Welcome to Kindergarten

1. Welcome to Kindergarten Mrs. Tillery’s and Mrs. Wood’s Class!

2. Dear Kindergarten Parents, Grandparents and all involved with your child’s life, Welcometo our exciting kindergarten world at Whitlow Elementary. For those of you experiencing a child in kindergarten for the first time, get ready! You will be amazed at the amount of learning that takes place. For everyone involved, you will be pleased with our curriculum which includes language arts and reading programs, Dr. Cupp, Math Frameworks, and the new Common Core Standards.

3. As a team and as individuals, our first priority is your child’s education and well-being. We are excited about our strong WES kindergarten team. We have a great combination of talented teachers with qualities that complement and bring out the best in each other. We have new and nearly new teachers with that fresh enthusiasm and excitement that give us all a big boost. We all look forward to working together! We will work diligently to see that each child receives the greatest benefits of our educational program.

4. We know from experience that PARENT INVOLVEMENT is essential to maximize the benefits the child gets from his/her school experience. Regardless of the experience and expertise of the teacher, research shows that the biggest and most important factor in a student's school success is the involvement of the PARENT in daily school experiences. We urge you to become involved by helping your child with homework and projects, joining PTA, attending school meetings and conferences, volunteering in the classroom, talking with your child about his/her school experiences, and participating in our home/school reading incentive program. Please read the following pages for important information, suggestions, and supplies so that both parent and student may be better prepared for kindergarten at Whitlow.. We are looking forward to working with your child and you! Whitlow Elementary Kindergarten Teachers

5. Get out your phones and send me an Email! mtillery@forsyth.k12.ga.us

6. Information and Suggestions • You will receive a Whitlow Elementary Handbook. Read the handbook carefully and put it in a safe place for reference throughout the year. Do the same for the school calendar and the monthly breakfast/lunch menu. • Make good attendance a habit from the beginning. If your child must be absent, call the attendance line,678-965-5090 , extension 370110 , by 10:00 A.M. each day of the absence. Do not call the classroom as your message to the office will be forwarded to the teacher’s mailbox. A written excuse is necessary when the student returns to school. You will receive a form to use for excuses. • We must have a note from you if afternoon transportation changes for any reason. The note should include the following information: dates, student’s first and last names, teacher’s name, usual transportation and what is changing. We have very strict NEW county rules about bus changes. This information is included in the student handbook. • We cannot accept phone calls or faxes about last minute or emergency transportation changes. Instructions of this nature left on the teacher’s voice mail will not be honored! • We strongly recommend that students begin the regular transportation routine the first day of school to avoid confusion/changes later.

7. Information and Suggestions • School begins promptly at 8:20 AM. If your child is late, s/he must be escorted into the building by the parent and signed in at the front desk. A tardy child will not be admitted to class without a tardy note from the front desk. Please be on time as the student misses instruction and activities after 8:20 AM. • Preparation for 3:00 dismissal begins at 2:50. Until that time, students will be involved in learning activities. If an emergency arises and your child must leave early, please sign him/her out in the office and wait there until called. Parents may NOT come to the classroom to pick-up a child and students may NOT accompany a parent to the office for check-out. Parent volunteers need to plan for their children to travel home the regular way on volunteer days. These rules are necessary for student safety. • Parents are always welcome to come for lunch in the cafeteria at the class’s lunch time after checking in first at the office. (No visitors the first two weeks of school unless it is your child’s birthday.)Unexpected classroom interruptions can interfere with the learning process so we ask that visitors please respect the quality of instructional time in each class. If you wish to visit your child or teacher, we strongly encourage you to call beforehand to schedule a time to visit or volunteer in the class. If you have specific questions or wish to see the teacher, please call to schedule a conference.

8. Information and Suggestions • Please Note Changes In Lunchroom Prices: • School lunches are $2.25 per day. Breakfast is $1.25 per day. Reduced lunches are $0.40 per day and reduced breakfast is $0.30 per day. Lunch/breakfast can be paid for daily, weekly, or monthly. You can pay online using mylunchmoney.com or by check. Checks for more than one day need to be sent on Monday in a labeled envelope. Please write the child’s first and last names and teacher’s name. Free and reduced lunch forms are in the school packet given at Open House. Families eligible for these programs should complete the forms and send them to school where they will be forwarded to the lunchroom supervisor. • Although ice cream is sold everyday at lunch, our class will only purchase ice cream on Fridays. It is extra and is NOT included in the price of the lunch. Please give your child very clear directions concerning when or if s/he is allowed to buy ice cream at lunch. As ice cream can be charged to the student’s account, your lunch budget can be greatly affected. Please make sure your child understands your directions. Ice cream must be eaten in the lunchroom and cannot be taken back to the classroom for snack. • You will receive a Parent/School Communicator (Home Folder) at open house. This folder is an important communication tool between parent, child, and teacher. It must be sent to school each day, checked by the teacher then returned home each afternoon. All papers need to be sent to school in the folder, starting the first day of school. As each student arrives, s/he should first give the folder to the teacher so it can be checked for notes, lunch ticket money, etc. The folder will be sent home each day containing homework, class & school news, and upcoming events. Any other notes from teacher or school will be placed in the folder. Take good care of the home folder. It must last all year.

