First Grade Handbook
My Philosophy
I am committed to providing a quality education for your child. My goal is to provide a program that will offer your child the opportunity to learn the first grade curriculum, and to begin a life-long love of learning.
Our curriculum promotes the development of physical, social, emotional, and intellectual growth of each child through hands-on experiences.
I strive to make my classroom a nurturing, positive, and safe environment where your child will be respected and encouraged. I will foster the growth of the children to become independent and self-confident.
Communication between school and home is vital for our partnership to work effectively. Please feel free to contact me either in person, e-mail, note, voicemail, if you ever have any concerns.
Most importantly, I will try to make school a positive, fun, nurturing place for both you and your child.
Classroom Management
Our goal at Ryan Elementary is to provide a safe, nurturing environment in which the children know our expectations, treat others with respect, and enjoy learning. As the Ryan Elementary Hawks, we have 5 guiding principles that encompass our expectations:
H - Have respect
A - Academic Achievement
W - We are responsible
K - Kind to others
S - Safe environment ·
My expectations for classroom behavior are posted in the room. I will discuss appropriate behavior and teach students problem solving strategies through discussion, modeling, and role playing.· I allow students to make choices about their behavior and encourage them to take responsibility for the choices they make. “All choices have consequences.”· I do not take good behavior for granted and will work hard to reward and praise students when I see them being good role-models. · I will communicate any major behavioral concerns with you in Friday Folders, e-mails, phone calls, notes home, parent-teacher conferences, etc... so that we may work as a team, with your child to improve the behavior.
School Information
The classroom doors will open at 8:15, with school beginning at 8:30. Please do not send your child to school before 8:15 as there is no supervision and this poses safety concerns. Please help your child understand the importance of being on time for school, and learn good attendance habits. Please model to them through your actions and conversations with them, that you feel school is important, learning is important, and you value their education. Children who do not feel supported at home are less likely to do well in their academic careers. If your child must be absent please call the attendance line.The students will be dismissed at 3:20 through the outside doors. Please make sure to promptly pick up your child, and that your child knows where they are to go each day. Teachers are on after-school duty until 3:30, any remaining children will be taken to the office to wait/call parents for information. Please make sure your child knows the plan when they leave in the morning. Also, please let me know about any changes to your plan. If they will be going home with someone different, please jot me a note, so that I am comfortable releasing them to someone new. If you need to pick up your child during the school day you must go through the front office. The office will call my room and your child will be sent to meet you in the office. If you are visiting the school, you must stop in the office, sign in, and receive a visitor badge for security reasons.
Assessments
According to district guidelines all first grade students will be assessed at various times throughout the school year. These assessments include:
Reading 3 D - Determines child’s independent reading level. The district expectation is a level 18 by the end of first grade.
*Dibels - Letter naming fluency, nonsense word fluency, phoneme segmentation, reading fluency.
*JEM - Jeffco Early Mathematics Assessment
I will share your child’s assessment results with you at October conferences, on report cards, and at our Spring student-led conference.
Clothing
Clothing for school should be comfortable, washable, durable, easy to get on/off independently in the bathroom, and suited for play outdoors. We will be going outside almost every day. Your child should come dressed for the weather such as jackets, mittens, hats, boots on snowy days. For safety reasons, we are not allowed to leave a child inside the classroom unsupervised while we are at recess. If your child does not have the appropriate clothing every effort will be made to get them something to borrow for the day from the lost and found. It is helpful to practice buttoning, tying, zipping clothing without assistance. Please make sure to label all of your child’s clothing.
Book Orders
I will send out book order forms every few months. Scholastic now has online ordering as well. There will be several catalogs to choose from online. These are an excellent and inexpensive way to add to your home library. In addition, our classroom earns books based on their orders, so it also helps the school as well!
Please visit the scholastic website at:
www.scholastic.com/bookclubs
our class code is GXVB3
Birthdays
You may send a special snack for your child’s birthday. In the interest of time, (they only have 20 minutes in the lunchroom) please send something that is easy to distribute. (Please do not send in a sheet cake and a bucket of ice cream.) Some birthday ideas that work well are: cookies, cupcakes, pre-cut brownies, donuts, pre-cut rice krispie treats, etc... Please do not send invitations to school to be passed out in the classroom as feelings get hurt easily if all students are not invited to the party.
