Kindergarten Tour and Q&A Session

Edison Elementary held it's Kindergarten Tour and Q&A Session this morning from 9:30-11:00am.

David took Emily to preschool so I could be there on-time as it was a "parent only" event.

It was lead by the Principal and several volunteer parents and was such a great experience!  The school is small in physical size and shaped like a square with all the classrooms along the East and West sides; Gym/Multipurpose room plus restrooms to the South; Library, Office and additional restrooms to the North; and the lunch tables in the courtyard in the middle of it all.  There are a few cubicles outside on the blacktop, which house the fourth and fifth grade classrooms plus the Resource center and the Before-/After-care classroom.  There's a fenced off playground called "the chipyard" for the K-3rd graders (the fourth and fifth graders aren't allowed in the chipyard, they have to play on the blacktop) and in the far corner of the school yard there is the Community Garden, which was just breathtaking!  We were lead around to each part of the school and got the opportunity to observe each of the three Kindergarten classrooms for 10-15 minutes each. 

You got a pretty good idea of the personality of each Teacher just from observing the organization (or disorganization!), noise-level, and behavior of the children and all seemed really wonderful!  Some of the kids were sitting quietly, participating in the Teacher-led activity, some were in the play areas (think rug, kitchen, blocks, puppets), some were hanging around muttering to themselves, but all seemed "normal" and made me smile as I could see Emily in any of the classrooms.

We were informed of what a huge role the Edison PTA plays in the success of the school's extracurricular activities (including the Community Garden, music, art, and PE classes) and how to join the online group to get involved, which we have already done.  It was also nice to hear how much the parents volunteer at lunch time, recess, and in each classroom to further aid in the adjustment of the Kindergartners. 

Lastly, we were all told that each and every child that lived in the Edison School Zone and applied by the deadline was accepted, that had 75 spots and filled 73.  As it stands now, each class will have only 25 students, although major changes could occur should Measure A not pass.  For now, we are happy Emily isn't on a waitlist, which is a Lottery system around here and means she could be directed to a school on the other side of the city.

The next step is a 30-minute assessment of Emily with the Kindergarten Teachers and Principal to help with placement of all the in-coming Kindergarten's in order to best balance out each classroom.  It's a very simple, very quick interaction to get a feel for her personality and her skills, regarding holding a pencil, identifying numbers & letters, using scissors, and following directions.  That is scheduled for April 29th at 2:00pm.

Comments

  1. I'm so excited for her to be in Kinder next year. Lucky you, you have a sister that is a teacher so let me know if I can help AT ALL! xoxo

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