1 st Grade Auction Party

1. 1st Grade Auction Party • Friday, September 19th • The Burton’s house • If you did not receive an evite go to: brookwoodparents.com • Update your info! 

2. Welcome to Back-to-School Night! Miss Leathers 1st Grade 2014-2015

3. -Grew up in Leawood -KU, B.S.E. -Student taught 1st and 6th -20 graduate hours -Currently, Baker University Meet the TeacherMiss Leathers This will be my 3rd year teaching in Shawnee Mission! *Previously taught 1st and 4th

4. Our Schedule •  8:00-8:25 Morning Work  •  8:30-9:30 Reading •  9:30-10:15 Reading Workshop •  10:15-10:30 Recess •  10:30-10:55 Writing/Language Arts •  10:57-11:22 Lunch (EarlyDismissal 10:27-10:52) •  11:25-12:00 Calendar/Read Aloud  •  12:00-12:30 Math •  12:30-1:00 Math Workshop •  1:00-1:15 Recess •  1:15-2:00 Science/Social Studies •  2:00-3:00 Specials •  3:00-3:10 Pack-up & Dismissal

5. Specials Schedule • Monday: PE & Music/Spanish • Tuesday: Art • Wednesday:PE/Spanish • Thursday: Library • Friday: Music *Tennis shoes on PE days! *Return library books on time!

6. CurriculumReading*Language Arts*Math*Science*Social Studies*Spelling*PE*Art*Music*Library Reading:Ourmain reading program is Wonders, published by McGraw-Hill. In addition to this program, we will also incorporate many other activities to help first graders become strong readers. Our program incorporates: Read Aloud: Stories read by teacher for enjoyment and modeling. Shared Reading: Big books, Wonders stories and poems read together. Small Group Instruction: Students will be reading books on their level. They will bring home some of these stories to practice. Whole Group: During this time, we will use phonics to learn new sounds and practice sounding out words. Independent Reading: Stories read by students alone. These are often stories they have already read in small group or shared reading. This helps build fluency. Reading Workshop:This is a teaching method that has been around for many years. Its main focus is to foster a love for reading within our students and to differentiate or personalize instruction in order to accommodate the learning needs of all students. Our students may be traveling between myself,Mrs. Wilson, and Mrs. McKinney to ensure those needs are met. We will also be sharing a reading aide during this time.

7. Language Arts Students will be writing in their journals 3-4times each week. During this time they will be practicing the blending skills learned during our phonics instruction. They will also be learning to use capital and lowercaseletters, punctuation, and correctgrammar. Along with journaling, students will help make class books and edit sentences on a regular basis. Math Math will be taught in units that usually last 2-3 weeks. Students will have many opportunities to use manipulatives throughout these units. In addition to using hands-on materials, they will also complete written assignments found in our enVision math series. Students also practice their math skills every morning during our morning work and calendar time. Math also includes a math workshop with myself, Mrs. Wilson, or Mrs. McKinney, which will meet the individualized needs of our learners. Science First grade science is all about hands-on activities and projects that help the students understand the world they live in. The Harcourt series will cover topics such as animals, habitats, magnets, plants, weather, and good health. Social Studies During our social studies time we will study figures in history, Native Americans, communities, and regions of our country. We also study seasons and holidays and the significance of each. Along with this, students will learn about respecting others and themselves.

8. Spelling Beginning in September, students will have 10 spelling words each week. The test will always be on Friday. The list will contain sight words, as well as words containing the sounds we have studied. Lists for the next week will be e-mailed on Fridays as an attachment with our newsletter! Homework • Practice spelling words at home • Practice sight words (web backpack/and/or sent home) • Sharing from newsletter • 1 math sheet per week • Read nightly!!! • On occasion, class work that has not been completed in class may be sent home as homework. It will say HOMEWORK at the top.

9. Take Home Folders • Daily Take Home Folders (silver SMSD) – Come home everyday with homework and/or communication from school. • Please get in the habit of checking this folder every night and returning to school every day with your child!

10. Grading in 1st grade • Grade Definitions, K-3 • Academic grades for students in grades K through 3 will be S, I, N, U, X. These are defined as follows:  • S: SATISFACTORY. Demonstrates steady growth at a child's particular level and demonstrates consistent achievement of instructional objectives. + and – may be used. • I: IMPROVING. Is beginning to demonstrate consistency in achievement of instructional objectives. • N: NEEDS IMPROVEMENT.Demonstrates inconsistent achievement of instructional objectives. • U: UNSATISFACTORY. Demonstrates unsatisfactory achievement of instructional objectives. • X: An X will be used to indicate subject or topics which were not taught during the grading period. 