9. Kindergarten Supplies You may send these supplies as soon as possible after registration. Some items will be taken up and used at appropriate times. I do not require all the supplies on the kindergarten list, so please see below for the items that have been removed. Please do not send: pens, mechanical pencils, glitter crayons, pencil sharpeners, or trapper keepers. Book Bag Primary writing tablet 3boxes of crayons (24 count)‏ 24-# 2 pencils 2 large pink erasers 1 zipper pencil pouch 1 pencil box 20 large glue sticks 1 bottle of liquid glue 1 pair of child safety scissors 2 boxes of washable markers (8 pack)‏ 1 pack of dry erase markers 3-3-prong folders with pockets 1 pack of index cards 1-1 inch 3 ring binder (we prefer white with a clear front pocket) 2 primary ruled composition journals

10. Mrs. Tillery'sSupply Wish List Here are some items that we use in the classroom but are NOT REQUIRED for parent purchase. If you are able to contribute any of these sometime during the first few weeks of school, I will gladly accept your donation. Please know that during these financially stressful times, I understand the need for families to cut their budgets, especially if you have more than one student in your home. I hope this helps! Baby wipes Coloring books Kleenex Clorox wipes Prize Box Items Construction Paper Art supplies:(ex: pipe cleaners, glitter, googly eyes, pompoms, etc.)‏ 8 color washable paint set with brush Ziplock bags (snack, sandwich, quart ,or gallon)‏ Magic Erasers Magnetic alphabet letters

11. A Note from Mrs. Tillery and Mrs. Wood Your kindergartner may have some anxiety which he/she may have already expressed. It is not uncommon for a child at this age to be apprehensive about kindergarten because everything is new. Although many students have knowledge about letters, numbers, colors, etc. when they start school, most kindergarteners do not know them fluently. Please reassure your child that learning is a great, fun part of kindergarten. Remind him/her how it takes time and practice. Our school phone number and voice mail is 678-965-5090, ext.370279. Parents who wish to speak with us should call and leave a short message with a number. We will be teaching your child between 8:20 and 3:00 so it is difficult to answer the phone, check messages, and return calls. We will check messages @ 7:30 AM and 3:00 PM. Calls will be returned after 3:00. If you have an urgent message, please call the school office. Remember that we cannot honor transportation change requests left on our voice mail. This is for student protection. Please leave messages about your child’s absence on the attendance line (678-965-5090 ext.370110 ). These messages will be checked in the office then forwarded to our voice mail so there is no need to call the classroom to report an absence.

12. More Notes from Mrs. Tillery and Mrs. Wood We recommend you have your child come to school and leave from school on Thursday the same way they will everyday. This will help establish a routine. Also, we recommend that you not walk them down to the classroom, to help them make the transition easier. Please let us be the loving and comforting arms to hold them with. Please keep an extra pair of clothes in your child’s book bag in case of an accident or spill. Look for and read the regular PTA and school newsletters featuring the lunch menu and school news. We will observe each child’s birthday. Parents of the birthday child may wish to send in a special snack which will be served during lunch. Please see the new county guideline: you may not bring in home-made class snacks, they must be store bought. Summer birthdays will be observed during the last month of school. We will have a daily snack in the classroom . Please be sure to send a snack every day. Please make sure to send snacks that are nutritious and low in sugar. Chocolate is not recommended for snack. Candy is not allowed for snack.

13. Specials Monday: PE Tuesday: Science Wednesday: PE Thursday: Science Friday:PE * We will be on a rotating specials schedule. I will notify you when our specials will change.

14. Behavior Every child will have a behavior log in their take home folder, this is To be signed each night and left in your child’s folder. If you child has broken a rule listed on the behavior sheet a check will be placed on that day next to the rule broken. The rules match up with the areas graded on the report card. If there is no mark, your child had a great day and stayed on green. Consequences If a child breaks a rule a verbal warning will be given -child moves to “warning” green. If it happens again then the child will move to yellow and have to sit out 5 minutes of free centers. If the child continues to break rules they will move to red and miss 10 minutes of free centers. Depending on individual circumstances, other actions and consequences may apply. (Ex.: Time out in another classroom, administrative visit, wisdom walks, etc.) See the back of their communication folder. Please leave it in the folder every day. Thanks!

15. Where to find information about our school and class: Visit our class webpage at www.forsyth.k12.ga.us/whitlow to find out about our curriculum, activities, PTA , school wide events, etc. And another thing… PTA said if you didn’t bring money to buy one of these special Kindergarten “Joining the Pack” t-shirts, you can send the money and order in on the first week of school.

16. Thank you so much for coming. We look forward to a wonderful year together. Don’t forget to complete the forms and put them in the basket on top of the cubbies. **Also, don’t forget to have your child wear their sticker name Tag on Thursday to school and then their official name badge to and from school everyday next week. When you are finished with your paperwork , please feel free to look around the classroom and then tour the school. Don’t forget to catch the bus home, or else you’ll have a long “hop”! See you kiddos THURSDAY!