WELCOME TO KINDERGARTEN (2024–25)
THE TEAM
Kindergarten Counting
Crocodiles (KGCC)
Teacher:
Mrs Beth Rayner
Mrs Sarah Fleming
Teaching Assistants:
Mrs Sophie Lappin
Mrs Barbara Hopkins
Kindergarten Rhyming Rabbits (KGRR)
Teacher:
Miss Lottie Salvage
Teaching Assistants:
Mrs Lindsay Thornhill
Miss Lottie Gill
Cover support: Mrs Vanessa Bessant, Mrs Elaine Forsyth, Mrs Angela Salmon and Mrs Helen Jayasinghe
DROP OFF & COLLECTION
The team will be there to guide you on the first morning and every morning. Timings for drop off and collection remain the same in Kindergarten as they were in Green Shoots.
Drop Off – Between 8.00am and 8.25am at the Kindergarten classroom door. Breakfast club drop off (separately bookable and payable) is from 7.30am in the dining hall. Children are taken from breakfast club to Kindergarten by a member of staff at 8.00am. Alternatively, children may be dropped off at the Pen in the morning and will be greeted by a member of staff.
Collection – When collecting at 12.00pm or 1.00pm, parents can access the school via the red side gate on Chart Lane and wait by the wooden gate at the end of the walkway. When collecting at 3.30pm or after, they can use any entrance to the school and then head to Kindergarten, where the children will be dismissed from the classroom doors. Children with siblings can stay until 4.00pm in sibling late care. Extended day (separately bookable and payable) is available until 6.00pm daily and is located in the Kindergarten classrooms.
THE SCHOOL DAY
7.30 am
8.00 am
8.25 am
12 noon
12.00 – 1.00 pm
1.00 pm
3.30 pm
3.30 – 4.00 pm
3.30 – 6.00 pm
Breakfast club (optional)
Early care (optional) – held in Green Shoots and Kindergarten
Bell rings and the morning session begins
Morning session ends
Lunch session
Afternoon session begins
Afternoon session ends
Sibling late care provision (optional) – For Lower School pupils with siblings in Upper School
Extended day provision (optional) A hot tea is served between 5.00pm and 5.30pm in the dining room.
Please remember to name everything!
BELONGINGS
As before, the following should be kept at school:
• Wellies
• Waterproof trousers
• Waterproof coat
• Full spare set of clothing all clearly named (to be kept in a House bag, clearly named on the outside, on your child’s peg)
• Sun hat (Summer)
• Sun cream (Summer)
LUNCH
A hot lunch will be served to the children in their classrooms if they are staying for lunchtime. A three-week rolling menu is available to view on the Parent Portal and in the weekly Bulletin.
UNIFORM, BELONGINGS & SNACKS
UNIFORM
The Kindergarten uniform remains the same as Green Shoots. If you are new to Kindergarten, please refer to the uniform list below:
• Red sweatshirt with school logo*
• Navy jersey/cotton leggings/jogging bottoms
• Grey skirt* and tights (if preferred)
• White short-sleeve polo shirt
• Coat scarf, gloves and hat (any colour) as weather requires
• Closed-toe shoes (any colour)
• RSM logo navy rucksack*
• Red striped summer dress* (summer)
• Red/white cycling shorts (optional to be worn under summer dress)
• Wellies (any colour)
• Waterproof jacket
• Winter coat
• Kukri House T-shirt*†
• Navy shorts
• White socks (no tights with summer dress)
• RSM logo red sun cap* (legionnaire style preferred)
• Waterproof trousers
• RSM drawstring bag in House colour*
• Trainers to be worn on PE day (Tuesday)
Items marked with * can only be purchased from Ellis Scott, those marked with † can only be purchased from Kukri and those marked with * † can be purchased from both stores.
SNACKS
Each day your child will need to bring:
• A named water bottle filled with still water
• A morning snack – fresh or dried fruit or vegetables (please cut grapes in half lengthways)
• An afternoon snack – as above but may also include rice cakes and bread sticks Snacks should be in a named small container (not a lunchbox) that can fit in your child’s tray. As we are a nut-free school, no nuts, coconut or sesame (including houmous) please. Milk is provided free until the term your child turns five, so do let us know if you do not want your child to have it.
Please communicate with us either in person at drop off or collection, or by email via the school office. You can let us know if your child has had a bad night or if there has been a change in routine at home. Please also use it to notify us of any changes to collection arrangements.
