Welcome Letter

Dear Families,

We hope you are all having an enjoyable and relaxing summer vacation, filled with fun, family and friends. We are excited to welcome you to Stefanie and Kristin's first grade class!  We are looking forward to starting the school year and wanted to introduce ourselves to our new classroom community. 

This is our second year co-teaching together and we couldn’t be more thrilled.  We both graduated from Teachers College at Columbia University and are certified in general and special education.  We share a passion for social justice, creative conflict resolution and inclusion.  

First grade is an incredible year where our work focuses on community.  We believe in creating and sustaining an inclusive and democratic classroom community where students feel safe to take risks and share their ideas.  Our students develop skills around collaboration, social activism, critical thinking and empathy.

In our classroom, first graders are explorers, readers, writers, mathematicians, and scientists. We will work hard to create a rigorous classroom environment full of rich academic and social opportunities.  We integrate our studies through project work and drama and we always make sure we have time to cook, sing, take trips and play inside and outside.

We look forward to working with you and learning with your child this year.  To help us prepare for the school year, we are hoping you can share some special information about your child.  We have included two surveys about your daughter or son, and look forward to learning about your child – our new student!  If you would like to support your child’s classroom, please check out the attached school supplies list. Thank you so much for your help!

School begins Thursday, September 4th.  It will be a full day. We will meet you in the schoolyard at 8:30am to pick up the class. Dismissal will be in the yard at 2:50 pm.  If you have any questions, please contact us by email - stefanieandkristin.evcs1@gmail.com.  We also strongly encourage you to visit our class blog for information about our classroom - http://evcsfirstgrade401.blogspot.com. 

We are eager to embark on this first grade adventure together and to learn alongside the children and families of our classroom. Enjoy the rest of your summer! We look forward to seeing you in September!

Sincerely,

Kristin and Stefanie