ABC

ABC's of Lake Highland Pre-K

Absence	Please report absences by 8:00 A.M. to the Lower School Attendance office (407-206-1900 x5623 or attendance-ls@lhps.org). This is for your child’s safety. If a student must leave early for a doctor’s appointment, go to the office to sign him out and the secretary will call him to the office. Never send another person to pick up your child without informing me or the secretary.
Attendance	A successful school experience is the responsibility of the child, the parent and the school. Your child's progress, both academically and socially, is influenced to a great extent by daily participation. Regular attendance without tardiness is a key.
Arrival	Children should arrive between 7:45 and 8:15 AM. Students should not arrive prior to 7:20 AM since supervision is not available. School begins at 8:15 AM. You may drop your child off in back of Lower School (use the left lane). A supervising teacher will help your child out of the car so there is no need for parents to get out.
Alpha Bags	Each week the children are asked to bring no more than 3 items in their alpha bags which corresponds to the letter of the week. For example, if the letter is B, a child might bring a ball, balloon and banana.

Back to School Night	Back to School night is August 28 at 6:00 pm. Please plan on attending as we will be going over classroom procedures, expectations, and school calendar.
Book Bags	As part of your child's supplies, a monogrammed book bag will be given to your child at orientation. This will be used in place of a backpack.
Birthdays	Birthdays are very special to us so we want them to be as meaningful as they can possibly be in our classroom. We will celebrate your child’s birthday on his/her special day. If the birthday falls on a weekend or holiday we will pick a date as close to the actual birthday that is convenient. We will celebrate summer birthdays in May. When it is time to celebrate your child’s special day, we invite you to send a treat for the class. It would be best to bring a treat that can be easily served on a napkin: examples would be cookies, doughnuts, cookie cake (pre-cut), or brownies. Please do not send in any extra things like balloons, blowers, hats, candy, etc.
Book Orders	Approximately every other month, you will have the opportunity to purchase excellent books at great prices through educational book clubs. If you wish to order some of these books, please fill out the order forms when they come home and send them in with a check made out to the book club. You will receive the books within two weeks. More information will come home with the book order forms.

Calendar

A calendar of school wide events can be found online at www.lhps.org. A special monthly pre-k calendar will come home with your child at the beginning of each month.

Conferences

There are two scheduled conference days during the school year, in the fall, September 13, and in the spring, May 7. If you wish to have a conference with us at any other time, please send a note and we will set up a convenient time to meet.

Dismissal

Dismissal is at 2:00 pm. Pre-K children should always be picked up in the lane closest to the building (left lane). PLEASE BE SURE TO HAVE THE SIGN WITH YOUR FAMILY NAME/CARPOOL NAMES VISIBLE WHEN IN THE PICK UP LINE. A teacher will open the door and help your child into the car. If you are running late for your normal 2:00 pick up, your child will be waiting for you in Aftercare, which is located in the cafeteria.

E-mail

You can contact any of the pre-k teacher via email:
Mrs. Chong: achong@lhps.org

Mrs. Greening: pgreening@lhps.org

Mrs. Knuth: lknuth@lhps.org

We will check email on a daily basis. If something is urgent, please call the school office.

Emergency Closings

In the event of a hurricane or emergency, Lake Highland will follow Orange County Public School's plan for closing. We will reopen independently of OCPS.

Extra Clothes

Children sometimes find it hard to break away from play to use the bathroom. When they finally decide to go to the bathroom, they can’t always get there in time. We also have art and juice accidents occasionally. Please send a complete extra set of clothing for such emergencies.

Please put these items in a Ziploc bag and label the bag with your child’s name.

Fire Drills

Fire drills are held on a monthly basis throughout the year. All students will participate and are expected to walk quickly and quietly to their designated exit. We will practice and become familiar with procedures before our first scheduled drill.

Green Meadows Farm	Pre-k will visit Green Meadows farm in the fall. Check back for date!
Gator Land	In the spring, Pre-K will visit Gator Land! Check back for date!
Grandparent's Day	During Arts in April, Lake Highland sponsors a lovely day for Grandparents to come and visit our campus. Please join us on April 11 for Grandparents Day.

