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Transitional Kindergarten

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A Transitional Year Between Pre-K & Kindergarten



Glenwood Country Day School’s Transitional Kindergarten is a transitional year between Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten. The purpose of transitional kindergarten is to give children the extra time they need for development if they are to be successful in school and as total persons. For developmentally young children, the Transitional Kindergarten class provides the time and space they need to thrive rather than simply survive in school.

A recommendation that a child be placed in Transitional Kindergarten class is based on the child’s developmental age, not chronological age. School success is based more on developmental age than on any other single factor, including chronological age, intelligence, reading ability or previous learning ability.

It is a child’s developmental age that determines readiness for school. A ready child is able to deal with the school environment emotionally, socially, intellectually, and physically without undue stress.

Focuses

Support
& Nurturing

Extra Development
Time

Individualized
Attention

It's good to be curious about many things.

Mr. Rogers

Social Studies
Science
Language Arts
Math
P.E.

The students will recognize their own unique and diverse characteristics and discover what they have in common with others. They will begin to understand how the many people in their school or neighborhood community affect their lives.

The students will observe and explore the local features of the earth, water, and sky by describing, collecting, organizing, interpreting and communicating, information as it relates to the weather and seasons. They will begin to observe and explore the characteristics of living things by collecting evidence of similarities and differences that exist among living things.

The academic year in Transitional Kindergarten begins with a strong emphasis on letter/sound correlation- a technique also known as phonics. Each letter of the alphabet is introduced using a multi-sensory approach. As the year progresses, students are encouraged to use phonetic tools to decode words to read and write their own thoughts. The children keep journals and write class books and language experience stories.

The Transitional Kindergarten program uses a wide variety of manipulatives to help bridge the understanding between concrete and abstract aspects of mathematics. Students experiment with several different methods to solve the same problem. Mathematical computations are incorporated in such everyday activities as taking attendance, reading the thermometer and counting how many days school has been in session.

Physical Education in the Transitional Kindergarten class emphasizes learning to cooperate and be a team member, while improving skills in favorite activities: running, hopping, skipping, throwing, kicking, and catching.

  • Mrs. Poland, We really appreciate you taking the time yesterday on a holiday to meet Parker! Thank you again for the thoughtful transition. Susan
  • Mrs. Poland, The boys had a really good summer. You all did such a great job with selecting amazing camp counselors, coordinating everything, and just ensuring they all had a safe summer. Thank you, Mikella
  • Mrs. Poland, I got a phone call from Sam right after his assessment and he was all smiles and happiness. I couldn't be more relieved. What a complete 180 from getting him out the door to go. I could not be more grateful and relieved that it ended up being a positive experience for him. Thank you!!!! See you next week at the open house! :) Kristen
  • Hi Mrs. Poland, I just wanted to say thank you for a great summer. It was Mads' first time at Glenwood and he loved it! We look forward to returning next summer. Have a great year! Danielle
  • I read to these friends every Tuesday and they are the most polite, caring and attentive children for this age group that I have ever worked with. Jeannie
  • Love the place, they treat my kids like family. Nick
  • When Mrs. Poland gave me a tour of GCDS, I felt like she was the owner of the school. Her compassion shown through. Beth
  • Being a resident of Columbia, it was refreshing to place my child at Summer Adventures Camp. Lee
  • It was refreshing to have my child at Summer Adventures Camp on 40 wooded acres. Jonathan
  • Having a class size of only 6 is why my child goes to GCDS. Jennifer
  • We want to thank you for your hard work in creating engaging lessons and meeting with students every day. As a teacher, I know how difficult it is to facilitate meaningful interaction with students in the current circumstances. Evelyn looks forward to circle time and loves watching your videos every day. Scott and Katherine
  • I've said it before to Mrs. Poland, but I'll say it again...my kids LOVE camp. I asked Ollie all kinds of questions on Saturday about it and he was getting very excited about everything he was telling me. He loves lunch outside. He also told me this weekend that he hurt his leg, but it was ok, Mrs. Harp would clean it and make it better at camp. Vivian usually dreads the idea of swim lessons, but because of camp, she thinks maybe she could handle swim lessons, and when I ask her if there is anything she doesn't like at camp, she told me she likes everything! Thank you for all of your hard work! Katie
  • I can't believe we're already signing up for the last week :( We are all so sad to see camp ending after next week. The kids really enjoyed it - they loved the activities and their teachers. Thanks for putting on a great camp, especially considering the pandemic! Erin
  • Ms. Poland, Following up with you via email after our parent/teacher conference last night. We want to thank you and the entire staff at Glenwood Country Day School (GCDS) for enduring the risk of the current pandemic by providing in-person education to our daughter. This summer, she was a rising Kindergarten student with learning delays with her speech. The virtual experience of the Spring of 2020 turned her off from learning and we saw her regress. We made the decision to enroll her in GCDS's Kindergarten program in the Fall of 2020 and it was the best decision we ever made. Our little girl, who was struggling with learning and turned off from the concept of online school, is now flourishing. Every day she is excited to go to school and most importantly her learning and comprehension is on par with other Kindergarten students. The other night, she read a sight word book to us and the look of pure joy and satisfaction on her face was something we will never forget. We are tremendously grateful to you and the rest of the GCDS staff for helping our daughter find her confidence and desire to learn. With many thanks, Matt & Tess Wiley Matt and Tess
  • Thank you for an amazing school year- the kids had a blast and learned so much! You guys are really awesome! Kristen
  • Thank you GCDS! When all other schools were virtual or hybrid this year, you made the courageous decision to go fully in person 5 days a week! And we made it through a whole school year with no COVID closings! On behalf of all working parents, THANK YOU!!!!! Darren
  • Hi Mrs. Poland, I wanted to let you know we are going to get a head start on our traveling for the 4th of July weekend. So the boys will not be at camp on Friday. I want to thank you & everyone at the camp! The boys are having a BLAST and we will definitely be back next summer!!! Stay cool, Kelly
  • Thanks to you and your great staff for once again doing a great job keeping our kids engaged and safe. Darren
  • Hi Mrs. Poland, My son had a great experience at Glenwood Country Day Camp this summer. It was his first summer at the camp and he didn't know anyone. After the first day, he felt very comfortable and met lots of friends. He enjoyed swimming, crafts, and field time. He can't wait to come back next summer and I'm looking forward to my youngest child being able to enjoy camp at Glenwood as well! Thank you! Kori
  • Just a quick note to let you know how much my son is enjoying camp this week. When I picked him up on Tuesday, I asked him how his day was and he replied that it "was the best day ever." I learned that his best buddy (also a camper) told his mom the same thing that afternoon! Yet, when I picked my son up yesterday and asked him the same question, he answered that his day "was even better than yesterday". You all must be doing something right to keep these 7 year old's so happy! Thanks and keep up the good work, Beth
  • Hi Mrs. Poland, We're all sad that the kids are missing their last day this summer at Glenwood. I wanted to thank you for everything this summer, specifically for your help in making sure Clark's camp experience ended on a good note. We hope you have a great rest of the summer and we hope to see you again next year. Thanks again! Kori
  • Madison ranked her teachers… Kindergarten= 9/10 First=9/10 I asked her what a 10 was and she said. Mr. Dameon! Kara