August 13, 2013

Dear Parents, Welcome to First Grade! We hope you had a wonderful summer holiday. The following letter contains important information about the first grade team and program that you will need to refer to frequently so please keep it for future reference. THE TEACHERS Monica Tindall is Australian. She graduated with Honors in her Early Childhood Education Degree from Newcastle University and has a Masters Degree from the Southern University of New York. She has taught in Australia, Singapore and Venezuela. This is Ms. Tindals eleventh year at ISKL. She enjoys keeping fit, visiting the spa, cooking, traveling and dining out. She runs a blog, theyumlist.blogspot.com where she posts all of her favourite spots to eat, stay and spa. Araceli Arismendi is from Houston, Texas. She received her Bachelor's of Arts from The University of Texas at Austin and her Master's of Education from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Araceli has ten years teaching students in grades kindergarten through 4th grade. This will be her 2nd year working at the International School of Kuala Lumpur, and she cant wait to work and learn from her new group of learners! On her free time, she enjoys yoga, running, cooking, dining, and dancing to great beats. Karin Martin is from Honolulu, Hawaii. She received her bachelors degree from Colorado State University and has a masters degree in Education from Chaminade University in Honolulu. She has lived overseas for over 20 years (Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Beijing). She is married and has two daughters who attend ISKL middle and high school. This will be her fifth year teaching and her second year at ISKL. She enjoys reading, eating and spending time with her family.

Kristy Godbout is from Chattanooga, TN. She obtained a bachelor's degree in Human Development and Family Studies as well as Master's degree in Teaching from Lee University. This will be her second year at ISKL and her sixth year teaching. Her husband Keith, and son Jaxson (almost 3!) are joining her in this adventure. In her free time, she loves being outdoors, spending time with her family and anything crafty... sewing, painting, and making accessories. She is most looking forward to working with your first graders and the opportunity to continue to travel Southeast Asia. Lisa Mangelsdorf is from Canada and has lived overseas for the past 17 years. She has a Bachelors of Education in Early Childhood from the University of Calgary. Lisa has taught in Canada, Singapore, South Africa and Indonesia. She is married to Max and has 3 children attending ISKL in grades 3, 5 and 7. It is her fifth year at ISKL. She enjoys playing with her kids, traveling, walking/running, yoga, cooking, reading and dining out. Paul Balsamo is from the east coast state of Maryland in the United States. He has a Masters degree in Teaching English as an Additional Language. Paul has taught most of his career is the United States and is beginning his third year at ISKL. Paul is married to Kate and has two children in middle school at Ampang ISKL. (Very scary!) He enjoys spending time with family, traveling, reading, and just about anything that involves being outside. He is ready for another great year working with grade one boys and girls! Sarah Allum is from Rochester, New York and has a Bachelors of Education in Early Childhood from The College of Wooster and Masters degree from Bank Street in New York City. She has taught overseas for the past 17 years in Vienna, Austria and Muscat, Oman. This is her second year at ISKL. Sarah is married to Gareth, who teaches at Ampang, and has two daughters Olivia and Lucy who attend ISKL Melawati. She enjoys walking and spending time with her family and friends. THE TEACHING ASSISTANTS: Miss Salama was born in Kedah, Malaysia. She has worked for ISKL for twenty years. She has three grown-up children. Salama enjoys cooking, sewing, and exercising. Miss Jag was born in Negeri Sembilan Malaysia. She has worked for ISKL for seven years. She has a young son. Jag enjoys listening to music and cooking.

Miss Josephine was born in KL. This is Josephines sixth year at ISKL. She has two teenage boys and worked in preschool in Childrens House. Josephine loves teaching and loves working at ISKL! Miss Priscilla was born in KL. She has worked at ISKL for six years. In her free time, she loves to be with her friends. Miss Elaine was born in Selangor. This is Elaines fourth year at ISKL. Previously, she has worked in a renovation firm and a Kindergarten classroom. She has two children, one in high school and one in college. In her free time she likes to listen to music, shop and visit with friends. The Student Resource Team (SRT) TEAM Grade one is supported too by Kate Balsamo (Speech and Language therapy), and Jennifer delaMontana (counselor). They are a vital part of the First Grade team and will be working with students in classrooms over the year. SPECIAL CLASS DAYS - Your child will enjoy the following classes, taught by talented specialist teachers: Physical Education (PE); Music; Art; Library; Technology and; World Languages. THE PROGRAM We are looking forward to having a successful experience together. The first month the children will need time to settle in and adjust to their new surroundings. Grade One students will have a full year adding new skills to their personal, reading, writing, math, science and social studies toolbox. At Open House and throughout the year, via newsletters and curriculum letters, you will receive more information about the program specifics. THE MELAWATI WAY The Melawati Way is an integral component of our community. Within each Grade One class, we will emphasize this theme: Make a difference by Taking care of yourself Taking care of others Taking care of this place ISKL SLRs (School Learning Results) In addition to the Melawati Way, the childrens learning in Grade One will be guided by our SLRs which are:

