Welcome to First Grade!

1. Welcome to First Grade! Reminders • Students are allowed to enter the classroom at 8:40 a.m. • School starts at 8:55 a.m. • Students are tardy after 8:55 a.m. • If your child is going to be absent, please call the office at (508)987-6057 to let us know. • Please try to arrange your vacation during designated vacation days.

2. Home-School Communication • I welcome your notes and phone calls. • Please send in the communication folder every day. • Put notes in the communication folder. • The school phone number is 508-987-6057. My extension is 1101. If you leave a message, I check my voice mail at 8 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. • My email address is ksheehan@oxps.org. I check my email in the evening. • I will get back to you as soon as possible. • Please contact me before coming in for a conference.

3. Birthdays We celebrate birthdays in the classroom. However, this year we are trying something new. Rather than have the children bring in a special snack for their birthdays, we will have a special birthday snack for all the birthdays at the end of each month. The birthday snack will be provided. We will have a summer birthdays celebration in June.

4. First Grade Themes

5. Goals for First Grade

6. Grading • First graders do not receive a report card for the first quarter. As the children transition from kindergarten to first grade, they need time to adjust to the increased responsibilities. Therefore, parent conferences take the place of the first quarter grade. • Corrected practice pages (worksheets) have a fraction at the top, indicating how many correct out of the total number of answers. Papers completed without any teacher’s support will be stamped, “Independent Work.” • Please keep in mind that practice pages and tests are not the only factors in assessment. Board work, oral discussions, individual, and whole group activities are also important components in grading.