Welcome to First Grade!

Dear Parents/Guardians, 7 August 2013 Hello! My name is Sarah Johnson and I will be your child’s first grade teacher. I am so excited to start the school year and really look forward to getting to know both you and your child better as the year goes on. I am also looking forward to working with you to help your child have a wonderful learning experience this year. Parent support is crucial to my success as your child’s teacher, and parent-teacher communication is the key to making that work! Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns at any time during the year. You can contact me through the school between the hours of 7:15 am and 3:15 pm at 368-3114 and leave a message or email me at sajohnson@liberty.k12.ga.us. I will get back in touch with you as soon as I can. It is important that I explain to you my expectations for your child and the responsibilities he/she will have in my class this year. I believe every child can succeed. I will work very hard to help your child and give him/her every opportunity to ask questions in order to achieve understanding. Please work with your child at home and feel free to contact me if you need support and we can discuss additional avenues to assist your child. I expect your child to behave well while at school, show respect for other students, follow directions, and be prepared for class. Classroom Management Plan Follow the rules and there will be rewards; break the rules and there will be negative consequences. We will go over the rules daily the first couple of weeks of school, so your child will know and understand what I expect. The rules will be posted above the chalkboard at all times, as well as the rewards and consequences. I have a system set up where the students know the consequences of their actions, both good and bad. Rules 1. Be prepared for class with paper, pencil, and all assignments. 2. Follow directions the first time given. 3. Keep hands, feet, and other objects to yourself. 4. Respect yourself and others. 5. Turn in all work completed neatly and on time. Rewards There will be a sticker chart to keep track of good behavior. Your child will receive a sticker for good behavior and deeds, such as being prepared, helping a classmate, or following directions swiftly and quietly, among other things. These stickers can be redeemed for prizes when the student earns a total of ten stickers. I will also give verbal praise, certificates, and other small prizes to students for behaving and following directions. I may also send a note home or call to you praising your student for his/her actions.  Consequences For behavior management I use a stoplight system. A stoplight-shaped board is posted at the front of the room with the colors green, yellow, and red. Each student has a clothespin with his/her name on it clipped on the stoplight. Every morning we all begin on green. For inappropriate behavior, I will always give a verbal warning the first time a rule is broken, unless it is a severe infraction. The second time a rule is broken the student’s clothespin will be moved to yellow. The third time, the student will spend recess in the Reteaching Room and a note will be sent home or I will call you explaining what your student has done. The fourth time a rule is broken I will move the student’s clothespin to red. I will call to discuss your child’s behavior. If it is severe misbehavior, your child may be sent to the principal’s office with a behavior referral before any or all of these steps are taken. Homework Policy All homework assignments are due at the beginning of the next school day, unless otherwise designated. I plan to give nightly homework in Mathematics. I want your student to practice math facts nightly, so he/she will learn the basic addition and subtraction facts by heart. This will make classwork and homework much easier! In Reading, your child will have a list of vocabulary words to study each week, which they will be tested on every Friday. Also, every night I expect your child to read for at least 15 minutes to increase their fluency. I hope to start the Pizza Hut Book-It! Program with the class in September or October (details to come later). Your student will also have a list of Spelling words to learn each week. If you and your child work with these words every night, it should make Friday’s test easier. In Science and Social Studies, I plan to have one project due per nine weeks. I will give detailed instructions for each project well in advance of its due date, as well as a checklist and grading rubric to help you and your child complete the projects. Accelerated Reader Your child will be participating in the Accelerated Reader program this year, which will not only earn them points in the Media Center, but will also earn him/her a sticker on the sticker chart previously mentioned. Each time your student earns an 80% or higher on an AR test, a sticker will be awarded. Your child can read an Accelerated Reader book for the nightly reading assignment as well as test on it for points. It is a win-win situation!! Call, write me a note, or schedule a conference if you would like to talk with me. Let’s have a great year!! Sincerely, Sarah K. Johnson