Collaborate Constructively Think Creatively Reason Critically Communicate Effectively Learn Enthusiastically Live Ethically SCHOOL HOURS Children should arrive between 7:30 and 7:50am as

supervision is not available before this time.

Children should go

directly to the playground

- there is no supervision in classes before 8:00am. The first bell rings at 7:55am, at which time students line up with their class and First Grade assistant in the playground and walk in a line to the classroom. Classes begin at 8:00am First Grade students attend school from 8:00am 2:45pm daily. Optional after school activities begin on September 9, starting at 2:45 and ending at 3:45pm. TARDY Children who arrive to school after 8:00am must first go to the main office to get a Tardy Slip before entering the classroom. UNIFORMS Children should come to school in dark blue shorts and the official white or blue shirt and a hat. All of these items are purchased at the Melawati bookstore. On P.E. days, children should wear rubber soled, closed-toe sports shoes. (Sports shoes are recommended for everyday use to enable your child to make the most of their recess times in the playground.) Children will bring their P.E. clothes to school on P.E. days and change into their P.E. uniform. Please label ALL of your childs belongings with name and class. SNACK AND LUNCH - Students may bring food from home or purchase snack and / or lunch from school using their POS cards. You will need to top up your childs POS card in the front office with a minimum of RM100 per top up.

Please do not send money to school as Melawati is a cash free campus. For children who bring home-packed food, we cannot stress enough
the importance of sending healthy (low sugar, low fat, high fibre) food and drinks. This provides the nutrients your child will need throughout the day and will promote physical and mental development. Please have your child eat a healthy breakfast before coming to school as well. Children bring their lunch in a lunch box or small cooler bag. The Grade One children use the tables outside Prep Senior for snack and lunch times. The ordering routine will be the same as the one that students follow in

Prep. Senior. A menu and order form will come home at the end of each week, to be filled out for the entire week, and returned to the class teacher in the students zipper folder each Monday. The first order form will be available on Friday on Panther Apps. Please complete the form and send it in with your student on the first day of school, Monday.

An important note about snack time: PLEASE ensure your child knows
what they are having for lunch before they come to school each day lunch from home or lunch from school. They also need to know if they have snack from home or snack from school. Help your child differentiate between the two. WATER BOTTLES - Students should bring a small, clearly labeled water bottle, which they can keep in class for use during class hours. A clear, large label will make it less likely that bottles are lost. To ensure the most of instruction time children are encouraged to go to the bathroom during their break times and to have their water bottles filled before coming to the classroom to minimize distraction to the learning periods. SUPPLIES - Children should bring a regular sized backpack, big enough for carrying A4 sized folders, lunch box, library books, hat and water bottle. No roller bags please, as these are too big for the cubbies provided. CHANGES IN A CHILDS MODE OF TRANSPORTATION - Student safety is of utmost concern to us. School policy states that if parents wish to make a change in the way a child goes home at dismissal time, the teacher must be informed in writing. If written permission is not received, your child will go home in the customary manner. If your child must go home in a different way than normal, you must contact both the school busing office and the classroom teacher. melawatibusing@iskl.edu.my Jane or Grace: 012 3973466 or (03) 4104 3061 A change in activities, such as your child missing an activity one day, should be communicated to the classroom teacher and also Jessie Leong in the main office, jleong@iskl.edu.my, (03) 4104 3000 HOME/SCHOOL FOLDER - From Monday to Friday your child will bring home a zipped folder. Once the routine is established, books will come home inside the folder and also any special notes. Your child must return their home/school folder to school each day. Most notes and information however will be sent via email or posted on the class webpage or blogspot.

