Hello from LaNessa West

Hi, and welcome to the Collegiate community!

My name is LaNessa West, and I am the Lower School Chair of Academic Services.  I am delighted that your precious "babies" will be joining us this year.

I serve as a "point guard" for students, teachers, parents and learning specialists.  I am dedicated to meeting the needs of ALL students, especially those with learning differences.  Assisting in developing a plan for instruction and suggesting strategies to help students work toward their academic potential is my "claim to fame"!  I cannot wait to see those smiling faces enter Luck Hall!  I already consider it a privilege to be even a small part of one of the most important milestones of your little one's life.

Please feel free to email me with any questions at lwest@collegiate-va.org.  Otherwise, see you next week!

      LaNessa West
      Lower School Academic Services

Important Email from Collegiate School

Hello everyone....I hope each of you received your personal Back-to-School email from Collegiate....be sure you don't overlook it, it has important information in it about the start of the school year, and requires action from you.  Everyone's link is personal to your child, so be sure not to miss it in your inbox.  Let us know if you have any questions...I don't know if I'll have the answers, but I can certainly try! 

Also be sure to peruse the "Back to School" portion of the website.  There is a LOT of good and important information there.  Here is the link, just in case:

http://cougar.collegiate-va.org/backtoschool2013/

I hope you are enjoying your summer and this beautiful weather!

Anne Bruce

Hello all -- I am forwarding a nice note from our Lower School Guidance Counselor, Marella Gregory.  She is wonderful!  Please feel free to contact her with any questions about her services or Collegiate's Character Education program.

Anne Bruce



Welcome Kindergarten families!  Collegiate's Lower School guidance program has much to offer.  I like to think of it as one of our "diamonds in the Collegiate rough," which I know can be an overwhelming experience for incoming parents.  Like a diamond, our guidance program is made up of "four C's," but not cut, color, clarity, and karat weight.  As you're acclimating to Collegiate, please try the following on for size:

*  Counseling:  We offer individual and small group counseling sessions to meet our LS students' growing and changing needs.  Most visits occur during the lunch or recess time blocks in order to avoid interruptions to instructional time.  Parents and/or teachers refer students as needed, and of course, our students love to "self-refer."  Outside counseling sessions are occasionally recommended for those needs beyond the realm of predictable and developmental needs.

*  Classroom Guidance:  I meet with each and every class once a month to explore Collegiate's five values (honor, love of learning, excellence, respect and community), as well as to discuss and practice skills that contribute to the efforts of successful learners.

*  Consultation:  Many of our Collegiate parents like the opportunity to consult with our school counselor regarding how best to help their children learn and grow.  Teachers and other adults in our Richmond and school community work with me as well, to discuss best practices when it comes to meeting the growing needs (and wants) of our children in appropriate and healthy ways.  This piece of our program proves again and again that two (or three or four...) heads are better than one.

*  Coordination: Parent Education programs for Collegiate family needs are offered throughout the school year.  Outside professionals are often invited in to share their expertise with us in conjunction with our Lower School Counselor, administrators, and often classroom teachers.  Once again, the synergy of working together can be a great asset to our children.  Some frequently requested topics are:  The Birds and the Bees,  How to Recognize and Navigate Bullying, Social & Emotional Growth and Development (with an emphasis on technology), etc.  Still, as with most of what we offer, student needs drive this piece of our program.

Again, welcome!  I hope you will feel free to call or set up an appointment to meet with me.  I have been at Collegiate for over 10 years, and am fast approaching my 30th year as an educator.  I look forward to continued learning and growth with you and our newest cougars.


Sincerely,


Marella Gregory

Hello and an Invitation from Liane Pace!

With the excitement of Kindergarten rising for both parents and students, I thought I would initiate my blog to serve as a forum for reminders and tips as well as an invitation for two get-togethers. 

First, I would like to introduce myself for those I may not know, or did not get the opportunity to meet at the "play day" in May.  My name is Liane Pace, and my son Quinn is a rising Kindergartner.  I also have two other children -- Hudson, a rising third grader, and Ellis, a "rising" preschooler :).  I am the Collegiate Kindergarten New Families Representative this school year.  I am here to assist with questions that you may have through the year, as well as to provide you with brief reminders for fun school events…and there will be so many exciting ones!  For some of you, this will not be new information because you already have a child(ren) at Collegiate, but maybe still helpful reminders.

I know it is only July, but the start of school is right around the corner and our little ones, our pride and joy, our hard-to-believe Kindergartners will be off to start their "school career!"  This is big stuff!!  In their sweet little minds and lives probably one of the biggest events thus far.  You have prepared them for this amazing journey they are about to embark on, so hopefully I can provide information to better prepare you…..

FUN, FUN and more FUN!!  Meeting new friends, teachers, administrators, participating in exciting beginning of the school year activities, becoming part of the Collegiate community, proudly wearing green and gold and maybe being a little tired too!!  All normal, all expected and all reason to celebrate!  They have done it- started Kindergarten!

