pre k handbook

8/3/2019 Pre k Handbook

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/pre-k-handbook 1/13

The Early Childhood Educ ation

Program (Kindergarten)

Just for Students and Parents

Elementa ry Sc hool

American Interna tiona l Sc hool Riyadh, Saud i Arab ia



AIS-RELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Sc hedule of the Day

7:20 Ca mp us op en; tea c hers on duty*7:40 Students assemble for class

*7:45 Tardy bell; instruc tion b egins

8:40 Pre-school recess

*10:00 Morning rec ess break (K-5)

*10:15 Pre-Sc hool rec ess

*12:10 Rec ess 3,4,5 Lunc h K,1,2

*12:30 Rec ess K,1,2 Lunc h 3,4,5

12:30 Kinderga rten 1 ends*12:50 K-5 Rec ess / Lunc h end s

*2:30 Classroom c ommunity time / S.S.R

*2:45 Sc hool dismisses

2:50 Sc hed uled ASA beg ins

2:55 All buses dep art c amp us

*3:55 ASA end s

4:00 ASA buses departs

*Reminder be ll will sound



The Early Childhood Educ ation

Program (K-2)

ECE Philosophy

WholeChild

Soc ial / Emo tional

Development Physical

Development

Cognitive (Academic)

Development

ECE Philosophy

The ECE p rogram a t AIS-R strives to mee t the soc ial,

emotiona l, cognitive, and physica l needs of c hildren

ap preciating the unique experiences that eac h c hild

brings from his/ her hom e culture. Bec ause children deve lop

at d ifferent rates and lea rn in different w ays, we p rovide a

c hild-ce ntered program that is developmentally app rop riate .

Purposeful lea rning experienc es a re planned to be ac tivity-basedand langua ge -rich, so tha t children c an construc t their own

me anings and understand ings. Lea rning ta kes p lac e in a stimulating,

nurturing environme nt tha t offe rs op portunities for children to make

c hoices, and to wo rk and p lay co op eratively. Early childhood

ed uca tion a t AIS-R is ac c omp lished in a c ollaborative pa rtnership

with children, parents, and educators



A. MAKING A POSITIVE START

IN KINDERGARTEN

A. • Your child should b ring a nutritious light snack in a c learly lab eled box

eac h day.

What to Bring To School Every Day

• A sturdy full size b ac kpac k with fasteners tha t your child c an manage

indep end ently is needed for ca rrying m aterials to a nd from schoo l.

Label the ba c kpac k with your c hild’ s nam e, grad e and sec tion. All KG

students are cap ab le a nd should be expec ted to c arry their ow n ba gs.

• Child ren should wea r c lothes that they c an easily manage .

• Please w alk w ith your child to c lass the first few days on campus.

B. •

Daily Routines

Child ren who eat a nutritious brea kfast eve ryda y are more a ttentive to

lessons and have the energy to c om plete learning

assignments and ac tivities.

Breakfast

• Every morning c hildren w ill have the opportunity to ea t a

snack and ha ve a d rink. The importanc e o f a nutritious

snac k c anno t be overem pha sized . We rec om mend fruit,

veg eta b les, crac kers, cheese or perhaps a sandwich

acc om panied w ith a 100% juic e, milk or water. Oranges and eg gs should

be pee led . Candy and c arbona ted d rinks should not be inc luded .

Snacks should b e c arried in a lunch bo x c lea rly labeled with the c hild ’ s

nam e, grade and sec tion. Please note we do not have a c cess to

refrigerators or m icrow aves for student snac ks.

Snack

• Students will go to the c afeteria each da y for lunc h. Child ren need to

b ring to schoo l a full lunc h a s cafeteria services are ava ilab le to children in

Grad e 1-5 only.

Lunc h (KGII)



C. How Can You Help at Hom e?

Bridg ing Home and School

A little help from hom e goes a long w ay tow ards your c hild’ s succ ess a tschoo l. You c an help your child d eve lop a sense o f responsib ility ab out

schoo l. Foster indep end enc e by helping your child becom e orga nized

and rea dy to meet responsib ilities a t schoo l.

