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Familiar "specialists" include librarian Sarah Feldman, Pat Henneberger in drama, Joan Kay in art, Stephen Currie (a.k.a. Friendly Neighborhood Math Guy), Joan Matheis and Lisa McVey in P.E. and Ruthie Shaw for literacy support. We are very pleased to welcome Maria Downey (a.k.a. Pistu) as our new Spanish teacher and Rhonni Hallman in music. Classroom teachers and specialists collaborate in important ways throughout the school year. Each group of children will engage in a yearlong interdisciplinary study that serves as the core of the curriculum. The broad topics that teachers have chosen for exploration are:
We are excited about providing the children these rich opportunities
to question, discover, reflect and grow as individuals and as members
of a community. We look forward to many chances during the year to discuss
education and child development with you. The first such opportunity will
be shortly after the school year begins: Lower School Curriculum Night
(fall information session for adults) on In this summer's hard-copy mailing you will find your child's class list, a letter from his/her teacher, some general lower school guidelines and specific information about arrival and departure each day. Some of you will notice that additional information and the usual packet of school forms are not enclosed. This is because PDS's summer mailing has gone online (via infosnap)! Instructions for accessing the site will be e-mailed to families of all new and returning students. So be sure to look for an e-mail with your user name and password. And please complete your online registration so that all required permissions and information reach PDS by Friday, August 17. Once you receive your password, if you have difficulty accessing the site, please contact PDS technology director David Held; if you have problems entering information on the site, contact infosnap tech support (or 866-986-1601 ext. 260). The student health and prescription medication forms will be posted online as PDFs that must be downloaded and submitted to your child(ren)'s physician to sign and mail to Judi Siebold, our school nurse, by Tuesday, September 4. (NOTE: in accordance with New York State law, all new students and all returning students entering grades 1 and 3 must undergo a physical examination.) No student will be permitted to attend school without a completed form on file. Meanwhile, please keep the following dates in mind as you begin to plan
ahead:
A reminder: Regular and effective communication with PDS families is essential to us. Matters of importance are best addressed by phone or during a parent/teacher conference. Teachers can also be reached by e-mail, which is a fast, effective means of parent/teacher communication. It is particularly useful as teachers do not have ready access to phones during the school day. In fact, we prefer e-mail for exchanging short messages or for scheduling a meeting time. Teachers generally will not respond to e-mail while school is in session, but will certainly get back to you within 24 to 48 hours. That's all for now. Please don't hesitate to call or e-mail if you have concerns or questions. I'll be in school quite regularly until Monday, July 23 and will return from my summer travels around Friday, August 17. Looking forward to seeing you all soon! Sincerely, Mary Ellen Kenny
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