April 2006
Dear Parents,
This handbook provides information that will be helpful to you as you prepare your child for their Kindergarten experience. Kindergarten is a year of growing socially, emotionally, physically, and intellectually. As a parent, you are your child's first and most important teacher. There are many things that you, as parents, can do to help your child adjust easily and eagerly to the Kindergarten experience. Your child has a natural love of learning. Every first-hand experience that they have can teach them important skills. Enjoy this time! Be quick to praise, your child may be feeling anxious about the upcoming school year, and will seek your approval of their activities and ideas. Your enthusiasm and involvement will help make their Kindergarten experience a wonderful year for both of you. What an incredible privilege to be a part of their journey as they prepare to enter the wonderful world of kindergarten!
Please take time to read through this packet of information. You may find many helpful ideas and answers to some of the questions that you or your child may be having.
We are looking forward to forming a partnership with you during your child's kindergarten year so that we may provide them with the best possible experience.

Sincerely,

Cindy Feda, Kindergarten Teacher

Patsi Kugler, Kindergarten Teacher

Your time and patience will help your child develop a strong sense of self-worth and confidence. Your child should be exposed to the following:

Keep in mind good Health Habits:
*To wash hands before eating and after going to the bathroom.
*To attend to their toilet needs independently.
*To have a set bedtime.
*Brush teeth regularly.
*To cover mouth for coughs and sneezes, and use a Kleenex
appropriately.

Encourage your child to assist in developing their Physical Abilities:
*To be able to balance and jump.
*Putting on and taking of their own jackets and boots.
(Able to zip, snap, and button.)
*To be able to tie their own shoes.
*To be able to skip, gallop, run, march, and hop.
*To be able to identify parts of their body.
*To be able to cut, paste, color, use a pencil and manipulate
objects (eye-hand coordination activities.)
*To be able to bounce, throw and catch a ball.

At the beginning of the Kindergarten year, it is appropriate and to your child's advantage if they can do the following:
*Write their first name with the first letter capital
and all others lower case.
*Count to 20.
*Recite the alphabet (sing the alphabet song.)
*Name the basic 8 colors.
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown and black.
*Tie their own shoes.
*Manage self-help skills: zipping, snapping, buckling and buttoning.
*Take care of their own bathroom needs.
*Wash their hands properly.
Throughout the Kindergarten year, we'll work hard at having your child master the following:
*Recognizing numbers to 20 and counting to 100.
*Recognizing circles, squares, triangles and rectangles.
*Recognizing all capital and lower case letters.
*Producing all letter sounds: vowels and consonants.
*Recognizing basic sight words from the Reading curriculum.
*Printing the alphabet.
*Learning their address, phone number and birthdate.
Practicing pencil skills, coloring and using a scissors.
*These skills are important for success in First Grade and will be assessed on the Kindergarten Progress Report.

Enjoy the Kindergarten Readiness Activities Calendar.

1. Books, books and more books! Read to them and with them.

2. Let your child be responsible for jobs around home. This allows them to
develop a sense of responsibility, ownership and independence.

3. Have fun playing games and cards. A deck of cards is a wonderful tool
for learning counting, sorting, and ordering numbers. Your child will
also be learning how to take turns and play fairly.

4. Listen to your child and expect them to listen to you. If they won't listen to
you, they will have trouble listening to the adults at school as well. Provide
opportunities for them to practice if necessary.

5. Recite and sing favorite nursery rhymes and songs. Talk about the words,
what they mean and if they rhyme.

6. Talk with your child as if they were an adult, this provides a strong
language model for them to follow. Discourage "baby talk."

7. Have an art box or cupboard available for them to explore. Include:
crayons, glue, sticks, tape, paper, paints, scissors, playdough, pencils,
and interesting writing supplies.

8. Have your child "read" to you.

9. Play counting games, rhyming games and sound games as you travel in
the car.

10. Arrange for your child to play with other children his or her age.

11. Combine learning with "hands-on" play.
String Cheerios, buttons, beads, macaroni.
Sort clothing, silverware, buttons, coins, nails, playing cards.
Pour rice, juice, milk, flour, cereal.
Color drawings, newspapers, coloring books.
Trace hands and feet, pictures from coloring books, shapes, blocks, cookie
cutters.
Cook Jello, Kool-aid, lemonade, cookies, popcorn.

Things to do: set the table, dust the furniture, put away their toys and clothes, answer the telephone, wash and dry unbreakable dishes, carry packages, rake leaves, tend the garden, care for pets.

