We did it! All of your children made it to the first day of school. The First Day of School was mostly to acclimate the children to their new environment and meet some new faces. The goal for the rest of the week is as follows (this will carry over to most of the month of September):
- Establish a routine
- Know my classroom signals
- Know the people around them (students, teachers, staff, etc.)
- Know the different places in the school
- Emergency procedures
- Rules for using the bathroom and washing of hands
- Playground and Classroom expectations
- Learn a couple new songs
- Assess, Assess, Assess! I will be assessing all of your children to see where they are academically and socially.
- Familiarize themselves with their names (seeing it in print and writing it)
- How to carefully listen to a story.
- Practice our prayers.
- ...and I'm sure the list of goals will continue on. Let's start with the above! :)
A couple reminders (in no particular order):
- The TK Sign In/Out sheet will be placed right on the white shelf right by the front door/fire extinguisher for you to Sign In. During dismissal, the clipboard will be placed at the bench tables. We will exit from the opposite door (the door closest to the restroom)
- Snack begins today - please send a nutritious snack to school along with a drink. Those going to daycare will also need to bring a lunch.
- Daycare students need to bring nap items in a bag. The ideal bag would be a reusable grocery bag like the ones sold at Target at the checkout stand (or something similar). Be sure to write your child's name on all the items. Further questions regarding Daycare should be directed to Mrs. Van Dieran or Miss Gigi. I can forward any questions or concerns to them if needed.
- Crying or "clingy-ness" is normal during the first few days of school... this can last for a couple weeks. We can discuss this further if this is a concern.
- Be sure to turn in all your forms - blue emergency card, white disaster release form, and the 3 papers that were attached to the Back to School Night Packet.
- I will be setting out a Back to School Conference Sign-up sheet next week. If you have scheduling conflicts, please let me know after the sign up sheet has been posted. I will have the sign up sheet next to the TK Sign In and Out clipboard.
- Teaching your child about being responsible - I would like students to put their own tote bag and snack inside the own cubbie. I also would like the children to pull out their own folder to place in the bin outside the classroom.
- There is a delay on our TK folder order. Please check your child's tote bag for any notes from school. We will check tote bags as well for any notes, etc. Once the folders come in, I will train the kids to take their folders out and place it into a bin.
I am in search for the following:
- Room Parent: I do have a few interested. If there are any other parents who would like to help with this role, please let me know ASAP. The role of the room parent is to be the liaison between the school and the classroom parents. Room Parents help plan events but do not necessarily attend the event if their schedule does not work with the event schedule.
- Photographer: I have no one signed up. The role of the photographer is to gather all the photos from the school year and then to compile the photos/videos onto a disc for all TK families to enjoy. Some parents create a slideshow or movie. At a minimum, the Photographer just burns a disc for all to have copies of digital photos and videos.
- Classroom and Home Helpers: I will need helpers in the classroom, as well as, helper who could do some volunteering from home. Volunteers who are able to come help at school must Sign In to the office and wear a volunteer sticker at all times. These volunteers must be fingerprinted and Safe-environment trained. See Mrs. Maxon for more details regarding volunteering at school. If you would like to volunteer to do work from home, this will consist of prepping materials for the classroom such as cutting, laminating, stapling, and so forth. With my new role of Mommy, my time to go shopping has been slashed to almost non-existent! (Thank you Amazon Prime for my shopping needs!) Sometimes I will ask a volunteer to purchase something for the class and I will personally reimburse you. Sometimes these items will be grocery items or craft item that would be used for a project or center.
- Atrium of the Good Shepherd Assistant: This volunteer will accompany half of the TK class to the Atrium. At the Atrium, the children will learn about God through Montessori style learning. Mrs. Bradley, who teaching Atrium to TK, will need 1 parent helper. It would be good to have a consistent adult. If that is not possible, I can have a rotation of adults helping. The schedule as of right now is tentative. Last year we attended the Atrium on Tuesdays. This year let's plan for a Tuesday, but I will confirm that once I have my schedule set in stone.
If you have any questions, please don't ever hesitate to e-mail me.
Thank you so much for selecting St. Irenaeus Parish School and entrusting me to teach your child to be a Christ-follower and to learn how to be a life-long learner!
God's Blessings,
Mrs. Paragas