Speaking of starting school, here are some helpful reminders -

•    Collegiate-provided tote bags are in lieu of backpacks for the K students.

•    Please review the handbook for important information (it was mailed last Thursday, so you should have it by now or will soon!), and please make special note of the dress code before "back-to-school" clothes and shoe shopping.

•    Be on the lookout for a Collegiate email regarding forms needed to be completed (i.e. lunch order form), volunteer positions (great way to meet fellow Collegiate parents) and other pertinent information. You should have already received an email asking you to complete and submit the new driver's form.  I would encourage you to do so, so that you are cleared to drive the students on field trips.

•    Class assignments will be mailed August 13th!!!

Now, let's have our kiddos meet again to get to know each other more - if your fun summer plans allow, as well as if the weather permits, please join us on the Collegiate playground "Fort Cougar" this Saturday, July 27th, from 10-11am.  I sent an email invitation to everyone, I hope you got it!  Also, be on the look out for a Mom's Night Out e-vite, which will be held late August!

So, for now, I urge you to explore the Collegiate website, enjoy your summer and contact me with any questions.

I will leave you with a story from just a few (very quickly passing) years ago, from my oldest sons' first day of Kindergarten - my husband and I arrived to Collegiate early with our son to take the standard "first day of school" photo in front of school, and after taking the picture we were ready to walk him into his classroom until he turned to us and said, "Mom, please let's get back in the car and drop me off in the carpool line."  My heart wanted to walk him into school, I had trouble even letting go of his hand, but his mature comment and the confident manner in which he conveyed it, as well as his excitement, provided a moment in parenthood never to be forgotten.  He was ready - our kids are ready!!

 Looking forward to seeing you soon!  Go Cougars!

A Note from P.E. Teacher, Page Chapman

 

Welcome to Collegiate,

My name is Page Chapman.  I have been the Kindergarten and 1st Grade physical education teacher at Collegiate since 2000.  Along with my teaching duties, I coach the JV soccer team in the fall and the co-ed soccer team in the winter.   Sports and physical education have always been a part of my life, and I love teaching children the foundations of the importance of being active. My hobbies outside of Collegiate are playing/refereeing soccer, being with family, and most of all, fly-fishing.  

Kindergarten students have physical education twice a week for a total of one hour.  The main focus is on movement exploration as it relates to personal and general space.  Loco-motor and non-locomotor skills are taught in relationship to spatial awareness on a variety of levels, speeds, and directions.  In Kindergarten, the children will have the opportunity to develop eye-hand coordination by using many manipulatives.  We will teach elementary fitness concepts, as well as exercises to develop an appreciation for life-long fitness.  During each class the children will begin to develop essential values that promote good character.  

*IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT PROPER FOOTWEAR AT SCHOOL*

The following statement is from the Collegiate Lower School Handbook:  “Athletic shoes worn every day are the most appropriate footwear for school since active movement (recess and P.E. classes) is scheduled each day.   We request that students not wear slip-on shoes or sandals.   All shoes should be comfortable yet safe for active and vigorous movement/play, including climbing on equipment, running and stopping quickly, and kicking exercises.   The dress code for physical education classes requires that each child wear athletic shoes (with laces that really tie or two secured Velcro straps), and loose fitting clothes that allow for active and safe movement."  

I look forward to meeting your child in the fall and hope your summer is fantastic.  Please contact me at pchapman@collegiate-va.org  if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Page Chapman

Collegiate Website Parent Log-in

 Happy 4th of July everyone!!  I hope you are enjoying your summer, and that you are finding some activities to keep everyone busy despite this rain!  Hopefully it will move out before the long weekend, and we can enjoy some outdoor fun and festivities with friends and family.

I wanted to let you know that all new parents have now been assigned a "Parent Log-In" to access the parent section of the Collegiate School website!!  Here’s what you do:

• Click HERE to go to the parent section of the website. 

• In the top left corner, there is a place to enter a "user name."  Your user name is your REAL first name (as you submitted it to Collegiate) + your last name, and it is case sensitive.  So Peggy Smith would be MargaretSmith... Cathy Wall would be CatherineWall, etc.  After you've entered your user name, click "Log In Help" to get your temporary password. 

• The user name for any parent who is ALSO an alum of Collegiate will contain your class year at the end: for example, AndrewMiller91. 

If you have any trouble or questions, please email Dianne Carter in the Communications office at dcarter@collegiate-va.org, and she will help you out!

I also wanted to let you know that the Lower School Handbook is in production as I write this, and each of you will receive one in the mail in a couple of weeks.  The Handbook contains a great deal of wonderful information about Lower School -- including school hours, carpool information, dress code, etc.  So keep an eye out. 

I will post again when it's in the mail!

Enjoy the parent section of the website.  I encourage each of you, new or "old," to peruse the website occasionally over the summer....it's chock full of great information and is updated constantly with current news, reflections, and summer faculty activity.

As always, please let me know if I can answer any questions for you!

Stay dry,

Anne Bruce