Parent Survival Guide

aka
First and Second Grade Handbook St. Paul Lutheran School Austin, Texas

2011-2012
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August 2011
Dear Parents, It is indeed a pleasure to have your child in our classes. To start off the year right, we are sending you this Parent Survival Handbook that has been assembled to help you become familiar with information that will enable us to make this a very positive and rewarding year. We feel open lines of communication between the parent, student, and teacher are one of the keys to promoting an educational climate that is conducive to learning. We are looking forward to working with you and your child. Together we can make a difference! You can help by sending us well-rested children with full tummies and a hug and a kiss still fresh on their minds. This sets the stage for a great day. Please feel free to contact us at any time if there is a question or situation you would like to discuss. We look forward to building a relationship with you and your child and thus providing the best education that we are capable of giving. This document is an addendum to the Parent Student Handbook. Please review that document also. In Service to the Master Teacher,

Suzanne Braun Jane Anne Pohl

Homework
Students will be assigned homework. Please check your childs OK Notebook nightly to make sure all assignments are completed. Students are expected to read 15 minutes every night. If students do not complete daily class work, they will be expected to finish these assignments as well as assigned homework. Unless specified all homework should be turned in the following school day. The child is expected to complete homework assignments independently in pencil. After your child has completed the homework an adult should check the work for accuracy.

Guidelines for Grading

The following guideline is used to evaluate student work in first and second grade. E S N U This is reserved for excellence. Student exceeds expectations. Student shows extra effort and work is always complete. Work is consistently completed on time and done accurately. Expectations are met. Needs improvement. Student shows inconsistent performance Student needs extra practice at home. Needs improvement. Student shows inconsistent performance Student needs extra practice at home. Little or no effort is exhibited.

The following guideline is used in second grade for reading, language, spelling and math. This is intended to be a transition between first and third grade. A This is reserved for excellence, a step above everyone else. The student performs well above average. Works hard and work is always complete. Consistently strong performance. Work is completed. Average. Learns new concepts through many repetitions. Student completes work. The student is not accurately completing work. Little or no effort is exhibited.

B C F

The student behavior section in the parent handbook is the basis for the rules in the first and second grade classrooms. The following are the rules in the first and second grade classrooms. 1. Listen when others talk. 2. Keep hands, feet, and other objects to yourself. 3. Respect others and their property. 4. Follow directions and instructions.

Throughout the day the students make choices. As stated above the students are encouraged to make positive choices and are rewarded when they do so. The positive choices may be recognized in the following ways: Verbal recognition Stickers or stamps Additional free time Notes home Special class parties There is a system in place to deal with choices that do not follow the classroom rules. When a student chooses to break classroom rules, he/she receives a consequence. Each child begins the day on green. 1st time: A verbal warning is given. 2nd time: Student moves to yellow and records the reason on their daily behavior sheet in their OK Notebook. The student misses 5 minutes of recess or free time. 3rd time: Student moves to red and records the reason on their daily behavior sheet in their OK Notebook. The student misses 10 minutes of recess or free time. 4th time: The student is removed from his/her classmates and no longer participates in classroom activities, including recess. The parents are contacted through letter, e-mail or phone call to discuss the problem. The teacher may give an immediate time out and/or contact the parent depending on the severity of the students choice. With this system in place, the students, teacher and parents know the rules, rewards, and consequences for behavior choices. This system reflects the mission statement and discipline policy of St. Paul Lutheran School as it nurtures the growth of its students as Christian people.

Absences and Tardies

Attendance at school is important for every student. Frequent absences or tardies significantly affect your childs performance and success. Make every effort to have your child present and on time every day. However we understand that there are times when children need to be absent due to illness or other family issues. Please send an e-mail to the teacher if your child is absent and the reason for the absence. If you know that your child will be tardy or will be leaving school early please inform the teacher in advance. Please refer to the St. Paul Parent Handbook regarding specific policies regarding absences and tardies.

Accelerated Reader
Accelerated Reader gives your child the opportunity to increase their reading skills by reading books and then taking computerized quizzes at school on what they have read. All books included in the Accelerated Reader program have been given a reading level. At the beginning of the year first graders should choose books within the .5 to 2.0 ranges. Second graders should choose books within the range suggested by their score on the Star Reading Assessment. Some of these books your child may read independently and some may be read to your child or somewhere in between. Periodically, the students will take the Star Reading assessment to determine their reading level and, if necessary, make adjustments to the range of books from which they may choose. Accelerated Reader is used in two ways. First, your child will be encouraged to choose an AR book to read at home and, when ready, take an AR quiz at school. Secondly, there will be times that they read an AR book at school and take a quiz.

