1. The Daily Workings of Our 1st Grade Class Agenda- Please sign the agenda each night…even if there is not a note from me. (look for a  …or a straight face) Arrival- Students are allowed to enter the classroom at 7:15. Any student who enters the building prior to 7:15, he/she must go to the gym or to cafeteria for breakfast. If your child arrives to school after 7:30, he/she will be considered tardy and will need to sign-in at the office. It is very important for the students to be in the classroom on time as they will have tasks that will need to be completed. Attendance-It is very important that your child be at school every day. However, I do understand that there may be a day when he/she will be absent from school. When this occurs, please send in an excuse note. Awards Night- At Stewartsboro, we love to recognize the students that are excelling in the classroom. We will have one Awards Night at the end of the school year to recognize our students.  There will not be an awards program every 9 weeks during the day, as was done in the past.

2. Saddle Bag! Each class has a saddle bag that will go everywhere that the class goes. If a child does not follow one of the school/class rules, it will be noted in the saddle bag and a mark will be given. Any teacher in the building has the option to make a mark in the saddle bag. After five marks, the student will be sent to the office. **We have a school-wide behavior plan. These are posted all around our building. We have also discussed these in our class. Please use these words at home with your child as well. The codes are in the OWL. We will reward the positive! Super Stallion Behavior Bash! Birthdays- I always like to celebrate the students’ birthdays! You are welcome to send in a store bought special treat on your child’s birthday to the office. Just send me in a note/email letting me know, so that I can plan for it. *mini-cupcakes, muffins, or cookies are easiest to share. Be respectful! Be responsible! Be safe!

3. Book Orders- A great way to build your child’s library at home is to order him/her books through Scholastic Book Clubs. There are always great deals in the order forms. These will come home monthly. Ordering online is available too – ordering online is easy and also earns a free book for our class! Backpacks- Each child will need to bring a backpack to school every day. Please make sure that it does not have wheels, as these do not fit in our lockers. Also, help your child to keep his/her backpack cleaned out. I do not check in the students’ backpacks. Behavior- Behavior is a very important part of first grade! We will be taking part in many exciting activities this year, and in order to continue doing these each child will be expected to follow all class/school rules! The rules will be discussed thoroughly the first few weeks of school. We will use several different methods in the room. 1. Class Dojo! This is an online animated system. Students will earn positive points for making good choices and negative points for bad choices. The points will add up throughout the day. I will have this up on the big screen during the day where the students can see.

4. Communication- It is very important that parents and teachers communicate. The best way to reach me is through email- johnsona@rcschools.net. If you send in a note, please be sure to place it in your child’s pouch inside of his/her OWL binder. Co-Curricular- At Stewartsboro, we have a rotating schedule. I will put it on the weekly newsletter. If it is a gym day, please have your child wear tennis shoes so they can participate. Celebrations- We will have several celebrations throughout the year that I will need your help with. I will assign everyone an item to send in and volunteers are always welcome to join us. Contact Info- Please make sure that the office has your updated contact information in case we needed to contact you in an emergency, etc.

5. Daily Work-During the school day, lessons will be taught and new skills will be introduced. We will complete all assignments in the classroom. If a student is unable to complete an assignment in the given amount of time, he/she will place it at the top of his/her desk. He/She will stay in during recess, a time that we call LOP. They will be given help from one of the first grade teachers and as soon as the work is completed, he/she will go out. Students will only receive grades from their daily work, not homework. Dismissal- The school day ends at 2:30. For car riders, if your child does not have an older sibling (3 rd -5 th ), they will dismiss out of the K hallway. If there is an older sibling, your child will dismiss out of the café in the front parking lot. Email– This is the best way to contact me, day or night! johnsona@rcschools.net Field Trips- We will go on 2 field trips this year! I will do my very best to send the permission notes home to you in a timely manner.

