KINDERGARTEN HANDBOOK Oasis Elementary

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Dear Parents of Kindergarteners, Welcome to the wonderful world of kindergarten! This is an invigorating, thrilling, a bit frightening, emotional and joyful time for you and your family. Enjoy it and embrace it. You are making important memories each day as you prepare your youngster for the beginning days in school. Countdown to Kindergarten has been written for you as parents of young students to help you celebrate the start of a new adventure for your child. These fun and educational activities will appeal to your child while helping him/her develop language and math skills. As a family, consider spending time together, discussing the new expectations for school and for kindergarten and sharing memories. Parents and family members profoundly influence new kindergarteners’ attitudes and ultimately, success in school. Your enthusiasm and stimulation will ignite the learning fire in your child. You are the first and most important teachers in your child’s life and we are thrilled to partner with you in this endeavor. There is new information on Arizona’s Move On When Reading (MOWR) law and the new statewide assessment, AzMERIT. The MOWR law refers to Arizona Revised Statute§ 15 – 701(A)(2), which states that if data on the third grade statewide reading assessment is available and demonstrates that a student scored “falls far below” the student shall not be promoted from the third grade. AzMERIT will be given for the first time in spring 2015. This means the MOWR law will not be used to make retention decisions for the 2015-2016 school year. This delay and change in retention decisions will only be in place for one year. Our district philosophy is one that values a collaborative partnership between home and school. You will be kept informed of your child’s progress on a regular basis through your child’s classroom teacher. Most importantly, look at the world through your child’s eyes and see the beauty, excitement and newness in everything. Enjoy these extraordinary times. Looking forward to a spectacular year!

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Dr. Denton Santarelli, Superintendent Dr. Heather Cruz, Deputy Superintendent Why is it that the hardest thing children are ever asked to do is the first thing they’re asked to do? The brain comes wired for speech, but each individual needs to build the neural network for reading on their own. The early experiences children have with spoken and written language lay the foundation for them to become successful readers. Talking to children is the best way to build these skills.

Reading Tips •

Read aloud to your child every day. Read alouds are not a luxury or a treat, but are essential to the literate lives of students. Have fun with books!

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Read pattern books and picture books. Books that contain rhyme, repeated words, and/or songs build connections in the brain needed for reading. Your child will begin to join in saying the predictable words and phrases along with you.

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Read poetry and other rhyming books to your child. As you read to your child, stop before a rhyming word and ask your child to provide the word. “The fat cat sat on a ……(hat, mat, rat).

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Talk about books. Help your child relate his own life to the story. Talk about favorite parts. Encourage your child to ask questions about facts, characters or events. Use open-ended questions (questions without a “right” answer).

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Have your child make predictions. Discuss what will happen next and get excited when her predictions are correct.

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Let your child hold the book. Sit with your child so you can both see the pictures and words. Occasionally place your finger under the words that you are reading. Have your child help by turning the pages.

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Build a book collection for your child. Look for used books. Purchase books as gifts for special occasions. Find a location that is easily accessible to your child to store their books.

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Visit your public library. Get a library card for your child and check out books frequently.

Recommended Reading Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day – Viorst All the Awake Animals Are Almost Asleep - Dragonwagon Animals in Winter – Bancroft Born to Be a Butterfly - Wallace Brown Bear, Brown Bear – Martin Busy Doggies – Schindel Busy Barnyard - Schindel But No Elephants - Smath The Carrot Seed – Krauss The Cat in the Hat – Seuss Chameleon, Chameleon - Cowley Chicka, Chicka, Boom, Boom – Martin, Jr. Corduroy – Freeman Dr. Seuss’ ABC - Seuss Each Peach, Pear, Plum – Ahlberg

Everything Spring - Esbaum The Foot Book – Seuss Frog and Toad Are Friends – Lobel

