Keys to Success in 2 nd Grade

1. Keys to Success in 2nd Grade Mrs. MeGown Mrs. Stanton Ms. Ford Mrs. Wheeler

2. Schedule • 7:40- 7:50 Morning Work/Announcements • 7:50-8:50 Reading/Language Arts/SS • 8:50-10:20 Math • 10:20-10:45 Spelling • 10:45- 11:15 Primetime • 11:20-12:10 Specials • 12:15 – 1:15 Lunch/Recess • 1:20-2:00 Writer’s Workshop • 2:00-2:50 Science

3. Star of the Week • Every student will get a chance to be Star of the Week. • The Star of the Week will fill out an All About Me Poster. • The poster will be sent home the Friday before the start of the student’s Star week. • No show and tell items will be brought.

4. Homework • New this year! We will have a homework sheet that will stay in your child’s folder along with the responsibility sheet. Each week your student will be required to complete 4 Fasttmath lessons and read 15 minutes per night for 5 nights. This is due first thing each Monday morning. Spelling tests are given every other Friday. High frequency word tests will be given on the alternating Fridays. • 2 Book reports will be done at home with a 2 week preparation time.

5. Book Reports • Students will be assigned 2 book reports over the course of the school year. For each report they will give an oral presentation along with a written report . A grading rubric will be given at the time of the assignment to help in their preparation. • This is one of their favorite assignments of the year!

6. No Name Papers • By now students should be responsible enough to remember to write their names on their papers. So, as a result, there are consequences for forgetting this very important step. • First time – write name 20 times at recess • Every time after that the consequence goes up by 10 • For example: On a student’s fifth no name paper they will write their name 60 times.

7. Responsibility Sheets *Your child’s Responsibility Sheet, located in their McAuliffe folder, indicates their daily & weekly behavior and represents expectations for very student. • If your child disregards an expectation during the day, the Star Sheet is marked by the teacher and sent home for parents to sign. • When a child receives a consequence in Specials, please contact the specials teacher if you have questions since the behavior occurred outside of the classroom.

8. Behavior Management • We are big advocates of positive reinforcement and praising children for their positive behavior. However, consistent disruptive behavior will not be tolerated and will be handled as follows: • *Verbal warning (The child has the chance to correct the behavior.) • *Non-verbal warning (STOP sign placed on desk as a reminder) • *1st clip change: Child moves their clip and has to sit out 10 minutes of their recess time. The child’s Star Sheet is marked. • *2nd clip change: The child moves their clip again and misses all of their recess time. Star Sheet is marked again for that day. • *3rd clip change: Phone call to parents with appropriate consequence • *4th clip change: Child is sent to the office.

9. Behavior Management, cont. • Major behavior incidents (violence, outright disrespect, inappropriate language, vandalizing school property etc.) will be handled immediately without any warnings given and parents will be contacted. • Each child is expected to be on his/her best behavior outside of the classroom as well, including hallways, lunch/recess, Specials, etc. • Please help encourage your child to be an outstanding citizen around the clock!

10. Responsibility Sheet Celebration • On the last Friday of each six weeks from 2-2:45pm, we will have a Responsibility Sheet Celebration to reward good behavior. • If your child receives 3 marks or less in a six week period, they will be invited to the celebration. • The Responsibility Sheet Celebration may be different each six weeks and a lot of fun!!

11. Guest Readers • We welcome parents/grandparents to join our class for read-aloud time as our guest readers! Please let your room parent know that you would like to volunteer. • We will be using our guest readers during our Flex week where students have specials all of one day, but then not the rest of that week. Your teacher will give the room parent specific dates/times. • Students love to help pick out their favorite books to share with the class!

12. Classroom Snacks • Please only send snacks that do not need utensils. This makes it hard for your students to eat while working. • No messy snacks • Cut fresh fruit so that it will be easy to eat • Healthy snacks are best… crackers, dry cereal, fruit snacks, granola bars, etc.

13. Student Birthdays • All birthday treats will be given to the class at the end of the school day. • The treat MUST be STORE BOUGHT. Make sure that you have the class count to ensure everyone gets a treat. • No cupcakes with icing. Cookies, muffins and doughnuts are super!

14. Field Trips • Students will attend 2-3 field trips this year. • We will do a walking field trip to City Hall, the Fire Department and the Police Department. • The other 2 field trips will be determined throughout the school year and will correspond with our curriculum. We will need volunteers to accompany us, so watch for information on our websites and in your child’s McAuliffe Folder as these draw near.