Happy Grams	In an effort to encourage good behavior, your child will have the opportunity to receive a Happy Gram at the end of each day. So be sure to ask, "Did you get a Happy Gram today?"
Halloween Carnival	This year's Halloween carnival is Friday, October 26. Parents, please plan on attending. If you are able to come, your child will be allowed to wear his/her Halloween costume to school and join the annual Halloween parade in the gym.
Hands on Learning	In pre-k we believe that the best way to help children learn is to make learning fun. Important concepts can be learned by doing meaningful hands-on activities. Our classroom will be an active learning environment.
Health	Please let us know of special circumstances which may affect your child. These could include medication that may make him sleepy, a death in the family, etc. Also, please let us know of any allergies your child may have, especially food allergies. We sometimes cook or do food activities to complement lessons and it would be helpful to know when we plan our recipes.

Illness

The question of when to keep your child home from school is often a difficult one, especially when decisions must be made first thing in the morning. It is important, however, to keep your child home if he/she is ill. This helps to make them more comfortable and prevents others from becoming ill. Children function more effectively in the classroom when they are healthy.

Independent Reading

Because children learn to read by reading, they need plenty of opportunities to read independently. Sufficient time and appropriate materials are necessary to develop and strengthen reading abilities. By giving the children time to read both at school and at home, we can work together to provide a literature-rich environment and a life-long love of reading.

Journals

One strategy that will be used to help convey the vital concept that “print conveys meaning” is the frequent use of journal writing. In these journals pre-k children combine their emerging writing skills with their drawing skills. As the children are exposed to a variety of phonics and reading experiences, journal entries will move from drawings and “inventive” spellings towards more conventional writing.

Kindness

Students in our classroom are encouraged and expected to treat all members of our class as well as others with kindness and respect. Bothering others, bullying and interrupting learning will not be permitted.

Library

The children will be going to the library weekly to explore and check out books. They may return their books any time within the one-week time span.

Lunch

We will eat lunch in our classroom from 11:00-11:30 each day. Children will need to bring a packed lunch from home. Please consider packing healthy lunches and limiting treats. We will be coming straight off the playground at 11:00 and water is the best drink to quench thirst.

Math

The pre-k mathematics curriculum provides students with mathematical experiences that help them develop number sense and a positive attitude towards mathematics that will continue through their school career and their lives. We employ a hands-on, problem solving approach.

Newsletter

Each pre-k teacher sends home a weekly newsletter explaining the events occurring in the classroom It is generally sent home on Mondays and will be in the red folder. This will keep you informed about what is happening in your child's specific class.

Nurse

We are very fortunate to have such a registered nurse in our clinic. She will tend to minor scratches and scrapes, as well as sudden illnesses. For more serious injuries, she will contact you. Please be sure to send in any change of contact numbers in case she needs to get in touch with you.

Orientation

Pre-k orientation is Sunday, August 12 at 3:00. Come and meet your teacher!

Pocket Day	Pre-K will have "Pocket Day" in January. On this day we will count the number of pockets each child is wearing. Start thinking now of a crazy outfit full of pockets!
Parent Involvement	Your support of school activities makes your child feel important and sends the message that you value school! We are always happy to have your help for special activities in the classroom. I will try to let you know at least a week ahead of time if I need help. Requests for help will be published in our weekly newsletter.
Parties & Celebrations	There are two main parties each year---Christmas and End of the year. The room parents usually organize these events and coordinate volunteers and donations. All are welcome to participate in the festivities! We will have some other celebrations that we will organize such as Clifford's Birthday, Thanksgiving, Teddy Bear Picnic, Valentine's Day, and the Bug Show.
Playground Procedures	The children will play outside for 30 minutes each day. Please review these playground safety procedures with your child: 1. Monkey bars: Cross one person at a time and do not stand or walk on top. 2. Swings: Stay seated while swinging, one person per swing. 3. No rough play. Keep your hands and feet to yourself. 4. Leave the mulch on the ground.

Questions

Since many of you are new to Lake Highland this year, you may still have some unanswered questions. Please feel free to call your child's teacher or send an e-mail. We are here to help!

