We are off to a great start! The children have been busy finding their way around their new school. They are getting to know new classmates. We are doing a variety of activities at morning meeting to help with this process. The children are discovering the many ways that they are alike and different from each other. We will learn to celebrate our differences. The children are doing a good job adjusting to the long school day. I know that the children are tired at the end of the day. That is because we are busy learning and having fun. You can be very proud of your Kindergartner.

We are working toward establishing a safe and caring community of learners. The goal is for each child to feel that they are an important part of the group. We discussed and wrote a list of classroom rules. Because the list was quite long, we decided on one rule that would cover them all: Don’t hurt anyone on the inside or the outside. We talked about what this meant and the children agreed that the rule was important.

Sarah graduated from the University of Maine at Farmington with a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and minored in Math and Computer Science. After graduating in 2003, she returned to South Portland and actively subbed in the elementary schools. In February, she was offered a long-term sub for a teacher on maternity leave, which helped her transition into a team-teaching position the following year.

When Sarah has a moment of free time she loves to spend time with her family and friends, read, ride her bike, sing, camp and help teach Sunday School at her church.

She feels very blessed to be part of this wonderful school system and hopes to work at Small School until her hair turns gray and they kick her out! Feel free to e-mail her at PikeSa@spsd.org if you have any questions!

Karen Williamson has been a teacher for twenty years. She graduated from the University of Maine at Orono with a degree in Child Development/Family Relations. Karen taught Kindergarten in both Lincoln and Cumberland, Maine and also worked as a special education paraprofessional in a second grade classroom while living in Massachusetts for one year. Karen is happy to be a new member of the South Portland faculty at Small School and is looking forward to a fulfilling, learning-rich year with her students.

Karen is married and has two children, Zachary and Nathan. Zach is a junior at the United States Naval Academy and Nate is in 7 th grade. Her husband Andy is a district manager for New England Trane. In their free time together, the Williamsons enjoy camping, hiking, walking their dogs Skippy and Roxie, doing puzzles, reading, and having a great time with family and friends.

You can contact Karen at williaka@spsd.org at any time and she will be happy to respond to any questions you may have.