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Go, Dog, Go – Eastman Good Night Moon – Brown Great Day for Up – Seuss Green Eggs and Ham – Seuss Hop on Pop – Seuss I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More! - Beaumont In the Tall, Tall Grass - Fleming Inside, Outside, Upside Down – Berenstein It Looked Like Spilt Milk – Hoberman Jump, Frog, Jump – Kalan Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse - Henkes Little Blue Truck – Schertle and McElnurry Llama, Llama, Mad at Mama - Dewdney Llama, Llama, Red Pajama - Dewdney The Little Engine That Could – Piper The Little Red Hen – Nestrick Many Marvelous Monsters – Heck Mean Soup - Everett Mortimer – Munsch Mouse Paint – Stoll Walsh My Family - Kinkade My Little Sister Ate One Hare – Grossman National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book of Why – Shields The Ocean Alphabet Board Book - Pallotta Old Black Fly – Aylesworth Parts – Arnold Pigs in Pajamas - Smith Polar Express – Van Allsburg Rain Makes Applesauce – Scheer Red-Eyed Tree Frog - Cowley The Rose in My Garden – Lobel Rosie’s Walk – Hutchins

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Silly Sally – Wood Shoo Fly - Trapani Some Smug Slug – Duncan Sometimes I’m Bombaloo – Vail and Heo Spider on the Floor - Raffi Three Hens and a Peacock – Laminack Thundercake - Palacco Time for Bed - Fox There’s an Alligator Under My Bed – Mayer Today I Feel Silly and Other Moods that Make My Day – Curtis Transportation - Rustad The Very Hungry Caterpillar – Carle The Way I Feel – Cain Using My Plate - Rissman When Sophie Gets Angry – Really, Really Angry - Bang Where is the Green Sheep? – Fox Where the Wild Things Are - Sendak

Talk, Listen, and Play with Language There was an old saying “children should be seen and not heard”. Research has proven quite the opposite. It tells us that for children to become readers, they should listen and talk a lot. •

Talk to your child whenever you are doing things together-eating, shopping, taking a walk, driving down the road.

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Take your child to new places. Visit local museums and parks. Talk about the new, unusual, and interesting things that you see and do. Help your child follow directions. Use short, clear sentences to let your child know what you want him to do. “Please put on your pajamas and brush your teeth.” Teach your child the meaning of new words. Tell your child the names of things around the house. Talk about things in pictures. “That’s a giraffe. We can see a giraffe in the zoo. Look at its long neck. Did you know that his neck helps him reach the leaves high up in the tree?”

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Encourage your child to use language to express his feelings and ideas. “What do you think about …?” “How do you feel when someone calls you names?” “You need to use your words to tell me how you feel.”

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Take time to listen and respond to your child. Provide opportunities for your child to stay on a topic and take turns during a conversation. Play with words. Have fun with tongue twisters such as “She sells seashells by the seashore” and nursery rhymes such as “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”. Read books with rhymes. Teach your child short poems, songs, and rhymes. Rhyming words differ by one phoneme (sound). Hearing small differences in words is a necessary skill for learning to read. A few examples follow this page. Listen for sounds in words. Play games like “I spy”. Look around and say “I spy something that starts with the /s/ sound. What is it?” (sky). Have your child make up silly sentences with lots of words that start with the same sound, such as “Bob bought baby bunnies in a blue berry basket.”

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Help your child take spoken words apart and put them together. Help your child separate the sounds in words, listening for beginning and ending sounds. Separate the sounds in words by stretching the word out; /c/ /a/ /t/. Have your child put the sounds together forming the word cat.

Rhyming Songs Monkeys Jumping on the Bed Five little monkeys jumping on the bed, (hold up five fingers) One fell off and bumped his head, (hold head in hands) Mama called the doctor, and the doctor said, (as if using the phone) “No more monkeys jumping on the bed!” (shake index finger, “No!”) Four little monkeys…(hold up appropriate number of fingers and repeat verse) Three little monkeys…(hold up appropriate number of fingers and repeat verse) Two little monkeys…(hold up appropriate number of fingers and repeat verse) One little monkey…(hold up appropriate number of fingers and repeat verse)

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Ten in a Bed There were ten in a bed and the little one said, “Roll over, roll over.” (rolling motion) So they all rolled over and one fell out. There were nine in the bed and the little one said, “Roll over, roll over.” So they all rolled over and one fell out… (This is repeated until you get to the number one. Each time “roll over” is said, rolling motion is dramatized.) There was one in the bed and the little one said, “Alone at last!” Head and Shoulders Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear

Head and shoulders, Knees and toes, knees and toes.