We have an open-door policy and always want you to feel you can talk to us if needed. If you would like to talk for longer, you can make an appointment via the school office. Mrs Selkirk is also available to talk to you by phone or in person.
The school office email is: office@reigatestmarys.org and phone number is 01737 244 880. For sensitive matters, please email: confidential@reigatestmarys.org
A Parents’ Evening will take place in the Autumn and Spring terms when there will be an opportunity to talk formally to the Kindergarten team about your child’s progress. You will receive a written report in the Summer term.
We continue to use Tapestry in Kindergarten. It is an online record of your child’s experiences, development and learning journey at RSM. Teachers will regularly upload photos and comments about your child’s growth and development, which you can view online via a unique password.
GETTING KINDERGARTEN READY
Some things to do in the summer holidays:
Encourage toilet independence – familiarise themselves with attending to their own personal hygiene. This involves recognising the need to go, pulling down and up underwear, wiping themselves and washing hands.
Encourage sharing and turn-taking, e.g. play board games.
Things to practise:
• Taking off and putting on coat
• Taking off and putting on shoes (Velcro)
• Wiping own nose
• Saying please and thank you
• Sitting down at a table when eating
• Feeding themselves using a knife, fork and spoon
• Walking across the playground, not being carried
• Carrying a small backpack
• Walking up and down stairs, holding a rail
“Talk with them about rhymes, stories, numbers and shapes within everyday experiences.”
HOME/SCHOOL COMMUNICATION
TOPICS & TRIPS
Each term there is an exciting cross-curricular topic: Me and My World (Autumn term) – The children learn about themselves and others, including a focus on our feelings and our senses. In the second half of the term, we focus on events that different people might celebrate in the lead up to Christmas. It’s Storytime (Spring term) – Each week there is a chosen story and many activities are themed around it. We develop the children’s understanding of principal characters, settings and features of a story. Let’s Explore! (Summer term) – Over the term the children will be exploring different habitats including woodlands and rainforests.
The Early Years teachers often talk to the children about characteristics of effective learning as part of the focus on a Growth Mindset:
• Have-a-go Hippo – Showing a ‘can-do’ attitude even if the activity is tricky. Persevering and not being put off by the fear of failure.
• Busy Bee – Focusing on an activity without being distracted. Choosing activities independently depending on interests and fascinations.
• Choosing Chimp – Making choices and deciding independently how to approach a new activity. Thinking of different ways of doing things when faced with a challenge.
TRIPS & VISITS – Kindergarten visit Gatton Park, Reigate in the Summer term (a workshop for their Let’s Explore! topic). In the Spring term, an author visits (for their It’s Storytime topic).
USEFUL INFORMATION
THE PARENT PORTAL – Curriculum jigsaw maps, Lower School weekly sheets, menus and school reports are uploaded here. It can be accessed via the school website and new parents receive a log-in before the beginning of term.
WEEKLY OVERVIEWS – Contain information about the children’s learning for the following week. They are available on the Parent Portal every Friday.
VIRTUAL YEAR GROUP UPDATES – Once a term there will be a collective update from Mrs Selkirk and the Kindergarten teachers. This will take place via Microsoft Teams and provides an opportunity for teachers to talk about the children’s learning and activities, and for parents to ask general questions.
INFORMATION EVENINGS – Parents will be invited to a curriculum evening and Mrs Selkirk will run phonics sessions throughout the year.
THE WEEKLY BULLETIN – Includes a message from the Headmaster, a round-up of school news from the previous week and school notices. It is issued each week during term time.
SOCIAL MEDIA – Follow the school’s Instagram and Facebook accounts to see lots of the fun activities that take place on a day-to-day basis.
SCHOOLSBUDDY APP
Has details and takes bookings for:
• Breakfast club and after-school care
• Clubs
• Trips & Events
• Holiday clubs run by Reigate St Mary’s New parents receive a log-in before the beginning of term.
FAMILY EVENTS
We hope to see you at our family events throughout the year. These include:
• Christmas Concert
• Grandparents’ Morning
• Family Breakfast
• Sports Event
• Teddy Bears’ Picnic Kindergarten also take part in Harvest, Easter and Christmas Services and we have an annual open classroom.
FOSMA EVENTS
ReigateStMarys rsmprepschool
Please keep an eye on the Bulletin.
