| MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR Katy C. Merrell, MEd. |
| MAY 2007 Your kindergartener is more ready than you might think! |
Recently a Mom shared with me how much her preschool
children helped her to pause and notice some of the
wondrous details in nature (and life in general) that she
would otherwise be too busy to notice. Young children have
a way of reminding us what is truly important. Time does
fly and being “present” in the moment is a pervasive theme
in many self- help books of late. It leads, supposedly, to
peace of mind, better health, and a more fulfilling life.
As a parent it can be very hard to override our worries
about our children being ready for what is ahead and enjoy
where they are right now. We all want the best for them
and worry about them falling behind and being able to
compete, even in Kindergarten! Recently Mrs. Conca and I
went to a presentation by the administrators and
kindergarten teachers at the Memorial school in Medfield.
It was very reassuring to hear them share that the
essential skills they need us to teach preschoolers are the
same ones we feel are most important. They stressed
EXPOSURE TO, NOT MASTERY OF letters and numbers,
and shared some interesting statistics:
*80% of kindergarten students do not know all their
letters and sounds when entering kindergarten
* The State Curriculum Frameworks start with this
Benchmark; In November students will know:
10 Letter names and
10 Letter sounds
…and so on through the year.
children helped her to pause and notice some of the
wondrous details in nature (and life in general) that she
would otherwise be too busy to notice. Young children have
a way of reminding us what is truly important. Time does
fly and being “present” in the moment is a pervasive theme
in many self- help books of late. It leads, supposedly, to
peace of mind, better health, and a more fulfilling life.
As a parent it can be very hard to override our worries
about our children being ready for what is ahead and enjoy
where they are right now. We all want the best for them
and worry about them falling behind and being able to
compete, even in Kindergarten! Recently Mrs. Conca and I
went to a presentation by the administrators and
kindergarten teachers at the Memorial school in Medfield.
It was very reassuring to hear them share that the
essential skills they need us to teach preschoolers are the
same ones we feel are most important. They stressed
EXPOSURE TO, NOT MASTERY OF letters and numbers,
and shared some interesting statistics:
*80% of kindergarten students do not know all their
letters and sounds when entering kindergarten
* The State Curriculum Frameworks start with this
Benchmark; In November students will know:
10 Letter names and
10 Letter sounds
…and so on through the year.
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| “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us” Ralph Waldo Emerson |
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NORFOLK CHILDREN'S SCHOOL, 23 Union St., Norfolk, MA 02056 508-528-1970
Copyright 2007 Norfolk Children's School
Website Design by Karma Communications
Website Design by Karma Communications
The most important skills children need were listed as, being able to:
*LISTEN AND ATTEND
*RAISE YOUR HAND
*USE AN INDOOR VOICE WHEN WORKING
*FOLLOW 1 & 2 STEP DIRECTIONS
*SHARE WITH PEERS
*PARTICIPATE IN GROUP ACTIVITES AND TAKE TURNS
*FOLLOW DAILY ROUTINES
*TRANSITION FROM ONE ACTIVITY TO THE NEXT
*CLEAN UP AFTER ACTIVITES
*TAKE CARE OF PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITIES (coat, backpack, notes, etc.)
*SELF-HELP SKILLS (hand washing, toileting, zipping, etc.
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY…
BE A GOOD AND KIND FRIEND!!!
ACADEMIC EXPECTATIONS were listed as the following:
*Sing & say the alphabet
*being able to rhyme
*having a concept of print (book awareness)
*exposure to upper & lower case letters
*exposure to letter sounds
*being able to recognize one’s name
*exposure to letter formation
*be able to draw a picture to represent an idea
*orally use words to describe pictures (expressive language)
*exposure to basic two dimensional shapes
*be able to sort objects
* being able to demonstrate one-to-one correspondence
*exposure to numbers 0 - 10
Yes, expectations in Kindergarten are higher than they used to be, but at the core of all learning
and functioning in a classroom environment is basic emotional and social competence and
confidence. These skills are the cornerstone of success in school and in life. Combined with
curiosity, active learning (play) and the joy of discovery, they are the seeds that will blossom in
more ways than we can imagine.
Thank you all for your support, for helping me continue to learn, and for sharing your children
with us. I leave you with these wishes; “May you start every day with your child as a new day, a
new beginning filled with fresh opportunities” and may you all have a “stop and smell the flowers”
kind of summer!
All my very best,
Katy C. Merrell MEd.
*LISTEN AND ATTEND
*RAISE YOUR HAND
*USE AN INDOOR VOICE WHEN WORKING
*FOLLOW 1 & 2 STEP DIRECTIONS
*SHARE WITH PEERS
*PARTICIPATE IN GROUP ACTIVITES AND TAKE TURNS
*FOLLOW DAILY ROUTINES
*TRANSITION FROM ONE ACTIVITY TO THE NEXT
*CLEAN UP AFTER ACTIVITES
*TAKE CARE OF PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITIES (coat, backpack, notes, etc.)
*SELF-HELP SKILLS (hand washing, toileting, zipping, etc.
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY…
BE A GOOD AND KIND FRIEND!!!
ACADEMIC EXPECTATIONS were listed as the following:
*Sing & say the alphabet
*being able to rhyme
*having a concept of print (book awareness)
*exposure to upper & lower case letters
*exposure to letter sounds
*being able to recognize one’s name
*exposure to letter formation
*be able to draw a picture to represent an idea
*orally use words to describe pictures (expressive language)
*exposure to basic two dimensional shapes
*be able to sort objects
* being able to demonstrate one-to-one correspondence
*exposure to numbers 0 - 10
Yes, expectations in Kindergarten are higher than they used to be, but at the core of all learning
and functioning in a classroom environment is basic emotional and social competence and
confidence. These skills are the cornerstone of success in school and in life. Combined with
curiosity, active learning (play) and the joy of discovery, they are the seeds that will blossom in
more ways than we can imagine.
Thank you all for your support, for helping me continue to learn, and for sharing your children
with us. I leave you with these wishes; “May you start every day with your child as a new day, a
new beginning filled with fresh opportunities” and may you all have a “stop and smell the flowers”
kind of summer!
All my very best,
Katy C. Merrell MEd.