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, Turn around. Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, Touch the ground. Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, Tie your shoe. Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, I love you.

Head and shoulders, Knees and toes, knees and toes. Eyes and ears and mouth and nose. Head and shoulders, Knees and toes, knees and toes.

Nursery Rhymes Jack and Jill Jack and Jill went up the hill. To fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown And Jill came tumbling after. Humpty Dumpty Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall, All horses and all the King’s men Couldn’t put Humpty Dumpty together again.

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the

King’s

The

Cat and the Fiddle diddle, diddle!

Hey,

The cat and the fiddle, The cow jumped over the moon. The little dog laughed see such sport, And the dish ran away with the spoon.

to

Hickory, Dickory, Dock Hickory, dickory, dock The mouse ran up the clock. The clock struck one, The mouse ran down. Hickory, dickory, dock.

Diddle Diddle Dumpling Diddle, diddle, dumpling, my son John, Went to bed with his trousers on; One shoe off, and one shoe on, Diddle, diddle, dumpling, my son John!

Letters, Letters, and

More Letters

Sharing the alphabet with your child helps him begin to learn the names of letters and start to learn some of their letter sounds.

Help your child learn to recognize his name in print. Make a name sign for your child's room. Print your child’s name as he watches, saying each letter as you write it. Encourage your child to write his name. In kindergarten, only the first letter in a name is capitalized, so please try to do this. •

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Point out letters and words that are all around your neighborhood/environment. Read store signs, traffic signs, cereal boxes, magazine ads, food labels, and posters to your child. Point out letters in signs and ask your child to find specific letters. Point out and tell the words on logos such as WalMart, McDonald's, Coca Cola, Google, Netflix, etc.

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Put magnetic letters on your refrigerator. Have your child name the letters as he or she plays with them. He may even be able to make his own name and simple words such as “mom” or “dad” with the letters. If you have multiple sets of letters, your child can sort the letters placing all of the “c’s”, “h’s”, etc. together.

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Play games with letters. There are many commercial alphabet games and puzzles on the market. Children enjoy just circling letters on a magazine page. You can start by having them find the first letter in their name and circling it every time it is on the page.

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Provide opportunities for your child to write. Children’s messages may be scribbles, pictures, or even letters. Write often. Have your child share or "publish" their writing. Have them write about what they know.

Hands-on Math Hands-on activities that involve counting, measuring, sorting, shapes are a good way to introduce your child to math.

Numbers, Numbers, Everywhere Talk about numbers and use number concepts in daily routines. • •

“Let’s get out two bowls for ice cream. One for you and one for me.” “Can you help me choose five apples?” (grocery shopping)

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“Let’s count how high your tower is: one, two, three, four, five, six blocks. How high is my tower?”

Talk about numbers that matter most to your child- her age, her address, her phone number, her height and weight. Children are able to learn many important math concepts by focusing on these personal numbers. • Time (before, during, and after events, days, months, years, older, younger, yesterday, today, tomorrow) Talk about going on vacation in five days and countdown until the special date. • Where you live (addresses and telephone numbers). These numbers will be important to your child. Point out your house numbers and help your child read them. Help your child dial their telephone number on a play phone.

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Length and weight (inches, feet, longer, shorter, pounds, heavier, lighter) “Let’s see who is taller you or Amy?”

Help your child learn math as he plays. • Play games that have scoring like throwing a ball into a basket, which encourages a child to count. Have your child roll dice and count the dots to see how many spaces they can move on a game board. • Read counting books with your child. •

Playing with blocks can help your child sort objects by color and shape.