• Estab lish a school box: The sc hoo l box can be a p lastic b asket o r

c ardboa rd p enc il box. Put your child’ s nam e on the box. The c hild should

put a ll materia ls tha t need to go to sc hoo l in the b ox. This eliminates the

sometimes frantic searches before school in the morning!

• Rea d ing a loud is a wond erful wa y to c rea te a love for rea d ing in your

c hild . The c hild who d eve lops a love for rea d ing ga ins a lifelong d esire to

rea d and lea rn. Rea d ing aloud expand s a c hild ’ s voc ab ula ry. Ma ny

c hild ren like to reread favo rite bo oks. After rea d ing a story together,

d iscuss wha t hap pe ned at the b eg inning, midd le a nd end of the story.

Give boo ks as g ifts to your c hild . Share the joy of rea d ing with your child .

• Writing ac tivities: Encourage your child to do writing ac tivities a t home.

They reinforce important writing skills lea rned a t sc hool and are fun to do.

Write a short note on c ertain da ys and tuc k it in your child ’ s lunch bag, or

post it on the refrigera tor for him/ her to rea d . Copying titles from Library

books/ magazines is a fun wa y of lea rning to w rite. Help your child makewriting a part of life. Rem em ber, accep t any form o f writing in the early

stages. To your child his apparent sc ribb ling may be the sta rt of a first

novel!!

Help Your Child Have An Enjoyab le Day – Everyday! • Enc ourage your child to perce ive schoo l as a friend ly plac e.

• Try to a void upsets prior to lea ving for schoo l (som e d ays are ha rder than

others, we know!).

• Ensure tha t your child ha s had eno ugh sleep (10-12 hours

ea c h night is rec om me nded).

• Help your child to a rrive a t sc hoo l ten minutes before the

entry bell which is a t 7:40 A.M. so there is time to p lay a nd

gree t friend s.

• Label all your child’ s belongings. We will do our best toreturn them to you!

• Show an interest and apprec ia tion in the c rea tions your c hild b rings hom e.

If you ca nnot recog nize a p iec e of a rt, ask the c hild, “Tell me more ab out

this!” It works every time!

• Provide a p lac e to p roud ly d isp lay your child’ s wo rk.

• Pack a snack/lunch with am ple nutritious food s and two d rinks a day.



Kinderga rten Show & Tell

Tea c hers will sc hed ule Show & Tell, and stud ents are e nc ouraged to bring

items to d isplay. How eve r, all trea sures must rem ain in a stud ent’ s

backpack until it is to be show n to the c lass and returned home tha t

a fternoon. Any extra toys (other than for show and tell) are to stay at

home.Kindergarten Program Highlights

Throug hout the yea r, many exc iting e vents are p lanned for our

kinderga rten students. Ac tivities are inc luded in the schoo l calend ar,

how ever kindergarteners celeb ra te events not a lways ind ica ted on the

c alend ar. We plan EXTRA things as the year advanc es.

In la te Oc tob er, KG students will experienc e a fun co stume parade. In the

fall you’ ll be invited to a Holiday Conc ert (spec ific da tes and times will be

pub lished in the New s Flash). After the w inter brea k, stud ents will look

forward to our Disney Day ga mes, and a ho pp ing g ood time on our SpringBunny’ s Egg Hunt. In be tween all of these a c tivities, there w ill be spec ia l

events spec ifica lly planned by the teac hers. These events a re exc iting

times for your child and parents are a lways we lcome.



B. ENRICHMENT PROGRAM

OPPORTUNITIES IN EARLY

CHILDHOODA.

ECE Child ren will have ac cess to the Library on a reg ular sc hed uled basis.

Library

Library boo ks are a very spec ia l trea t for children of this age. We ask

parents to he lp ma ke rea d ing imp ortant b y rea d ing the chosen stories a t

hom e everyda y. No ma tter wha t the level of read ing d iffic ulty, pe rmit

your child to explore books. Pictures, let ters and words a ll tell a story.

Please assist your c hild in rem em bering to bring his/ her books back on the

designa ted lib rary da y. Child ren who fa il to return their books are no t

permitted to c hec k out other books until rec ords ind ica te the p reviousbooks have been returned .

Should a lib ra ry book rep lac em ent b e ne cessary, pa rents w ill rec eive an

invoice with the title o f the m issing b ook and a rep lac em ent p ric e listed .

