Come meet the rest of the kinder crew, kids and families, and your teachers. Please bring snacks to share and join us in getting to know one another.
We'll socialize and get to work beautifying the outdoor kindergarten space to get it ready for your kids. Children are welcome if they’d like to help or one parent can watch kids on the playground. Bring tools, painting equipment, gardening supplies, anything you think might come in handy. There will be jobs big and small, something for everyone. We’ll be keeping the classroom closed until the first day of school.
The Ice Ceam Social is from 3:00pm to 5:00pm. This is a time to meet and greet new and returning families, locate your parent boxes, have children choose their cubbies, prepay for lunch and/or aftercare, sign up for carpooling, and double check information and paperwork. If you have not already done so, please be sure to bring the filled out forms from your back to school packet and any payments due.
Let's spend the day at the beach together as an Orchard Community! We’ll be at Platform Beach from 10:00am to 2:30pm.
Meet us at the beach or drop your child at school.
Stay for all or some of the time.
Pick your child up from the beach or we can carpool back and you can pick up from school. Aftercare will be provided at school for those who need it.
We will be partcipating in the nationwide beach clean up. Gloves and buckets provided.
Spend the day at the beach, pack a picnic lunch, participate in beach clean-up, and play all day with others in the Orchard community. Please know that your child is included even if you are unable to attend. Kids are allowed to be in the water up to their waists when teachers are lifeguarding. Boogie boards, skimboards, and other beach toys are fine; however, we are not allowing surf boards.
Buy & sell tickets to win!
Tickets can be sold for $5.00 per ticket or $25 per packet of 6. Families each receive 12 packets to sell for starters. Tickets available in the website shop or click the link at the top of the website’s home page. Or, click here: on or after the 18th.
You don’t have to live in Santa Cruz or be present to win. Schools all over our community are participating in this event, so the sooner you can get out and sell your tickets, the better
Come to a feast prepared by your children using food they gathered from the garden. There will be sweets and savories galore. Arrive on time and don’t forget your waste free place settings.
School portraits will be taken for the yearbook and photo packages can be purchased.
Come listen to your children sing some songs then send them along to aftercare (compliments of Orchard for this event) and hear about how we structure our time in class together, along with information about field trips. Mostly this is a time to connect and get to know each other better.
Visit your children’s classrooms to hear from teachers about plans for the year, teaching styles, curriculum, field trips etc.
Come in costume! Classes will perform skits. There’s a zero-waste finger food potluck.
The Winter Play will be an all-school performance of Charlotte’s Web. Please arrive at 6
We will have a finger food potluck and a holiday market in the yurt from 7:30-8:30
Childcare provided free of charge in our school’s aftercare program.
The financial aid deadline for returning students for the 2027-2028 school year is February 12th. We give priority to continuing students but will offer remaining monies to new families shortly after this date. Please be sure to turn in all tax information and all of the necessary paperwork, facts and figures, so there are no delays. The application costs $45 and can be found on the website under the Admissions tab. Look for the button named FAST. For help, please contact FAST’s support email address: familysupport@ismfast.com
Please pay your re-enrollment fee by this date to hold your child’s place to attend in the fall.
Childcare provided free of charge in our school’s aftercare program.
This is an all school event. Students will participate in a short performance followed by a celebration of our graduates. We’ll end with a zero-waste, finger-food potluck.
Meet on the kinder deck at 12:30! Kindergarten family and friends only. Ceremony followed by potluck. You may take your children home early or hang around with them until 3pm.
Let’s end the year how we began: a family beach day at Platform’s Beach. Everyone welcome. Bring a picnic, sand toys, and beach games. Drop off your child or stay and frolic with us.
And that’s a wrap! Half day and no hot lunch! Have a great summer Orchard families!
Our last Friday is a minimum day — School ends at noon. Families may set up tents then and return to the campout no earlier than 7pm.