Provide many opportunities for your child to count. Begin by touching each thing as you count it - one (touch it), two (as you touch the second object), and so on. Count crackers, cars, legs on a chair, chairs at the table, grapes, buttons, anything that interests your child. When traveling count cars, trucks, Volkswagens, signs, etc. Have your child look for numerals on signs and license plates. First look for a 1, then 2, 3, 4, 5, and so on. Provide opportunities for your child to learn math concepts as he helps with chores. Your child can help by measuring ingredients as you cook together. Doing laundry provides the opportunity to measure detergent; sort dirty clothes into piles of dark and light colors; match and sort clean socks; and sort clean clothes into piles of shirts, pants, and underwear.

Provide opportunities for your child to play with different size containers. Adding various containers to sand and water play allow children to explore measurement terms such as more and less. Provide additional opportunities for your child to sort which helps to develop thinking and classification skills. Your child can sort money – making little piles of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters. Other sorting objects include: buttons, marbles, beads, colored cereal, keys, nuts, bolts, matchbox cars, etc. Provide opportunities for your child to copy and create patterns. Arrange objects such as colored buttons in a simple pattern such as one red, one blue, one yellow, one red, one blue, one yellow, etc. Have your child copy the pattern you made. Start a sequence pattern such as penny, nickel, dime, penny… See if your child can continue the pattern you started. Provide opportunities for your child to locate shapes. Go on shape walks in your house and/or your yard looking for various shapes such as circles, squares, rectangles, triangles, etc. Cut out shapes can be sorted and used to create patterns. 3/30/2015

Social and Emotional Readiness The following qualities will help your child develop readiness for kindergarten. Your child's approach to learning will contribute to their success in school. Many learning experts view this as one the most important domains for early childhood development. Initiative and Curiosity: Demonstrates a spirit of independence. Sense of control over their choices. Shows acceptable ways to express feelings. Pursues social relationships. Has an interest in others and understands how they feel. Eager to learn. Asks questions to get information. Attentiveness and Persistence: Concentrates despite distractions. Returns to task after distractions or interruptions. Cooperates with others, shares, takes turns. Demonstrates the ability to sustain a challenging task, even if it is difficult. Pursues challenges. Copes with frustration or disappointment with support. Confidence: Feels positive about self. Adapts to changing situations. Takes reasonable risks. Expresses opinions and defends ideas. Tries new experiences. Creativity: Expresses own unique way of seeing the world with a different perspective. Appreciates humor. Engages in inventive social play. Reasoning and Problem Solving: Analyzes information and situations in order to form judgments.

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Displays logic and reasoning skills. Recognizes relationships between cause and effect. Seeks multiple solutions to problems. Recognizes problems and tries to solve them. Seeks adult assistance when support is needed.

Suggested Activities Below are some activities you can do to help your child develop these qualities. Provide opportunities… •

…to play with other children and to be with adults who are not family members. Children are more likely to get along with teachers and classmates if they have experiences with different adults and children.

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…to do things on their own. Children gain confidence by dressing themselves, cleaning their rooms, and helping you with simple chores such as emptying the dishwasher or making their bed.

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…to make choices and work out problems. You might ask your child whether he would like to color or play with playdough. Rather than solving all of your child’s problems, ask him what he might want to do to keep his little sister from knocking his train off the tracks.

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…for boundaries. Children need to know what you expect. Discipline needs to be firm, but loving. For example, “I love you, but it is not okay for you to push your sister. I feel upset when you do that.”

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…for quiet behavior. Children need to learn when it is appropriate to listen and/or use quiet voices. Story time at the public library is an excellent activity that will help prepare your child for school.

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…to set up daily routines. After dinner set aside quiet time, possibly a bath, and then story time. Involve your child in selecting clothing for the next day. Practice the morning routine of eating breakfast and getting dressed. Establish an earlier bedtime a few weeks prior to school starting.

