Kindergarten & New Families 2025-26

 

The Riverside PTA is excited to welcome you and your children to the school. We hope this section will help you get ready for the school year ahead!

 

 

KINDERGARTEN & NEW FAMILY SNEAK PEEK

On August 15th, you should have received information about your child's classroom placement in addition to a welcome back letter from Principal Jason Martin. In addition, a lot of information is also available on the school website.

 

New Family and Kindergarten Orientation is held the day before the first day of school for all children and parents new to the school.  

 

That is usually a great time to see your child's classroom, view other areas of the school, learn important information, meet other parents, and shop Riverside spirit wear. It's also a great time to ask questions and check out the playground, too.

 

If you have any questions or queries, please don't hesitate to reach out to a PTA Committee member.

 

 

DROP-OFF AND DISMISSAL

Doors open at 8:30 am and close at 8:45 am. For more information on school drop-off and dismissal, see the Drop-Off & Dismissal Info page.

 

 

SCHOOL SUPPLIES

Please see the school's list of 2025-2026 school supplies for items requested by grade level. Earbuds and headphones should be purchased separately. It is strongly advised that Kindergarteners have headphones rather than earbuds. Note that grades K-2 will need USB-C compatible headphones.  

 

RIVERSIDE SUMMER READ 

The Riverside Summer Read is a shared reading experience for all the students and families at Riverside. It not only encourages students to read over the summer but also becomes a reference point for conversations between parents, children, teachers, librarians, neighbors, and friends. Visit the Summer Read page for more information about this year's selection.

  

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HOW TO STAY INFORMED

There are many ways to stay up to speed on what's going on at Riverside School. It's important to know that the school and the PTA may use different systems. 

 

 

Update your contact information with the main school office. This ensures you get emails from school administration and other district emails. 

 

Visit the Riverside School Website. Maintained by the school, the Riverside School website has lots of great information. Take a look and become familiar with it.

 

 

 

Look out for PEEK at the Week Newsletters. The Riverside PTA sends out a weekly email on Friday to the entire school community. This weekly blast is full of everything you want to know about what's going on around the school.

 

 

 

Read PTA Emails. The Riverside PTA sends emails about events, information, etc. to help communicate with the parent community. Please add our email address riversideschoolpta@gmail.com to your contact list to avoid emails going to the junk folder. 

 

 

 

 

Check the Riverside PTA Calendar. Throughout the year, the PTA sponsors events at the school. In the Fall, you won't want to miss Picture Day, Boo Bash, and Book Fair, to name a few. You can sync the PTA Calendar with your personal one from the App. 

 

Check the District Calendar. It's always a good idea to visit the District Calendars to enter important dates into your schedule. Make note of the Early Release days and days off from school so they don't sneak up on you! 

 

 

  

 Review the Rules of the Road. Parents and caregivers will be asked to review the "Rules of the Road" guide so we can all keep Riverside School safe for everyone at drop-off and pick-up. 

 

We are also always looking for people to help with Safety Duty each morning. Every day from 8:30-8:45am, parent volunteers are needed to help our students get safely out of cars in the drop-off lane in front of the school.

 

 

OTHER TOOLS TO HELP YOU STAY ORGANIZED

 

Riverside Reel. We have a password-protected website for photos and videos of the various PTA events happening throughout the year. Take a trip down memory lane or see what happened recently. Once the school year is underway, parents will receive information on how to access the secure site. Click here to read more.

 

 

 

 

When you’re prompted to do so near the start of the new school year, create a free parent profile on RIVPTA.ORG. MyPage is the parent dashboard. Here you can access and update your family information, directory publishing preferences, ticket sales, event sign-ups, and much more! All open volunteer opportunities can also be accessed from here. 

 

Don't forget to get the app! Apple or Android

 

 

 

School Dismissal Manager. You can access it from your computer or your mobile device. This system is how parents communicate school pick-up instructions to the teacher as well as documenting absences, late arrivals and early pick-ups.

 

 Get the app for Apple or Android

 

 

 

 

Class Parents. Each class will have two class parents assigned to help the teacher communicate important information. If you ever have any questions, please email your class parent!

 

 

THERE'S AN APP FOR IT!

Here is a great list of the essential mobile apps mentioned above that you will need to help with communication between the school and home.

 

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RIVERSIDE ROPES NOTES

In 2014, Greenwich Public Schools adopted district behavioral norms for all its schools.  Staff members model and reinforce these qualities of good character and work with parents and community members to develop them in students. These district norms are: Be Here, Be Safe, Be Honest, Care for Self and Others, and Let Go & Move On.

 

At Riverside School, students who are spotted doing something that represents one more of the district norms may be issued a "ROPES Slip" to help encourage students to follow the norms and be good community members. Each month, the ROPES Slip recipients from that month have their pictures taken to be hung in the hallway outside the gym, along with their special notes. It's always fun to visit the wall if you're in school.

 

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RIVERSIDE SPIRIT DAYS & RIVERSIDE RED T-SHIRTS

Many days throughout the year, students are encouraged to wear their Riverside Red Shirts to show Riverside School spirit. These are special shirts available for purchase through the Riverside PTA Spirit Store (which closes during the summer but reopens at the start of the school year). A Spirit Wear table will also be set up at a variety of events (including at the new student Orientation day and the PTA Volunteer Fair), so you can be sure to pick up a shirt then. The students are often asked to wear their Riverside Red Shirts for field trips.

 

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PTA WELCOME BACK VOLUNTEER FAIR

After morning drop-off on the first day of school, the Riverside PTA invites all parents to its annual Volunteer Fair. Here you can meet other parents, learn about the various ways the PTA works together with the teachers and staff at Riverside School and discover ways that you can get involved. The goal of the Riverside PTA is to enrich the school experience of every student at Riverside while supporting our teachers and fostering a special community for our families. We encourage every parent to get involved—no contribution is too small. For more information, please read about what we do for the Riverside community.

 

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