Dear Parents,
Welcome! I hope you had a relaxing summer and you are looking forward to starting another school year. I was pleased to meet so many of you at our Open House. I am excited to be teaching fourth grade and I’m looking forward to a great year with your child.
Enclosed are the beginning of the year documents, letters, and forms for your information. Please complete the forms as indicated and return them to me by next week. I would appreciate it if you would read and discuss the enclosed Parent/Student Information Handbook with your child and sign and return the appropriate pink page to indicate that you have gone over the information. That page is on the last page in the Handbook. We will also review this information in class. This will help us all to have a clear understanding of our school's expectations.
Our fourth grade team has ordered a few items that we believe will help your child organize work coming to and from school. We also ordered two magazines. One is Washington Weekly which highlights some current Washington events, as well as historical and geographical information. It is a valuable supplement to our Social Studies text. The other is National Geographic magazine for students. It has wonderful, short, nonfiction stories about nature and our world.
Tutoring: I would appreciate your permission to allow your child to be tutored by parent and adult volunteers. Tutoring will take place in my room and inside the main building. Some students need additional challenges while others need review. Many will be sharpening their math facts skills. This will generally take place once per week for about 20 minutes per student during class time.
Snacks: If your child wants a have a morning snack, he/she can bring a fresh fruit or vegetable, Pepperidge Farm Fish Crackers: all flavors, Cheez-its: all flavors including Gripz and Right Bites, Teddy Grahams, or Nutrigrain Bars. All of these snacks are considered safe snacks and provide a safe snacking environment for the student with a severe nut allergy in our class. Please do not send any other kind of snack or brands to be eaten during class time as we cannot be certain of how safe they are. I do not encourage water bottles unless there are special reasons for them. We have plenty of filtered water available in the classroom and many opportunities to get a drink.
Homework: Your child will have homework each evening of the week (Mon.-Thurs.). All homework assignments are directly related to activities and lessons at school, either that day or in preparation for the next day. It is essential that your child complete each daily assignment. This will ensure continued progress and preparedness for lessons to come. Your child will list homework each day in a Student Planner. Please read each day’s entry, respond if you would like, and then sign your name on that page. Your signature will indicate to me that you have checked your child’s homework.
Student Papers: It sometimes happens that students do not take their papers home and parents are concerned about their child’s work. Since this can occur, papers will be sent home at the end of each week. I will also email and share my classroom blog with a periodic newsletter keeping you up to date on what is happening in the classroom. Please sign the Friday Envelope indicating you have received and reviewed this important information. Your child will then return this envelope emptied to me Monday morning.
PE: PE in my class will be on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Please remind your child to wear appropriate shoes.
Library: Library in my class will be on Mondays. Your child will probably need EXTRA reminders about bringing their library books after the weekend.
During the first week of school our class will work together on building community. Many of us are new and I am sure we will enjoy getting to know one another. We will also be assessing academic areas in spelling, language, and math.
We will continue to spend time together deciding what is necessary to make our class a good place for learning. We will review our jobs in class as a teacher and student. We will review “The Mariner’s Code”. In this packet there are several forms to fill out. There is a Tutoring Form, Volunteer Form, and Student Information Sheet as well as other papers that were passed out on Open House if you were not able to be there. If at all possible, I would like you to have all of these forms turned back in by the end of next week. It is my understanding that a separate Volunteer Form has to be filled out and approved by the district every two years for each adult who would like to help at school or chaperone on field trips. It takes a little time for this form to be approved so it is important to do this soon. Please check with the office to see if your form is still current or ask for a new form to fill out if you want to volunteer and yours has expired.
Each month our school will be focusing on a Life Skill. This month we are featuring the “Life Skill of Friendship.” Ask your child what this means and how we can practice being good friends at school.
School Supplies: The supply list for 4th grade is posted on the school website.
Lunch: I would suggest that you bring a lunch from home the first week of school. The lunch lines can be longer as students get used to the routine again and new students adapt.
Attendance: Classroom doors are opened and teaching begins at 9:05 am. There is no campus supervision before school. For safety sake, please do not have your child arrive on campus before 9:05 am. The tardy bell is 9:15 am. School is over at 3:35 pm Mon, Tues, Thurs, and Fri. School is over at 1:15 on Wed.
Thank you in advance for returning all forms sent home. I also appreciate your willingness to help in our classroom. It is wonderful to have so many supportive parents.
Education is a team process. Feel free to contact me with any question or concerns. If your child has a change of transportation plans after school please send a note to school or contact the office. If you have a concern/question, it is best to email me as I can respond at my earliest convenience. Often I catch up on emails after I put my daughter to bed at about 8 pm. Email allows me to get back to you at any time without disturbing your evening. A phone call is a great way to contact me about concerns that require immediate attention. I am looking forward to another fabulous year!
Sincerely,
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