11. Policies & Procedures Absences When your child is sick or absent for any reason, please e-mail or call Mrs. Hoskins, school nurse, as well as Miss Leathers. Studentswill make up work when they return to school. If a student misses more than 2 days, I will gather work to send home. *It is important for the health of our classroom to keep your child at home until they are feeling well or fever free for 24 hours! Classroom and School Rules • Be Safe • Be Responsible • Be Respectful Lunch/Visitors You are welcome to eat lunch with your first grader any day of the week! We eat lunch from 10:57-11:22. When you come to school to eat lunch or for any other reason, please check in at the office and get a visitor’s sticker. Peanut Free School A few years ago Brookwood became a peanuts/nut free school. This means that all snacks and treats shared in the building must not contain peanuts or nuts. Please keep this in mind when sending class treats.

12. Water Bottles & Snacks • Water bottles may be brought to school. (If it becomes a distraction, I will ask him/her to put it in their backpack or take it home.) • With such an early lunch, your child may have a snack at the beginning of afternoon recess at 1:00 p.m. Snacks must be healthy, quick, and neat. • Good examples: Veggie straws, goldfish, crackers, grapes, raisins, carrot sticks, pretzels, fruit snacks, granola bars • Please make sure your child can open the snack and water bottle on his/her own! 

13. Behavior • Individual: Monster Punch Cards! • Our classroom management program will be based on a reward system. We will be working for Monster Reward Punches and earning Baxter Bucks. Each student will have a monster punch card at their table with their name written on it. When students are making monsterly good decisions, (sharing, being kind, helping others, etc.) they will get a hole punch on their monster punch card. They will also earn 6 Baxter Bucks after filling up a row. After students have filled their punch card, they will be able to pick a fun reward from the Monster Reward Binder. Students who have turned in at least 1 Baxter Buck during the week, will be in our class drawing to be class Baxter Buck representative.

14. Behavior • Whole Class:Fuzzies • As a class, we can earn fuzzies for our Class Fuzzy Jar. We earn fuzzies by being safe, respectful, and responsible. We can also earn fuzzies by getting compliments from other teachers! • Once our Class Fuzzy Jar is filled, we will vote on a class party! Parties can range from wearing your pajamas to school to getting extra recess!

15. Special Days Birthdays*Fieldtrips*Conferences*Sharing*Newsletter Birthdays Students enjoy celebrating their birthday at school. Feel free to send treats, but please do not feel obligated to do so. If your child has a summer birthday, you may send treats on their half birthday or near the end of the school year. Please send individual treats and e-mail Miss Leathers ahead of time to let me know which day! Also, please do not pass out birthday invitations at school! Thank you! Field Trips Our first trip planned is to the Kansas City Zoo in October! Permission forms will be sent home soon. If you volunteer to go on our field trip, you will also have to pay for the tour and we ask that you not bring younger siblings. I will send an e-mail to ask for volunteers when we finalize the date! Parent-Teacher Conferences During fall conferences, parents will be scheduled for a twenty minute period. We will discuss your child’s progress, the direction for the rest of the year, and any concerns you have. If you have concerns prior to conference day, PLEASE let me know! Sign-up is on the back table!

16. Sharing The sharing topic for the week will be listed in the Friday newsletter. Almost always on Fridays, this time will be spent discussing topics that relate to what we are doing in the classroom. For example, during fire safety week, students will be asked to draw a map of their home and share their family’s plan for leaving the house. Students should complete this with an adult and have a few sentences written down to share with the class during this time. We will be working on being good speakers and respecting others by being good listeners. Newsletter A newsletter will be e-mailed and also posted on my web backpack every Friday. It will contain important information about upcoming events and what is being studied, including spelling words and sharing. Please visit my web backpack if you have not already! Skyward The district has implemented a new parent alert and grading system called Skyward. It is very helpful for the upper grades since so many grades are taken. In first grade, we will only be putting in quarterly grades which will be reflected in the report card sent home.

17. Star Student of the Week • Each student will have a week assigned to them to be our “Star Student”! • An All About Me poster will go home on Friday and returned completed on Monday! They may color pictures or use photographs! • The Estimation Bear will also go home on Friday and returned on Monday filled! (Tape the # of items on the bottom so that we can check our estimates!) • Schedule is on my web backpack! I will also e-mail you on the Friday before your student’s week as a reminder!

18. Dismissal • Please e-mail or call me and Mrs. Alexander in the office if your child will have any changes in their dismissal procedure! • kelseyleathers@smsd.org • meaganalexander@smsd.org 

19. Communication • Friday Newsletter (Will be e-mailed and posted to my web backpack!) • http://www4.smsd.org/KelseyLeathers/ • Email: kelseyleathers@smsd.org • Classroom: 913-993-2523 • Office: 913-993-2500

20. Thank you for coming tonight and sharing your first grader with me! I look forward to a wonderful year working with you and your child!