Important Information
All of this information can also be found in your Welcome Letter that you received at Meet the Teacher or the first day of school.
Contact Information:
The best way to contact me is to send me an e-mail. I try to check it periodically throughout the day. My e-mail address is [email protected]. You can also reach me by phone by calling the school at 903-842-3071. My voice mail box extension is 2420. I will call you back as soon as possible. My conference time is 10:40-11:30.
Class Dojo:
We will be using a wonderful web-based system called Class Dojo. This system is used for multiple things: parent-teacher communication, behavior management, and it even allows your student to share with you what he/she is doing in class! To get connected, you can find the free Class Dojo app in the app store on your smart phone or by visiting classdojo.com/parent. You will receive two activation codes: one for you and one for your child. Use these activation codes to get connected with our classroom. You will be able to see your child’s behavior at any point in the day and they will be able to customize their “avatar” that will show up on the board in class! You will also be able to communicate with me and receive important messages and reminders. Please let me know if you have any trouble signing up.
Students will be able to earn points for good behavior like being a good listener, following directions, helping a friend, etc. They may also get points taken away for poor behavior like interrupting, not following directions, teasing, etc. At the end of each day, I will write their points on a calendar that will be kept in their take home folder. If they have a positive amount, it will be written in green and there’s nothing you need to do! If they have a negative amount, it will be written in red and a parent will need to sign on that date. (An explanation will be written.) Students will receive tickets for green points and they will be rewarded by “shopping” with those tickets in our classroom treasure box on Fridays!
Homework
Take-Home Folders: Your child will bring home a take-home folder every day. The right pocket will contain items that need to be left at home.
Assignments & Tests
Each week, students will be given a reading test from our text of the week. This will consist of multiple choice and short answers. Spelling tests will be based off of Units. Units are one to two weeks long. This may be a difficult adjustment at first, but they will catch on quickly!
We will read a new story every Monday. This story will have 6 new vocabulary words in it. We will take a grade on these on Thursday. We will practice the words throughout the week.
The weekly reading test will be over the comprehension strategy that we’ve practiced that week.
Spelling lists will be sent home on Monday, practiced throughout the week (in class & at home), and tested at the end of every unit.
Math tests will be about every 1-2 weeks. They aren’t scheduled quite as routinely because some concepts take much longer to master than others.
Grades consist of a combination of daily work grades, test grades, and participation grades.
Contact Information:
The best way to contact me is to send me an e-mail. I try to check it periodically throughout the day. My e-mail address is [email protected]. You can also reach me by phone by calling the school at 903-842-3071. My voice mail box extension is 2420. I will call you back as soon as possible. My conference time is 10:40-11:30.
Class Dojo:
We will be using a wonderful web-based system called Class Dojo. This system is used for multiple things: parent-teacher communication, behavior management, and it even allows your student to share with you what he/she is doing in class! To get connected, you can find the free Class Dojo app in the app store on your smart phone or by visiting classdojo.com/parent. You will receive two activation codes: one for you and one for your child. Use these activation codes to get connected with our classroom. You will be able to see your child’s behavior at any point in the day and they will be able to customize their “avatar” that will show up on the board in class! You will also be able to communicate with me and receive important messages and reminders. Please let me know if you have any trouble signing up.
Students will be able to earn points for good behavior like being a good listener, following directions, helping a friend, etc. They may also get points taken away for poor behavior like interrupting, not following directions, teasing, etc. At the end of each day, I will write their points on a calendar that will be kept in their take home folder. If they have a positive amount, it will be written in green and there’s nothing you need to do! If they have a negative amount, it will be written in red and a parent will need to sign on that date. (An explanation will be written.) Students will receive tickets for green points and they will be rewarded by “shopping” with those tickets in our classroom treasure box on Fridays!
Homework
Take-Home Folders: Your child will bring home a take-home folder every day. The right pocket will contain items that need to be left at home.
Assignments & Tests
Each week, students will be given a reading test from our text of the week. This will consist of multiple choice and short answers. Spelling tests will be based off of Units. Units are one to two weeks long. This may be a difficult adjustment at first, but they will catch on quickly!
We will read a new story every Monday. This story will have 6 new vocabulary words in it. We will take a grade on these on Thursday. We will practice the words throughout the week.
The weekly reading test will be over the comprehension strategy that we’ve practiced that week.
Spelling lists will be sent home on Monday, practiced throughout the week (in class & at home), and tested at the end of every unit.
Math tests will be about every 1-2 weeks. They aren’t scheduled quite as routinely because some concepts take much longer to master than others.
