Homework- By this time you should be seeing homework coming home. Homework will be nightly. If there is a night that we do not have homework I will send home a note saying so. This way you don’t have to question whether or not there was homework. You will see individual pages of homework for Math that need to be returned daily. Each week will also start with a Spellin Packet or a Tic Tac Toe page. These are due each Friday or Thursday of shortened weeks. Your child will receive a sticker each day that they return their homework. You will be able to see if your child actually turned their homework in by watching the calendar on the back of their blue folder.
Snacks- We will have a short working snack time each day. You may send in a snack if you wish. I must insist that these snacks be neat and healthy. Each family received a copy of the Fremont Healthy Snack List. Snacks that are not healthy will be returned home.
Water Bottles-your child may bring a water bottle that is 16 oz or less. These need to go home nightly and be washed and refilled. If you child continually plays with their water bottle it may be placed on the back counter to avoid the distraction.
Birthdays and Class Parties- I know that Birthdays are very important. I love celebrating birthdays with my students, but I ask that treats do not come in. If your student wants to bring something to share with their friends, please consider stickers, pencils, small toys etc. Treats will be allowed at all classroom holiday parties. We will also have a class party at the end of the year to celebrate our growth and treats will be welcome then. Speaking of parties…parties are so much more fun when they are planned by parents. If you are interested in helping to organize parties please contact me!
Clothing and lunch boxes- Please label any coats, sweaters, gloves, hats and lunchboxes. Each year our lost and found fills up with items that never find their owner. If items are labeled, it is easier to get them back to your child.
Doughnuts and Data- I will be holding Doughnuts and Data mornings a few times this year. I hope you will take advantage of this time to come and see your child’s data and work. This is also a great time to speak to me about concerns.
Data Folder- Each student was asked to ring in a one inch, three ring binders. This will be used for their Data Folder. A data folder is where we will record the student’s goal and progress. In the folder will be DIBELS scores, Math test scores, homework calendars, MAP scores and more.Grading- In First Grade we do not give letter grades. You will see ADV, P, PP, M and U instead. These do not replace the letter grades! They represent the following Adv. = Advanced P=Proficient PP=Partially Proficient M=Marginal Progress U= Unsatisfactory Progress
DIBELS- Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills- Each student will be taking DIBELS test at least three times during the school year. Here is a brief description of each test.
LNF-Letter Naming Fluency- your child will be given a page of letters. They will be asked to name each letter. They will have one minute. Their score will be the number of letters they were able to name.PSF-Phoneme Segmentation Fluency- Your child will be given one minute to say the sounds in word that are read to them. Their score will be the number of sounds they were able to give.
NWF- Nonsense Word Fluency- your child will have one minute to read as may nonsense words as they can. The reason for using nonsense words is to make sure the student is sounding the words out and not reading words they may have memorized. Their score will be the number nonsense words they were able to read in one minute. Some examples of nonsense words are sim and lut.
WUF-Word Use Fluency-Your child will have a word read to them and they will be asked to use the word in a sentence. The score will reflect the total number of words the student said.
ORF/RTF-Oral Reading Fluency and Retell Fluency- Your child will be given a passage to read. They will have one minute to read as much as they can, then they will have one minute to retell what they read. The ORF score will be the number of words read correctly and the RTF score will be based on what they remember.
The scores will sometimes be color coded.
Green means the student have met or exceed the goal.
Yellow means the student missed the goal by a small margin. These students will be retested at least once a month to make sure they are progressing. This is called Progress Monitoring.
Pink/ Red- This means the student missed the goal by a substantial amount. These students will be Progress monitored at least twice a month to make sure they are progressing.
MAP testing- Measure of Academic Progress-Your child will be taking a MAP test three times this year in Reading and Math. The test is given on a computer. I will either send home scores or have them ready for conferences.
Writing Rubrics- The district has written rubric outlining the skills that students should be able to perform at each quarter. There will be a new Rubric for each Quarter.
Writers Workshop- Each day your child will participate in Writers Workshop. It is very important that your child be on time to school each morning. Writers Workshop is the first thing we will do. They will receive lessons everyday on how to become better writers. I hope each child will understand that they are an author and that what they have to write about is important. Your child will be writing everyday and selecting pieces of work that they want o publish a few times a quarter. Your child will write about what they want to, so if there is an event that they are excited about or that impacts your child, you may suggest that they write about it.
Everyday Math- Everyday Math is our Math Curriculum. The name says a lot. They will have Math homework daily. They will get an explanation of each unit as we begin each unit. You will want to save this packet to answer any questions you have. It also has answers to the homework that will be coming home to help you as you help your child.
Story Town- Fremont uses Story Town Reading Curriculum. You will see a yellow page come home in the beginning of each new lesson. This page will have the words and skills we are working on during that lesson. The Reading homework will also reflect these skills.
Orton Gillingham- I will be using Orton Gillingham practices in my class to teach phonics, reading and spelling. This program uses multisensory activities.
Above all I want you to know that I am here for you and your child. I truly believe that all children can learn! I also believe that all children will learn when families and school work together. I hope we can work together this year to make sure your child has a positive a successful year!Mrs. Ponsor