Kellie Hansen, Room 137 Harmony Science Academy, Fort Worth 817.263.0700, ext. 137 khansen@harmonytx.

org

4th Grade Math and Science Student Information & Expectations

Welcome back to school!

We are going to have a great time in fourth grade! Im excited for you to join me as we learn about numbers, fractions, graphs, life cycles, the earth, matter, and lots more! We will be working hard, but also having a lot of fun! In this packet you will find all the rules, explanations, and expectations of the upcoming school year.
Student Expectations

Harmony Science Academy is a fun place to be, but this is because we are all expected to act our very best while at school. The following rules are school wide expectations that must be followed: Attend school regularly. Parents must conference with teacher about extended absences. Respect: Others, the classroom, yourself, and the right to learn. Enter quietly and begin work immediately. Follow directions of any teacher the first time they are given. Come to class with a can-do attitude. Seat yourself before the tardy bell rings. Swearing and teasing others will not be tolerated. Maintain a clean and safe working area during class and lab. Always have a hall pass when not in class during class time. NO Electronics such as Gameboys, Kindles, etc. Cell phones may be kept with the child for emergency purposes, but may not be used in class. Food, Drinks, Gum Policy: No gum, soda, or energy drinks are allowed in the classroom. Students are encouraged to bring a water bottle in order to limit trips to the drinking fountain. If, however, a water bottle becomes a distraction, the privilege will be taken away and drinks will have to be taken during break times. One healthy snack is allowed at 10:00 for a ten minute break and snack time. If medical circumstances require the student to have other food items, the teacher and school nurse must be notified.

Classroom Rules: Our classroom rules are based upon principles. We will be working in our class to not just follow a few rules, but to become better people and develop habits that will last. Our class rules will be the 7 habits for Happy Kids developed by Author Stephen Covey and his son, Sean Covey. They are as follows: #1- Be proactive. I am in charge of me. I am responsible for my decisions, attitudes, and actions. #2- Begin with the end in mind. Have a plan. Make goals and work towards them. #3- Put first things first. Work first, then play. Set priorities, and complete the important things first. #4- Think win-win. I win, You win, We win. Is it good for everyone? Only do things that will benefit everyone, this includes respecting the classroom, supplies, and your classmates. #5- Seek first to understand, then to be understood. Listen first, then speak. Try to put yourself in others shoes. Find out how others feel before you expect them to understand your feelings. #6- Syngergize Together is better! We work as a team. #7- Sharpen the saw. Balance feels best. Take care of yourself to keep yourself healthy and sharp! When these principles are followed in our classroom students may earn things like PRS, class points, homework coupons, stickers, extra recess, and prize box items. When these principles are not followed in class students will bring the following consequences: A) Private verbal warning. B) Student choice- How do they feel they can fix this problem? C) Teacher choice- If they cannot fix it themselves, I will need to step in. D) DPS points and Behavior Reflection to help the student rethink their actions. You may check DPS points on the school database. All Behavior Reflection sheets must be signed by the parent before the student may have recess again. E) Meeting with Administration. Extreme behavior, physical aggression, and school vandalism will be handled with immediate meeting with administration and may result in suspension. Absences: Proof of an excused absence must be given to the front office. It is the parent and students responsibility to obtain any work missed, and have it turned in within one week. After a week the original assignment will no longer be accepted and a make-up assignment for that topic will be assigned and accepted up until the end of the grading period. Please do not miss school any more than absolutely necessary!

Homework: Your child will have homework Monday-Thursday nights. Student's homework should be written in their planners in class. Each homework assignment should not take your child more than 30 minutes. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday night will be paper assignments, while Thursday will be a study assignment in the interactive notebooks and any missing or make-up work. All homework assignments will be graded out of 100 points, and will constitute 25% of the student's math grade. Students will not be allowed to have zeros, and will make up any assignments they have not turned in. You must do the work to be successful in this class. Late Work: The following procedures for late work will be followed all year for each type of assignment. Homework- Any math homework assignment not completed and turned in during class the day it is due will count as late, and will be finished during recess that day. Late work will be accepted for -10 points up until the Friday of that week. After the week of the assignment has ended, the student may no longer make up the actual assignment, but will complete a makeup assignment from the Envisions or Science textbook on the topic for -20 points. The textbook makeup assignments will be accepted up until the end of the grading period (9weeks). As mentioned previously, all assignments will be made up as zeros will not be tolerated. Class Assignments- Assignments that are to be completed in class must be turned in the day they are collected unless the student is permitted additional time by me. The assignment may be turned in by Friday of that week for -10pts. After this the assignment will not be accepted and a make-up textbook assignment will be required instead for -20 points. Make-up assignments will be accepted up until the grading period ends (9 weeks). Interactive Notebook: Students will keep individual interactive notebooks for math and science class in a spiral notebook. Students will be responsible for gluing in graphic organizers, completing lab reports, notes, and examples of content. Interactive notebooks will be graded by the student and me each Friday. Please refer to the rubric pasted into their notebook for details on what will be graded. Students may take interactive notebooks home to study for tests and quizzes or to complete unfinished work. Notebooks will need to be taken home on Thursdays for vocabulary study assignments. Please note- if your student loses his or her notebook he/she will receive a zero until they create a new one that is up to date. DO NOT LOSE YOUR NOTEBOOK!