Grades consist of a combination of daily work grades, test grades, and participation grades.
Below 70 Student Work:
I want each of my students to be successful and fully prepared for 3rd grade. Your child’s papers will be coming home weekly. If the paper does not have a grade on it, it was done as a class or just simply not graded. If your child has received a low grade on a paper, your child may have the opportunity to redo this paper at home. The papers that can be corrected will have a stamp or some indication on the paper. Only these pages can be returned for grade adjustment. When these papers are returned to school, they will be regraded and a new grade will be entered in the grade book. The new grade will not be over a 70. These papers must be returned in a timely manner. If they are not returned within a 2 day period, the grade may or may not be able to be reevaluated because of grade book due dates.
Progress Reports will be sent home every 3 weeks. Report Cards will be sent home every 9 weeks.
Accelerated Reader
We want your child to become an even stronger and more independent reader this year! AR is a wonderful program that we use to track and encourage your student’s reading progress. AR is much different in second grade than in first. Each student will receive three colors (levels) that they may read during AR time. These levels are based off of scores from an end of year assessment they took in first grade. These levels will change throughout the year.
Each student will also be assigned a points goal. They have the grading period (9 weeks) to meet this goal and it will reset to a new goal at the beginning of a new grading period. They earn points by reading and testing on AR books.
At the end of the grading period, your child’s AR average will be entered into the grade book as 2 reading grades. If they have met their points goal, they will receive an extra 100. Each week, you will receive an AR report letting you know how your child is doing.
Students will check books out from the school library and may bring those books home to read. We also have a small classroom library that they may choose from but those books are not to be brought home.
We will also have a time in class called Daily 5 where students may choose to read different books that are not AR.
Throughout the year, I will send home book orders that have even more options for AR books. You may order online anytime at scholastic.com/bookclubs. Our class code is MFHPP.
Attendance
It is very important for your child to be on time each day so that they are not rushed to eat breakfast and finish their bell work. The tardy bell time is 7:50. Our school day will be from 7:50-3:20. If your child is absent, please send a note explaining the reason for the absence when he/she returns to school.
I want each of my students to be successful and fully prepared for 3rd grade. Your child’s papers will be coming home weekly. If the paper does not have a grade on it, it was done as a class or just simply not graded. If your child has received a low grade on a paper, your child may have the opportunity to redo this paper at home. The papers that can be corrected will have a stamp or some indication on the paper. Only these pages can be returned for grade adjustment. When these papers are returned to school, they will be regraded and a new grade will be entered in the grade book. The new grade will not be over a 70. These papers must be returned in a timely manner. If they are not returned within a 2 day period, the grade may or may not be able to be reevaluated because of grade book due dates.
Progress Reports will be sent home every 3 weeks. Report Cards will be sent home every 9 weeks.
Accelerated Reader
We want your child to become an even stronger and more independent reader this year! AR is a wonderful program that we use to track and encourage your student’s reading progress. AR is much different in second grade than in first. Each student will receive three colors (levels) that they may read during AR time. These levels are based off of scores from an end of year assessment they took in first grade. These levels will change throughout the year.
Each student will also be assigned a points goal. They have the grading period (9 weeks) to meet this goal and it will reset to a new goal at the beginning of a new grading period. They earn points by reading and testing on AR books.
At the end of the grading period, your child’s AR average will be entered into the grade book as 2 reading grades. If they have met their points goal, they will receive an extra 100. Each week, you will receive an AR report letting you know how your child is doing.
Students will check books out from the school library and may bring those books home to read. We also have a small classroom library that they may choose from but those books are not to be brought home.
We will also have a time in class called Daily 5 where students may choose to read different books that are not AR.
Throughout the year, I will send home book orders that have even more options for AR books. You may order online anytime at scholastic.com/bookclubs. Our class code is MFHPP.
Attendance
It is very important for your child to be on time each day so that they are not rushed to eat breakfast and finish their bell work. The tardy bell time is 7:50. Our school day will be from 7:50-3:20. If your child is absent, please send a note explaining the reason for the absence when he/she returns to school.
Ride Changes
We want to do everything we can to ensure your child’s safety. If your child will be leaving campus differently than his/her normal routine, please contact the office as soon as possible and let Mrs. Tammy know. I cannot take your child’s word for it. Unless we have a written request or a phone call, your child will leave campus in their usual manner.
Birthdays
You may send birthday treats for your child’s birthday if you’d like! We will celebrate birthdays towards the end of the day, after lunch and recess.
