All I Ever Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten*
"Share everything. Play fair. Don’t hit people.
Put things back where you found them.
Clean up your own mess…"
And on it goes -- the now famous life’s little lessons book by Robert Fulghum.* All parents know there is a lot of truth to that premise. Kindergarten is important! Especially to Wood Glen residents who sent nearly 20 new Kindergartners to Old Town Elementary (OTE) this fall 2006. Thanks to host Megan Southard, a Kindergarten Mom herself, and the Wood Glen social committee, Kindergarten parents were invited to a mini-OTE orientation this past spring just prior to the school’s "Kindergarten Round-Up" or official registration. (The neighborhood is looking for a host for next year!) Nearly 20 people enjoyed tea and cookies with guest speaker Principal Sharon Wilkes.
It was easy to see Ms. Wilkes had experience with worried parents already. She calmly answered every question from curriculum to recess to bus stops. "Don’t worry if your children come home and say they played all day," she said. "We teach with play-based learning methods because they work the best."
"We" at Old Town Elementary includes eight Kindergarten teachers and one assistant boasting more than 150 years of teaching experience combined. Each has approximately 20 students per class and every class follows the same curriculum and similar schedules. The teachers are paired off physically by rooms that share toilet facilities made for the wee-size kiddos. The teacher pairs typically move to the same schedule as classes are staggered for activities like recess, lunch, art and music class.
The teachers know the first year at elementary school can be intimidating. So they start the year off right by personally visiting each student at his/her home to introduce themselves and let each child know how much they are looking forward to having them in their class.
All OTE Kindergarten teachers abide by a single mission:
"We believe that all students can learn through developmentally appropriate integrated, differentiated instruction. We will provide a safe, nurturing and enriched environment for all students. Parents, teachers and students will communicate daily to monitor student progress."
To be successful in fulfilling that mission for each child, communications is key: The teachers publish a monthly newsletter, they communicate daily with parents via the "daily folder" that contains that day’s work and pertinent information for the parents. They are accessible by phone or email, and teachers schedule required Parent/Teacher conferences.