Welcome to mrs. Kutterer’s sixth grade class

2014-2015 Welcome to our sixth grade class! I am extremely excited for this new school year, and feel it a privilege to be your child’s school teacher. I have enclosed the necessary information that is intended to help the students as well as their parents in understanding the expectations set for sixth grade. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me. School phone number: 402-2600 or you can e-mail me: akutterer@dsdmail.net I look forward to the wonderful things that we can accomplish together this school year.

Behavior Expectations Students in sixth grade are expected to set examples and conduct themselves in an appropriate manner. Younger students look up to them and will follow their lead. We, in sixth grade, expect our students to be at their best behavior at all times. This includes in the classroom, in other classrooms, in the hallways, on the playground, in the lunch room, at our assigned prep times, and school activities. At Syracuse Elementary, we follow the PeaceBuilder Program. We praise people, we give up put-downs, we seek wise people, we notice and speak up about hurts and the hurts we have caused, and we right wrongs. We build peace at home, school, and in our community each day. At Syracuse Elementary, we do not tolerate bullying in any way, shape, or form. We follow our school-wide behavior/discipline program.

Discipline Students will be expected to follow our class rules that we will establish together at the beginning of the school year. If students break the rules we’ve established: First offense: Warning Second offense: Recess revoked Third offense: After-noon recess revoked and a phone call home to parents

Student Responsibilities Students are responsible to come to school each day, prepared to learn, and with a good attitude. Students must have their homework completed and ready to turn in, and must have all of their assigned materials with them. Assigned materials are as follows: Pencil Assignment (completed) Reading book Planner

Parent Responsibilities It is the parents responsibility to make sure their child gets a good nights rest and is refreshed and on time to school the next day. It is also important that their child gets a good breakfast. It is important that parents read and refer to the weekly e-mail sent each week for due dates and important events/information.

Homework Homework will be sent home every night or almost every weeknight. I rarely give out homework over the weekends. All homework is due the next day unless specified otherwise. For example, spelling contracts are always due on Fridays, but may be turned in any day before then. Weekly math packets are also always due on Fridays. Students should read at least twenty minutes every night, as we will have a book report due every month. All homework is due by 9 o’clock each morning. After 9 AM, it will be considered late, and the assignment will be docked points. If students fail to turn in their homework, they will record it in the missing homework binder, with their excuse, and parents will be notified in an e-mail at the end of each day. This will help students become more responsible for their homework, and help them to understand the importance of turning it in on time and completed.

Book reports Students are required to do one book report each month. We will have a different project for each month. Examples will be shown and a rubric will be given on what is expected for each report. Our first book report will be due on September 30, 2014. Watch for more information on our next book report in the Tuesday folder or in our weekly e-mail.

Absences/Missing assignments It is extremely important that your child be in attendance at school each day. Our school district has asked us to be very conscientious about student absences and tardies. I will follow all district policies concerning this important matter. If your child is absent he/she is missing an incredible amount of direct instruction time. While I am always willing to help absent students with their work upon their return, it needs to be kept in mind that hours of instruction may have taken place while your child was absent, and recess time only gives about fifteen minutes of available time to teach previous lessons. If your child is ill, please call the school and let them know. Please help your child with work which he/she may miss because of absence. Missing or not doing the work may create gaps in your child’s skills or knowledge base that we are building on. It is important that he/she stay caught up with the rest of the class. In sixth grade, students need to learn that they are responsible for making up their own missing assignments. If a student misses a day, it is THEIR responsibility to get their missing work. I will have all assignments for each day placed in baskets where the students can pick them up if they are absent. Students have ONE week to turn in all of their missing work.

Daily Planners In Junior High, students will be required to keep a daily planner. In preparation for this, our sixth grade class will keep a daily planner that they will take home each night to be signed. Daily planners will help students keep track of their assignments, stay organized with their schedules, etc. I will write the daily schedule on the whiteboard and students are required to record their assignments.

Social Studies More information coming.

Math Groups We will be having leveled math groups every day, and students will study a different topic each week. Pre-tests will be given Mondays and post-tests will be given on Thursdays. Students will rotate with all of the sixth grade teachers and all will be given the opportunity to learn each unit.

Tuesday folders Tuesday folders will be sent home weekly. This is a critical tool of communication between school and home. Please take time to go through it together each week. It will contain several important items which will help parents and students know what is happening at school from school administration, community council, and PTA.

Weekly e-mail I will be sending a weekly e-mail to all parents to let them know of important dates, assignments, and of what we have on our weekly class schedule. These e-mails will be for communication purposes only. E-mail addresses will not be shared for any reason. If you do not have an e-mail address, a printable copy will be sent home in the Tuesday folder. In addition to weekly e-mails, I will be taking and sending pictures of each activity via e-mail.

D.A.R.E D.A.R.E will begin some time in the middle of the year, and will be taught by a Syracuse City Police Officer. Our D.A.R.E officer at Syracuse Elementary is Officer Behm. More information on D.A.R.E will come later on in the year.

And finally… I expect each student in my class to try their best in whatever situation they are in. I will believe in them, I will respect them, and I want them to all succeed. I expect them to show respect to me, other students, other teachers and school employees, and themselves (as well as my property, other students things, and school property, this includes our class text books and our class library). If they borrow any book or other classroom materials and they ruin it, lose it, etc. I ask that they replace that item. Thank you for sending your student to my class. It is my goal to do my best, to prepare each of my students for the seventh grade. I know that we are going to have a great year. Please take the survey that goes along with this PowerPoint. Thanks!