Field Trips
We believe that children learn best through first hand experiences. Because of this, we will be taking several curriculum related field trips throughout the year. We must have a signed permission slip for each child to attend the field trip. Please be prompt in returning your permission slip to assure your child’s participation. We encourage parents to join us on our field trips, but ask that no younger siblings attend, as it is hard to manage a group of children and a young child at the same time.
Communication
Each Friday you will receive your child’s “Friday Folder.” This folder will contain important information of upcoming events, newsletters, calendars, office information, permission slips, etc. Please take time to review the contents of the folder each week. Please read the teacher comments section, and respond and or sign acknowledging that you received this information. Please feel free to make comments, ask questions, and I will respond back to you as soon as possible. Please return the folder on Monday.
You may also reach me by e-mail and voice mail at: [email protected]
and (303) 982-3120. I try my best to check both when I arrive at school in the morning, and when I leave in the evening. I will respond back to you as promptly as I can.
Homework
First grade students are expected to read at home to a parent for a minimum of 15 minutes per night. You will be receiving a reading homework calendar where you will log your time reading at home. As with anything, the more you practice, the better you get, so reading more than 15 minutes per night is strongly encouraged to build your child’s reading fluency.
In addition to reading you will be receiving math homework Monday - Thursday.
Specials
Your child will be going to specials each day from 1:40-2:25. The specials team works on a 3 day rotation. Meaning, your child will have Art for 3 consecutive days, then Music for 3 consecutive days, then P.E. for the next 3 consecutive days. Then the rotation begins again. This system allows the specials teachers to introduce a project, sport, song, etc... on the first day, and then have 2 more days to work on it while it is still fresh in their minds.
The specials team consists of:
Mr. Mark Griffin Art [email protected]
Mrs. Stephanie Gastelbondo Music [email protected]
Mrs. Renee Howe P.E. [email protected]
Mrs. Kelsey Shearer Library (303) 982-9760 [email protected]
The students do not have an assigned library day on which to check out books. The students are free to go to the library on any given day as long as they have returned their books. They will be allowed 2 books at a time and may keep them for 2 weeks. As soon as your child finishes their library book they may return it and go to the library to get a new one.
I am committed to providing a quality education for your child. My goal is to provide a program that will offer your child the opportunity to learn the first grade curriculum, and to begin a life-long love of learning.
Our curriculum promotes the development of physical, social, emotional, and intellectual growth of each child through hands-on experiences.
I strive to make my classroom a nurturing, positive, and safe environment where your child will be respected and encouraged. I will foster the growth of the children to become independent and self-confident.
Communication between school and home is vital for our partnership to work effectively. Please feel free to contact me either in person, e-mail, note, voicemail, if you ever have any concerns.
Most importantly, I will try to make school a positive, fun, nurturing place for both you and your child.
Classroom Management
Our goal at Ryan Elementary is to provide a safe, nurturing environment in which the children know our expectations, treat others with respect, and enjoy learning. As the Ryan Elementary Hawks, we have 5 guiding principles that encompass our expectations:
H - Have respect
A - Academic Achievement
W - We are responsible
K - Kind to others
S - Safe environment ·
My expectations for classroom behavior are posted in the room. I will discuss appropriate behavior and teach students problem solving strategies through discussion, modeling, and role playing.· I allow students to make choices about their behavior and encourage them to take responsibility for the choices they make. “All choices have consequences.”· I do not take good behavior for granted and will work hard to reward and praise students when I see them being good role-models. · I will communicate any major behavioral concerns with you in Friday Folders, e-mails, phone calls, notes home, parent-teacher conferences, etc... so that we may work as a team, with your child to improve the behavior.
School Information
The classroom doors will open at 8:15, with school beginning at 8:30. Please do not send your child to school before 8:15 as there is no supervision and this poses safety concerns. Please help your child understand the importance of being on time for school, and learn good attendance habits. Please model to them through your actions and conversations with them, that you feel school is important, learning is important, and you value their education. Children who do not feel supported at home are less likely to do well in their academic careers. If your child must be absent please call the attendance line.The students will be dismissed at 3:20 through the outside doors. Please make sure to promptly pick up your child, and that your child knows where they are to go each day. Teachers are on after-school duty until 3:30, any remaining children will be taken to the office to wait/call parents for information. Please make sure your child knows the plan when they leave in the morning. Also, please let me know about any changes to your plan. If they will be going home with someone different, please jot me a note, so that I am comfortable releasing them to someone new. If you need to pick up your child during the school day you must go through the front office. The office will call my room and your child will be sent to meet you in the office. If you are visiting the school, you must stop in the office, sign in, and receive a visitor badge for security reasons.
