Welcome To Our Class !

1. Welcome To Our Class! August 2016 Dear Parents, It is a pleasure to have your child in 1st grade. To start off the year right, we are sending you this Parent Survival Handbook that has been assembled to help you understand our homework requirements and other important information that will enable us to make this a very positive and rewarding year. We feel as though open lines of communication between the parent, student, and teachers are the key 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 lovely day. Please feel free to contact us at any time if there is a question or situation you would like to discuss. You will receive additional communication throughout the school year. We look forward to building a relationship with you and your child and thus providing the best education that we are capable of giving. Sincerely, 1st grade team

2. Daily Schedule • 8:50 - 9:00 AM Arrival Morning papers/activities Exchange library books • 9:10 – 9:30 AM Attendance Lunch count Opening exercises Weather report Morning meeting • 9:30 – 12:20 PM Exeter Language Arts Program Guided Reading / Daily Five Read Aloud Being a Writer • 11:20 – 11:40 AM Recess – Please dress for the weather. • 12:20-12:50 Lunch Meals are purchased in advance. Please send a check in an envelope with your child’s name, grade, teacher name and pin number written on the outside. The cafeteria suggests $20 at a time. SNACK: Your child is responsible to bring a daily snack. • 12:50-2:00 Math • 2:00-2:40 Special – Art, Library, Music, P.E. • 2:40-3:15 Fundations • 3:15-3:25 Vocabulary • 3:25-3:35 Packup • 3:40 Dismissal

3. Work Habits and Academics Homework Please check your child’s homework log nightly to make sure all assignments are completed.. Math homework will not be assigned on a daily basis. Reading Our reading program incorporates many different components. Students will be participating in Guided Reading Groups, Whole Group Instruction and Independent Reading. Reading for 15 minutes a night is a daily homework assignment. Please ask your child questions about the book he/she reads to you. Ideas for questions are in your child’s homework binder. Please sign and date the Reading Log every day. Reading logs are due Friday. It is very important to be consistent with reading every night. The more opportunities your child has to experience text, the stronger reader they will become. Some weeks, on a Monday, your child will be bringing home an independent book to read. This is a book that is at your child’s “just right” reading level. Please listen to your child read the book every night. Rereading books helps students develop fluency and aid comprehension. Reading comprehension is key to becoming an excellent reader. Each book will have a comprehension assignment. The book and completed assignment should be returned on Friday. Poems will be sent home weekly. Please have your child choose a poem to read nightly. If your child cannot read the poem, you may read it to them. Fundations Exeter Township School District uses a phonics program called Fundations. It provides all students a foundation for reading and spelling. Students will have weekly homework assignments due on Fridays. A Unit Assessment will be given at the end of each unit.

4. Work Habits and Academics • Writing • Students will write daily in 1st grade. • “Being a Writer” : This is our writing curriculum. Students will hear stories that provide examples of what good authors do. Students are then given a topic to write about. Students will write narrative, informational and opinion pieces throughout the year. Students will conference with their teacher and discuss their strengths and areas that need improvement. Teachers will edit these writing pieces. Students then share their finished writing piece with their peers. • Daily 5 Writing: Daily 5 consists of Read to Self, Read to Someone, Writing, Word Work and Listening to Books. During writing time in Daily 5 students work on independent writing pieces to develop their writing stamina. Research shows that when students write about what they are interested in, it improves their ability to write. This independent work is not edited by the classroom teacher. Please enjoy reading theses pieces as your child brings them home. • Math • The focus of the Investigations program is on mathematical thinking and reasoning. • Math homework will not be assigned on a daily basis.

