students will be able to choose each day between eleven centers (library, dramatic play, blocks, sensory, listening, computer, math, writing, art, science, and reading).  I will be keeping track of their choices to make sure they are experiencing all of the centers on a regular basis.

Service Hours

Each kindergarten student is responsible for participating in 1 hour of service outside of school. You will receive a time sheet that will need to be turned in at the end of the year along. The service hour completion is part of the religion grade. 

Environmental Print            

Environmental print is the print we see all around us - the print on commercial signs, labels and products we use everyday, etc. Displaying environmental print in the classroom helps children feel successful “reading” at an early age. These early successes motivate young children to read more and more! We have an environmental display board that we will work together to fill up. Please help us do this by collecting labels, coupons, store logos, etc. from home and sending them in with your child and we will read and display them. 

“Caught Being Good”  

My behavior management plan is based on positive reinforcement.  I choose to focus on the good behaviors I am seeing on daily basis rather than the negative.   Each time Mrs. Wischer or I notice someone displaying good behavior (ex. Standing in line quietly while we wait to go to lunch, cleaning their area, or being a good friend to a classmate) we will write in a star for them on our chart.  Each time they receive 10 stars they will get to pick out a treat from the prize box!!

Birthdays  

Birthdays are a special time for the children.  We will acknowledge and celebrate them in class.  I have no problem with you bringing in a treat for your child’s birthday (ex. cupcakes, cookies, popsicles, etc.) We have fifteen children in the class and because of peanut allergies I would ask that you not include any peanut products in the treat.  This way everyone will be able to participate.  If your child has a summer birthday we will celebrate their half birthday so that they will have a chance to be the birthday boy or girl for the day. If you are having a birthday party for your child outside of school, please do not send the invitations in for us to pass out unless you are inviting every child in the class. This is a school policy that is in the handbook.    

Star Student of the Week    

Each child will have a chance to be the star of the week.  I will be giving you a schedule of who is star student each week and you will need to send in 3-5 pictures on the Monday of their designated week.  These pictures can be of family vacations, special events, pets, or any that they might want to share with the class.  I will display the pictures for the week and return them on Friday.  This is a great way for the kids to get to know each other.  Please have your schedule posted somewhere so you will remember when you need to send in the pictures.  I will put a reminder in the Friday newsletter of who is coming up the next week.

Class Mascot  

We have a bear that is our class mascot. The first week of school we will vote and choose a name for the bear. Starting the week we return to school after Labor Day, he will begin his adventures with the children.  Each Friday I will draw a name and that child will get a chance to take him for the weekend.  He has a journal to keep track of all the adventures he participated in while away from school.  If you take any pictures while you have him, feel free to include those with the journal.  Please help your child write or have them dictate what they want you to write in the journal.  They may also draw pictures to illustrate their time with the bear. On Monday, we will read the journal and look at the pictures to see how many new adventures he was a part of over the weekend.

I am really looking forward to working with all of you this year.  I would love to have as many volunteers as possible to help out with multiple aspects of the classroom.  Without parent guidance, we as teachers would be lost!  The diocese does have a policy that they take very seriously when it comes to volunteers.  Any person who is in the school and around the children has to have the sexual misconduct training they refer to as VIRTUS.  This program consists of several parts.  The first step is signing up for a class that you will have to attend only one time.  You can find dates, times, and locations for these classes on www.virtus.org or if you receive the Messenger at your home, you will find information in there.  Then after the class you will register online at www.virtus.org , meaning you will have a sign-in name and password and you will be sent a bulletin every month through e-mail.  These bulletins are normally short articles that you will read and then you have one question to answer at the end.  It is very important that you read and answer the question as soon as you receive the bulletin.  You have to keep up with the articles to be considered compliant by the diocese.  I am sure you will find the class and the articles very informative in dealing with this delicate issue that we face on a daily basis in our society.  If you are interested in chaperoning field trips or helping out in the classroom in any way then you should look into the VIRTUS training as soon as possible.

• I do allow the kids to bring water bottles on a daily basis.  They keep these in the room and are free to use them whenever they need a drink.  Please do not put juice, milk, etc. in the bottle, it is for water only.  Also, make sure to clearly label the bottle with their name so we don't have any mix-ups.
• Gym day is on Tuesday and unlike the older children we do not have a change of clothes for gym.  If you have a girl and they are wearing their skirt or jumper on gym day, please put on a pair of shorts underneath to make it easier for them to participate.  We will keep the gym shoes in the room all year and return them after the last gym class of the year.
• Please put a pair of socks and underwear in a plastic bag in your child's backpack on a daily basis for any accidents that might occur.  These will stay in the backpack unless they need to be used.  If you would like you may put in a change of pants and shirt to keep in their backpack as well as the socks and underwear.  There are extra uniforms in the office for them if it is an emergency, but sometimes it can be hard to find something in their size.  Feel free to do whatever you are most comfortable with.