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…for a positive attitude toward school and learning. Children are naturally curious. When your child develops an interest, help foster it by providing learning opportunities for your child. This might involve planting a few seeds, experimenting with a magnet, taking a trip to a local museum, using technology, or reading a book. Children will be excited about starting school when parents show

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excitement about school as well. If parents show doubts/fears about school, the child will pick up on this and have the same feelings. Talk about all the exciting things that will happen in kindergarten. You may want to read a few of the following books about starting school to your child. Franklin Goes to School - Bourgeois, Paulette; Franklin the turtle overcomes his fears about starting school. Jessica - Henkes, Kevin; This is a story about a little girl with an imaginary friend named Jessica. On her first day of kindergarten she meets a real friend named Jessica. Kindergarten, Here I Come! – Steinberg, D.J. – This book, written in poetry, talks about all the new things a child will encounter in kindergarten. Kindergarten Rocks! – Davis, Katie; Dexter isn’t one bit scared about kindergarten. His big sister has told him all about it. But his stuffed dog, Rufus, is worried. They both find out that kindergarten rocks! The Kissing Hand Penn, Audrey; This story is about the separation faced by parents and children for school and how they can remember each other while they’re apart. Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten - Slate, Joseph; This is a rhyming book about a teacher and her kindergarten class preparing for the first day of school. My First Day of School Hallinan, Patrick K.; This story is written in fun verse about the start of school and follows Daniel as he moves from preschool into kindergarten. Off to Kindergarten - Johnston, Tony; Bill is off to kindergarten and he begins a list of all the things he’ll need including his bear, his sandbox and some digging moles. This story, written in rhyme, tells about the excitement and jitters of the first day of kindergarten. The Twelve Days of Kindergarten - Rose, Deborah Lee and Armstrong-Ellis, Carey; This book uses the repetition and rhyme of “The Twelve Days of Christmas” and talks about all the wonderful gifts of kindergarten.

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Creative Corner Young children can express their imagination through their art, as they develop their hand and eye coordination that they will need for writing. Here is a suggested list of materials: • Crayons or water-soluble felt-tipped markers • •

Watercolors, brushes, and finger paint Glue/glue sticks

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Different kinds of paper (construction, drawing, paper bags, newspaper)

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Safety scissors. With your guidance, provide opportunities for your child to use scissors. Teach scissor safety. Fabric scraps or objects or objects that can be glued to paper (string, yarn, cotton balls, sticks)

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A few tips to encourage development of muscles needed for writing: Use squirt/spray bottles for various play: clean toys, mist outside plants, wash the sidewalk or patio to build up hand strength needed for writing. Use a large paintbrush or sponge to paint or draw with water on a sidewalk. Create a small container of broken crayon pieces and use only those to draw or write or place a different texture under the page and scribble. The small pieces promote using a thumb and 2-finger grasp (tripod) to develop small muscles in the hand. Color or paint on a vertical surface (easel or use a magnet on the refrigerator). This place the hand and wrist in a good position for small muscle development. Place small snacks (goldfish, Cheerios) in a small cup to encourage children to use the thumb and first two fingers to pick up items.

Art Recipes Play Dough 4 C. flour 1 C. salt 4 TBSP. oil

Bubbles 2/3 C. water 1/3 C. liquid dish detergent Mix and put in a container. Dip a

Add water until you reach the correct bubble blower in the solution and consistency. Knead with flour. You may blow! want to add food coloring to the water before mixing.

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Kindergarten Readiness Roadmap Kindergarten readiness is a journey. All children start in different places. The following will give your child a great start to the first day of their school career. Good Health and Physical Well-Being My child: • eats a balanced diet • •

gets plenty of rest has had all necessary immunizations

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runs, jumps, and plays outdoors, participates in activities to help develop his large muscles

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works actual puzzles (not just electronic), colors, paints, tears paper, uses scissors, works with play dough, and other activities that develop small muscles

Social and Emotional Preparation My child is: • learning to explore and investigate new activities • learning to complete tasks • •

learning to work well alone and to do tasks by himself interacting with other children and is learning to cooperate with others

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willing to learn

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learning self-control

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willing to follow simple instructions Self-Help Skills My child can:

• • • My child is: talking and listening being read to every day

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use the restroom independently

zip and button clothing Language and General

Knowledge • •

use a tissue

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learning about print and books encouraged to ask questions

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encouraged to solve problems encouraged to sort and classify objects

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learning to write his name learning to count and play counting games

