Transitional Kindergarten (TK)NOTE: If you are interested in enrolling your student at Pacific School, please complete the appropriate Interest Form. More information about our enrollment procedures is Here.
Age Eligibility
Transitional Kindergarten (TK) serves students who turn four years old on or before September 1 of the school year. (Kindergarten serves students who turn five years old on or before September 1 of the school year, and Preschool serves students who are not yet old enough to be eligible for TK.) Overview Transitional Kindergarten is taught by Shantelle Chiu. More about Ms. Chiu. Transitional Kindergarten meets Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 8:15 to 2:45 and Wednesdays from 8:15 to 12:10. After School Recreation is available every day from dismissal until 5:15 p.m. The Independent Study (IS) program is available to kindergarten students. IS students attend school on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays and study at home or attend optional field trips on Wednesdays and Fridays. Curriculum Our Transitional Kindergarten classroom fosters a creative and joyful environment in which students bridge their preschool experience and future kindergarten learning. The play-based, emergent curriculum centers on children’s interest and discovery. We believe that children are naturally curious about their world. Science Children learn experientially through hands-on investigations of the Earth, Life, and Physical sciences in the classroom and garden. Literacy Our literacy curriculum emerges from a text-rich environment in which children seek and engage with books and print as meaningful, useful, and joyful communication. As children explore the characteristics of letters and sounds, they develop their foundation for the reading and writing they will take on in their kindergarten classroom. TK students also visit the school library weekly and have the opportunity to check out books. Math Our mathematics exploration begins with curiosity around numbers and patterns and deepens with children’s play and manipulation of a wide variety of counters, collections, shapes, and blocks. As children make their investigations, we guide their understanding of counting, cardinality, comparison, addition and subtraction. Our block-building curriculum grows children’s understanding of number, physics, size, shape, and balance. Math Goals. Art, Music, and Dance Woven into all of the children’s experiences are rich opportunities to express themselves in the arts through dramatic play, song, dance, paint, clay, sculpture, collage, pastels, pencils and markers. The children study color theory, composition, and expression through a mix of guided and independent work. Community Throughout their day in the classroom, children learn how to be productive and valued community members and practice the necessary social and emotional skills needed for a school setting. We love to help children form new friendships and support them in resolving conflicts through read-aloud stories, meeting conversations, and restorative circles. We extend our learning beyond the classroom through field trips to our beautiful State Parks and local businesses and by inviting community members with experience in many fields to share their passions and interests with us. Communication Open communication between teachers and parents of enrolled students* is always of great importance to me, and it is paramount to our children’s success. Please reach out any time. Emails: schiu @ pacificesd.org. *To allow teachers to focus on the education of their current students, prospective families are asked to direct all questions to the office, not to teachers. |
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