Please send 5 days of snack for 24 kids to school with your child just as soon as you can.

I store
the snacks in the classroom so that they are here for us each day as we need them. Snacks do
not have to be individually wrapped, but please be mindful of the quality of snack you are
providing for the students. Some snacks that have really worked great in the past have been
raisins, veggie straws/chips, goldfish, pretzels, real fruit snacks, crackers, dried or fresh fruit,
cheese sticks-etc.) We will do this again in January to re-stock the snacks after Christmas break.
Thank you so much!
Snack
Policy
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BRANSON
CEDAR RIDGE
ELEMENTARY
Welcome To First Grade
I want to take this opportunity to officially welcome you my FIRST GRADE class! It is going to
be a wonderful school year full of laughter, love and learning! I look forward to working together
this year with you and your family!
A little about me...I consider myself a northerner at heart, as I lived in South Dakota and
Minnesota my entire childhood. After graduating from Hollister High in 2002 I immediately started
performing as a singer/dancer in Branson shows. I continued to perform until graduating from MSU
in 2008 with a degree in Elementary Education and emphasis in Early Childhood Education.
My sweet little family consists of my husband Corey and our two little girls, Lundyn(4),
Charlee(2) and our son Miles due late this October. We love to play at the park, dance in our
kitchen and play all day at Silver Dollar City riding the frogs and bugs. We are a family that
prides themselves on making messes, second chances and lots of hugs and kisses. I have taught
kindergarten for the past 4 years here at Branson. This will be my second year in 1st grade and I
could not be more excited!
My Passion
Im passionate about learning through technology, especially for this generation. Im
passionate about whole brain learning for ALL ages, to ensure a learner is actively engaged. I am
passionate about visual aids and hands on experiences to deepen childrens understanding of what
we are working on. Im passionate about student safety and clear expectations, in order to set kids
up for success.
Im a passionate mother who loves her own children more than words can express. Im
passionate about the opportunity I have been given to love your child as well! Your child is a big
deal to me. Im passionate about them knowing, without any hesitation, that this is true.
1st Day of
School
CHECKLIST
School Supplies
Backpack
Snack (see below)
Lunch $ (optional)
transportation plan
solidified with
teacher
lES/ ll1ClELL
417.884.6186 EX1. Z809
ll1ClELLlCEH/NSN.K1Z.l.LS WWW.lHSll1ClELL.LS
LIKE OUR PAGE @ WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/MRSMITCHELLSCLASS
TO VIEW CLASSROOM PHOTOS AND ONGOING UPDATES
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DONT FORGET TO SIGN UP TO HAVE ACCESS TO YOUR CHILDS
BEHAVIOR REPORTS AT WWW.CLASSDOJO.COM
Dates
Here are some upcoming dates
you will want to make sure you
are aware of. Also please
remember to check your child's
Friday folder for any
additional dates and reminders
that will be sent home as
needed. As with anything else,
please contact Mrs. Mitchell
with any questions. Thank you
for your continued support in
your child's education.
August September
WEEKLY
Reminders
Dates
Here are some upcoming dates
you will want to make sure you
are aware of. Also please
remember to check your child's
Friday folder for any
additional dates and reminders
that will be sent home as
needed. As with anything else,
please contact Mrs. Mitchell
with any questions. Thank you
for your continued support in
your child's education.
21
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
1
No School Labor Day
Tuesday
Wear Gym Shoes
Dates
Here are some upcoming dates
you will want to make sure you
are aware of. Also please
remember to check your child's
Friday folder for any
additional dates and reminders
that will be sent home as
needed. As with anything else,
please contact Mrs. Mitchell
with any questions. Thank you
for your continued support in
your child's education.
22
EARLY DISMISSAL
@2:35pm
26-30
Please send 5 days of snacks
for 24 kids sometime this
week.
Bedtime Story Reading
Incentive Begins
SEPTEMBER
NEWSLETTER
Wednesday
Return Library Book
Friday
Spirit Day (red & black)
Early Dismissal (2:35pm)
Dates
Here are some upcoming dates
you will want to make sure you
are aware of. Also please
remember to check your child's
Friday folder for any
additional dates and reminders
that will be sent home as
needed. As with anything else,
please contact Mrs. Mitchell
with any questions. Thank you
for your continued support in
your child's education.
COMING
SOON!!
Homework
more info. to come via friday
folder
Please remember if you have any
questions, concerns or would just
like to touch base with your child's
teacher I am always available. I
enjoy partnering with families in
an effort to creating the best
experience for every child. You
are the expert on your child, I look
forward to hearing from you!
-Mrs. Mitchell
iPads
In our classroom we currently have 2 iPads.
One iPad is primarily used by myself
throughout the day, though there are a
couple times daily when I hand both over to
my students to use. (writing/math stations) I
have hundreds of apps for the kiddos to use
and we have an absolute blast learning with
them! We also have an Apple TV which
creates the opportunity to use these apps as a
class during our daily whole class activities.
Computers
The 3 student computers in our classroom will
be used across all subject areas. The students
will be playing interactive games, most
purchased from and created by Lakeshore
Learning. In addition to the learning games
they will be blogging weekly through our
class KID BLOG site. Once practiced and
prepared, students will take home their Kid
Blog login info and connect at home with
each other through the blog. How fun!!!
Smart Board
The Smart board in our classroom is
essentially an interactive white board that
functions as a computer and iPad all in one. It
has a touch screen like and iPad, but works
through your computer. We use our smart
board ALL day in our classroom. It is a
constant visual reference point for my students
as it pairs with all of the other technology in
our room 309 as well.
