Get ready for the new school year with supply lists and school year calendars.
New School Year Frequently Asked Questions
When does kindergarten screening occur?
You may have heard that our incoming kindergarten students participate in a screening process. In the past, kindergarten students were assessed in the spring in order to allow our teachers to be able to anticipate each child’s stage of development upon entering kindergarten. This year, I am changing the time frame of this assessment. In reviewing the screening process with our kindergarten staff, we feel that by moving the screening assessment closer to the start of the school year, we will be able to get a more accurate picture of your child’s development. For this reason, screening is going to be done at the start of the school year during Phase-In Week.
What is Phase-In Week?
Phase-In occurs over the first three days at the beginning of the school year. I feel that easing students into the start of Kindergarten allows them another opportunity to become comfortable with general school procedures. There will only be four or five students in each classroom on the Phase-In days. Each child has been assigned a Phase-In Date.
This means that your child will attend school only one of first three days at the start of the school year. Your child’s assigned date for Phase-In is noted on the front of your blue folder. All Kindergarten students will begin attending school together on the 27thof August, and each day thereafter. Note: The phase-in process affects only Kindergarten students.
What happens during screening?
Our Phase-In week is a very relaxed environment. The classroom teachers will lead the screening assessment. Your child will be assigned a group to work with for the day. The screening tool used during the observation is the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment – Literacy (KRAL). This assessment is required for all kindergarten students and helps teachers identify early reading skills. You can find more information about the KRAL in the brochure entitled “A Family Guide to Understanding Early Reading Skills” found in your blue folder. The teachers will observe the students in small and large group activities. Our speech and language pathologist will also have the opportunity to assess the children in small groups for any language concerns.
In addition, to the screening portion of the day, all of the children will take a tour of the building. They will visit the gym/cafeteria, art room, music room, library, playground, and restrooms. This will be a very fun day for the children as they begin to become familiar with the building.
When will I know what class my child is going to be in?
After Phase-In the children will be assigned to a homeroom teacher. My goal will be to have these assignments posted on-line by Saturday, August 25. The classroom assignments will be available on the Greenwood homepage and you will be able to access your child’s classroom assignment by using the child’s student id number located on the cover of your blue folder. . I will also provide a short biography and a photo of each teacher so you can begin to prepare your child for their new classroom experience. The classroom assignments will also be posted on Door 1 of Greenwood using the student’s id number
When will I find out about bussing?
Bus information is scheduled to be available on our web-site at www.greenlocalschools.org sometime the week of August 13. Because the main focus at the end of your child’s day is safety, we dismiss in an organized and systematic way. As a parent we need your help in the following manner: We strongly encourage that your child rides the bus. This will allow them to get used to the routine and reduce the amount of traffic at school. Should you decide to pick your child up from school, the teacher must receive a note from home upon the students arrival at school. As teachers, do not always have an opportunity to check their voice mail, please do not leave a message on the teacher’s phone or with the secretary regarding transportation changes.