News to Use

All 4th grade students have been provided a Lincoln School Agenda. This is a calendar/organizer designed to enhance all the students' organization skills and to help them keep track of homework and important events etc.

The students are required to write their homework assignments in the agenda each day. We usually fill it out on Mondays, using the homework listed in The Listening Post. Classwork assignments might also get added throughout the week. This happens when in class work did not get completed. In that case it needs to go home to get finished that evening.  This is known as "leftovers."

PLEASE CHECK YOUR CHILD'S AGENDA  DAILY TO KEEP TRACK OF SCHOOL ASSIGNMENTS AND DUE DATES.

I WILL ALSO ADD NOTES FOR YOU TO SEE AS NEEDED. Sometimes I will request a signature and/or a reply.

The most important supplies for the classroom are:

1. 12 clear sheet protectors
2. a 2" binder
3. dividers for the binder
4. highlighters (nothing dark - yellow is ideal)
5. color pencils
6. FYI: NO mechanical  or regular pencils are allowed
7. white out tape  (VERY HELPFUL!)
8. post-its (3 x 3 inch size) which should be yellow/pale colors
9. ruler with inches and centimeters
10. red pen for correcting
11. 2 black or navy blue pens (erasable ones are awesome)
12. a zip bag or small box/container to store things that can be in the desk

Nice to have supplies are:

1. clipboard with a flat type of clip
2. mini stapler
3. small thesaurus 
4. calculator

Homework that is listed in The Listening Post is the official homework of the week. Typically, time is provided in class to work on homework/classwork.

This is how actual HOME time and SCHOOL time should work:

Word Power - enough time is provided at school to do this. Should NOT involve homework.

Word Hunt - this is done when your child is reading. So they could find words while reading in class. Or they could find words when reading their book club book at home. Or they could find words when they do any free time reading at home. So this does not involve extra time.

Spelling - this is done at home.  On Tuesday they write each word twice. This should not take more than 15 minutes.  On Thursday they take a quiz (at home) and write each word once. This should take 10 minutes. IF they need to practice misspelled words, it could require 5 to 10 more minutes.

Math - plenty of time is provided at school to do the math "homework." This should not typically involve home time.

Math facts - each school night your child will take 2 math facts tests. These are timed. The maximum time for each test is 3 minutes. So the most home time needed is about 7 minutes.  Some students will be working on a 2 minute or a 1 minute goal, which actually decreases the home time needed.

Writing - plenty of time is provided at school. The only time this involves home time is when your child still hasn't finished a writing assignment after much time has been given at school.

Reading - students are now reading Island of the Blue Dolphins at school together with me. I use this as a teaching opportunity to practice comprehension strategies that good readers do.  I will do a LOT of "hand holding" during this learning time. We will do ths work together in class so it shouldn't impact much home time.

After this, we will launch into book clubs. This means they will read an assigned "chunk"  Monday through Thursday. Time is always given in class but depending on how fast your child reads, this might need to continue at home. This will include the reading and also writing post-its.  This will take the most amount of home time.  Depending on the book they chose and how quickly they read, this could take 20 to 30 minutes.  At school, when they finish their work, they have the option to do their reading so it doesn't have to be done at home. This is known as "Use Time Wisely."  It is possible for all the reading to get done at school.

BOTTOM LINE:  

Typically, daily "At Home" work should look like:

Math facts - 10 minutes or less

Reading - 30 minutes (possibly)

Spelling - 15 minutes or less (on Monday and Thursday only)

IMPORTANT:

If your child is spending more than an hour a night on homework, please let me know. We will then be able to troubleshoot and come up with some solutions. The key is communication.

IMPORTANT:

Please be aware that everything your child is working on might NOT be homework.  If you feel like the work load is too much, check the Listening Post to see if it actually is homework. It may actually be "leftovers." Please refer to the next section for an explanation.

Work that is assigned in class but is not completed by the time it is due, needs to go home to be completed. This only happens after much time has been provided already.

Any leftovers should be written in the agenda by your child. He/she is responsible to add this before going home.

IMPORTANT:

I do NOT send something home as Leftovers unless I have given ample class time to complete it. This is usually means that many days and lots of work time in class was provided.

Leftovers are due at school the following day.

Your child is now considered an intermediate student and as such it is important that he/she has an email account.

I recommend that you create a new gmail account that you SHARE with your child. It is important that you can monitor the email.

Please make sure that:

1. your child knows how to log on to the account from any browser or laptop
2. your child knows the password
3. your child knows how to open mail, send mail, attach a document/picture/screenshot, knows how to check the sent mail file, knows how to name the email in the subject line

Lincoln School sends home a parent communication folder most Thursdays which is known as the MESH folder. This will contain information and flyers about school events and policies.

FYI: Many teachers also send home graded papers in the MESH each week. However, I send graded papers home in the daily Blue Folder instead.

Also, please do not return any forms or paperwork in the MESH folder. I do not look inside the returned MESH folders. Instead, all forms and notes etc. should be put in the daily Blue Folder. This folder is checked every day.

Grades will be assigned using the new CUSD 3 rubric number system.

These numbers refer to:

3 = GREAT! My work shows I am proficient and I understand what is required. I can successfully do the work without help or with a little help. ( When graded papers come home I will mark them 3+, 3, or 3-. in order to give you a better indiction of where they are on that assessment. The 3+ is equivalent to 90% - 100%.      The 3 is equivalent to a 83% - 89%.    The 3- is equivalent to 80% - 82%.)

2 = I'M GETTING THERE.  My work shows that I am developing my understanding. I need help to complete my work. My work may not show much effort and possibly shows some rushing. ( The 2+ is equivalent to a 79% - 76%.  The 2 is equivalent to 75% - 73%. The 2- is equivalent to 72% - 70%.)

1 = I NEED HELP.  My work shows that I am having difficulty understanding and had a lot of mistakes. I needed a lot of help to complete the work. It may also have been a rushing issue. (equivalent to 69%  and lower)

FYI: The option of getting a 4 has been eliminated.  In the past, a 4 equaled to a 100%.  On graded papers I will now mark 3++ and also write 100% to show that the paper was perfect with no errors.

IMPORTANT:

A grade of 1 on any assignment or test will require a parent signature.  This policy is in place to assure me that you are aware of the grade your child received. Everyone can have a bad day and get a poor grade once in awhile. This will not typically affect the overall report card grades. However, if your child is receiving  a grade of 1 FREQUENTLY, it is an indication that your child is struggling in a particular subject. If this happens, we will work together as a team to figure out how to best support your child.  Please do not hesitate to contact me if you are concerned.

Birthdays are special days and students often want to acknowledge the day by bringing treats to share with the class.

The school policy is that students are not permitted to bring food.  However, feel free to bring a non-food item to share. Of course this is OPTIONAL.

Some ideas are:

1. bookmarks
2. fun pencils or erasers
3. stickers
4. a book donation for the class library
5. a game we can add to our "Rainy Day Games" cupboard