The student collects points as they read books and take quizzes. Students will be recognized for their achievements as they reach significant point levels. Each quarter the students will get a grade on their report card for the AR tests they have taken. The grading scale will be as follows: E reads 5 or more books each week and passes the tests S+ reads 3 to 4 books each week and passes the tests S reads 2 books each week and passes the tests Sreads 1 book each week and pass the test N reads less than 1 book each week Your child may find AR books in a variety of locations: school or classroom library, home collection, or the public library. If there is a special book that your child wants to read and cannot find it, I will be happy to help them locate it. Use the following website www.arbookfind.com - to search AR books.

Birthdays
A parent may provide a birthday treat for the entire class. A parent may bring a treat from home. Please be aware of allergies that children may have. These treats must be precut and ready to serve. If you are going to send treats please send them with your child in the morning. Please do not send drinks. Water is available at school. Also, simply singing Happy Birthday can recognize a students birthday. No food is necessary.

Book Orders
Book Orders will be sent home about once a month. If you wish to place an order, please return the order form or complete your order online by the date indicated. Please do not send cash. Checks should be made out to Scholastic Book Clubs and enclose it and the order in an envelope with the students name printed on the outside. These programs are not mandatory but are greatly encouraged because they provide an excellent opportunity for your child to get good books to read at affordable prices. 7

Change in Transportation
If your child is to go home a different way than usual, please send a note indicating the change in arrangements.

Early Pick-up
We are very busy all day in our class. Please try to arrange doctor/dentist appointments outside of school hours because anytime your child comes in late or leaves early they miss valuable instruction. However, if you must check your child in or out during the day, please inform your childs teacher in advance and your child will be at the office at the appropriate time. If your child is not at the office please ask the office staff to call for your child to come to meet you at the office.

Communication
Communication between home and school is very important. Please do not hesitate to e-mail or call the teacher if you have any questions or concerns. Other forms of communication may include weekly newsletters, blogs and information posted on RenWeb.

Dropping Off/ Pick Up

When the school day begins please say good-bye to your child in the cafeteria or in your car. It is not necessary to walk your child to the classroom and come into the classroom with them. At the end of the day the children will be taken to the porch or child care if necessary. Parents may meet the children in the lobby or pick the child up in the pick up line.

Forgotten Items
Items forgotten by your child may be dropped off in the office. The office staff will bring the items to the classroom.

The purpose of the O.K. Notebook (Organized Kids Notebook) is twofold. First, it is a way to help organize the papers your child brings home from school. Second, it is a communication tool between the teacher and the parents. Entries and changes will be made regularly so be sure to check each section each day. The OK Notebook includes the daily behavior page, weekly assignment sheet, memory work and spelling words in addition to other appropriate information. The OK Notebook comes home with your child each day. Parents should review the notebook and sign the daily behavior sheet. The child is responsible for bringing the OK Notebook back to school the next day.

OK Notebook

Party Invitations
If you are having a birthday party for your child outside of school, school is not the best place to pass out invitations unless every child in class is being invited. Your child needs to bring all invitations directly to the teacher to be distributed discreetly, including invitations to students in other classes.

Parent Volunteers
Each class has room parents. These parents will help organize parties (Christmas and Valentines Day), special projects and events, etc. Occasionally you will receive a note or a call from a room parent requesting help. Parents may also volunteer in the classroom. The classroom teacher will send home a volunteer signup sheet indicating where help is needed.

Snacks
Each class has a snack time at morning recess. Please make sure that this is a small, simple, nutritious snack. Some suggestions for a healthy snack include: dry cereal, crackers, popcorn, apples, carrots and raisins. Do not send drinks, any items that are messy or any items requiring a spoon or fork. Candy, cupcakes, donuts and other sweet treats are not appropriate for snack time.

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I have read the Parent Survival Handbook and discussed the necessary content with my child. Parents/Guardians Signature ______________________________ Childs Signature ______________________________ Date __________________________ Comments ______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________

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