Ms. Shedd ABC’s of Pre-K Lake Ridge Elementary

Welcome to Ms. Shedd’s Class Pre-K is a time of new beginnings, of making friends, and of learning lots of new things each and every day. Our days and weeks will be filled with many wonderful experiences and opportunities for learning and growing.

We will learn about the letters of the alphabet and their sounds this year. We will also be doing some writing activities. The children are always proud of the work they create and are anxious to share their new skills. Families can help at home by reading to and with their child daily, and encouraging them to read along. We will also be learning all about numbers, building on important math concepts including sorting, counting, classifying, patterns, time, and measurement.

Important information to use throughout the year A ABSENCES Please call the school and let us know if your child will be absent AND send a note with your child when they return to school. The attendance number is ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES Morning class starts at 7:45 a.m. and dismisses at 10:45 a.m. Afternoon class begins at 12:00 p.m. and dismisses at 3:00 p.m. If you need to pick your child up early from school or bring your child late, please check in or out through the front office.

B BACKPACKS We recommended that your child bring a backpack to school everyday. Important school papers, behavior folder and work go home during various days of the week and this allows you peace of mind knowing that school information is getting home to you. Please LABEL the backpack with your child's name and phone number. BEHAVIOR CHART The behavior chart will be kept in the Daily Folder. The behavior chart will need to be signed each day!

BIRTHDAYS We LOVE Birthdays and they are very special to us! Birthday invitations can be distributed at school as long as ALL the children from our classroom receive an invitation. Children’s feelings can get easily hurt when they feel left out. We do not have birthday parties at school.

BOOK ORDERS Every month or so, a Scholastic Book Order form will be sent home. The book club has some excellent books at very reasonable prices. It takes about two weeks for the books to arrive after the order has been mailed. The children love to receive books and this is a great way to encourage your child to enjoy reading. Please make your check out to Scholastic Book Club.

C CLOTHING Students need to be dressed according to the CHISD dress code policy. Please label all sweaters, coats, hats, (lunch boxes too), etc. COMMUNICATION Should you have ANY questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to write a note, leave a voice message or send an . works best for us! Messages to the teacher need to be written and not verbally given by the student. The Daily Folder will be checked each day.

CONFERENCES Parent/Teacher conferences are held in October. We will be discussing your child's accomplishments, strengths and overall progress. If you need to schedule additional conferences at any time during the year, my conference time is from 11:15-11:45 Monday through Friday, except on Wednesdays. Note, this time is our team planning time, so please call first and make an appointment. COOKING Every so often we will be cooking in class! This activity helps the children with counting and fractions. This activity could fall on any day of the week and does NOT replace their lunch for the day.

D DISMISSAL Morning dismissal is at 10:45. Afternoon dismissal is at 3:00 ALL AM PK students are dismissed from the front door. ALL PM PK Students are dismissed from the front near door 14. Please be on time for dismissal!!! E is one of the easiest ways to reach me. You may contact me at school via at

EMERGENCIES You will be contacted by the school nurse or office, if your child is injured at school. It is very important that you keep your contact phone numbers up to date so we can reach you. F FUND RAISERS Our school and PTA participates in several fund raisers throughout the year to raise money for various things for our school. We hope that everyone can participate but it is not required.

G H HOMEWORK READ with your child and be sure to ask questions. Occasionally, we will have a family project. There will be monthly calendars with suggested activities to reinforce skills at home.

I ILLNESS It can be very difficult to decide when your child should stay home BUT please keep your child home from school when they are ill. If they have a temperature the general rule is not to return to school until they are fever free for 24 hours without medication. It prevents others children from becoming ill and helps to keep the sick child comfortable at home.

J K L LOST AND FOUND We have a Lost and Found in the cafeteria. We encourage children to check the Lost and Found collection for any missing items. Please label clothing items worn to school. This will help us return a lost article to its owner. LUNCH Each student will eat lunch in the cafeteria. If your child is purchasing a tray, they may not bring extra snacks or drinks to eat along with their lunch.

M MEAL MONEY The cost for lunch is $2.25. You may send money each day or each week in an envelope or you may pay online since each child has their own lunch account. Please do not send loose change to school! N NEWSLETTER I will be sending classroom newsletters to let you know what we are studying and to keep you up to date on important events.

O OPEN HOUSE Welcome to Open House!!! P PARTIES We will have 2 class parties this year. They will be a “Winter” party in December and an “end of year” party. The room moms help the teachers with organizing these events and finding volunteers and donations.

Q QUESTIONS Please feel free to contact me at anytime for any questions or concerns you may have. You can send me a note in your child's daily folder, call me at school or me. If you need to discuss something that will take some time please call and we can set up an appointment. Please know I am always willing to help with any questions or concerns you may have. R REPORT CARDS Student are given report cards 3 times in Pre K. They will be distributed after the 2 nd, 4 th and 6 th six weeks.

RESTROOMS Children need to toilet and handle their needs independently. The bathroom is within our classroom. Children are encouraged to use the bathroom as needed. Unfortunately bathroom accidents can still happen and we will handle the incident as compassionately and discreetly as possible. S SNACK Because we are at school for such a short time and we eat lunch at school, we will NOT be having a snack time during class.

T TARDIES School starts at 7:45 a.m. (12:00 p.m. for afternoon) and the children are considered late if they are not in the classroom at that time. Children who come into school after 7:45 a.m. (or 12:00 p.m.) will need to go directly to the office to pick up a tardy slip. TOYS and JEWELRY Students should not bring toys or play jewelry to school. TRANSPORTATION Please send a written note or call the school if your child will be going home a different way than usual. Do not rely on your child to tell us this information. It must be from the parent or guardian.

U UNIQUE Each child is unique in personality and academic development and we do not try to compare them to others. V VISITORS Visitors are welcome in the classroom for up to 15 minutes with prior approval from the teacher. You will always need to sign in at the office before coming to our classroom and upon leaving the building.

VOLUNTEERS We LOVE our volunteers! Some things to help with include; making copies, party helper or supplier, and/or field trip chaperone. Help from home is also appreciated and it might include cutting, gluing and coloring. If you are available, please let me know. CHISD has adopted a policy regarding volunteers. Each person (even grandparents) who will be spending time at school must have a CBC (Criminal Background Check) done. You may call the district office about getting this done.

W WEB PAGE Our class has its own webpage. Be sure and check it often for pictures and activities that we have done in the class. To access our page, you will need to visit the CHISD webpage – Lake Ridge Elementary – School Staff – Ms. Goss. It contains important information for our parents and community. Please also check the district website at for important information and updates to events.

X Y Z ZZZZZZ! Please make sure that your child gets plenty of rest. Setting and keeping a bedtime routine is a wonderful gift you can give to your child. It will help them to be alert and ready to learn each day! A light healthy breakfast is also very beneficial to a successful school day!

Thank you for coming to Open House. This is going to be a GREAT YEAR!!!