Document Camera
Our classroom is equipped with a SMART
Document Camera. This device is used every
day by myself and the students. Incase you
are unsure exactly what a document camera
is, here is a little about this wonderful tool that
helps engage my students, and makes their
learning more visual and meaningful!
Document Camera: They are, in essence, high
resolution web cams, mounted on arms so as
to facilitate their placement over a page or
activity. This allows a teacher to write on a
sheet of paper or to display a two or three-
dimensional activity while the students watch.
Birthdays
Parents feel free to send a
birthday treat to school with
your child to share with their
class around the time of their
birthday!
Also if you are having a party
that you want to invite students
to via students backpacks,
please make sure you have
enough invitations to send 1 per
student. Thank You!
Tchnlg n Our Clssrm
Volunteers Needed
Working with Students
We are always in need of an extra helping hand with our kiddos throughout the routine of our day. I am looking for parents
interested in setting up a consistent volunteer schedule. Whether it is once a month or once a week, this is a wonderful
opportunity to not only impact your child's education... but to help make a difference for the entire class. Please contact me
via e-mail or a note to express your interest in being an ongoing participant in our learning environment. Thank you in
advance for making a commitment to be a part of your childs education.
Working on Projects
There are an abundance of projects that I am working on at any given time. Any volunteers that are interested in helping me
with these tasks please send a note to school with your child or contact me via e-mail to set up a time for you to volunteer.
Again, setting up a regular schedule to volunteer is always welcomed and appreciated very much!
Field Trips
I will be looking for reliable volunteers that can attend our class fields trips, Fall and Spring. These parents will ride the bus
with us to the field trip and also supervise a small group of children on the trip. If you are interested please look in the red
friday folder and our monthly newsletters for more information as it becomes available.
Cooking/Experiment Supplies
We will do a weekly/bi-weekly cooking or science lesson that coordinates with our current unit of study. (author/genre/
science/social studies) If you can contribute to sending supplies throughout the school year please contact Mrs. Mitchell to
add your name to the list.
Fall Party/Valentines Party
We will have 2 classroom parties this year. I will be looking for volunteers to help plan, attend and send supplies for each of
these events. Please look in your childs red friday folder for more information as it gets closer to party time.
What is my child learning
about this month?
Reading
During the month of August and into
September we will be working on the
routines of our daily schedule. We will
begin daily Guided Reading where ALL
students will meet with me EVERYDAY in a
small leveled group. It is essential that as
your child meets wit me daily, they also
read form their book bag nightly with you
at home. Please set up this routine as soon
as possible to ensure your child's reading
success this year.
Writing
We will work on setting up the writing
workshop expectations and routines.
Students will begin writing stories on the
first day of school and will continue this
routine each day thereafter.
Math
During the month of August we will
be working on the enVision math
expectations and start promptly with Topic
1. Please look to the enVision math
brochure to lean how to support your
childs math development this year.
Spelling
Each week we will have a new
spelling list. We will do various word work
activities with these words and a phonics
strategy everyday. Week 1 is kindergarten
sight word review. We will begin in
August and early September with short
vowel sounds and move into long vowel
sounds. (CVC words, and CVCE words)
Science/Social Studies
During the month of August we will
begin our Scholastic News program. Your
child will be bring home an issue of
Scholastic News once per week. It is within
this issue that we focus primarily on Social
Studies and Science standards. We will
explore through the program many
experiments and investigations where
students get to experience first hand how
the world around them works.
Author/Genre
We will typically be learning about 1
specific author or genre at a time. For the
month of August our author focus will be
David Shannon, and our genre will be
narrative stories.
Things you can do to help
your child at school...
!. Get on an early bedtime routine.
According to the National Sleep
Foundation, kids ages 5-12 need 10-11
hours of sleep each night. Getting
enough sleep is essential for your childs
emotional, physical, and academic well-
being.
2. Feed them a nutritious breakfast.
A good breakfast fuels you up and gets
you ready for the day. Statistically it has
been proven that children who eat
breakfast perform better in school, have
more energy, and emotional stability
during the day.
3. Read, Read, Read.
The importance of reading simply can't
be overstated. Read to them and have
them read to you, then do it all over
again. Do this every evening in some
form. If you haven't already, begin a
reading routine. Helping your child
become a reader is the single most
important thing that you can do to help
them succeed in school.
4. Ask about their day. Everyday.
Talking and listening play major roles in
children's school success. It's important
for you to show your child that you're
interested in what they have to say. Take
the time to use conversation to stimulate
their language development.
5. Show excitement TO THEM about how
smart they are!
Your child is brilliant. Please remind them
of this as often as you can. Look for
opportunities to brag on your child, to
them! This will help build condence and
will help them power through academic
challenges.
What is Remind?
Remind was built to solve communication obstacles between teachers,
students and parents. Across all grade levels and institution types, Remind
is a safe and simple communication solution to help teachers extend their
classrooms.
The connected classroom is rapidly evolving. Remind helps teachers take
advantage of technology in a way that frees up their time to focus on what
they do best: teach.
How will Mrs. Mitchell use Remind?
It is important that you subscribe to my First Grade Class on Remind. (see
picture above on how) I will send text through Remind for tons of
reminders you would have received notes home on. This pertains
especially to the day before reminders. The monthly newsletter will be
available for download on our classroom website as well.
I am condent you will nd this to be a simple way to keep current on the
important happenings in our classroom without having to worry about
missing something.
If you are unable to subscribe to Remind 101, please contact me to make
other arrangements for school to home communication.
School Hours
Monday-Thursday 8:45am-3:45pm
Friday Only 8:45am-2:45pm
Office Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm
Cedar Ridge Elementary
417.334.5135