Dear Parents/Guardians,

Welcome to a new school year! I am excited to have the opportunity to work with
your child this year. If the first few days are any indication of the rest of the year, I
fully expect to have a reat school year!
!"#. $I%I &I'()*
I am the #ocial #tudies teacher in house +,-. .his is my /0
th
year of teachin and
after teachin 1
th
, 0
th
, and 2
th
rades, I3ve 4een in +
th
rade social studies since
5"!# opened.
%6""I%6'6!*
We are continuin to work with the .%I &istory 7live proram. I hope your
students have found it to 4e valua4le, entertainin, and enain. We will
continue to use the multiple strateies, and hihly enain activities that tie into
the multiple intelliences and talents that our students have. We will 4e studyin
early 7merican &istory from a 4rief review of the 7merican "evolution to the %ivil
War and the Industrial "evolution.
!7.5"I7'#*
.he students will need their text4ook, interactive student note4ook, a note4ook
8" 4inder with extra paper, for class most days, as well as a writin utensil.
G"7DI$G*
I will 4e weihtin rades this year. 7s a house, our radin systems are very
similar* homework is worth the smallest percentae and tests the most. .ests will
4e 09:, pro;ect/<ui==es will 4e 19: and homework will 4e /9: of the students3
final rades.
>7%.# 8> .&5 D7)*
.here will 4e -,? facts of the day written on the 4oard every day. 7s they come in
they are expected to write these into their note4ooks. .hey need to accumulate
these throuhout the year. .hey are the facts they will need to study for their
tests, and accumulated for the final at the end of the year.
I#$, D7I') &8!5W8"@*
!ost homework will 4e in the I#$, and will not take much time outside of class.
!ost work will 4e started in class and may need 0 or /9 minutes to finish up
4efore class the next day. 7ll work must 4e in complete sentences. .hese are the
summaries for the sections and while there are few items, the answers need to
4e %8!P'5.5. .he I#$ may 4e raded in one of ? ways* every item
corrected/scored for total pointsA random items scored for /9 to /0 pointsA spot,
check for completion/<uality for /9 points. #tudents will not 4e informed ahead of
time which method will 4e used, and the same one will not necessarily 4e used
with all classes on any iven day. .hey will need to 4e ready for all of them for
every assinment.
P"8B5%.#/C6IDD5#*
Pro;ects and <ui==es will 4e used scattered throuhout the units to a varyin
deree. !ore in depth pro;ects will 4e worth more points than others. #tudents
can expect some to 4e completed in roups, while others will 4e completed
individually. 5ven roup pro;ects will have an individual component 4uilt into the
scorin. Cui==es may or may not 4e announced ahead of time, and may or may
not 4e included in a student3s rade. !ost <ui==es will come directly from the
I#$, and will sometimes 4e open,4ook.
.5#.#*
.ests will 4e iven after every chapter. .hey will consist of multiple choice items,
skills/maps items, and an essay <uestion. .he students are expected to use their
>acts of the Day and their I#$ as their primary study tools. .here is also a
chapter review in the text4ook. .he online component of the proram includes
review ames for the students to do from home.
.5%&$8'8G)*
.he new curriculum encouraes the use of technoloy 4oth in and out of the
classroom. .he students will have access to online materials. .he text4ook, as
well as review ames are availa4le to the students from the we4site. It will even
read it to them and hihliht it to show them the important information. .hey will
4e usin all kinds of technoloy tools as they explore the curriculum. Personal
devices are welcome, and may 4e used in class occasionally.
%8$.7%. !5*
If you ever have any <uestions/concerns, please don3t hesitate to contact me. I
have found that most issues can 4e easily resolved when the <uestion is asked.
5mail is most convenient and private as I can check it and address it as I have
time throuhout the day. Phone calls are a little trickier and re<uire a classroom
free of students for privacy.
I sincerely thank you for sharin your child this year,
!rs. $ici &il4y
$&il4yEd4<schools.or
00-,09+/