First Grade – Mrs. Gradman
Banner Elementary School
Dunlap CUSD #323
First grade is a time where you will see many changes in your child academically, physically, and socially. For some students this will be the first experience in an all day educational setting. Others will have come from full day programs. The purpose of this guide is to give you some basic information about our first grade. Please read it carefully to learn more about what to expect from first grade at Banner.
Newsletters A newsletter will be sent home every other Monday (or the first day of the week) to keep you informed about what your child is doing. Also, spelling, high-frequency, and vocabulary words will be listed in the newsletter. Check your child's folder for “First Grade News.”
Lunch You may send a check to add to your child's lunch account at any time. When his or her account begins to get low, a notice will be sent home.
Absenteeism If you know ahead of time that your child is going to be absent, please notify me so that work may be sent home. If you will be out of town for an extended time, only the material from the basic subjects will be sent home. Due to the nature of some of our activities, some projects cannot be made up at home. If you do NOT know ahead of time that your child will be absent, please call the school on the morning that he or she will be absent.
Supplies Each first grader needs the following supplies: pencils, glue, scissors, crayons, nine colored folders with metal clasps, a box of Kleenexes, and a take home folder. From time to time, please check with your child to see if new supplies are needed. Crayons and glue are the most likely items that might need replaced.
Progress Reports Progress reports are given at the mid-point of each grading period. Each child will receive a report at the mid-point of the first grading period. After that, progress reports will only be sent home if there is a special area of concern. If your child does receive a progress report, sign the white copy and return it to school in a few days. The other copy is for you to keep.
Report Cards Report cards are given four times throughout the year. At the end of the first grading period, parent conferences will be held and the report cards will be explained at that time in more detail.
Rules
1. Be respectful.
2. Be responsible.
3. Be safe.
4. Have fun!
Behavior All students are expected to follow school and classroom rules. It is expected that all students will be respectful toward other students and all school employees at all times. It may be necessary to reprimand a student for misbehavior. In our classroom we use a stoplight system. If your child is not following directions, his/her name will be given a warning. If the behavior continues, their clip will be moved to yellow. Once on yellow, the students have a choice. Either they can work hard and earn for their name to be moved back to green OR their name will be moved to red if the behavior continues.
Reading Reading is the key to your child's success in school. We want your child to enjoy reading and to enjoy school. You can do quite a bit to help your child become interested in books and learning to read. Your assistance at home is helpful to your child's achievement. Listen to your child read and ask them questions that promote thinking and problem solving skills. Read to your child everyday. Encourage your child to read to you. Children who are learning to read are usually quite eager to demonstrate their newly achieved ability.
This year the school has adopted a new reading series. This series includes shared reading, guided reading, phonics, and writing activities. At shared reading time we will read from a big book and will focus on reading strategies, comprehension skills, and grammar and phonics lessons. Guided reading is a time when I meet with a small group of students, which will allow me to help your child with his/her individual needs. Writing workshop is another component of the series that will help students understand how, why, and what writers do.
Homework
• It is recommended that your child read two books (or two chapters) a night. I would like the student/parents to be picking books that are close to his or her reading level. If the book is too difficult, it is okay to read the book to your child, or you may read the book together. However, I would really like to see more of the students reading than the parent. We want to make this a fun and enjoyable time with your kids, not a time when the child is frustrated J
• Each Monday an organizer will be sent home with the reading comprehension strategy that we are working on. The activity can be completed anytime during the week and be sent back anytime before Friday.
Spelling The spelling words will be listed in the newsletter. Our lists will be composed of words with common phonetic patterns as well as words that are frequently used by first graders in their own writing. We will work on learning to spell these words at school by writing them, reading them, and by using them in sentences. You can help your child throughout the week by practicing these words at home. The spelling test will then be given on Fridays.
Math We begin the year by teaching basic addition and subtraction concepts. The children will be taught various strategies to solve addition and subtraction facts to ten. The next area will include graphing and place value followed by learning addition and subtraction facts to twelve. Geometry and facts to twenty will be covered next. After that, we will be working with money, time, and fractions. The year will conclude with instruction in measurement, adding and subtracting 2 digit numbers, and a section on probability.
Birthdays I'd love for your children to celebrate their birthdays with their classmates! However, please do not send anything too messy. A lot of children bring pre-packaged items for the sake of it being easy and less messy. Also, please do not send any drinks that require me to pour. There simply wouldn't be enough time. Pre-packaged drinks may be sent if you want. Please let me know ahead of time if you plan on sending your child with treats.
All School Teams All students will be assigned to an all-school team. Each team has children from kindergarten through fifth grade. Teams will meet several times a year for special activities.
Book Orders A book order form will be sent home periodically with your child. These books are generally paperback books that can be purchased for a reasonable price. If you would like to place an order, please return the form along with a check made out to the book company . I will let you know the due date. The books arrive at school in about two weeks.