Welcome to Grade One!

Welcome to Ms. Drury's Class!

Check out the video below to see some of the fun stuff we do in grade 1!

September - Welcome Back to School

Classroom News

Please read the following information carefully for the smoothest start to the school year.

Meeting Spot - Please discuss a meeting place with your child for the 3:15pm dismissal bell. Our door is on the south side of the building, facing the tarmac. Our line starts behind the colorful tape in front of the door.

Agenda – Please read and initial the agenda everyday. I read parent notes and initial agendas each morning. Praise your child for their written agenda message. They are new to this practice! The agenda will be transported to and from school every day in a large Ziploc bag to (a) protect it from lunch bag spills and (b) help contain important notices coming from school for you to read. Please do not separate this bag from the agenda. There is also a binder clip that serves two purposes: it is your child’s agenda bookmark and will help your child develop specific muscle strength necessary for fine motor skills. Please do not separate the binder clip from the agenda. If you are sending money to school with your child, please write a note in the agenda. A bundle of forms is being sent home with your child within the first week of school. Please sign and return the forms in the same envelope. Please put the envelope of completed forms in the agenda for the following day.

Safety – Your child’s safety is of utmost importance to St. Michael School. I have inserted a form in the plastic pocket at the beginning of the agenda for you to fill out. This will remain in your child’s agenda and serve as an emergency contact sheet. It requests contact information about who drops off your child prior to school and who picks up your child after school. Please feel free to send me a photograph of these individuals until we are well acquainted with each other. If a caregiver does not pick up your child at the 3:10pm dismissal bell, your child will wait at the office at the front of the school. If your child is a bus student, St. Michael School’s administration team will escort your Grade One child from the classroom to the bus.

Where to park – Please see the map below. Tenth Avenue is less congested and the best place to park. You may find parking along the busy 45th Street or 8th Avenue, but please do not park in the many bus zones. Be aware of our Safety Patrols who are stationed at the bustling 45th Street and 8th Avenue intersection. With safety over convenience in mind, please avoid entering the staff parking lot (before/after school) and avoid cutting through the school. No matter where you park, children must walk around the school and line-up outside their designated door.

Visitor’s Pass – Anyone not on staff who wishes to enter the school must walk around the school to the front door on 8th Avenue and sign out a Visitor’s Pass at the Main Office. The Visitor’s Pass must be clearly worn (not held) before entering any school hallway. This is a mandatory safety precaution throughout the Calgary Catholic School District. Thank you!

Drop-off and pick-up zones – Students socialize and play outside prior to the morning bell. If the weather is inclement, students will be brought inside. Students will be supervised in their designated area from 8:16am until the 8:31am morning bell. At the morning bell, my Grade One students will line up behind a red line at our entry/exit door where I will greet them and take them to our classroom. Unless your child is a bus student, please pick up your child at our door at 3:10pm. Once children feel comfortable in their routine and familiar with safety rules, it is common for parents to switch their afterschool meeting spot to the playground.

Grade One School Supplies – Please send a complete set of supplies the first week of school to ensure a quick and easy start to our year together. Click the above tab for the list of required supplies.

* NO SUBSTITUTIONS, PLEASE. Thank you kindly. *

Footwear – If your child does not have clean, non-marking Velcro indoor runners and Velcro outdoor runners, please purchase them. Elasticized slip-on runners are excellent for school too. Students with unsafe footwear will not be able to participate in Physical Education class. Please avoid laced shoes because they become knotted and unsafe.

Eco-friendly/garbageless healthy lunches – At St. Michael School, we are conscious of how our daily habits affect the earth. The Grade One class is encouraged to bring nutritious snacks and lunch contained in reusable containers to reduce the amount of waste our school produces.

Water bottles – Please send your child to school with a water bottle every Monday (no juice inside the classroom, please). We need to stay properly hydrated to be healthy learners. Grade One students will be encouraged to keep a clean and sealed water bottle on top of their desks. It will return home on Friday for washing.

Snack time – Depending on our schedule, morning snack time will be held everyday inside the classroom at 10:00am or outside during morning recess (10:15-10:30am) like the other students. Afternoon snack time will be held everyday in the late afternoon as Grade Ones are busy little people and often ravenous prior to the dismissal bell. Please send nutritious items and remind your child to save their juice and sandwich for lunchtime. Parents have found it helpful to label snack time items until their child is used to the routine.

Lunchtime – All elementary students will have lunch recess before eating lunch to avoid unsettled stomachs. They will play from 12:02-12:25pm and then eat in the gym between 12:25-12:41pm. Please speak with your child about taking lunchtime to eat rather than socialize. Occasionally, students can “forget” to eat their lunch because they are socializing. Supervisors give reminders about how much time is left, but please have a conversation with your child about the importance of eating during the allotted times. Parents have found it helpful to prepare food that their child can quickly handle independently – i.e. minimal peeling and unwrapping is needed and the child can simply open a container and begin eating. If students are unable to finish their lunch, they will be able to finish it during afternoon snack time. Please remember to send cutlery with your child if needed.

Please remember this is a nut free school. We have a number of children with allergies, so please do not send any food containing nuts to the school.

Washroom use – In Grade One, we learn about best times to use the washroom to maximize safety and learning time: before coming into the classroom, during recesses and during lunchtime. For safety purposes (i.e. unannounced lockdown or fire drill exercises), only one child will be permitted to leave the classroom at a time (unless it is an emergency, of course!). Please review proper hand washing skills, nose-blowing and bathroom etiquette at home. These skills will be reviewed at school so we can have a clean and healthy learning environment.

Labeling personal items – Please label your child’s indoor and outdoor shoes, bag, lunch bag and reusable food containers in permanent black marker to avoid mix-ups.

Clothing – Please make sure your child can independently put on and remove her/his coat and footwear before school begins. Also, please send adequate clothing to school. We know that Calgary weather can change by the hour. It is better for our little ones to be on the warmer side rather than cold. Also, if your child has washroom accidents, please notify me and send a change of clothes to keep in her/his bag.

Toys – To avoid precious items being broken or misplaced, please leave them at home.

Late arrival or early pick-up – If you arrive late, please send your child through the front door where s/he will check in with our wonderful secretaries and pick up a late slip. Please allow your child to walk through the school independently. If you need to speak with me, please send a note with your child or book an afterschool appointment as I am unable to divert my attention from the students during the school day.

Absences – Please write a note in the Agenda and call the office at 403-500-2021 to let us know that your child will be missing school.

Bedtime – Studies have shown that six-year-olds who go to bed at 7:30pm or 8:00pm are academically more successful than those who go to bed later. Please ensure your child is getting enough sleep and that siblings or a late-setting sun are not interfering with their rest.

Classroom volunteers – Everyone is warmly welcome! Please express your interest and availability in your child’s agenda. We will be looking for parents to come in and read with us later this month. Volunteers will have to attend St. Michael School’s volunteer orientation prior to joining us.

I hope these notes help you during the first week of Grade One and the rest of the school year. I am looking forward to getting to know the new Grade Ones and their families! Our school year together is going to be fantastic!

Ms. M. Drury