Welcome to the Leopards’ Open House!

1. Welcome to the Leopards’ Open House! Ida Lowrie Lynn Reisert Donna Wallace 2009 – 2010

2. Our Kindergarten is… • A developmental program that is multi-sensory and conceptual with an open-ended curriculum where every child is challenged at the level appropriate for them.

3. Who are the teachers? • Ida Lowrie grew up in rural southeastern Virginia and graduated from James Madison University in 1982 with a BS in Early Childhood Education. She has taught First grade, First grade Chapter I, Third grade, Third grade EIP, and Kindergarten. Ida taught in North Carolina and Florida before coming to Sope Creek in 1987 where she taught for 5 years before moving back to Florida for a while. She has been married to Lynn Lowrie for 17 years and has three children, ages 13, 11, and 7 years old. Also included in the family are Ruthie (a large, hairy dog), Smokey (a rescue kitty from under our annex), and Angel and Arrow (adopted kitties). Ida’s hobbies in her spare time (ha,ha) are reading, tennis, and cleaning pet fur. She loves teaching Kindergarten and she and Mrs. Reisert make a great team!

4. Lynn Reisert • Lynn was born and raised in Roswell, Georgia. She and her husband Roger have been married for 34 years ( as of August 30th ). They have two adopted children. Laura is 24 living in Los Angeles with her husband of one year. Thomas is 20 and attending Georgia Perimeter College while also working at Home Depot. Lynn's first career was as a Dental Hygienist for 14 years. She started working for Sope Creek in 1995. For the first five years Lynn worked as a Lunch Monitor and now has poor hearing as a result! Then she worked as a substitute teacher for eighteen months. In 2002 Lynn joined the Kindergarten team as a Paraprofessional. This is Lynn and Ida's third year together. She hopes to be blessed with many more years to come, working along side Ida loving and teaching the children at Sope Creek. Most of Lynn's time is spent with her immediate and extended family,  taking care of her mom (who lives at Roswell Nursing home) and church. She loves to ride her old fashioned bicycle and walk in the neighborhood on the weekends.

5. Donna Wallace • Donna was born in Charlotte, North Carolina. She has one brother, Andre, who lives in Charlotte. She moved to Georgia in 1991 and started in the school system in 1996. She worked at Brumby from 1996 – 1998, then at Sope Creek from 1998 -2001. She returned to Charlotte until 2006, then returned to Sope Creek and is happy to be “home” again. Donna loves to read and work with crafts, but her favorite thing to do is work with children. She is the ASP director here at Sope Creek!

6. What is the Highly Effective Teaching Model? • Learning is a partnership between the brain and body. • Based on brain research. • Classroom environment. • - Absence of threat • Lighting • Plants • Water • Minimize distractions • Music • Movement

7. HET cont… • “Think Time” • Agenda • Teaching and reinforcing the Lifelong Guidelines and Lifeskills • Pledge • “Target talk”

8. What is Positive Discipline? • Children are treated with respect and have the opportunity to learn the skills they need to have a successful life. • Children do not experience humiliation when they fail but will instead feel empowered by their opportunity to learn from their mistakes. • Children learn cooperation instead of competition. • Children are nurtured and given skills and attitudes that will help them be happy, contributing members of society.

9. Positive Discipline cont… • Class Meetings / Town Hall Meetings

10. What is my child’s schedule? • Morning Announcements • Calendar / Town Hall • Language Arts • Snack • Integrated Centers • Science / Social Studies / Health • Recess

11. Schedule, cont… • Lunch • Mathematics • Rest • Specials • Dismissal

12. Mathematics

13. Communication • Daily Folder • Transportation notes to us (full page) • Lunch money envelopes • Our notes to you • Student work and art • Blog / Newsletter– Please check every weekend!!! No paper newsletters this year. • You can access through the school website • Email: Ida.Lowrie@cobbk12.org

14. Homework • Not a daily assignment! • Most important: read to and with your child • “Little books” • Special projects (i.e. “Read All About Me”)

15. Odds and Ends • Snacks – healthy finger food (no drinks, applesauce, juicy fruit cups) • *Severe peanut allergy – no peanuts, nuts, or peanut butter this year! • Severe blooming flower allergies – only green plants • “Economical issues” • Birthday celebrations • At lunch • Individual cookies, cupcakes, precut cookie cake, donuts, brownies • Please send napkins

16. Odds and Ends cont… • Lunch • 11:42 – 12:12 • Please join your child for lunch any day after the first three weeks • No fast food brought in • Medicines • Must be brought to the clinic by parents and form filled out • Attendance • School begins at 7:50am, tardy after that time • If absent, send a written excuse

17. Odds and Ends cont… • Larry’s visit • Time with Larry the Leopard over the weekend • Larry’s journal and carrier • Room temperature • Due to the “personal tropics” that your teachers are currently enjoying, the room is kept rather cool. Please send a light sweater or jacket if your child complains of being cold. • Change of clothes in backpack for accidents

18. Questions???