Back to School Night (talking points)

By ddugger on August 24th, 2011

Homework Folders – Often there will be incomplete student work inside.  All children work at a different pace. There are some children that finish in a nanosecond and others that take f o r e v e r…… I will stop work at a certain point and we will move on to something else.  You have a choice to either have your child finish or toss the work away.  I do not need to see it again.

We run/walk everyday – (unless the weather is dreadful)  Your child should wear good running shoes. Sandals or any type of open-toed shoes are against school dress code anyway.  It is hard to run in really cool boots or clogs, so we suggest something comfortable.  If your child is ill or has an injury, send in a note and we will not have your child exercise.

Dress Code – there is a long list of things that are on the district dress code list, to sum it up for kindergarten:  No spaghetti strap tops for girls, think lasagna sized straps instead.  No shortie shorts. No makeup. No open-toed shoes. No hats to be worn inside (outside is okay, but if it becomes a problem inside, the hat must go).

Stuff from Home – We have a time once a week for sharing, and you will see the theme of the week in the homework packet, we call this “Secret Sharing”.  Your child will need to bring the item in a bag along with three clues about what it is.  The class then takes turns guessing the object, and then your child pulls it out of the bag and tells about it.  Your child needs to practice at home reading the clues and explaining about the object (speech).  The more practice, the more confidence!

No other toys, balls, silly bands, stuffed animals, etc. should be brought to school.

Park Dale Lane Dollars – an incentive at school across all grade levels is our printed Park Dale Lane dollars.  Starting soon, on Fridays, a “store” is opened on campus and volunteers sell items kids like.  Your child will be earning money in class or on the playground for good behavior, accomplishments, or being a terrific citizen.  They will bring their money to the store and buy things with it once a week.  I encourage students to write their names on their money, so if lost, it can be returned.

Lunches – Students will be assigned a four-digit number that will remain with them as long as they are in elementary school.  This number is given to the lunch ladies and their lunch will be charged to your account.  Please send in a check or cash to pay for their lunches in advance.  This money is collected in the front office.  When the balance is low, you will be notified in writing and you can replenish it.

Birthdays – We Love to celebrate birthdays!  Parents often wish to send in something on a certain day to honor their child.  There are several suggestions for this:

  1. Drop off a treat early in the morning and I will take care of distributing it (with your child as the helper).
  2. Bring in a treat and hang out while we celebrate.  The best times for this are 10 minutes before recess, or 15 minutes before the end of the day.
  3. Purchase a book for the media center and it will be identified as a gift from your child and enjoyed for many years to come.  (Go to the media center to do this.)

We do have a child with walnut allergies, so whatever is sent in, please make sure there are no nuts!

Lastly, please give me a head’s up that you are doing something so I can plan accordingly.

Healthy food ideas? Popsicles, watermelon, any kind of fruit (skewers) bags of fresh popcorn, homemade cupcakes….

Media Center – our class will go to the media center (library) once a week on Wednesdays.  Your child is allowed to check out one book a week.  This book must remain at school (kindergarten only) where they can read it during “Sustained, Silent Reading” (SSR) each day.  If they bring the book home and it gets lost, you are responsible for replacing it.

Buddies – We are lucky and have two upper grade classes as “Buddies,” Mrs. Keene’s second grade and Mr. Rierdan’s 5/6 class.  Starting this week, your child will be paired up with one or two big buddies from each class.  These will be their special friends that will meet with them each week.  They will work, play, do P.E., or read together.  This makes a strong bond and builds a sense of confidence when on campus.

Kindergarten Themes: We teach student lessons by themes and some of this year’s themes are listed below:

Colors

Apples

Seasons

Leaves

Pumpkins

Monsters

Spiders

Halloween (Bats and Owls)

Native Americans and Pilgrims

Thanksgiving (now and long ago)

Friends together Weather American Symbols

Holidays

Gingerbread people

Wheels and transportation

Community helpers

Landforms

Animals (farm, pets, zoo, wild)

Chickens and eggs

Butterflies – caterpillars

Frogs – tadpoles, eggs

Plants

By ddugger on August 22nd, 2011

CORRECTION:  Back-to-School Night will begin in our classroom at 6:00 PM.

Color Days

By ddugger on August 22nd, 2011

Color Days

Beginning Monday, August 22nd we will study one color a day.  Students may wear something of the correct color and bring something of that color for snack.

Please post this schedule as a reminder to help plan the night before.  Daily participation is an excellent way of getting your child involved in our kindergarten activities.

Date Color Food Idea
Mon. Aug 22 Red Strawberries, apple slices
Tues. Aug 23 Orange Orange wedges, carrots
Wed. Aug 24 Yellow Bananas, pineapple
Thurs. Aug 25 Green Grapes, celery, apple slices
Fri. Aug 26 Blue Blueberries, jello
Mon. Aug 29 Purple Grapes, fruit roll-ups
Tues. Aug 30 Pink Yogurt
Wed. Aug 31 Black Olives, raisins
Thurs. Sept 1 Brown Graham cracker, pretzels
Fri. Sept 2 White Popcorn, marshmallows

Welcome to Kindergarten!

By ddugger on August 21st, 2011

August 22, 2011

Dear Families,

We had a terrific first week, even though it was super busy and went by in a flash!  I am excited to get to know all of my students and you.  This is going to be a fun year and we are all going to learn so much.  Once again, you and I will be working as a team, to ensure your child has a strong start in school.

Weekly updates and homework will be sent home each week on Monday in the yellow “Homework Folder”.  Students have a week to complete their homework and return it back to me in the yellow folder each Monday.  Every time student homework is handed in on time, your child will earn a sticker on the cover of their yellow folder.  We will not be starting homework this week, so until we officially begin, please read with your child each night.

A few reminders:

Back to School Night is on Wednesday, August 24th (this week).  Please note that this is a night for parents only.  We do not have childcare provisions available.  I will be going over the kindergarten curriculum, an overview of what to expect this year and answer any of your questions.  Please show up in my classroom at 6:00 for a presentation (takes about 40 minutes).

If you have not returned the white “First-day” packets, please send them in to me; I will turn them into the office once all are here.  These are due ASAP.

Ways to contact me………

  1. email – Diana.dugger@eusd.net
  2. in person – before or after school
  3. school phone – 760-944-4344

My website address:     http://ddugger.wordpress.eusd.net/

See you soon!

Diana Dugger