Childhood is a time for the development of body, mind, and spirit. It is a time when lifelong values are discovered and developed into the foundational structure for the life of tomorrow. Some educators have said that what a child becomes today determines his tomorrow. Childhood builds confidence and it is a time for joy, laughter, hope, small successes--and for trying.
The goal of Catholic Education at Our Lady of the Pillar is to develop and train the whole person in a special community for participation in the contribution to the human community. This means that we are dedicated to assisting you in preparing children for life--to help them know their relationship to God and their country. We pray that the children become aware of the force of God in their daily lives and grow spiritually, academically, physically, and socially at their own levels of learning.
Kindergarten is a beginning experience in a program of formal education. It provides a foundation on which the rest of your child's learning will be based. The activities of the kindergarten represent the combined efforts of participation in a program which meets individual needs, abilities, and interests as well as prepares him/her for continuously satisfying school experiences. It is important that parents help their child to do his or her best in school and to develop a good attitude.
Listen to them
Encourage them.
Review their school work every evening. Many important papers are in their folders.
Kindergarten begins at 7:50 A.M. and ends at 3:00 P.M.
The Kindergarten curriculum is readiness oriented and developmental in nature. Individual ability, aptitude and maturity will determine the specific pace of each child's program. It should be emphasized, however, that in the full-day curriculum the formal academic program of Grade One will not be extended down to the Kindergarten. Afternoons will be used for enrichments and social skills with a rest time.
Parents are to leave their child at the door and not to come into the cafeteria or classroom. In the afternoon, please, drive to the rear parking lot and stay in the carpool line. Place your carpool number in your window. Your children will be brought to your car shortly after your carpool number has been announced
Birthdays will be celebrated on the child's birthday or in May for those with summer birthdays. Those who wish may send a pre-packaged treat for the class on their child's birthday.
Students are dropped off at the school door before 7:50 a.m., and they go to the cafeteria or classroom. Parents are asked not to enter the building with the child under normal circumstances.
A smile and hug at the door is the best way for a child to gain independence and self esteem.
Please do not come to the classroom during the regular school day. All late arrivals, early dismissals, and drop-offs of forgotten lunches or other materials should go through the school office.
Since parents are the child's first teachers, the parent component is an integral part of the kindergarten program. The foundation of classroom teacher working cooperatively with parents is vital to a successful atmosphere.
Kindergarten signifies to many parents the beginning of a more formal educational setting. The parent-school relationship begins early -- preferably at the time of registration. Contact during the year occurs in a variety of ways. Parent meetings, assistance in the classroom, conferences, newsletters, and classroom visits are just a few of the methods that are used.
Parents help make their child's school experience more meaningful: thus, educators communicate information relative to the kindergarten curriculum thoroughly and consistently to encourage a strong working relationship. You will set the tone of your child's first experience. A positive attitude is essential.
No formal report card is given in the first quarter. Your child’s progress will be shared at a parent-teacher conference. Report cards are issued for the remaining three quarters.
A snack is provided for the children every afternoon.
During the year we have many school wide celebrations, assemblies, etc.. Please read Newsworthy Notes to stay informed. In our class we celebrate all the time. We will keep you informed.
Each child is given a special week when we celebrate that child. A letter to explain details will follow.
***Please label all clothing and personal school supplies with your child's name. On days when your child is scheduled for Physical Education class, please dress your Kindergartner in the appropriate clothes and shoes for fitness and motor skill development activities. A note will be sent home with the PE schedule.
In cold weather, please dress your child appropriately. This should include hat and gloves. Your child should be able to button and zip his or her coat. We will have a short recess on cold days.
The kindergarten year is the foundation for later learning in primary years and beyond. Young children must begin to organize materials, assume responsibility for personal and school property, adjust to daily schedules and routines, respond appropriately to peers and adults, and learn to listen to follow directions. Acquisition of these skills prepares children for future satisfying school experiences.
While kindergarten curriculum must acknowledge developmental variability in children, it is organized around age appropriate objectives toward which all children are progressing. The range of objectives is broad enough to allow some children to attain higher levels of achievement than most and others to continue working toward clearly defined objectives. This enables teachers to communicate in specific terms with parents and subsequent teachers, as well as to evaluate the program's effectiveness.
We are fortunate at Pillar to have an enrichment center. Your child will visit the Learning Center in small groups. The kindergarten curriculum introduces children to a wide range of concepts and skills while helping them gain insight into the world. The curriculum enables children to grow and learn in a carefully prepared environment. This environment is organized through learning centers that allow children to make decisions based on their needs and interests. In the afternoon, activities are informal.
Our religious-education program aims to help kindergarten children develop a positive sense of their own self-worth. Young children must first come to appreciate themselves before they can come to appreciate God. Their ability to know God and their ideas of God are strongly influenced by their ideas of themselves. Every child is someone special!
