We had a great first week reading books and getting to know one another and our classroom. This group is off to a wonderful start!
Handwriting/Name Writing
This week, we will begin focusing on names and letters. One of our kindergarten standards is writing a name with one capital letter and the rest lower-case. I encourage you to reinforce this at home-- we try to drop the all-capital letter name writing as quickly as possible. The faster children can write their names correctly, the easier it is for them to get going on assignments, as we encourage them to write their names first. I appreciate your help with this.
We will also be reading the books, No David! and Chika Chika Boom Boom and doing some crafts and a STEAM project following these stories.
Scissor Skills/Fine Motor Tubs
Next week, we will launch our "fine motor tubs," which we work on first thing in the morning. Your children will want to come right on time so that they can get started on these tubs, as these are always very popular! They are a great way for us to sneak in some fine motor strengthening activities while having fun. One skill we will be focusing on is scissor skills, which can be difficult for kindergartners. Continue practicing scissor skills at home by drawing lines on papers to have your children cut on different types of lines.
Volunteering
We will begin having volunteers in the classroom in late September for classroom centers, and I will send sign-ups for those in mid-September. However, sign-ups for Home & School Club Enrichment programs are available now! We are in need of a lead room parent, so if anyone is interested you can sign up at www.avhsc.org and go to the "Get Involved" tab.
School Gates
All gates into the school will be open from 8:05 to 8:15, and then they will be closed until dismissal time. If you arrive after the gates are closed, you will need to go into the office (that is the only entry point to campus after the gates are closed) for a tardy slip before you can get onto campus. Even if children are able to get onto campus after 8:15 without going through the office, they will still be marked tardy if they are not in the classroom by 8:15. For security reasons, please do not prop the gate open and please ensure that it has fully latched if you leave campus after 8:15. Thank you for your help with this.
I am looking forward to another fun week with your children!
