Welcome to Kindergarten

1. Welcome to Kindergarten Ms. Brill’s Classroom

2. About Myself • Bachelors in Childhood Education B-6 and Masters Degree in Literacy Education B-6 • Second year at Mill Road School  • I encourage a variety of experiences throughout the school year for every child (socially, emotionally, and cognitively)

3. Our Classroom Rules • Be Kind • Be Safe • Be Respectful • Be the Best You Can Be!

4. My Expectations of Parents • Communication: • Talk to me about any questions or concerns you may have about your child. • Home Support: • Use the resources I send home as a way for you to support your child’s learning at home. • Practice makes perfect! Please read with your child as often as possible, as it is key to their success in literacy.

5. What are your expectations? • Home-School Connection/Communication: • Weekly Newsletters, phone calls, email, and kid mail • Resources available for parent use (please ask!) • Atmosphere: • Fun and engaging • Supportive and yet challenging • Provide social opportunities daily • Parent Involvement: • Through field trips, class celebrations, Garden visits and scheduled read alouds during rest time. • Anything else?

6. Phonological Skills • Rhyme Detection and Production • Sentence Segmentation • Syllable Segmentation, Blending and Deletion • Phoneme Identification, Blending and Segmentation • Phoneme Deletion and Substitution

7. Literacy Skills • All skills are reinforced through hands-on manipulatives, games and songs • Alphabet Recognition: • Upper and Lower case Identification and Sound Production • Sight Words: • 50 Kindergarten Words plus extra • Reading: • Students will practice reading on a daily basis, based on their individual level and needs.

8. Literacy Skills: Handwriting • Handwriting Without Tears Program http://www.hwtears.com/hwt • Practice through: wooden curves and lines,mini chalkboards, magnetic boards, and workbook. Also use music and songs

9. Literacy Centers • Students will rotate through centers that focus on specific literacy skills. They have about 10-15 minutes to complete the tasks before they rotate to the next station. • This provides meaningful academic and social experiences for children on all levels. • Some centers have a paper extension while others do not but either way the students have a mental take-away.

10. Math Program • Math In Focus: • Newly adopted program and aligned with the NYS Common Core Standards. • Wonderful website with plenty of parent resources so that math can be engaging and fun at home! Check out the link:

11. Science and Social Studies • Science: • Apples, Fire Safety, Seasons, Bats, Spiders, Pumpkins, Hibernation, Dental Health, Nutrition, Insects, Plants, Frogs • Science Experiments • Social Studies: • Most Holidays, All About Me Unit, Community, Occupations, Cultural Diversity

12. Character Education • Kindness • Forgiveness • Respect • Sharing • Friendship • Honesty • Courage • Compassion • Manners • Diversity

14. Homework • Each month there will be a packet sent home to be completed by the end of the month. It is optional however, supporting your child with these activities will enhance their skills. • Each night your child should be reading 10 minutes. Even if they are not reading yet, there are plenty of ways they can practice their pre-reading skills.

15. Bagged Books • In January, Fountas and Pinnell reading assessments are given to determine each students reading level. Once a level is established I send home 2 books a week for your child to practice reading. One book is on their level and the other is one above. The hope is that they will read this book Monday-Thursday and build important reading skills at home with your guidance. More information will follow in January.

16. Elephant and Piggie • Each child will have the opportunity to take Elephant and Piggie home for a weekend. They must take them on an adventure and document it in a provided journal. They can write about what they did, paste in picturesor draw about it. • A few Elephant and Piggie books will also be sent home with the stuffed animals. Take this opportunity to have a meaningful experience with your child by reading the books with them and sharing their adventure!

17. Celebrity of the Week! • Every week a new child is picked to be celebrity of the week. They are able to have special privileges that week and even get to act like a celebrity! • A star poster will be sent home the week before your child’s assigned week so that they can fill out the poster accordingly.

18. Scientist of the Week • After Christmas break, students can participate in a open-ended science experiment at home with you! • On their assigned day they will explain and demonstrate their experiment to the class. You are encouraged to come in and join them!

19. Resources To Take Home • Please take a packet! • Welcome Letter • Remind Me Directions • Parent Helper Sign up • Class Directory Permission • Prize Jar Information • 50 Books to Read in Kindergarten! • Parents Guide to Student Success from the National PTA • Kindergarten Reading Readiness • The Value of Play in the Classroom

20. Questions • Any questions you may have after leaving, feel free to email me or call. jbrill@rhcsd.org #758-2241 ext. 71032