In addition to helping the children develop positive attitudes about themselves, the objectives of this program also include:
The kindergarten reading program emphasizes the following concepts:
Every word begins with sounds that can be written down.
Symbols called letters are used to record these sounds.
The same letters are used to record these sounds.
Words written down can be read and reread.
Thoughts can be put into words, which can then be written down and read.
The program fosters development in the following areas:
Discrimination of visual forms.
Discrimination of similarities and differences in sounds.
Development of visual motor competency.
Enrichment of vocabulary, both receptive and expressive.
Enhancement of comprehension, symbolic and verbal.
Respect and appreciation for books.
These goals are achieved though a variety of experiences. Children have opportunities to dictate stories, read self-chosen books, listen to stories, share and discuss ideas, create books, poetry and songs, sequence pictures, and participate in creative dramatics.
Children enter kindergarten with a wide range of ability. The reading curriculum is planned so that it challenges, but does not frustrate children. Attention is given to meet the needs of each child, ranging from the child who is reading to the child who has no interest in books, much less the reading process!
Young children learn math by a process of "doing and redoing". Counting pennies, counting apples, grouping cards and shells, setting the table with enough plates for the number of people who are going to eat, making graphs, and deciding how many saucers you need for so many cups are all experiences which will help children understand what numerical symbols represent and show them how numbers are used. Children need to touch, to feel, and to manipulate concrete objects in ways which will help them grow in their understanding of math from the "inside out". These experiences allow children to construct and internalize the understanding of the mathematical concepts they will need for future learning.
Like math, the approach to teaching science in kindergarten is dependent on the active involvement of the children. By observing, experimenting, questioning, and exploring, they discover answers to their own questions as well as those posed by adults. Spontaneous experiences alone, however, cannot provide a complete science curriculum. The teacher must plan a program to cover a range of topics that relate to the children's life experiences and occur in a sequence that allows for growth and development. To fully absorb ideas in science children need repetition, which instills in them the confidence to continue their learning and exploration. By accepting the children's ideas and challenging them with new ones, the teacher moves them on to more complex thinking. Children are by nature scientists. They are propelled by their curiosity and the need to discover. The role of the teacher is to support, encourage, and share in the joy and delight that comes from children's discoveries, and to encourage the children to use the scientific.
The focus of the social studies curriculum is the child's place in the scheme of the world. Increasing awareness of socialization and the functions of people in a community are goals consistent with kindergarten children's development. The health curriculum also is a natural outgrowth of children's needs. Good health habits and safety are two concerns that are addressed by child-centered learning experiences. Appropriate learning experiences include field trips, films, printed materials, role-playing, class discussions, experience charts, and classroom visitors.
Art in the kindergarten is creative and open-ended. It is not craft projects that consist of parts prepared by the teacher to produce a predetermined product. Through a variety of materials, children's self expression, feelings of success, and accompanying self worth are enhanced. Children need experiences that emphasize not an outcome, but the process of creativity and spontaneity. The children need the freedom to create and to express their own experiences, as well as the opportunity to participate in activities related to other curricular areas.
Music is one of the most enjoyable activities of the kindergarten day and can be used to enrich other aspects of the curriculum. The use of music benefits children by promoting creativity and self-esteem in conjunction with learning about music for its own inherent value. Participation in musical activities helps children cope with shyness, anger, frustration, inhibitions, and tensions. Use of the piano, record player, instruments, tape recorders, songs, chants, and recorders enhances memory, teacher discrimination, listening, and rhythm.
Physical education provides the opportunity for organized fitness activities as well as skill-building for specific activities. Kindergarten PE emphasizes the development of gross and fine motor skills. P.E. is vital to the growth of the whole child.
How Young Children Learn
Young children learn through doing....
Children are active human beings. They learn best when they are totally involved and have space in which they can be active.
Young children learn through a concrete, hands-on, manipulative approach....
Through handling objects, children discover relations of their everyday world.
Young children learn through experiencing....
Through actual experiences such as a trip to the grocery store or a visit to the zoo, children discover what their world is like.
Young children learn through play....
Through their play with blocks, manipulatives, dramatic play props, children make sense of their world.
Through their play, children can understand concepts and satisfy their innate curiosity.
Through their play, children take their first steps in the mental operation of symbolic thought.
Young children learn through their own talk and talk with other children....
Through language, children attend to aspects of their experience, reflect on them and express them in some way.
Play
Play is the most complete of all educational processes.
It is the children's way of learning, exploring, and understanding the world, as well as a source of pleasure. The kindergarten teacher plans and prepares the environment for play as carefully as any other area of the curriculum.
Concepts are developed, along with a background of information, as a teacher plans activities which capitalize on children's innate curiosity and interests.
In this environment of play, children begin to take their first steps in the mental operation of symbolic thought. They test new ideas, practice new skills, and begin to see relationships