According to many experienced kindergarten teachers, the beginning of the school year in Kindergarten will look and feel more like pre-school, and the end of the year will look and feel more like first grade.

Because kindergarten is an introductory year into the formal school system, when students often first develop learning habits and attitudes, it is a particularly important transition time. We hope that the detailed information here will help families understand their role in the process, and also help place kindergarten into a developmental context.

At Methow Valley Elementary, we recognize these Guiding Principles for High-Quality Kindergarten (as adapted from the WA State FDK Guide):

• Families are a child’s first and most important teachers. Collaboration among families, schools and communities supports each child’s academic, social and emotional development.

• Children thrive when they have secure relationships with adults and are supported environments that are safe, positive and age appropriate.

• Children learn best through active participation in processes of discovery, interaction, creativity, problem solving, conversation, and play.

• High-quality kindergarten provides developmentally appropriate and academically rigorous learning opportunities that are balanced between child-initiated and teacher-guided activities.