The school day begins at 8:25am and is dismissed at 3:30pm. Your child is expected to be in their seat, ready to learn no later than 8:40am, or they will be considered tardy (aside from buses arriving late or inclement weather). Students who eat breakfast in the morning will head straight to the cafeteria as soon as they arrive.

Students are expected to follow directions, respect their peers and teachers, and work hard. If students do not demonstrate appropriate  grade behavior, then consequences will be put in place. Please contact me if you ever have questions or concerns about behavior. 

4th grade homework will consist of 15 minutes of reading each night with a 5 minute written response (Mon - Thurs)  and a weekly math packet (given on Monday and turned in on Friday). The math will be a review and extra practice for the skill we are working on that day/week.  We will  complete literature responses together throughout the first 2 weeks of school so students are clear about the expectation. Homework will officially begin on August 25th,  Responsibility is an important life skill. I encourage students to be responsible by turning in their work on time, but will always accept late work.

Students should bring a full water bottle to school everyday. They will take the water bottle home each night. Students should bring a healthy snack to school everyday. Please do not send your child to school with candy, soda, etc. 

Students can bring a snack to eat during our morning recess time at 9:55 - 10:15. If you feel your child needs an additional snack time please let me know.

Birthdays are special days for your child! If you would like to celebrate a birthday at school, please let me know ahead of time if possible. If your child wishes, they may bring treats to share with the class; we will save treats for the end of the day. We currently have 22 students in our classroom.

This year I will be utilizing an online grade book that will allow you to view and receive updates about your child’s understanding and achievement on a continuous basis. Checking this on a weekly basis will give you the best insight of how your child is doing on grade level content. Through this website,  you can request a weekly email or text update but logging in will provide you with more detailed information. Login information will be sent home next week. While this website (jupitergrades.com) will give you a percentage grade for each content area, please know that the Douglas County EPRs will be based on student mastery of a skill and not an average of their grades. 

Learning from your mistakes is not only important for behavior but also in academics. I pass back all grades assignments and quizzes in our Thursday Folders. Students can correct any mistakes and turn their work back in the following week for half credit per corrected mistake. Corrected grades will be reflected in the grade book. 

A fourth grade classroom is a busy place! Your child’s attendance is very important to our school. Missed assignments may be made up when your child returns from their absence. Remember time missed from school is time missed from instruction and class discussion. Therefore, some missed assignments cannot be duplicated as a worksheet or hand out and make-up work may not be available. 

This year we will use a ‘Thursday Folder’. Throughout the week, I will put any graded work from the week into your child’s Thursday Folder. On Thursdays when we pack up, your child will get his/her Thursday Folder. Inside will be all of his/her work from the past week along with any flyers from the school. This folder goes home each Thursday and MUST come back to school empty on Friday.

In addition to learning about the social studies standards for economy, we will have a working economic system in our room. Each student will choose a job and  get paid in Brattstrom Bucks  for the completion of their job on a weekly basis. They will also be charged rent and get bonuses for hard work. At the end of each quarter, they will be able to spend their money in an auction and buy additional items.

This year, state testing will take place in April 2026. Your child will be taking the CMAS state test. These assessments are designed to give schools and teachers more information to improve instruction. This more detailed information can lead to strong engagement between parents and teachers. *Please note that your child’s score report will be available the following academic year.

Click this link to find more information about state testing:

www.cde.state.co.us/communications/resourcesforparents 

Ways you can help your child the week of testing:

• Make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep the night before each test.

• Make sure your child eats a healthy breakfast the morning of each test.

• Please try to make the night before and morning of each test as stress free as possible.

• Attendance is very important this week! Please avoid scheduling appointments if possible.