ROSEBORO — With the summer winding down, Teacher Gina Cain is ready to seeing little kindergartners start their school year. But before the big day at Roseboro Elementary School, she wants to see their parents enter the building’s doors first.

The school is hosting its PACKS academy on Tuesday, Aug. 8, at the school, located at 180 Butler Island Road, Roseboro. PACKS stands for “Parent Academy: Creating Kindergarten Success.” The purpose is to give parents an opportunity to learn about expectations during the school year.

“Kindergarten has changed so much,” she said. “There’s so much to learn in kindergarten now that they’re responsible for. It’s so important.”

To accommodate parents, Roseboro Elementary scheduled two sessions for the day-long activity. The first is set for 9 to 11 a.m. and the second is 6 to 8 p.m. Parents are only required to attend one meeting, which are being held in the RES Library/Media Center. Discussions will include objectives for English language arts, reading, math, science and social studies.

Cain, a organizer for the program said the vision of their parent’s academy began about four years ago.

“It’s been a real success,” she said about working with parents during the sessions. “It gives them a heads-up about kindergarten, so they know what to expect and what to be working on with their child until school starts and after. It will give them a head start.”

During the creation of the academy, she believes it became more important, especially with schools moving towards Common Core, a set of academic standards used throughout the United States.

“Even though that’s kind of dwindling off, we still use a lot of those aspects of the Common Core which are really good, especially for kindergarten,” Cain said. “So many were wanting something and we saw the need. It’s been a good thing. We had a really good turnout the next four years. It continues to grow each year.”

Parents will also receive information on benchmark testing and other assessments to measure the learning process. They will also receive important information on parent accountability and ways to help at home. Light refreshments will be served and parents are being asked to bring pens and paper to take notes. Handouts will also be provided.

To accommodate participants with materials, school officials are asking interested parents to RSVP by Friday, Aug. 4, to attend an morning or evening session. For more information or to RSVP, contact School Secretary Tiffany Edwards or Principal Tonya Colwell at 910-525-4538.

“We’re just really looking forward to it and we’re hoping that we get a really good turnout because there’s a lot of information that the parents need to know and it will be really beneficial to them,” Cain said.

Kindergarten students at Roseboro Elementary School use iPads during a school day.
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/web1_Pad_5.jpgKindergarten students at Roseboro Elementary School use iPads during a school day.

By Chase Jordan

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