Meadowlands P.S.

Kindergarten
Handbook

2015-2016
Please keep for future reference

School Routines

School Hours
The Kindergarten Program is full-day. We are following a
Balanced Day schedule.
7:00 am: Extended Day Program opens (Pre-registration required)
8:15 am: A teacher will be on duty.
8:30 am: School entry.
10:30 am: First nutrition and recess break.
1:15 pm: Second nutrition and recess break.
3:00 pm: Hometime/Extended Day Program
6:00 pm: Extended Day Program closes

Attendance
When your child is going to be absent or late, please call the school at
613-224-1733 and leave a message stating your childs name, grade
and teachers name.
You must report to the office if you are dropping off late/or picking up
early.

Lunch and Snacks

In order to better meet the needs of our students, our school is
scheduled on a 'Balanced Day' timetable. This means that our
students have two healthy meals during the school day. Students need
to bring the equivalent of two lunches, rather than one big lunch and
small snacks. We find this easier to pack for: simply make a double
lunch, for example: two sandwiches or other lunch food, two pieces of
fruit, two drinks, etc It often helps if you label the food for the
morning break with a #1 and the food for the afternoon break
with a #2.
We may have children with nut and peanut allergies. We ask
that you do not send food containing nuts.

School communications
Mail Bag: Your child will be given a mail bag (large plastic folder with
a name label on it) on his/her first day of school. This will be the
primary means of communication. If you have any questions or
concerns, please write a note and send it in the communication book.
Please check the mailbag each night. All notes from your childs
teacher, the school, art and other treasures will be sent home in this
bag. It is important that you check this bag each night and
return it each day.
After school routine: If you are picking up or dropping off your child
before the regular dismissal (3:00 pm), you must sign in at the office. If
you are picking your child up at 3:00 pm, the pick up location is at the
west gate at the side of the Kindergarten yard.
Please be respectful of our bus lanes, they are not to be used between
8:00 am and 3:30 pm.
If there is any change to your childs regular routine (pick up instead of
bus, different adult meeting the bus, etc.) Please let us know by calling
the office or writing a note.
If there is no note to indicate otherwise, bus riders will be put
on the bus.
For their own safety, we cannot take verbal instructions from
Kindergarten children.
Newsletters: We will keep you informed with newsletters. Please
check your childs mail bag regularly.
Email: We will be asking for you to provide an email address for quick
updates.

Personal and Caregiving Information

The school must be kept informed of any changes made to the
personal information provided to us when you registered your child for
kindergarten. This information includes:

home and work telephone numbers for both parents,

street and mailing addresses,
emergency contact name and number,
any custody arrangements and
caregiving arrangements and telephone numbers.

If there is any change in your personal information, please inform the

office as soon as possible. Your cooperation is appreciated in this
matter.
If your childs daily routine is changed in any way (e.g. a new person
picking them up, a play-date after school, a drive instead of the bus)
please send a note on that day in your childs mail bag.

School Supplies
In place of the Ministry suggested list of supplies, we are asking for a
voluntary Kindergarten levy of $20 (cash or cheque made payable
to Meadowlands PS). This will be used to purchase supplies such as
glue sticks, markers, etc.
Please purchase/provide the following and bring it to school:
Velcro shoes that remain at school
Regular sized back pack (smaller ones are not convenient for
library or class-created books)
Ziploc bag with an extra change of clothes (all items labeled with
your childs name)

Clothing
Children will spend time every day playing outdoors and/or in the gym.
Please be sure to send your child to school dressed appropriately for
the weather.
Please do not allow your child to bring an umbrella to school. A hooded
raincoat is much more appropriate at this age, as children tend to use
the umbrella in an unsafe manner, and often do not know how to open
and close them independently.
During the warm months, sunscreen should be applied at home and
sun hats should be worn for outdoor play, as well.
Please send a labeled Ziploc bag to school containing an extra set of
clothes for your child in case of an accident. This bag should contain
clothes that still fit, including pants, a shirt, underwear, and socks. This
bag will be left at school, and needs to be replenished if an article of
clothing is worn home.
Clean indoor shoes are required for the gym, library and classroom.
They will be kept at school in your childs cubby. Please choose
velcro straps.