HOMEWORK - We understand that the children have a very long day at school and they need time to play and relax when school is over. This is a highly valued part of their physical and mental wellbeing and unstructured playtime develops skills that cannot be formed otherwise such as creativity, lateral thinking, independence and social/ emotional skills. The homework in Grade One should take no longer than 30 minutes if you choose to engage your child in this routine. It will usually consist of reading a book with an adult and math or other activity as well. Please provide a quiet, well-lit place to work, and establish a pleasant routine for completing homework. Feel free to read to your child in his/her native language as well as in English. Homework is not graded and is not returned to school. In grade one and we trust parents to use the activities as appropriate where needed for their child. We recognize that many parents already engage their children in meaningful activities such as cooking and reading together, playing board games and imaginative play. LIBRARY - First Grade students visit the library once every 6 days. See the class calendar for your childs library day. BIRTHDAY PARTIES Parents wishing to celebrate their childs birthday at school should plan to bring a cake or cupcakes and a drink for each child. Parents need to supply their own plates, cups, spoons, candles, etc. Check with your childs teacher for an appropriate time at least one day in advance. Usually you will meet the students in the canteen at snack or lunch. Teachers will send invitations home through the Home/School folders only if all students are invited. Parents must handle invitations for home parties to which only some children will be invited. Please remember when preparing birthday treats, we have a NO PEANUT rule. TOYS FROM HOME The Grade One classrooms are full of interesting items that belong to the entire community and therefore are a less potential source of conflict than are personal belongings from home. In order to avoid problems among the children, toys from home are not allowed. SICKNESS - We would like to suggest that our parents follow these guidelines in order to minimize absences due to illness. Please do not send a child who may be coming down with an illness to school.

Please ensure that your child has had at least one completely fever free day (24 hours) without medication before he/she returns to class.

Children with heavy colds may not be feverish; however, our little ones are often not yet able to cover their sneezes and coughs sufficiently. We would prefer them to stay home until their symptoms have calmed down.

If your child has allergies of any nature, inform the teacher.

If your child needs any type of medication during the school day, the medicine must be sent in with a note and given to the school nurse. She will administer it. Students who are not feeling well or who have been absent due to an infectious health condition such as chicken pox, pink eye, whooping cough, impetigo, measles, mumps or head lice need to see the nurse and receive clearance before returning to class.

PARENT SHARING IN THE CLASSROOM - Children enjoy having their parents come to their classroom to share interesting information or to teach something. If you have a talent such as playing a musical instrument, singing, drawing, or even reading stories, please let the teacher know. We will set up a time for you to be with us and participate in our day. Your childs homeroom teacher will make you aware of other opportunities for classroom participation after the students have settled into a regular routine. ROOM PARENTS - Every class in ISKL Melawati needs at least one Room Parent volunteer who works both with the Grade Level Coorindator and with the teacher to organize class events like parties, parent gatherings and field trips and recruits other parent volunteers to help. Please notify your childs teacher if you would like to take on this role. COMMUNICATION GRADE ONE GOES GREEN! To have the best possible education for your child we will need to work together and have open communication. Please feel free to contact your childs teacher with any questions or concerns you may have. In Grade 1 we use email as the preferred way of communicating with parents. We use the @iskl.edu.my address only so if you are not yet signed up please see our technology department immediately. All newsletters and communication pages will be sent home through Panther Apps.

Parents may contact teachers through Panther Apps Our addresses are as follows: lmangelsdorf@iskl.edu.my (Lisa Mangelsdorf) kmartin@iskl.edu.my (Karin Martin) aarismendi@iskl.edu.my (Araceli Arismendi) mtindall@iskl.edu.my (Monica Tindall) kgodbout@iskl.edu.my (Kristy Godbout) pbalsamo@iskl.edu.my (Paul Balsamo) sallum@iskl.edu.my (Sarah Allum) The ISKL Grade One phone number is (03) 4104-3020 for emergencies. Please be considerate of your childs teachers time and be sure to arrange a meeting in advance via email if there is an important issue to discuss. Please remember that you may not be seen if you just drop by as these drop-ins may take away valuable contact time between the teacher and students. We are all looking forward to a great year with your child. Sincerely, The First Grade Teachers