Students ma y only chec k out more books onc e the p ayment ha s be en

received.

B. A spec ial Art/Ac tivity Room is provided for child ren w here they a re

enc ouraged to explore and deve lop a rt ta lents. These c lasses are tw icewithin a six-day schedule week for approximately 45 minutes.

Art

See the Six Day Rota tion Schedule at the b ac k of this handbook. It will

c orrespond to the sched ule the c lassroom teacher send s hom e w ith your

child.

C. Children w ill a ttend music c lasses twice within the six-da y rota tion

sched ule. The m usic tea c her will help c hild ren to explore va rious

instruments, deve lop their sing ing voices, and enric h the ir sense of rhythm

and enjoyment and apprec ia tion o f music . This is acc om plished throug hthe students' ac tive partic ipa tion throug h singing, listening, and moving to

music.

Music

A goa l of our music dep artme nt is to ha ve a ll students perform on stage a t

least one time a year!

You w on’ t want to miss it!



D. Children will attend physical education classes twice in a six-day

rota tion sc hed ule. They w ill work on large m usc le

deve lopm ent, ga mes and ball skills approp ria te for

their age . Students should w ea r com fortab le, loose

fitting c lothing suc h as shorts or slac ks tha t w ill notrestric t their move ments. They will be upside d ow n;

stretc hing and bend ing in all d irec tions. Girls should

no t wear d resses on PE days. Proper shoes tha t a re

ea sy to rem ove a nd easy to put on a re

enc ouraged . It is espec ially important fo r parents to send their

c hild ren to school with we ll-fitting sneakers fit for ac tive p lay on

scheduled P.E. da ys.

Physical Education

Hats are rec om mend ed for a ll outd oo r ac tivities! Label all ha ts and

clothing

E. .

Children will explore many different software

prog ram s related to early ma th, rea d ing and

language deve lopm ent. Students will have

the opp ortunity to use a c lassroom c omputer

and the c om puter lab on a regular ba sis.

Com puter Class

F. A sc hoo l co unselor serves as a c onsultant to c lassroom tea c hers reg ard ing

students’ soc ia l, em otiona l and ed uc ationa l growth. The counselorperiod ically visits the c lassroom and sha res lea rning lessons rela ted to

positive soc ial skills and persona l sa fety. Stud ents may a lso pa rticipa te in

30-minute d isc ussions offe red on a reg ular basis in the c ounseling office.

Top ics addressed include making friend s, dea ling w ith pee r conflic ts, and

other self-esteem build ing ac tivities. The c ounselor is a lso ava ilable as a

resource for parents reg ard ing va rious aspec ts of the ir child ’ s

deve lopm ent, p arenting, a nd othe r persona l issues.

Guidance



C – SKILLS FOR SUCCESS

A. The follow ing a re som e o f the skills the KGI and KGII teac hers believe areappropriate for suc cessful entry into the KGII p rog ram:

KGI to KGII Suc cessful Transition Skills

• Use o f glue w ith c ontrol.

• Use of sc issors with c ontrol.

• Has been introd uced to the prope r pe nc il grip .

• Rec og nition of numbers 1 – 10.

• Recognition of colors.

• Recognition of basic shapes.

• Rec og nition of letters and som e sounds.

• Ab ility to rec og nize the lette rs of their name.

• Ab ility to w rite the ir ow n name• Understand ing of p ositiona l wo rds (up, dow n, under, top , midd le,

bottom , over).

• Follow s simp le d irec tions.

• Coop eration in g roup situa tions.

• Understand ing of “ taking turns” .

B. The next skills listed are one s tha t the KGII and Grad e 1 tea chers believe

are a pprop ria te a nd nec essary for success in Grad e One:

KGII to Grad e 1; Suc cessful Transition

• Rec og nizes and writes cap ita l and lowerc ase letters.

Lang uage Arts:

• Know s most initial c onsona nt sounds on a c ontinuing basis.

• Writes first name with appropriate letters, capitals, and lower

c ase lette rs.

• Identifies word pa tte rns in rhyming w ords.

• Sequences 3 or 4 pictures.

• Uses left to right d irec tiona lity for rea d ing and writing .

