Open House Information Packet

Hello and welcome to First Grade! We are off to a new year, a new class and new challenges. To better help your child, I have put together this letter with all the important information you will need to know.

Absent If your child will be absent due to a scheduled family vacation, please let me know. I can send homework with them and will get it to you a few days in advance.

Art Art will be incorporated into our classroom and students will also attend art on Tuesday with the art teacher. The students will be learning different art techniques throughout the year.

Behavior Chart Students will begin every day on green. If after a reminder students are not changing their negative behavior, they will receive a move down and move to yellow (orange, red are subsequent). However, if a student not only changes their behavior and makes a positive difference such as helping a friend without being asked to, they can also receive move ups.

Birthday Birthday treats may be brought to celebrate your child’s birthday. If he/she plans on passing out birthday invitations at school, there should be enough invitations for everyone to avoid hurt feelings. Summer birthdays will be celebrated in late May/early June. Please remember no nuts for allergies.

Book Orders An invitation to order books will be emailed monthly. This does not mean that books must be ordered each month. If you would like to order any books you may order them online with our class code: TJ94Q. If you would like to use any of the orders as gifts, please let me know and I will be happy to send them home in a concealed bag or give them to you directly.

Book It! Program: Each month, your child will receive a monthly calendar. If your child reads 20 minutes every day, they may color in the square for that day. If they complete an entire month, they will receive a free pizza coupon to use at any Pizza Hut. Participation is not required but it can be used as a fun way for your child to read!

Church First Grade will attend All-School Mass every Tuesday at 8:15 (The first Tuesday after a holiday break such as Thanksgiving break, Christmas break and Easter break there is not a Mass). Students must wear their school uniform to all Masses. A jean day pass may not be permitted for use on this day.

Class Dojo: This is an online program that connects teachers with students and parents to build amazing classroom communities. I will use this to post updates/reminders, as well as share current happenings in the classroom.

Computers Computer class will be once a week on Mondays. iPads and Chromebooks will also be integrated for extra Math practice.

Field Trips You will be notified of all field trips when a permission slip is sent home. Many of these field trips will have the option for you to chaperone. Chaperones will be picked on a first come, first serve basis unless you have already been one this school year.

Prodigy Prodigy is an online math learning program designed to complement classroom instruction through engaging games. It helps to motivate students to persist, progress and achieve success at the developmentally appropriate level to fit each student’s needs. This is a program that will be able to be completed at home as well as at school. Login info will be sent home.

Email If you have something urgent that I need to know in the morning, please make sure you send me a written note in case I am unable to get to my email first thing in the morning. Otherwise I check my email periodically throughout the day. My email is maleckik@stmaryhc.org

Xtramath Xtramath is a math fact fluency program that helps students to master basic math facts in addition and subtraction. These math facts are the building blocks in your child’s math education. Recalling basic facts helps students to solve more difficult problems with ease. This program will be completed at home. More information will be sent home on this.

Gym The children will have gym on Wednesdays. Gym shoes may be kept in their coat cubbies or brought on gym days. If your child comes to school wearing tennis shoes, another pair here at school is not required. If you plan on storing them in their cubbies, please make sure they are labeled with your child’s initials.

Homework An average of 20 minutes of homework will be given daily.

Homework Calendar Every week your child will receive a homework calendar. This should be kept in their take home folders in case any changes need to be made. Calendars will also be posted on my website each week.

Library Library time will be on Thursdays. Students will be able to check out books that will be due Thursday. If missing books are not returned, Mrs. Vanderhoef will send home a reminder of the missing title(s). Students may not be able to check out more books until the other ones are brought back.

Math Learning basic math facts is a pivotal part of first grade. It is recommended that students practice their math facts 3 times a week in order to be successful and to increase speed and accuracy when completing them. Prodigy, flash cards and Xtra-Math can help with this.

Money If you are sending in money, please make sure the envelope is labeled with your child’s name on it as well as what it is intended for.

Music Music will be held on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Pertinent Information My website and ClassDojo will be updated to inform you of happenings in the classroom, upcoming events, weekly homework calendar, spelling/vocabulary words, and special occasions.

Phonemic Awareness: Every morning, your child will engage in phonemic awareness. It is mostlty a call and response activity where I check how your child is sounding out sounds and making connections with words. More information will be sent home every few weeks on what specific task we are working on.

Reading I encourage you to read with your child at least 15 minutes each evening. The more your child reads the better reader he/she will become. Reading to your child should be meaningful and enjoyable.

Snack We will be having snack daily. Please send in a daily snack that is healthy and nutritious and nut free.

Take Home Folders The purpose of this folder is to help keep things easy and organized for your child. Take home folders should be used to bring things home like notes, corrected papers, office notes, etc. This folder can also be used to send notes to me. I will remind children to check the folders daily for important papers.

Assessments Tests will be given in all academic areas. Spelling and Religion tests will be given weekly unless otherwise noted. Math and Vocabulary tests will be given after a chapter has been completed or about once every other week. I also assess the students through projects and other activities that we complete across the curriculum.

Water bottles Your child is more than welcome to bring in a water bottle. These bottles may be kept on their desk throughout the school day.

First Grade Website. Everything you have received tonight can be found on my website and much more. Some things on the site will be updated once a week, others will remain the same for the school year to use as a reference. You can access my website through St. Mary’s website.