Catalogs - Mrs. Abercrombie's Fourth Grade Class



-----------------------

o

Table of Contents

o

Introduction 2

Daily Schedule 3

Classroom Behavior 4

Third Grade Curriculum 5

Policies 6

Communication 7

Third Grade Celebrations 8

PARENT HANDBOOK

Mrs. Abercrombie

Third Grade

2010 - 2011

Throughout the year we take time to celebrate accomplishments, to make it more meaningful to the students I often ask parents to help by contributing. You may be asked to send in food, snacks, or volunteer your time. We do Fun Fridays, AR Celebrations, and more. We are limited to 3 parties a year, so on occasion we will have a “special snack” instead of a party. Typically our 3 parties are Winter Break, Valentine’s Day, and an End of the Year party.

Field Trips

We will go on two field trips this year. We encourage parents to be chaperones. We do want as many parents to be involved, so if you are interested in chaperoning let us know when you turn in your child’s permission slip. There are times when we have to make reservations and cannot accommodate any more adults past a certain window of time. You will get more detailed information about all of our field trips as we get closer to our field trip dates.

Birthdays

If your child has a birthday and you would like to do something for the class; that is fine. However, we have limits to our celebrations. If you would like to send in a special snack for your child’s birthday, please let me know in advance. I will be happy to provide you with a head count of how many students are in the class. Any type of special snack will need to be done during a time deemed appropriate by me. PLEASE be aware that we may have students with food allergies, so some types of food will not be appropriate, for example anything with peanuts.

I understand that students may want to have a larger celebration outside of school. I ask that if you choose to send in invitations that you include one for every student in the class. We do not want hurt feelings due to someone being left out. I will pass out invitations to students at an appropriate time during our day so it is not an interruption to our day. If you are unable to invite everyone, I ask that you make arrangements by phone or reserve passing out invitations until after school.

Third Grade Celebrations

Welcome to Mrs. Abercrombie’s Class

Welcome, I am very excited about this year in third grade. This will be my fifth year at Kate Sullivan. Third Grade has its challenges, but I have truly enjoyed all of my Third Grade experiences.

Please understand that you, as a parent, are a very valuable part of our classroom. We depend on your support at home to help students succeed both socially and academically. I want to be available for all parent concerns, but I also do not mind hearing about the good things that you see happening throughout the year. I strongly believe that teachers, students, and parents are part of a teamwork community and we can work together to give our students the best that school can offer.

This handbook should be a tool for you throughout the year. PLEASE hang on to it. You may need to refer back to it from time to time.

I look forward to a great year!

Mrs. Abercrombie

InTRODUCTION

Agendas

I use agendas as a form of student/parent/teacher communication. I might write a couple of notes in your student’s agenda throughout the week concerning classroom progress. Agendas should be reviewed and initialed each night. If you need to write a note to me in the agenda, feel free to do so. I review the agendas each morning to stamp them.

E-mail

You can reach me easily by e-mail. I check it periodically during the day. I may not be in a position to respond to your e-mail right away; however, I will respond as soon as I get a chance.

Phone Calls

If you would like to speak to me on the phone, please be courteous about my time with the students. I cannot take phone calls during many parts of the day. I am available during my planning time (1:50 to 2:35) to talk if needed. Many times you might have to leave a message with the front office; however, they do a good job of getting messages to us. When I get messages I will do my best to return phone calls as soon as I can.

CHANGE IN TRANSPORTATION

If you have a change in how your student gets home in the afternoon please notify the school before 1:30pm. The afternoons are hectic and many times we cannot get last minutes messages. Discuss changes in transportation with your student in the morning AND send a note to school regarding the change.

COMMUNICATION

Homework

Homework is assigned every night. There will typically be a spelling/vocabulary assignment and a math assignment. Students must also read each night for 20 minutes, this reading should be recorded in your child’s agenda nightly. From time to time special projects will be assigned with a due date. Students are NOT expected to complete projects in one night.

If a student forgets or does not complete his/her homework, an Oops! Note will come home the following night giving students a second chance to complete their homework. If students miss 3 assignments or more, the report card will be marked and class grades may be impacted.

Parent Papers

Parent Papers come home on Friday. In the folder you will find important newsletters and any papers that are done throughout the week. Parent Papers need to be emptied and turned back in the following Monday.

