Welcome to the 2011-2012 school year at Anne Sullivan Communication Center.  It is hard to believe that summer break is over and fall is almost here. I am delighted to have your child in my classroom this year.  I have planned a wonderful year for our kindergarten class.

 Let me begin by introducing myself.  My name is Jamie Stricherz.  I started teaching in 1994. I received my Bachelors degree from the University of South Dakota and my Masters degree from St. Mary’s University.  I've been at Anne Sullivan School since 2004.  My family and I live in the Longfellow neighborhood.  I enjoy living so close to school and it’s fun bumping into students and their families when we are out and about in the neighborhood!

 COMMUNICATION

I will be sending home a newsletter a few times each month to keep you updated on classroom and school news.  This letter will keep you informed of what we have been learning and the skills you can work on at home.  It will also let you know of upcoming events like birthdays, parent meetings, school release days, conferences or other special events.

 BACKPACKS

Please make sure your child brings a backpack everyday to ensure that notes, schoolwork and books will get to and from school safely.  Please check and empty backpacks daily. 

Sometimes important notices come home during the week that need to be addressed immediately.  A pocket folder will be kept at school until Wednesday when all non-urgent notes/communication will be sent home.  Also please send the bus (transportation) tag with your child everyday for the school year.  Putting it on their backpack will ensure that the tag comes and goes with your child.  Throughout the school year there will be substitute drivers or teachers and they need this information.

 HOMEWORK

Your child will be bringing home a “Very Important Papers Folder”.  On Wednesdays he/she will bring home a “Home Activity”.  This will be the “homework” your child is to complete at home and return by the following Monday.  Naturally, most Kindergarten children do not have the reading and writing skills necessary to complete the homework assignments independently.  There are some activities that your child can work on alone with a minimum amount of instruction from you.  Other activities may require some help with reading and writing from you.  I hope that you enjoy these activities and the special time you will spend helping your child.  We have a Homework chart in our classroom, where I’ll be keeping track of returned assignments with stickers.

ILLNESS/ABSENCES

Please do not send your child to school if he/she does not feel well.  Often children want to come to school even when they are sick.  A sick child spreads germs to everyone else and they are usually miserable in school.  Call the attendance office if your child will not be coming to school for any reason at 668-5005.  Also, please make sure we have a current emergency number where you can be reached if your child gets sick or has an accident at school.

 SCHOOL HOURS, BREAKFAST & BUS INFO.

Regular attendance is important.  Please send your child to school every day.  Our goal is for everyone to be at school 95% of the time, which means that they Our school day is from 8:05-2:20.  When buses arrive, students should go directly to the school lunchroom.  At this time they can choose to eat breakfast or talk quietly with friends. 

Breakfast is free to all children and is served until 8:05.  Students have from 7:50-8:05 to eat.  I will be with my students during this time.  The school day begins at 8:05 and students arriving after this time will be considered tardy and should get a pass from the office staff.

Dismissal:  I will be walking all of the Kindergartners to their buses.  Please tell your child that they should wait on the bus for older siblings or friends they need to meet.  If you are picking up your child, parent pick-up is right in front of the school on 28th St..  At dismissal time if your child is a scheduled bus rider and you to pick him/her up, we require a written note the morning that the change will occur.  If there is no note your child will be put on their regularly scheduled bus.  I cannot accept a verbal change about dismissal from your child.  For the safety of your child, school policy states, I need a note.

 SUPPLIES

Your child will need a backpack.  He/she will need to bring it each day.  The backpack should be big enough for a folder to fit inside without being folded or squished.  Please don’t send a backpack with wheels-they do not fit in our cubbies.  Please make sure to check your child’s backpack daily.  Sometimes children forget to show you their papers and you could miss necessary papers to sign and return.  We will supply crayons, pencils, scissors and glue.  If you are able, we are requesting $5.00 to help cover the cost of class supplies. Since we sit at tables and not desks, instead of having individual school supply boxes, all materials are put together in containers and shared with everyone in the group.

 SULLIVAN STARS

We have a school-wide behavior plan that promotes a positive, caring environment here at Sullivan.  All students are expected to follow 4 very important rules to help make Sullivan a safe, fun place to go to school.  We call the expectations the 4 B's.  They are:  Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Safe, and Be Your Best.  We will be teaching these expectations during the first few days of school and reviewing them on a daily basis.  Helping your child learn to follow these expectations is so important in helping us to create a classroom community as well as helping to create a positive Sullivan community.  The fun part comes at the end of each month when the students who have sonsistently followed the 4 B's get rewarded by being invited to special assembly to celebrate their good choices all month.  Last year we enjoyed magicians, animal shows, and fun jumps just to name a few!  YEAH!  I will also send home a copy of the chart that I will be using to teach my expectations for different areas of our school outside of our classroom.  Please talk with your child about this important information and maybe even clip it up on the refrigerator. 

 VOLUNTEERS

I love having volunteers in our classroom.  There are many ways you can help:  working one- on-one with a child on math and reading skills, reading with a small group, making copies, cutting our or preparing materials for an activity, helping in our Media Center or helping out in our school office are just a few of the ways you could be involved.  If you are interested, just let me know.

 I know this is a lot of information.  I hope you find it useful.  If you ever have a question or concern, please contact me as soon as possible.  You can call the main office at 668-5000, but unless it's an emergency, the office staff will not interrupt me while I'm teaching.  So, for non-emergency calls please leave me a message at 692-0546.  I check my voicemail daily after 3:00 pm. My email address is jamie.stricherz@mpls.k12.mn.us.  I check my email every morning between 6:30-7:00am.  You can also send me a note in your child's "Very Important Papers Folder" (remind them to take their folder out of their backpack and put it in the basket) for me to see.  I will do my best to respond the same day with a note or phone call. 

I'm really looking forward to our partnership.  Let's work together to make this a fantastic year!

Click on the link below to watch some wonderful class videos from last year!

https://wiki.mpls.k12.mn.us/webplayer/index.php?share=1&workflowID=E9ACC019-3CDF-4335-96E7-A6607CE11CD6&videoID=2F980B34-7C1C-4E11-8F51-1A683514F66B.m4v