Short and sweet is how I would describe our first few days back at DGS. Another year....another opportunity for us all. For some we have new beginnings, renewed opportunities for others and for all... an opportunity to 'just be' in a place that is 'home' for us all.
This is the time for us to see 'the beginning' for our 3's, 'the growth' in our 4's and 'the leadership' in our Kindergarteners. This week all of our returnees were asked to 'help' with our new friends, show them where things are, how we do things and our Kindergarten friends shared some learning experiences with our new friends.
We have made good progress ALREADY and I look forward to that six week mark where the children feel really comfortable and settled. That is the time when their true self begins to emerge and we head on the path to normalization.
The children are being introduced to works, learning/remembering how to take turns, how to sit on circle, how to wait your turn, most of all how to be respectful of one another. Home and school can be very different and we do have high expectations of our little friends....not unrealistic expectations but ones that we know they are truly capable of.
For now those expectations are to be courteous and kind to everyone in our environment, to think about the words we use when we speak to one another, the tone of our voice and how facial expressions can have a huge impact!
A lot of the time we as teachers model examples for our friends....one day I heard a child say to another...".I knew that already” and you could tell the child hearing that no longer felt good about what they were saying. So, we came up with other things to say instead....."thanks for reminding me" (of whatever it was), or "that's right", "that's true" or simply "okay" are options to use instead while being mindful of the tone of voice that is being used.
So much of our learning experience at this age is social/emotional and we spend a lot of time trying to help our children to have a positive impact on those in their community and especially themselves.....if they fill someone's bucket, their's will feel full also! (reference to Have You Filled a Bucket today? A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids by Carol McCloud & Illustrated by David Messing.
We had fun this morning singing many of our songs that have directions for the children to follow within the songs...such as clapping, snapping etc. They did so well with this and had such fun!
If you have not already sent in your child's slippers, please do so at your earliest convenience.
We are looking forward to talking with you all on Monday evening for back to school night (at 6 pm). where we will discuss our routine, upcoming events, and information regarding field trips, etc.
Have a wonderful weekend.
The Primary Team