Welcome!

Hi Families!

Welcome back to a busy week in Kindergarten! We are slowly adding to our routines and procedures and our days are full of fun and excitement about learning. The kiddos have gone to their specials (Music and Library) and they were able to learn the expectations for outdoor recess.

We’ve been working on learning how Centers and Responsive Classroom Morning/Afternoon Meeting will run. We've launch our new Bridges Math program and have begun our Journeys literacy program.

It's unfortunate that our AM class has experienced delayed buses during the mid-day commute. The kids handled it well. Here's hoping that it's been figured out, and that we'll have smooth sailing going forward.

Our September book order is due on Monday 9/16, by midnight. (See directions below.). I will submit the order to Scholastic first thing Tuesday morning. Normally, the books arrive in our classroom in about 7 days. Thanks for you orders! We'll pick out some new books for our classroom with the bonus points you've helped us earn.

This week we'll welcome a new student to our AM class. Welcome, Matthew & family! We'll also begin to using the Time-out strategy (see below) and we'll get started with classroom jobs. Busy, busy, busy!

Enjoy your week!

Sue McDonald

Constitution Day – is Tuesday, 9/17. Have your kiddo wear red, white and blue.

November Conferences - The conference Sign-up Genius is live. Please select only one time slot. Our conference time is meant for adults only, so please choose a time when you have kid coverage. If you need to change your time, simply go back into Sign-Up Genius to make the change. I will get an email when you do, so there’s no need to contact me.

Here's the link to sign up:

Time Out, in Kindergarten

We will slowly begin to implement this strategy this week. This strategy follows the recommendations of The Northeast Foundation of Children, which is the foundation of The Responsive Classroom. All of the RHE staff has been trained in Responsive Classroom and implements similar strategies.

As I mentioned at our Orientation we'll use Time Out for behaviors that are outside of what's expected. Time Out is meant to be a respectful reminder, that will help shape and mold the kiddos into responsible, respectful students.

There's no need for you, as parents, to be checking on the Time Outs, unless you want to. I don't count them. I don't log them. If you asked me at the end of the day why your kiddo went to Time Out, I probably won't remember, since they really are for small things. Using Time Out for small things, helps avoid bigger issues. Think of it as "nipping it in the bud."

I promise you, if I need your support and involvement, I will reach out to you. Even if you hear that your kiddo has had several Time Outs in one day, that's OK. It just means that he/she has several different behaviors that we're working on.

Typically, the Time Out chair is very busy when we first get started with it. Then, very quickly, as students begin to learn the expectations of our classroom and our school, we depend on it less and less. Very quickly, we get to the point where we almost don't need it any longer.

If you'd like to read more about Responsive Classroom & Time Out (which is sometimes called Take a Break), here is a link to a great article from Responsiveclassroom.org. The same strategies can be implemented at home!

Back-to-School Forms - I’m still waiting for a few of forms. This week, I will be sending home reminders to those of you with outstanding forms. If you need a new copy of any of the papers, please ask in the office, since I don’t have any additional copies in our classroom.

Rolling Hills Folder – Please be sure to check your child's Rolling Hills folder each night. It should come home with the classwork from that day. Please completely empty the folder each night. We check the Rolling Hills Folders as soon as the kiddos arrive, so it's a great place to put any notes that you send in for us to see.

Pretzel Days – This week will be our first pretzel day for those kiddos who prepaid. There are no pretzels for sale in the classroom. On pretzel day, please send in a Ziploc bag for your child to bring home what he/she doesn’t eat. The rest can make a great afterschool snack.

KidStuff Books – aren’t free. Haha. Please return the book or payment asap. Sale ends 9/25.

Homework - Our homework program will begin on Monday, October 7th. It will be three nights a week, Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. More detail to follow.