Student Supplies: We really appreciate your cooperation in bringing so many supplies for your student at the start of the year. We know it seems excessive, but even with their use closely monitored and budgeted; we will use most all the supplies during this school year. I will take up all the students supplies except their folders, spiral notebooks, binders, dividers, pencil pouches, pencil sharpeners, and 5 pencils. We will use all other supplies as a class community, and they will be kept in the classroom. The only supplies students are allowed to bring in my classroom are the following: Math and Science folders Math and Science notebooks Pencil pouch Water bottle Jacket Communication Folder Reading book One healthy snack for 10:00 brain break time

Students are NOT ALLOWED to bring into class: backpacks, binders, folders from other classes, large coats, lunchboxes, toys, gum, or other distracting items. We simply do not have room in our small classroom for all of these unnecessary items! Students will use binders and dividers for their writing class, and one folder and one spiral notebook for each subject. They will have a math folder and math notebook, and a science folder and science notebook. Communication folders will also be sent home weekly with letters, handouts, and completed work for parents to see. Parents will be asked to sign that this folder was received, and send it back to school with the student. The Laboratory: Students will participate in science labs on a weekly basis. Sometimes these activities are done in class, and sometimes they are done in the science lab. Each individual is expected to follow safety and lab procedures. Failure to follow safety procedures will result in immediate removal from lab and a possible zero in lab for the day. Extreme cases of misbehavior in the lab will result in a discipline referral. It is a privilege to participate in lab activities and misbehavior, unsafe practices, or abuse of supplies will not be tolerated. Grading Policy: We correct homework and many in-class assignments together as a whole class or within a small group. Students will be taught the procedure for correcting assignments in class, and are expected to be 100% honest. Any form of dishonesty including changing their own scores, a friends

scores, or not giving someone fair credit is considered cheating and will result in DPS points and a conference with parents. The students are to only utilize a colored writing utensil for correcting and are not allowed to change answers only mark them correct/incorrect. It is important that they learn from their mistakes and not just hide them. The following grading scale and breakdown will be followed in this class. Grading Scale: A.90 and Above B.80-89 C70-79 FBelow 70 *Students will be required to re-do assignments that receive a 75% or below. Science Grade Breakdown: Tests/Quizzes....25% Homework....5% Class Work, Interactive Notebook, and Laboratory/Projects..70% Math Grade Breakdown: Tests/Quizzes.........25% Class Work, Interactive Notebook, Math Center Rotations.20% Homework.5%

Additional Information

Science Fair: Fourth grade students will be participating in science fair during the fall of 2013. Science fair is mandatory for each student. Your student will be provided with a guided plan on how to complete science fair effectively, a timeline for the process and extensive classroom instruction time. Additionally, parents will be invited to attend a meeting after school to learn more about the process and how to best assist your student. For science fair information please visit www.hsasciencefair.weebly.com. Birthdays: Parents are permitted to bring treats for a students birthday with prior approval. To gain approval, please e-mail me at least two days prior to the date you wish to celebrate with the type of treats you wish to bring. All treats must be store bought. No nut products, please. Fire Drills: Fire, Tornado, and Intruder drills are practiced throughout the year. All students will participate and are expected to walk quickly and quietly to their designated location. Internet access: Please notify me if your student does not have daily internet access, or as soon as possible if there is an issue with internet at home that prevents your student from completing an assignment. Your student is more

than welcome to come in early or stay late to use the internet on campus under my supervision. There are times when course work will be assigned to be completed online. Much of the communication from me to parents is done through email and our class website, so I need to know if you are not getting these messages. For extra help, videos, and relevant links, please check out our class website, www.hansenmathandscience.weebly.com. There are links located here for other sites we will use in class and for homework assignments. I will do my best to keep it up to date, so I hope you will check back often to see what we are up to! Communication: E-mail is the easiest, fastest way to answer questions that come up. I check my e-mail on a daily basis. My e-mail address is khansen@harmonytx.org. You may also call the school and leave a message with the secretary. I will do my best to call you back within 24 hours. For important announcements, homework, scores, DPS points and handouts, please visit the Harmony Database. You can login and see important info for your student on the database. Also, when you go to the class website, there are instructions to subscribe to class reminders through www.remindme101.com. This service sends reminders from me to you through text or email. Thank you in advance for all your help and support! I hope your student enjoys their year in my class!
Course Descriptions

Math Students will be responsible for comparing and ordering fractions and decimals, applying multiplication and division, and developing ideas related to congruence and symmetry. Additionally, students will continue to build a foundation of basic understands in number, operation, and quantitative reasoning; patterns, relationships, and algebraic thinking; geometry and spatial reasoning; measurement; and probability and statistics. Students use algorithms for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division as generalizations connected to concrete experiences; and they concretely develop basic concepts of fractions and decimals. Students will use appropriate language and organizational structures such as tables and charts to represent and communicate relationships, make predictions, and solve problems. Students select and use formal language to

describe their reasoning as they identify, compare, and classify two- or threedimensional geometric figures; and they use numbers, standard units, and measurement tools to describe and compare objects, make estimates, and solve application problems. Students will organize data, choose an appropriate method to display the data, and interpret the data to make decisions and predictions and solve problems. (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills,111.16) Science Students will learn about the natural world and understand types of questions that may be answered by investigations that are indicative of the scientific method. Students will learn about classifying matter, forms of energy, the Earth, Sun, and Moon and their components and patterns, conservation of resources, life cycles, ecosystems and adaptations. (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills 112.15)

After reading through, please sign, cut off, and return the section below! Thanks! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I have read and understand the expectations in this document and agree to follow them for the 2013-2014 school year.

Parent Signature: Student Signature: