Getting down to business. . .

  Here are a few things to keep in mind throughout the school year.

School Hours  The school day and learning begins at 7:30am.  Students are expected to be in their seats at that time.  Second grade students arriving between 7:00 and 7:20 will wait in the gym or go to the cafeteria for breakfast.  The students will be dismissed to go to their classroom at 7:23.  Students that are not in their classrooms at 7:30 will be marked tardy. 

Daily Schedule  We always remain flexible.  There may be changes in the schedule. 

            7:30 School Begins

7:30-7:45 Morning Routine (Announcements, Attendance, Seatwork)

7:45-9:15 Math

9:15-10:10 CAMP

                        Monday – Music

                        Tuesday, Thursday – PE

                        Wednesday – Computer

                        Friday - Art

10:10-10:40 Spelling / Writing / Word Work

10:40-11:40 Reading / Language Arts                

11:40-12:10 Lunch

12:10-12:50 Remediation / Enrichment / AR

12:50-1:30 Science

1:30-1:50 Recess

1:50-2:15 Social Studies

2:15-2:25 Jobs, Pack up

2:30 Dismissal

*Library check-in and out will be every Tuesday*

Absences  If your child misses a day of school, he/she will need to bring a note from a parent or doctor stating the   date(s) and the reason for the absence.  This note should accompany your child the first day back after an absence.

Snacks  Students may bring a healthy snack (fruit, crackers, cheese, veggies, dried cereal, etc.) to eat during the day.  Water bottles can also be kept at their desks.

Lunch  Our lunch period starts at 11:40 and lasts until 12:10.  You are welcome to visit and eat with your child.  Please check in at the office when you arrive.

Daily Planner and Dodd Folder  Students will be bringing home a daily planner and folder each day. This planner and folder will include homework assignments, upcoming events for the week, and student conduct (see section on Conduct and Discipline).  Please sign or initial the planner each day.  This is a quick way to keep communication between home and school.  Feel free to jot me a note when needed.   All class work and school newsletters will be sent home on Tuesdays in the Dodd folder. 

Conduct and Discipline  Conduct and Discipline will be maintained through a color system.  A color chart will be displayed in the classroom with clips. 

On Monday, all students’ clips will start on Purple.  A special incentive will be earned for those students who have not had a color change all week. Once the Purple color change has been made, the student will start on green each day for the remainder of the week. 

Color changes will occur after a warning has been given when a classroom or school rule has been broken.  Some color changes will not receive a warning such as fighting, foul language, destruction of property. 

The Yellow, Orange, and Red colors have a point deduction value and a consequence (see below).  The point deductions will be totaled for a citizenship grade for the week and be displayed in the daily planner.  These weekly grades will average as a citizenship grade on the report card.

Students will color a section in their Daily Planners each day reflective of their conduct for that day.  There may be a teacher notation in the Daily Planner detailing the reason for the color change.  Please check and initial the Daily Planner each night. 

Purple – Awesome!  You earned an incentive for no color change all week!

Green – Great day!

Yellow – minus 5 points, miss half of recess

Orange – minus 10 points, miss all of recess

Red – minus 20 points, office referral, phone call home

Homework    Homework should take between 15 and 25 minutes to complete.  Please set a routine for completing homework.  Homework assignments will be due the next day unless otherwise noted in the Daily Planner.  Help your child find a good place to work and the best time of day to do the assignments.  Please help your child make homework a priority.

Missing or Late Work  A color change will be made on the classroom chart and will be reflected in the Daily Planner for late or missing assignments.  Students may be asked to attend study hall during recess to complete missing or late work.  Any work that is not turned in will receive a score of zero in the gradebook. 

Assignment Corrections   Your child has the opportunity to correct four assignments per six weeks, that have received a grade lower than 70% (this does not include tests or quizzes).  The original grade will be raised to 70% for only four assignments during each six weeks grading period.  The teacher may give permission for other assignments to be corrected using her discretion.

Math Facts    Second grade students need to have addition and subtraction facts mastered by the time they enter third grade.  Please spend a few minutes a day practicing these facts. This time spent really makes a difference in only a few weeks!  You may choose to buy flashcards or you can make your own using index cards.  Addition cards should range from 0+1 to 9+9.  Subtraction cards should range from 1-0 to 18-9. 

Reading Fluency    Fluency means reading at a good pace, with expression, with few mistakes.  Students should be reading 90 words per minute in grade level material by the end of the school year.  This can be accomplished by learning sight words, practicing vocabulary and rereading the same passages.  Your child will be learning some different strategies for reading in class.  Ask him/her to show you how to become a more fluent reader.

Transportation Home    Parents will fill out an information sheet at the beginning of the year for the teacher’s files.  Your child will fall into one of these four categories for dismissal: 

·         “Car Rider” = Parent/Guardian stays in the car and drives through the pick-up driveway.

Car pool sign should be placed in car front windshield displaying student number and teacher name. Students will wait in the cafeteria.  Student numbers will be called on the walkie-talkie by staff on duty.  Cars pull all the way forward as instructed by staff on duty.  Students will exit from the front of the building by the gym.

·         “Walker” = Any child that walks home or any child that is met by parent/guardian in person.

If the parent parks and gets out of the car, the child is considered a walker.  All adults picking up a child in person are asked to wait outside the building at the fourth grade hallway.  All children walking home or meeting an adult will exit from this doorway.  We ask that adults wait outside the building for the security and safety of all children.  Please do not wait at the main entrance doorway, inside the building or outside your child’s classroom.

·         “Bike Rider” = Any child that will be riding a bike home. 

Children riding bikes home will exit out the first grade hallway.

·         “Day Care or Bus Rider” = Any child attending after school Day Care, or any child riding the bus home.

Children will wait in the cafeteria until name is called, and will exit to the buses from the back doors of the cafeteria.

The transportation information the parent filled out will be the way the student will go home everyday.  If the student will be going home a different way, the parent will need to write a note stating the change for that day or call the school office by 2:00.  If the student does not have a note or a phone call is not made about the change in transportation, the student will go home the way the original parent information sheet was filled out.  For example, parents need to contact the teacher or school if it is raining and you do not want your child to walk or ride a bike home.  If you do not contact the school, your child will go home the usual way.  Office number: 972.429.3440   

Feel free to contact me in the Daily Planner by note, voicemail or email.  The second grade conference period is from 9:15-10:10.  Don’t hesitate to get in touch with me anytime you have a question or concern.  Thank you in advance for all of your help and support.  I’m really looking forward to being a part of your child’s life!

 Mrs. Mossbruger