Assessments
According to district guidelines all first grade students will be assessed at various times throughout the school year. These assessments include:
Reading 3 D - Determines child’s independent reading level. The district expectation is a level 18 by the end of first grade.
*Dibels - Letter naming fluency, nonsense word fluency, phoneme segmentation, reading fluency.
*JEM - Jeffco Early Mathematics Assessment
I will share your child’s assessment results with you at October conferences, on report cards, and at our Spring student-led conference.
Clothing
Clothing for school should be comfortable, washable, durable, easy to get on/off independently in the bathroom, and suited for play outdoors. We will be going outside almost every day. Your child should come dressed for the weather such as jackets, mittens, hats, boots on snowy days. For safety reasons, we are not allowed to leave a child inside the classroom unsupervised while we are at recess. If your child does not have the appropriate clothing every effort will be made to get them something to borrow for the day from the lost and found. It is helpful to practice buttoning, tying, zipping clothing without assistance. Please make sure to label all of your child’s clothing.
Book Orders
I will send out book order forms every few months. Scholastic now has online ordering as well. There will be several catalogs to choose from online. These are an excellent and inexpensive way to add to your home library. In addition, our classroom earns books based on their orders, so it also helps the school as well!
Please visit the scholastic website at:
www.scholastic.com/bookclubs
our class code is GXVB3
Birthdays
You may send a special snack for your child’s birthday. In the interest of time, (they only have 20 minutes in the lunchroom) please send something that is easy to distribute. (Please do not send in a sheet cake and a bucket of ice cream.) Some birthday ideas that work well are: cookies, cupcakes, pre-cut brownies, donuts, pre-cut rice krispie treats, etc... Please do not send invitations to school to be passed out in the classroom as feelings get hurt easily if all students are not invited to the party.
Field Trips
We believe that children learn best through first hand experiences. Because of this, we will be taking several curriculum related field trips throughout the year. We must have a signed permission slip for each child to attend the field trip. Please be prompt in returning your permission slip to assure your child’s participation. We encourage parents to join us on our field trips, but ask that no younger siblings attend, as it is hard to manage a group of children and a young child at the same time.
Communication
Each Friday you will receive your child’s “Friday Folder.” This folder will contain important information of upcoming events, newsletters, calendars, office information, permission slips, etc. Please take time to review the contents of the folder each week. Please read the teacher comments section, and respond and or sign acknowledging that you received this information. Please feel free to make comments, ask questions, and I will respond back to you as soon as possible. Please return the folder on Monday.
You may also reach me by e-mail and voice mail at: [email protected]
and (303) 982-3120. I try my best to check both when I arrive at school in the morning, and when I leave in the evening. I will respond back to you as promptly as I can.
Homework
First grade students are expected to read at home to a parent for a minimum of 15 minutes per night. You will be receiving a reading homework calendar where you will log your time reading at home. As with anything, the more you practice, the better you get, so reading more than 15 minutes per night is strongly encouraged to build your child’s reading fluency.
In addition to reading you will be receiving math homework Monday - Thursday.
Specials
Your child will be going to specials each day from 1:40-2:25. The specials team works on a 3 day rotation. Meaning, your child will have Art for 3 consecutive days, then Music for 3 consecutive days, then P.E. for the next 3 consecutive days. Then the rotation begins again. This system allows the specials teachers to introduce a project, sport, song, etc... on the first day, and then have 2 more days to work on it while it is still fresh in their minds.
The specials team consists of:
Mr. Mark Griffin Art [email protected]
Mrs. Stephanie Gastelbondo Music [email protected]
Mrs. Renee Howe P.E. [email protected]
Mrs. Kelsey Shearer Library (303) 982-9760 [email protected]
The students do not have an assigned library day on which to check out books. The students are free to go to the library on any given day as long as they have returned their books. They will be allowed 2 books at a time and may keep them for 2 weeks. As soon as your child finishes their library book they may return it and go to the library to get a new one.