Welcome to The Summit Early Learners!
We are excited for our learning journey with you!
Communication
The Summit Office
Phone – 417.869.8077
Email – frontdesk@thesummitprep.org
Mrs. Meads
Email – bmeads@thesummitprep.org
Early Learners Class Blog
● Each Summit classroom has a class blog via our school website. We will do our best to post multiple times each week about the great things we are doing at school. This is a great way to spark conversation about what is happening in our classroom.
Please encourage family members to subscribe on the right side of our blog home page!
Absences
● Any time that your child will not be in school, please email/text teachers and the front desk to let us know.
● If your child needs to leave early for a doctor’s appointment, etc, please inform teachers beforehand so that your child will be ready at the correct time.
Drop Off & Pick Up
● Morning Drop Off – 8:30-8:45am:
Please click here to read updated carline procedures
Early Learner parents are welcome and encouraged to walk in their child to our classroom 8:30-8:45. This is a great time to connect with teachers and pass on any important information for the day.
● Afternoon Carline – 1:00pm & 3:30pm: Early Learners who stay for either half day or full day will be brought to carline at the front door. Students will be loaded into vehicles.
Daily Supplies
● Students should bring a backpack, water bottle, lunch, and a snack with them each day. Full day students should bring a morning and afternoon snack. If you have a preference, please label what food is for snack or put it in a special container so we make sure they have plenty of food leftover for lunch. It would also be very helpful to have your child’s name on each of their containers.
○ Please note that we will be eating lunch in our classrooms. We do have access to a microwave and mini refrigerator but would recommend lunches that are easy for children to manage independently.
Toys
- To prevent special items from being lost or broken, all toys should be left safely at home. There will be certain days assigned to bring special items from home. Teachers will be sure to let you know when those occur.
- Stuffed Animals: Students may bring one small snuggle animal that will stay in their backpack until rest time.
Early Learner Fluffy Friends
- In our classroom will be a special bag of fluffy friend stuffed animals. After we get comfortable with our classroom routines, Fluffy Friends will get the chance to spend special time with each Early Learner and even travel home with them for the weekend.
- Fluffy Friends will have their own class journal to keep track of all the adventures. This is a great opportunity for you to model writing and storytelling for your Early Learner and they will be so excited to share the adventures they had with their Fluffy Friend each Monday. Teachers will keep you posted about when a Fluffy Friend might visit your house. Please return the journal the following Monday and your child may keep their Fluffy Friend at home.
Recess
● We will plan to go outside for recess in the Summit Backyard each day, weather permitting. Please dress appropriately for the weather and send a jacket if needed. Students are welcome to leave a jacket, hat, gloves, etc. at school that will stay in their cubby.
● Please label all outerwear with the student’s name. We tend to see a lot of similar looking Summit jackets and Early Learners don’t always know which one is theirs.
Summit Uniform
● Students need to be in a Summit uniform each day. Uniforms require khaki or navy blue on bottom and a Summit polo shirt on top. Girls may also wear dresses or skirts. On Friday, students may wear jeans with the Summit polo or Summit spirit wear. Closed toe and closed heel shoes are required. Tennis shoes are always a good option.
Star of the Week
● Each student will have a special week to share more about themselves with our class. There will be a Star of the Week poster sent home the Friday before that you can decorate with your child. Please feel free to send trophies, medals, special pictures, books, etc with your child to display on our Star of the Week sharing shelf. We would love to have parents share with our class during that week about your job or a fun hobby. If this is something you are interested in we can coordinate a time to visit our classroom. We will start this activity after we become comfortable with our classroom routines.
Birthdays
● Birthdays are so important to kids at this age and we want to recognize this! Instead of sending in treats, we would like to make the day fun for your child by having them pick a special activity. This could be an extra recess, choosing one of our exploration activities of the day, doing a special craft, etc. Due to circumstances please do not send in food to share with the class. Another option would be small goody bags. This is completely optional. If your child’s special day is during the summer, we will celebrate their half birthday or as close to it as we can!
Friday Folders
● Friday Folders will be sent home each week. This is how we will send home important papers from the school as well as your child’s amazing work. Please be sure to always send the folder back the following Monday. Keep in mind that a lot of our hard work is not ‘paper pencil.’ Be sure to check out the blog for photos of our activities.
Technology Use
● Students will have access to classroom iPads and Chromebooks.. They will only be accessing teacher-approved apps/websites for various learning activities.
Guest Speakers
● If you have any ideas/connections for guest speakers or activities, please share. The children love when mom or dad comes in to share about their job or can bring in interesting items for us to see! We are available for either in person or Zoom guest speakers!
Curriculum
● Our science & social studies themes vary by trimester and are used as an umbrella for literacy, math, and social instruction.
● 1st Trimester: All About Me, My Friends & My School/ Seasons & Weather, Up in the Air
● 2nd Trimester: Taking Care of Myself/ Families, Traditions, Helping Others
● 3rd Trimester: Look What I Can Do/ My Backyard, Plants & Animals
● Early Learners participate in special classes throughout each day. Students will have Music for 25 minutes three times a week, Art for 25 minutes twice a week, Movement (PE) for 15 minutes twice a week, Yoga for 30 mins once a week, STEM for 30 mins once a week, and Spanish for 25 minutes everyday.
● Each morning we will have class meetings to go over our daily schedule, get to know each other, and review our classroom jobs. This is also a great time for us to establish a calendar routine as we learn the date, seasons, weather, etc. We will read books, sing songs, and play group games during this time.
● During exploration times, students will have access to multiple learning centers that incorporate our various curriculum topics. This will be the time to explore and learn together using iPads, blocks, books, manipulatives, and much more. Teachers will also use this time to do small group lessons and assessments.
● Early Learners will be introduced to D’Nealian letter formation. D’Nealian, or Modern Manuscript, allows for an easier transition into learning cursive in later grades.
What You Can Do At Home
● Nightly reading is very important for our Early Learners. If your child sees that you have a love of reading then they will follow in your footsteps.
● Always take the time to chat with your child about their day at school. You will be amazed at how much they learn and how many friendships they develop. These conversations will help develop your child’s memory, language skills, vocabulary, and give them the opportunity to review the skills they learn during the day.
● If there is a particular subject or topic that your child loves, please share that with Mrs. Meads and we will do our best to explore it together.
