Welcome to PALS 2021-22 !
Hello Families! Welcome to a new year of PALS! I’m going to be contacting each family individually with this letter and to check in about your schedule, This year's webpage is up and is right here. If you are a returning family please read through because a number of things are different from last year's letter.
If you just recently got an evaluation- We still need to review the assessment & have an initial ARD before your child can start, and your child will need to be enrolled as a student at Eanes Elementary. I will get in touch with each family individually about reviewing the assessment & setting up those ARD meetings, but you can be working on enrollment at https://www.eanesisd.net/parents/enrollment
Covid considerations- I'll do what I can within state law, district policy and school logistics to maintain a safe environment for your child. Every child will have their own set of materials and I'll be wiping down/cleaning furniture and materials daily. I have been fully vaccinated and I'll be working in mask when we're in the classroom until the county says they aren't needed. We'll work on the kids wearing masks as much as is possible or practical. As always, we're ready to pivot so if/when there are significant changes from what I've laid out here, I will let you know.
Calendar- PALS will follow the school calendar. We will not meet on parent conference days, early release days and days when I need to attend trainings which cannot be rescheduled. Our first day will be on Monday, August 23, 2021 and our last day will be May 19, 2022.
Pick-up /drop off time and place : Our hours this year will be 11:45-1:45. This aligns our dismissal time with PPCD classrooms, so it makes it a little easier to manage staffing and transportation. Car drop off & pick-up will be at our back gate which is on Eanes School Road. We'll arrive at 11:40 & we’ll wait until 11:50 if people are running late. If you If you happen to be running later than that, you can bring your child through the front office and meet us in the classroom. If you can text me to let me know, that's fine, but if not we'll just see you when you get here. I would rather have students come in late than have them miss a whole session. Students are always welcome and encouraged to attend, no matter how late they may be.
Our webpage for PALS is right here at https://sites.google.com/eanesisd.net/ee-ms-szymczak/pals-2021-22. I use our website in every session, and each book we read has a webpage with corresponding games, activities, yoga postures, printables (including the craft we produce), target words and grammatical forms. I'm going to be uploading videos of me reading each of our upcoming books, and there will be links so you can always access those. You are invited to use those resources in whatever way works for your family. If you have ideas for things I could add to those posts, please let me know.
Classroom supplies: We have enough basic supplies to start all of our PALS students off with their own personal set of scissors, glue and crayons, so I'm not asking for families to provide those. However, if you can possibly help out with some other classroom supplies, mainly things for crafts, hygiene and our treasure box, I have an Amazon list at www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2YF0ZN62BE922?leftNavSection=Shopping&ref_=abls_lnv_sl. I do get some classroom money from the district and/or the booster club, 100-150$ most years, and this is the list I use to spend that.
Please send me digital or hard-copy pictures of your child and family! This is really an “all year” request. When something fun and/or interesting happens in your child’s life, send me some relevant pictures & we’ll practice talking about that in class.
Backpack items: When coming to PALS, your child should bring:
Until later,
Denise Szymczak MA, CCC/SLP
If you just recently got an evaluation- We still need to review the assessment & have an initial ARD before your child can start, and your child will need to be enrolled as a student at Eanes Elementary. I will get in touch with each family individually about reviewing the assessment & setting up those ARD meetings, but you can be working on enrollment at https://www.eanesisd.net/parents/enrollment
Covid considerations- I'll do what I can within state law, district policy and school logistics to maintain a safe environment for your child. Every child will have their own set of materials and I'll be wiping down/cleaning furniture and materials daily. I have been fully vaccinated and I'll be working in mask when we're in the classroom until the county says they aren't needed. We'll work on the kids wearing masks as much as is possible or practical. As always, we're ready to pivot so if/when there are significant changes from what I've laid out here, I will let you know.
Calendar- PALS will follow the school calendar. We will not meet on parent conference days, early release days and days when I need to attend trainings which cannot be rescheduled. Our first day will be on Monday, August 23, 2021 and our last day will be May 19, 2022.
Pick-up /drop off time and place : Our hours this year will be 11:45-1:45. This aligns our dismissal time with PPCD classrooms, so it makes it a little easier to manage staffing and transportation. Car drop off & pick-up will be at our back gate which is on Eanes School Road. We'll arrive at 11:40 & we’ll wait until 11:50 if people are running late. If you If you happen to be running later than that, you can bring your child through the front office and meet us in the classroom. If you can text me to let me know, that's fine, but if not we'll just see you when you get here. I would rather have students come in late than have them miss a whole session. Students are always welcome and encouraged to attend, no matter how late they may be.
Our webpage for PALS is right here at https://sites.google.com/eanesisd.net/ee-ms-szymczak/pals-2021-22. I use our website in every session, and each book we read has a webpage with corresponding games, activities, yoga postures, printables (including the craft we produce), target words and grammatical forms. I'm going to be uploading videos of me reading each of our upcoming books, and there will be links so you can always access those. You are invited to use those resources in whatever way works for your family. If you have ideas for things I could add to those posts, please let me know.
Classroom supplies: We have enough basic supplies to start all of our PALS students off with their own personal set of scissors, glue and crayons, so I'm not asking for families to provide those. However, if you can possibly help out with some other classroom supplies, mainly things for crafts, hygiene and our treasure box, I have an Amazon list at www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2YF0ZN62BE922?leftNavSection=Shopping&ref_=abls_lnv_sl. I do get some classroom money from the district and/or the booster club, 100-150$ most years, and this is the list I use to spend that.
Please send me digital or hard-copy pictures of your child and family! This is really an “all year” request. When something fun and/or interesting happens in your child’s life, send me some relevant pictures & we’ll practice talking about that in class.
Backpack items: When coming to PALS, your child should bring:
- backpack
- securely closed water bottle
- lunch or snack if they haven't eaten yet
- change of clothes
- child-sized collapsible umbrella that can fit in the backpack
Until later,
Denise Szymczak MA, CCC/SLP