6. Flat Stanley- This is an ongoing family project! We will read a chapter book in class about a boy who was flatten and traveled all around the world through the mail. After reading this book, your child will create his/her own flat person. I will then ask parents to mail it to friends/family. These will return to us at school and we will keep track of where all of our flat people traveled to! It is a lot of fun! Graded papers- Papers will come home as I grade them. When papers come home, please review the ones that are incorrect. These do not need to be returned unless it is marked on the paper. Grade scale- 1- student is beginning to develop the standard, but not able to produce grade level work 2- student is progressing towards the standard, producing grade level work with teacher assistance 3- student is meeting the grade level standard and producing grade level work 4- student is exceeding the grade level standard and is producing quality work consistently

7. Homework-Homework will always be a review of a skill that has already been taught. Please assist your child with the work that comes home, this will help him/her the next day in class with a better understanding of the skill. There will be a clear pocket in each child’s OWL that will have the homework listed for each night. Illness- If your child has an illness and needs to be absent from school, please send in a note. Ice Cream- First Graders are only allowed to purchase ice cream from the café on Fridays. Ice Cream is $0.50. You may send the money in in a baggie labeled with your child’s name. Kindness! We will work all year long on kindness. I feel that my job is to not only teach your child the curriculum, but to also teach him/her how to treat others. We will learn to treat others as you would want to be treated.

8. Lunch- This is a very important part of the day that your child will look forward to each day! We will eat lunch from 10:55-11:20. Please send in lunch money in an envelope labeled with your child’s name & lunch money. Your child would love for you to join us for lunch! There will be several days that we will have special lunches – I will send home info on these! Money- When you need to send money into school, please label the envelope/baggie with your child’s name and what the money is for. Morning Meeting- Every morning, we will come together on the carpet for our morning meeting. We will discuss the plans for the day, anything that happened special the night before, complete the calendar board, and review skills. Newsletters- These will come home every Monday filled with lots of information! I will include the next weeks skills, co-curricular rotations, wish list items, and class updates. Please always check these out!

9. Notes- If you need to send in a note, please always put it in the pencil pouch of your child’s OWL or write in the agenda! I will check there every morning for notes/money. I will respond back to you. Online Activities- Students will be on the computer daily at school- individually in our classroom or in the computer lab. Computers are a wonderful tool for me to use in the classroom – great links are on my class webpage! Outside time- I believe that children need time to run and play. My goal is to allow the students 20 minutes of recess each day, depending on the weather – as long as all work is completed. Report Cards- This year we will be on a nine-week grading period, which means that the report cards will only come home four times. If you have any questions about these when they come home, just let me know.

10. Schedule- We will follow a pretty tight schedule. First grade is a year full of new standards and lots of skills will be taught. I will send home a schedule when it has been tested and the times work for us. Snack- Please send in a healthy snack for your child daily; it will be a working snack at desks. Please send only water to drink or the fountain is available. Supplies- Please check with your child to make sure that he/she always has the needed supplies. Make sure that your child also has these at home for homework as well. Transportation- Please always notify myself and the office of any transportation changes. The office requires a written note if there will be a transportation change. T-shirts- We will be ordering class t-shirts this year. The students will wear these on field trips and special days at school. I hope that you choose to purchase one for your child. (~$6 each) Adults info/prices will be on the order form also. Testing- We will have weekly tests and benchmark tests that will be given.

11. Volunteers- I always need extra hands in the classroom! Please let me know if/when you are able to come into the classroom to help with a bulletin board or with a small group of children. If you are not able to come into the classroom, but could cut/glue at home please let me know this as well. I appreciate your help! Webpage- We have our own class webpage. You can go to www. ste.rcs.k12.tn.us, click on faculty, 1 st grade, Mrs. Johnson to find it! I will do my best to keep this updated with the current words, dates, and events. Wishlist- Please see our wish list items on newsletter. Thank you so much! Younger Siblings- It is best for our class, that if you choose to volunteer in the classroom to leave any younger siblings at home. Thanks for your help with this. Zzz’s- Make sure your child gets plenty of rest. A first grade room is a busy place and you will probably find your child exhausted at the end of the day. Setting and keeping a bedtime is a wonderful gift you can give to your child. It will help them to be alert and ready to learn each day!