5. Behavior Management & Rules Behavior Calendar The behavior calendar should be brought home every afternoon in your child’s binder. It should be returned to school every morning with your son/daughter. In an effort to keep you informed daily about your child’s behavior at school, I will be asking the children to color in the block for that day on the calendar according to the Lorane Behavior System. I will remind all children when we are preparing to pack up to color their calendar and take it home. Finally, I know we are all busy, but I would like you to sign your child’s calendar every Friday. You may sign it daily, but once a week will tell me that you’ve seen it and are aware of your child’s behavior at school. Please reinforce at home the positive behaviors we are looking for at school. Lorane Behavior System If your child comes home with their calendar colored in purplethen that means they were on “Way to Go!” and had a fantastic day. If they have their day colored in blue then that means they were on “Doing Good!” and had a good day. If they come home with their calendar colored green then that means they were on “Ready to Learn” and were focused and attentive. All children start their day ongreen. If your child comes home with their calendar colored yellowthen they were on “Oh No! Refocus” and they had some trouble at school today with listening, being attentive, and perhaps following the school rules. If your child comes home with their calendar colored in Red then that means they were on “Contact Parents” and you will receive a note and/or a phone call from me Our behavior system is focused on rewarding students who follow the rules and come to school with a positive attitude and ready to learn and be a Good Citizen. Please know that a student may move up or down in colors throughout the day, however, regardless of what color they end up on, if they were on red at any time during the day you will receive a note and/or phone call from me.

6. Behavior Management & Rules Expectations It is my hope that all children will come home with the block for that given day colored in purple, blue, or green, but let’s be honest, no one is perfect. We need to understand that most children, if not all of them, will at some point in the year come home with their calendar colored yellow. That’s okay! If this happens we need to encourage them to do better the next day and most likely they will. Parents can certainly help their child understand their behaviors and stress the positive behaviors at home. Also, please remember that this plan is in place throughout the building, so students may be asked to change their color because of something that occurred in the cafeteria, P.E., Music, Art or Library. In doing this I am trying to keep you, the parent, informed about what goes on with your child at school. Conduct Notes Yellow – note home Red – note home or phone call In the event of a more serious offense such as blatant disrespect to a teacher, cursing, fighting, damaging school property, etc., the student will be sent to the administration for immediate action.

7. Additional Information Absences and Tardies Attendance is key to academic success. Please make every effort to have your child present each and every day. However, we understand that there are times when children need to be absent due to illnesses or other family issues. Parents need to send in a signed, written signed note when the student returns to school explaining the reason for the absence and the date(s) of the absence. Please note, emails are no longer accepted. Binders Students will be using an homework binder for assignments. Your child is responsible for taking home the binder each day. They are also responsible for bringing it to school the next day. Breakfast Students are able to eat breakfast when they arrive to school. School breakfasts are $1.35. The breakfast menu will stay same all year. Please keep the pink elementary breakfast menu for reference throughout the year. Birthdays If your child is celebrating a birthday and you would like to celebrate with a treat, you may order it through our cafeteria. The cafeteria will serve the treat to our class at lunch time. If your child would like to share a non-food item with the class. (ie. Pencils, erasers, etc…), they may bring them in their backpack and distribute in our classroom. No pencil sharpners, please.

8. Additional Information • Change in Transportation/Early Pick-up • Change in Transportation Home: If your child is to go home a different way than usual, a signed and dated note must be sent in with your child. Please do not send an email. Unfortunately, if there is substitute or the email is down, your child will not receive the information. • Early Pick-Up: If your child must be picked up early for an appointment during the day, please send a signed and dated note in the morning. Report to the office when to pick up your child. They will call for your child to come to meet you in the office. • Conferences • Fall conferences are Monday, November 21st – Wed. ,November 23rd. • Lunch • Our lunch time is at 12:20 pm. If your child is purchasing lunch, please try to review the lunch menu with them that morning. Please note: The menus this year will be distributed every six weeks. The menu lists 3 weeks on one side and the following 3 weeks on the other side of paper. Menus are available on the Exeter website. www.exeter.k12.pa.us

9. Additional Information 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. This can help avoid hurt feelings. Teachers cannot provide student contact information. Families must purchase the APT school directory. Thank you! Contact Information If you need to contact a first grade teacher, please write a note or email or leave a message using the voice mail system for Lorane. Please remember that we are teaching your children and have limited time to check our e-mail and phone messages. We will respond within 24 hours. Mrs. Hebel 610-582-8608 ext. 4115 kmhebel@Exeter.k12.pa.us