Dear Family of a Future NPSD Kindergartner,
We are so excited to welcome your child to the North Penn School District! Our full day kindergarten program is designed to be developmentally appropriate with opportunities for social-emotional and academic learning in a safe and inclusive community. Our kindergarten curriculum helps to build a strong foundation in early literacy and math skills, develop school readiness, and foster the curiosity of our young learners.
Great news! Your child’s elementary school has been chosen to be a part of our newly designed Strong Start to Kindergarten that will provide equitable foundations of support with every child in mind. We believe that this Strong Start to Kindergarten will help us to develop well balanced kindergarten classes to meet the individual needs of our students.
The most significant change with the Strong Start to Kindergarten initiative is that children will not be assigned to a homeroom teacher in August. Rather, your child will attend full day and rotate through each of the kindergarten classrooms from Thursday, August 29th - Friday, September 6th to meet all of the kindergarten teachers and have the opportunity to interact with many different peers. Children will engage in a variety of learning opportunities as teams gather information to guide classroom placements for the 2024 - 2025 school year.
During our Strong Start days, all kindergarten students will be assigned a “homebase” teacher with whom they will start and end their day in order to ensure a consistent arrival and dismissal.
On Friday, September 6th, kindergarten students will enjoy a special Fun Friday at school. During this time, the kindergarten team (including teachers, reading specialists, guidance counselors, principals, special education, etc.) will collaborate to develop well-balanced homeroom class lists. All families will be notified of their child’s homeroom teacher on Friday, September 6th. On Monday, September 9th, students will join their newly assigned kindergarten classroom.
All elementary schools will hold Kindergarten Orientation on Wednesday, August 28th. At your assigned time at orientation, you will receive your child’s personalized schedule for the Strong Start to Kindergarten days. Please find a sample schedule here. Additional information regarding K Orientation will be coming soon. A virtual Strong Start to Kindergarten Information Session will be held on Tuesday, July 30th and will be recorded (more information to come).
In the closing days of this school year and over the summer, the kindergarten teams will be collaboratively planning the first days of kindergarten to ensure that every child has a positive start to their school experience. We are looking forward to partnering with you and your child!
Please reach out with any questions.
To connect with your building principal, please see their contact information below:
Gwynedd Square Elementary: Jason Bashaw @bashawjm@npenn.org
Knapp Elementary: Jennifer Sicinski @sicinsjl@npenn.org
Kulp Elementary: Sara Rattigan @rattigsj@npenn.org
Montgomery Elementary: Marie Kim @kimms2@npenn.org
Oak Park Elementary: Jonathan Winkle @winklejd@npenn.org
Thanks so much,
Director of Curriculum & Equity
Chief Academic Officer
Early Learning Coordinator