Snack

Due to the scheduling of our lunch in the middle of the day, I have chosen not to have a scheduled snack time. It is suggested that your child bring a snack to eat after school if it is too difficult to go without one until he or she arrives home.

Water Bottles

Research shows that students who are well hydrated are more focused during the school day. I encourage water bottles, they may even be refilled in the classroom. Gatorade and Powerade are not suitable.

Dress

Students should dress comfortably each day. On P.E. days students should wear sneakers and socks. Crocs and flip-flops are not suitable for extended activity. On non-P.E. days comfortable shoes are fine, however flip-flops are still not allowed.

POLICIES

Daily Schedule

8:30 – 9:00 WKSN/Morning Work/Small Group

9:00 – 10:15 Imagine It! Reading/Centers

(Differentiated Instruction)

10:15-10:35 Grammar (Mon, Tue, Wed)

10:35-11:05 Success Maker Lab (Mon,Tues,Wed)

10:15-11:10 Writing (Thurs & Fri)

11:12-11:37 LUNCH

11:37-12:00 Developmental Play

12:00-1:05 Math/Math Centers (Differentiated Instruction)

1:05 – 1:50 Science

1:50-2:35 Special Area

|Day 1- |Day 2- |Day 3- |Day 4- |

|P.E. |Guidance |Computer Lab |P.E. |

|Day 5- |Day 6- |Day 7- | |

|Media |Music |Art | |

2:35 – 2:50 Silent Read/Pack-Up/Dismissal

Schedule Notes:

P.E is with Coach Walsdorf, Media is with Mrs. Dietrich, Guidance is with Mrs. Railey, Computer Lab is with Ms. Gay, Art is with Ms. Pender, and Music is with Ms. Mathews.

Developmental Play is 5 minutes longer on Friday to comply with recently mandated physical activity requirements.

CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR

Classroom Expectations

1. Be respectful.

2. Be responsible.

3. Be safe.

Classroom Consequences

• Warning given

• Mark on behavior chart

• Loss of playtime

• Loss of Fun Friday

• Note home in agenda

• Time out in classroom

• Time out in another classroom

• Behavior Referral

Extreme behavior will result in an immediate behavior referral.

Weekly Progress Report

Each week on Friday, you will receive a progress report in the front of your child’s agenda. I will place a number that corresponds to the report card citizenship requirements that will indicate an area needing improvement. Refer to the chart at the top of the behavior chart for what each number means. The progress report will be in a plastic sleeve and needs to be signed over the weekend.

THIRD GRADE CURRICULUM

Reading

We will use Imagine It! as our main reading series. Imagine It! includes both writing and grammar skills. Each week we read a story from our reading anthologies and take a comprehension test on Thursday. We read the story several times throughout the week, so on Thursday your student should be prepared to do well on the test.

Accelerated Reader is also a part of our reading curriculum and students will be able to take AR tests daily. Students should be reading AR books until they meet their Nine Weeks AR goal. Please encourage your child to read nightly. The best way to do this is to make sure they have access to as many books as possible.

Science

We will learn science in a series of units. Students will keep a Science Notebook, recording notes and observations on science topics. It is expected that each student keep this notebook up-to-date and complete as we go through the year. Our units will be supplemented with both GEMS and AIMS activities for hands-on activities and experiments.

Math

We are using GO Math! this year for math. This is a new math curriculum for the entire county. This math series is written to address the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards (NGSSS). I feel confident that GO Math! will help our third graders to be exposed to all necessary math skills needed to go to fourth grade next year. As parents, it will better prepare your child for our daily math lessons if you spend time with your student nightly helping and discussing the math homework. Please do not complete your child’s math homework for them.

Spelling and Vocabulary

Words for both spelling and vocabulary come from our weekly learning units. Homework provides needed practice to do well and make good grades on the spelling and vocabulary tests. Both tests will be given on Fridays.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Mrs. Amanda Abercombie

School Phone: (850) 487-1216

E-mail: abercrombiea@

Kate Sullivan Elementary

927 Miccosukee Road

Tallahassee, FL 32308

Page 8

Page 1

Page 2

Page 7

Page 6

Page 3

Page 4

Page 5

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download