Welcome to first grade!

After a long summer break, your child must be excited to start this school year and meet new friends. We will learn new material this

school year while having fun doing so. In this first newsletter, I will briefly talk
about of what to expect in first grade.

Arrival and Dismissal

The first bell rings at 9:00 am and the student will be late if arrived after 9:05 am. On Wednesdays, classes begin 15 minutes later due to staff collaboration. Students will be dismissed at 3:45 pm on a daily bases. Make sure to fill out the card on your childs form of transportation to get home and who may be allowed to pick up your child. Please return the card to me on the first day of school. I want the children to feel welcome in my classroom. It should be a place where children can come and feel like they are a part of our little community. Their very best behavior is a must thorough out the school year. During the first week we will make a list of rules that they are to follow and it will be sent home and posted in our classroom. We will discuss the importance of these rules. Some of the rules will be: keeping our hands to ourselves, raising a hand when to speak, using our quiet voices, saying please and thank you, taking turns and respect every one including the staff.

Class Expectations

Technology in Our Classroom

Technology is taking a big part in the lives of each and every one of us. I want to include technology in our daily learning where your child may learn sight words, phonics, vocabulary, math, and reading. Well use decodable books to help with the new words and to get fluent on the sight words with the help of computers. Other skills that theyll acquire are rimes, patterns and sounds. I believe that through technology, children can experience learning in a different way. In your packet you will find the permission form for your child to participate in these kinds of activities. Please fill it out and return to me by Friday. Parents know their child more than anyone and their involvement is essential in their childs education. They will need your help at home with daily homework including reading. Children do tend to do better in school when their parent(s) help with homework and take some part in their education. I want to encourage all of you to participate in your childs education. Every morning each student will be doing their daily task which will include a calendar where they will note todays date, current weather conditions including temperature, count the number of students present, count how many hot and cold lunches, and do a tally mark for each day that they are in school. For those who want a little challenge, they can write a sentence or two about anything they want. They will do this every morning, Monday through Friday, and then input their findings on the computer. This will give students a chance to work with computers. Since Fridays are parental involvement days, students can get help from parents and me if they need it. At the end of each month, students will share their printed results with their classmates and note any differences that they see. Than in a group of five, they will decide which numbers are correct (number of students, lunches and number of days in school) and make a bar graph to share with the class.

Parental Involvement

Daily Morning Work

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Homework Folders

Every Friday your student will get a Homework folder where you can find assignments, sight words, and spelling words for the upcoming week. These are due back at the end of each week. In addition, on the last day of the month, you will find a reading log for the upcoming month where you can record your daily reading with your child. These are due back at the end of the month. This folder may be used as a communication tool to send in notes and important messages. Other material will also be send home in this folder. This folder will be coming home each day and should be brought back to school the next day. I encourage you to talk with me about your childs education progress and any concerns that you might have. In addition to the parent-teacher conferences, I want to let you know that I am available to talk to you at any time that you have questions about your child and his/her education. Report cards will be going home at specific times during the school year. Book orders will be sent home each month. You may fill out the order on the back or order online through our classroom. The access code will be provided for you to register and order online if youd prefer. Books are a great way to learn and spend time with your child. I encourage you to look into Scholastic Book Club and see the great variety of books available.

Parent - Teacher Conferences

Scholastic Book Club

I have a sign-up sheet for those who want to volunteer in the classroom. There are different areas in which you can take part in on different days of the week. I want to point out that our schedule will not be the same on Fridays. We will be doing different activities where children get to work in groups on different subjects. All parents are more than welcome to come and be part of their childs learning experience.

I want to encourage all of you to participate in your childs education whether at home or in school. Please contact me if you should have any questions or concerns at any time throughout the year. In your packet you will also find a sheet with all the contact information for me and our school. The lunch menu for this month is also included in your packet. Thank you for letting me to be a part of your childs education.