Muscle coordination boosters: zippers, buttons, snaps, belts, shoelaces, scissors, crayons, stencils, dot-to-dot pages.

Games to play: catch and throw, tag, I Spy, Mother May I, Red Light-Green Light, Follow the Leader, Hokey-Pokey

Things to build with: empty cans with plastic lids, empty milk cartons, shoe boxes with lids taped on, blocks.

Kindergarten offers your child the opportunity:
1. To learn to feel responsible for themselves and other friends
2. To cooperate with others
3. To be a leader and a follower
4. To learn to become a happy successful child and have self-respect
5. To learn to respect others and to be courteous
6. To learn to plan and direct their own work and to complete tasks
7. To use good speech and manners
8. To learn to work with and care for many kinds of materials
9. To work at their level of ability
10. To learn self-control
11. To listen to simple directions and follow them
12. To build a background for reading. This is one of the most important
functions of kindergarten. Virtually everything the child does in
kindergarten relates to or prepares them for this exciting experience.
13. To recognize numbers, count objects, and learn simple combinations as presented in the math curriculum
14. To provide activities to develop muscle coordination
15. And to enjoy music and art.

Every year, some parents must make a choice whether to send their children to Kindergarten or delay their entrance for another year. This is an agonizing decision for some parents to make, but perhaps we can help you make a correct one. If you have concerns about your child's readiness, please talk to someone about your concerns. We would be happy to visit with you or direct you to another resource.

Please label everything your child brings before they come.
That will really help out during the first week of school!
* School supplies
(These brands are recommended, but it is up to you.)
Plastic Pencil Box -- small size
2 boxes of 8 Crayola Crayons
2 Box of 16 crayons
(basic colors so I can tell easily if your child knows the colors)
10 regular sized pencils with cap erasers
4 LARGE size Elmer's glue sticks
4 ounce bottle of Elmer's Glue - the "no run" glue is VERY hard to squeeze
Fiskars Children's Scissors
Box of Crayola Watercolor Paints (8 Basic Colors)
1 package of 10 classic markers
LONG colored pencils - box of 8 or 12
One 2-pocket folder
One "Pink Pearl" eraser

(Keep in mind that crayons, glue sticks and pencils will
be used up and will need to be replaced during the school year.)

* A Large Book bag
A back-pack style bag with a zipper is fine. Your child will need to be able to open and close it on their own. Keep in mind that it will hold snow pants, library books, boots, shoes, snacks and papers, sometimes all at once! But please, no large sport bags as they do not fit in our cubbies and are difficult to manage when getting on and off the bus.

* Resting Mat
Mats will be on sale at Parent's Day next fall. The cost will be between $7-8. Your child's mat must have a vinyl cover (to allow for easy cleaning if necessary) and be foldable.

* Tennis Shoes
These will be worn daily for Phy. Ed. Class.

Parent's Day Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2006

On the first day of the 2006-2007 school year, there will be two sessions held for the parents of the new Kindergarten students. Mrs. Kugler's Parents will meet at the AM Session, 9 am to 11 am, and Mrs. Feda's Parents at the PM Session, 1 pm to 3 pm. THERE IS NO SCHOOL FOR THE KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS ON SEPTEMBER 5! A letter will be sent out to all families about the third week in August reminding them of the meeting and informing them of the teacher their child was assigned. Please plan for NO children (preschoolers or kindergartners) at these sessions.
These sessions are a chance for the parents to find out about their child's schedule, academic goals, discipline plan, classroom procedures, and daily and monthly routines. It is also the day that all Medical Information and School Fees are collected. The State of Minnesota mandates certain items which are contained in the medical packet. We must also see your child's Birth Certificate to verify their date of birth. Completion of preschool screening is required before your child begins school.
Please bring these items along on September 5:
Birth Certificate (we won't keep it, we just need to see it.)
Medical Packet:
*Physical Release Form (green sheet) OR
Physical Health Examination Form (to be filled out by Doctor)
*Immunization Form (State Required)
*Emergency Card (yellow card)
School Fees: (Prices subject to change)
*Lunch Account Deposit
You can expect to receive Free and Reduced Breakfast and
Lunch Price Information in the August school mailing.
*Resting Mat, if purchasing one from the school: $7.00 -$8.00
*Classroom project money - $5.00 - to be used for Fall, Winter and
Valentine's Day celebrations and classroom cooking projects.