Click the photo to the right to view a few photos of parents touring the EW classroom at Back to School Night last week! The West Wing’s Back to School Night is October 6th.
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EW Back to School – Notes
On Back to School Night, parents from the East Wing had the opportunity to walk around their children’s classroom and see what is happening there. It was like looking through a “little window” into what children are doing and how much they are learning. They gave feedback on the classroom and noticed a community of people working together, with goals and objectives.
Parents not only learned that insects, babies, rocket ships, flowers, parties and blocks (among other things) are important themes in the children’s daily life at school, but also how the children become confident with letters as well as a sense of who they are in a group.
Teachers explained what it really means to be “ready” for kindergarten and that developing understanding, integrating and connecting were important pieces of that readiness. However, they explained, it is more important to notice where children are at a certain point and where they need to be next. It is crucial to notice their enthusiasm towards learning, their ability to listen, their desire to be independent and to play well with others, to have strong gross motor skills and basic letter recognition.
Teachers reassured parents how much children benefit from working in the different areas of school (the studio, communication center, front yard, block area, sensory table) and how they help children develop literacy, to be able to communicate their thoughts as well as to answer the teacher’s questions.
All the work that children do at school serve as a scaffold that will allow the children to listen, to express themselves and become powerful individuals who are ready for kindergarten and other challenges that will come after that.
–Documentation Committee, 9/22/10