Rest Buddies	The children have a 40 minute rest time each day. If your child would like to bring a "rest buddy" (stuffed animal) to snuggle with, please keep in mind its size. Preferably, it would be small enough to roll up in your child's rest mat.
Report Cards	Report cards are issued every semester. These reports reflect the progress your child has made toward various pre-kindergarten objectives and uses a rubric system that reflects the developmental nature of pre-kindergarten learning.
Restrooms	The children have access to the bathrooms in the classrooms. They are allowed to go whenever needed and encouraged to go through out the day. Please make your child's teacher aware of any medical problem that might require more frequent restroom trips.
Room Parents	The room parents' job is to be available for any number of things: to help coordinate parties and activities; to seek volunteers for events; and to help with memory books. Being a room parent is a great way to be involved in your child’s school life.

Student of the Week	Each child will get a chance to be "Student of the Week." During this special week your child will bring in photos of family and share his/her favorite things.
Science	The focus of the pre-kindergarten science curriculum is on developing an awareness of the world in which we live. Through scientific inquiry, concepts will be presented in the life and earth sciences, including the study of animals and plants, the five senses. general health and the four seasons. These areas will be explored utilizing a literacy based, hands-on approach.
Sing Along	Every Monday and Wednesday the children will gather in the library for a time of singing. We will sing traditional songs such as "If You're Happy and You Know It" and learn new fun favorites such as "Rags."
Shared Reading	Shared reading is an interactive process used with the whole class. As the teacher reads a story, children join in on phrases or words that they know. During subsequent re-readings, children read more and more of the text, until they are able to read the story independently. Shared reading is an opportunity for the teacher to model conventions of print and the use of reading strategies.
Special Snack	Special snack will be on Wednesday of each week. Families will be assigned a week to bring a "special snack." This treat should be easily distributed on a napkin such as brownies, or cookies. We will get a drink of water after our snack so no drinks are necessary.
Social Studies	The pre-kindergarten social studies curriculum focuses on the students and how they relate to others in their families, classroom, school, and community. Holiday celebrations will also be highlighted. Activities will help the children engage their natural curiosity for the world around them.

Toys

Bringing toys to school is discouraged because they distract the children from learning. If a toy is accidentally lost or broken, feelings will be hurt. Students may bring in books that are clearly marked with your child's name.

Unique

Pre-Kindergartners learn that they are special and unique. They have opportunities to describe how they are alike as well as different from others. They share their culture and learn about different cultures within the class.

Veteran's Day

The Veteran's Day program will be held on Friday, November 9th.

Vacations

If you are planning a vacation that takes place during regular school sessions. Please let your child's teacher know so that she can get a pre-arranged absence form to you.

Visitors

At Lake Highland ALL GUESTS (including familiar faces) are required to check in at the school office and wear their parent badge at all times. Lake Highland welcomes and encourages family involvement. It is important to remember that while this may seem inconvenient to frequent visitors, it is the goal and responsibility of the school to create a safe learning environment.

Website

Our class has a website which can be accessed at http://www.lhps.org/prek

Check in regularly to find information about curriculum, special events and school news. Photos featuring of our weekly activities will be posted in the photo gallery--it's the next best thing to being in our classroom each day! Please promptly return the web permission form, which permits me to include your child's photo and first name on our website.

Writing

Our writing program builds on what each child already knows. Writing begins with scribbles and proceeds to lines and circles, random strings of letters, words and spaces and eventually sentences. Your children will be encouraged and praised for all attempts and accomplishments in writing. Providing a risk-free environment is paramount to your child's progress in writing. If possible, please provide your child with writing tools, such as pencils, crayons, markers and paper at home.

XV	We have fifteen children in each of our classes. Please keep this in mind when sending in things to be distributed to the whole class.

Younger Siblings

It is in your child’s and the program’s best interest to have our parent volunteers available WITHOUT younger children. This not only allows your full attention to be focused on the class, but also allows for some special time between you and your pre-kindergartner. Thank you for making childcare arrangements for younger siblings.

Zzzzs

Make sure that your child gets plenty of rest. Setting and keeping a bedtime is a wonderful gift you can give to your child. It will help them to be alert and ready to learn each day!