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learning to identify and name colors and shapes paying attention for short periods of time to adult-directed tasks

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able to separate from parents without becoming upset listening to music and responding to the rhythm

Things Your Child Can Practice Clapping the syllables of names: Jus-tin Deciding whether two words rhyme: Do dog and log rhyme? What about dog and cat? Grouping objects or pictures that begin with the same sound (not letter). Circus and sun start with the same sound. Recognizing some letters, especially those in his or her own name. Indicating where to start reading and the direction to follow (top to bottom and left to right) Retelling familiar stories using prompting or props. Writing their name with an upper case letter only at the beginning. Counting using one number name for each object (one to one correspondence). Identifying numerals to 10 by name and connecting each to counted objects. Ordering objects by size, length or weight.

Arizona College and Career Ready Standards/State Standards In kindergarten your child will learn to: 3/30/2015

English Language Arts – •

recognize and name all upper and lower case letters of the alphabet

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print many upper and lower case letters of the alphabet identify long and short sounds for the five major vowels (a,e,i,o,u)

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retell familiar stories (including characters, setting, major events) write (opinion, informational text, narratives)

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sort common objects into categories and explain why

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Math• identify numbers and what numbers represent • to perform simple addition and subtraction •

identify and work with shapes

Social Studies • demonstrate what it means to be a responsible citizen •

explain how the past interactions of the Native Americans and early settlers impact us today

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differentiate between needs and wants compare different holiday traditions and customs

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describe how the United States is represented by symbols and holidays explain why presidents are important and identify various president explain why it is important to take care of our natural resources use maps and globes to find places and things

Science •

give examples of how diverse in daily life.

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name body parts identify the five senses

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identify and compare objects investigate forms of energy

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identify aspects of weather

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Writing Manuscript Letters

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people use science

Letters are made with a circle, or parts of it, and straight lines. We use a clock face as a reference point for starting and forming the letters. As a child writes circle letters, the pencil is placed at the 2:00 position and then moves up and over to 10:00 on the clock face. Line letters always start at the top and pull down to the base line.

A Word about Electronic Media and Young Children Technology is here to stay, but many educators and parents wonder about how much is too much and the appropriate use of technology with young children. A 2012 study shows that the average eight-year old spends over eight hours a day engaged with some sort of electronic media. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends NO screen time 3/30/2015

(television, computers, tablets, movies) for children under two. A young child’s brain wiring is incomplete at birth and every experience helps them create new pathways of learning. Electronic media wires the visual parts of the brain, but does little for language or reasoning parts of the brain. That’s why play is so important for young children. The brain responds to pleasure and play is pleasurable. Because it is fun the child repeats it and it is this repetition that helps wire the brain. Interactive media for children over two can have benefits, but it must be used appropriately with the help of supportive adults. One of the concerns about children’s use of electronic devices is what they’re NOT doing at that time – playing, reading, exercising and talking with others. Electronic media can be a hindrance to development of social and attention skills, especially for young brains still forming synaptic connections. Technology can be used to supplement hands-on learning and social play, rather than to replace it. It is important for you, as the adult, to model appropriate use of technology. Some other tips regarding young children and technology: • Be sure you have previewed apps, games, movies or TV shows that your child may see to be sure they are appropriate and intended for the developmental level of your child. • Look for interactive, open-ended apps rather than drill and practice. • •

Set time limits on how long your child is engaged with technology of any sort. Encourage your child to verbalize their thinking during TV viewing or when using electronic devices.

Food and Nutrition Program

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If your child is full day kindergarten, eating lunch at school may soon become one of your child’s favorite times of the day. Your child may bring a lunch or buy a meal served by the cafeteria. All students will be required to wash their hands before lunch, and all food will be eaten in the cafeteria. Our cafeterias serve nutritionally balanced meals each regular school day. • •

lunch is $2.50 breakfast is $1.50

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carton of milk is $0.35 (white, chocolate, or strawberry)