• Rec og nizes som e high frequenc y sight w ords used in the w ritten

message in Kindergarten.• Understands letters and experiment with writing letters and words

in da ily writing . We rec og nize and honor different levels of writing

deve lopm ent a t this leve l.

• Ap plies invented spelling in writings and d rawings.

• Listens and te lls stories in sequenc e.

• Demonstra tes prop er forma tion of D’Nea lian lette rs.



• Rec og nizes and rec ites num bers 0 – 100

Mathematics:

• Writes most num erals acc ura tely

• Builds num ber families to 5

• Ma kes eq ual group s.• Identifies, desc ribes, and uses patterns to c rea te and extend .

• Understands c onc ep ts more o r less.• Draws and identifies c irc le, square, triang le, and rec tang le.

• Cuts on a line.

Fine Motor:

• Folds paper into ha lves.

• Motor skills are d eve lop ed enough to trac e shapes.

C. Rem em ber how excited you were when you heard your c hild ’ s first spoken

word. You ea gerly ac c ep ted wha tever va ria tions and simplifica tions your

c hild used in tha t trea sured w ord. You were very instrumenta l in bringing

about that word and the ma ny tha t followed . By listening, ec hoing,

mo deling, and elabora ting, you taught your c hild lang uag e w ith no lesson

plans.

Lea rning About Your Child’s Deve lopmenta l Writing Stages

Just as you helped your child to spea k, you c an lea d the pa th to literac y.

As your child beg ins to lea rn printed language , you c an ma ke the learningas mea ning-c entered and risk-free as the proc ess of lea rning to ta lk.

You know from experienc e w ith your c hild tha t children go throug h stages

of oral lang uag e developm ent. Encourag e very clear artic ula tion ofwords. When “baby talk” is used , simply rep ea t the wo rd c orrec tly and

very d istinctly by over em phasizing the c onsonant sounds.

Written langua ge develop ment a lso follow s som e p red ic tab le stages.

These a re the stages child ren p ass through as they deve lop writing ab ility.



STAGE 1: SCRIBBLING

SCRIBBLING is your child ’s experimenta tion w ith writing . It ca n be

c om pared w ith your child ’ s ba bb ling as an infant. Both ba bbling and

sc ribbling need lots of a dult pra ise. Just as you enc ouraged your child to

babb le, it is very impo rtant to enc ourage your child to sc ribb le.

STAGE 2: LINEAR DRAWING

This stage is simila r to the stage a t which baby beg ins to string sounds

together. It show s tha t your c hild knows how writing should look.

STAGE 3: LETTER LIKE FORMS

By now your child’ s writing m ay look rec og nizab le. Your child is making h is

or her writing look like “ rea l” w riting, just as he o r she turned babbling intothe sound s of langua ge .



STAGE 4: LETTER AND EARLY WORD SYMBOL RELATIONSHIPS

This stage is similar to the stage a t w hich your child sa id his or her first

words. As pa rents, you understood and ac cep ted many errors in these

first words. You will see many of the same e rrors in your child’ s writing a s he

or she lea rns to m ake the c onnec tion b etw een letters and sound s of

words. Whole words are often rep resented b y just one lette r during this

stage.

STAGE 5: INVENTED SPELLING

In this stage your c hild is beg inning to rea lize tha t ea ch lette r has a sound . At

first he or she m ay only use beginning sound s for words. Frequently a c hild

uses the fina l consona nt next.

STAGE 6: STANDARD SPELLING

In this stage your c hild rec og nizes and a ttempts to use standardspelling . Our goa l for the c lass is for ea ch child to g a in confidenc e

and p leasure in writing. As parents, you c an help us rea c h this goa l

by pra ising your child’ s ea rly inc orrec t writing just as you p raised your

c hild ’ s ea rly incorrec t ta lking.



D. KGI students are exposed to the letter forma tion in D’Nealian Handwriting .

The letters and their sounds are integ ra ted into the KGI thematic units

ac tivities. Empha sis is on letter sounds.

D'Nealian Handwriting

In KGII and beyond , the low er and upper ca se letters are reinforced and

prac ticed . Students will be p rovided a va riety of ways to learn sound s andassoc ia te them with related letters.

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