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Tyra Johnston’s
Kindergarten Class: 2023-2024
Welcome to the beginning of your child’s adventure in elementary school!
I’m looking forward to meeting (and re-meeting, for those of you who have returning siblings!) you all soon! Kindergarten is a special time full of learning and playing, maturing and becoming more aware of ourselves, exploring academic and artistic interests, and building relationships within our classroom community! We have a lot of fun at school making friends and exploring the world!
Here’s a little about me: I’ve been teaching at Ann Arbor Open for over 20 years, mostly in Kindergarten and 1st-2nd multiage classrooms (with a dash of 4th-5th-6th!). Originally from New York City, I came to UM to study English Literature. After college I was a preschool teacher, which I loved. I then went to the University of Pennsylvania for my Master’s degree, then returned to Ann Arbor to begin teaching elementary school.
My husband Christopher Becker works in the youth department of the Ann Arbor District library and my daughter, Astrid, is starting her third year of high school at Pioneer. She has been enjoying being on the crew team, working at the Michigan Theater and, this week, getting her driver’s license!! (I was lucky enough to see her every day while she attended Open, Kindergarten-8th grade)
I’m looking forward to hearing about your families, and everything about your children: what’s important to them, their interests, their families and pets, their hopes and dreams and fears. I especially want to hear about any challenges or concerns you have. *Please write me an email any time to introduce yourself and your child, ask questions and/or describe anything it would be useful for me to know as we start the school year including allergies and health issues (johnsto2@aaps.k12.mi.us).
*I also need to know what your child is doing after school the first day and for the first week (as in, getting picked up/by whom/taking the bus).
Our room is #251 (on the inside), #12 on the outside. Children will enter every day from the outside when the bell rings at 8:10 - it is labeled with my name. Plan on coming in on Monday, looking around, helping your child get situated. We’ll start our Morning Meeting around 8:20 and you’re welcome to stay for a little bit then say goodbye!
Supplies Needed: Nothing specific is needed except for:
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a backpack that is on the larger side (not cute and small) to hold all the things Kindergarteners carry back and forth (We want your child to be independent packing their backpack, especially with all the outside gear required during the winter, and it’s much easier - and practical - to do if a grown up isn’t needed to stuff everything in!)
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A lunch box (unless they’ll exclusively be having hot lunch). Labeled on the outside with your child’s name and/or mine.
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A water bottle that fits into the lunch box on the outside in a pocket or inside if possible. We’ll have cups for use in the room, washed often.
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A bag of extra clothes for “accidents” or wet situations for me to keep in the classroom (or to keep in your child’s backpack.
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Everything - all year -should be labeled with your child’s name (for easy return from the lost and found).
Allergies or other Health Issues:
Please let me know right away if your child has any allergies (so we can make adjustments in the classroom food-wise) or health issues (they’re listed on the “portal” but having more detailed information is useful)Snack: I serve a class-wide shared snack 1-2 times a day, with each family contributing once a month. More info to follow, but for now we will have fruits and vegetables only (until we determine if there are any allergies). If you prefer, your child can eat their own snacks from home - just let me know your preferences (and any allergies).
Schedule: This week the teachers and staff will learn more about our daily schedules (Specials, lunchtime) which I will pass on to you ASAP!
We will not be having a “Meet the Teachers” event for Young 5s and Kindergarten this year. Due to the construction/remodeling that’s being finished up on the building (and the unpacking and setting up that is taking much longer than in a typical year for us teachers), we’ll have to forgo this event.
I’ll see you soon!!
- Tyra
johnsto2@aaps.k12.mi.us
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Tyra Johnston
johnsto2@aaps.k12.mi.us