Toys From Home

Please do not send any toys from home to school. There are plenty
of toys in the classroom and this rule helps to prevent a child from
having his/her toy lost, broken or misplaced. This also avoids
arguments over sharing a personal toy.

Birthdays
In Kindergarten, we enjoy celebrating special days. If you wish to send a
special snack for your childs birthday you are more than welcome to do
so. Please ensure it is something small, peanut free and easy to
serve. If your child has invitations to deliver, please send them in the
mail bag for the teacher to distribute. For those who have their birthdays
in July and August, we will be setting aside a special day in the school year
to celebrate their day.

Library
Each class will go to the library either on Wednesday or Friday of each
week. Students are allowed to borrow a book of their choice to keep at
home to read for the week.

Scholastic Book Orders

We will be sending home Scholastic Book Orders each month. Please
do not feel any obligation to purchase these books. If you wish to
order, just return the order form and a cheque payable to
Scholastic Canada Ltd. by the date marked on the form package.

What happens in
September?
1. Intake Interview and Class Tour (during the first week of
school):
At the end of June, you will receive a letter from the school
indicating the name of your childs teacher.
For JK students, the letter will also inform you of the date and
time for your 20 minute intake interview and class tour. Your childs
first day of school will also be indicated in the letter.
You and your child are encouraged to come to the interview. You
will meet the teacher, and then tour the classroom.
Be sure to have up-to-date home, office, caregiver and
emergency contact phone numbers and addresses with you. You will
need these to complete the Verification document which will then be
kept at the office. You will also receive a number of other forms during
the intake interview which the office requires.
2. Staggered Entry: What is staggered Entry?
It takes the first 2 days of school to complete the Intake interviews.
Following the interviews, JK students will be introduced to school
routines on a 2 day Staggered Entry Schedule. As of Monday,
September 14th, all Kindergarten students attend school.
The Entry Schedule for the first week of school is as follows:
Day 1: Tuesday
Intake interviews
Day 2: Wednesday
Intake interviews
Day 3: Thursday
of the JKs attend with all of the SK students
Day 4: Friday
The other of the JKs attend with all of the SK
students

We are looking forward to a terrific year in

Kindergarten with you and your child!
- The Meadowlands Kindergarten Team

Suggestions to Help Transition

your Child to Kindergarten

For JK students, be sure to talk about school before coming to the

intake interview.

Drive or walk by the school several times. Come and play in the
kindergarten yard over the summer.

Encourage your child to look for things in daily life that are related
to school. This will help to reduce fears or anxiety about the
unknown. For example: point out buses, backpacks in the stores,
schools on TV, etc.

Encourage your child to practice using his/her new backpack, snack

containers, kid scissors with proper grip, shoes, jacket, and raincoat.

Encourage your child to dress independently for outdoor play before

September. They must be able to manage both their indoor and
outdoor shoes on their own.

Practice bathroom skills, as teachers do not enter bathrooms.

Children need to know how to use the toilet and how to flush, how
to properly wash their hands with soap, and how to fasten their
clothing.

Establish your childs school bedtime routine in late August.

Having a consistent bedtime routine will help your child transition to
the new routines as they will find the first few days of school
exciting yet tiring!

Consider having your childs vision and hearing tested by a

specialist before school begins.

Encourage your child to tidy up after play, to listen to and follow

instructions, to share, colour, and to use scissors and glue
appropriately.

Encourage them to develop fine motor skills. This can be done

through cutting/pasting activities, colouring, playdough, building

with small blocks, finger-painting, etc. It does not have to be formal

printing practice! Pick an activity that your child enjoys.