Students will be able to select one entrée from (two hot or one cold) and choose vegetables, fruits and varieties of milk as part of their lunch. Children who have food allergies should bring a signed form from their doctor in order to receive an appropriate lunch. An account can be set up with our cafeterias to pay for your child’s meals. You may deposit money to the account in your school cafeteria any morning before school, or you may visit www.myLunchMoney.com to set up the account. While your child may pay cash for his/her lunch, the practice is discouraged as the school is not able to refund lost money. Lunch charges are issued on an emergency basis only. Students in kindergarten through eighth grades are allowed two charges. After the second charge, students are given a sandwich and beverage. All charges are to be paid promptly to the cafeteria before school begins (in the mornings only). Free and reduced lunch applications are available on-line through the district website and at your school’s front office or cafeteria.

To school and back…have a safe trip To keep your child safe on the way to school and back, please review the following rules with your child:

Walking • •

Practice walking the route to school Stay on the sidewalk

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Always obey crossing guards when present NEVER run out into the street to chase a ball, or other object

Biking

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Wear a helmet Obey all stop signs and traffic lights Don't try to carry anything in your hands while riding a bicycle.

If A Stranger Tries to Talk to You or Offers You a Ride • Say NO and walk away quickly • Tell an adult

To school and back…have a safe ride If your child will be riding the school bus, please review the following rules together: Getting On and Off the Bus • Be at the bus stop five minutes before the bus is scheduled to arrive.

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While waiting to get on the bus, stand away from the bus, where the driver can see you. Don’t walk up to the bus until the driver opens the door for you.

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Respect private property while waiting for the bus.

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On the Bus

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Bus riding time is a good time to talk quietly with your friends or read. Don’t do anything that might make distract the bus driver. While on the bus: Follow directions immediately when asked Stay in your seat, facing front. • •

Keep all parts of your body inside the bus. Talk quietly and keep your hands to yourself.

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No food or drinks are allowed on the bus.

Resources for Parents Arizona College and Career Ready Standards - http://www.azed.gov/azccrs/ Arizona Department of Education: Early Childhood and Families Tool Box http://www.azed.gov/early-childhood/; http://www.azed.gov/azccrs/families/familiestoolbox/ Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning - http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/ KIDiddles – Lyrics and tunes for hundreds of children’s songs - www.kididdles.com National Association for the Education of Young Children - http://naeyc.org/ PBS Parents - http://www.pbs.org/parents/ Reading Tips for Parents of Kindergartners - http://www.readingrockets.org/article/readingtipsparents-kindergartners Transitioning to Kindergarten Toolkit - http://www.getreadytoread.org/transitionkindergartentoolkit What Kindergarten Teachers Wish Parents Knew http://www.scholastic.com/parents/resources/article/what-to-expect-grade/whatkindergartenteachers-wish-parents-knew Glendale Public Libraries Main Branch

Peoria Public Libraries Main Branch

5959 W. Brown Street

8463 W. Monroe

Velma Teague Library 7010 N. 58th Avenue

Sunrise Mountain Branch Library 21109 N. 98th N. 98th Avenue

Foothills Library 19055 N. 57th Avenue

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2015-16 School Year Calendar FIRST QUARTER Aug. 10 Students Begin Sept. 7 Labor Day Oct. 12 Columbus Day Oct. 15-16 Parent/Teacher Conferences SECOND QUARTER Nov. 11 Veterans Day Nov. 23-27 Thanksgiving Recess Dec. 18-Jan. 3 Winter Recess THIRD QUARTER Jan. 4 School Resumes Jan. 18 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Feb. 11-12 Parent/Teacher Conferences Feb. 15 Presidents’ Day FOURTH QUARTER March 14-18 Spring Break April 22 April Break May 25 Students Last Day Bold print denotes No School

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Acknowledgments Peoria Unified School District Kindergarten Teachers Dr. Melanie Lehman, Curriculum and Instruction Coach Dr. Debbie Pischke, Early Childhood Director Curriculum Department Preschool Leadership Team Public Relations Department Dr. Denton Santarelli, Superintendent Dr. Heather Cruz, Deputy Superintendent

Governing Board Matthew Bullock Judy Doane Kathy Knecht Tracy Livingston Beverly Pingerelli

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