1. Dear Parents, Welcome to third grade! My name is Ms. Jameson and I will be your child’s teacher this year. I look forward to working with both you and your child. I am very excited about the beginning of the school year and look forward to having a fun and productive year. The best way to contact me is through email. I check my email frequently and will do my best to respond in a timely manner. My email address is ajameson@effingham.k12.ga.us. You can also contact me by calling the school. The phone number is 754-3326. Please keep in mind that phone calls may not be returned until after the school day is over. You may also schedule a time to meet with me in person. This can be done through email or by phone. I believe that strong parent/teacher communication is a major factor in student success. Third grade is a very important year. The curriculum is rigorous, expectations are high, and students are given more independence. Students are expected to work hard, complete all class and homework assignments, follow rules and directions, and be respectful to both adults and peers. Below you will find brief explanations about various aspects of the school and classroom. Please let me know if you have any questions. My school website is also a great place to find information and will be updated weekly. It can be accessed by going to http://www.effinghamschools.com//Domain/1405.http://www.effinghamschools.com//Domain/1405 1. Attendance: A good attendance record is crucial to student success. Students must be in school to receive the educational opportunities that they need. Please make sure that your child makes it to school each day on time and stays for the entirety of the school day. When your child is absent from school, you must send a note explaining the absence within 3 days. This lets us know if the absence is excused or not. Any absences without a note will be counted as unexcused. Students may not miss more than 14 days of school; no more than 7 may be unexcused. Please note that tardies and early departures can accumulate to form absences. A thorough explanation of the attendance policy can be found in the Student/Parent Handbook. 2. Dress Code: Students are expected to follow the county dress code policy. Students who are not dressed appropriately will be sent to the front office, and you will receive a phone call asking for you to bring the appropriate clothing for your child. During these warm months please keep in mind that students are not allowed to wear open-toed shoes. A detailed description of the dress code policy can be found in the Student/Parent Handbook. 3. Arrival: Students may enter the school building beginning at 7:30. Please refrain from dropping off children before this time because supervision is limited. Students need to be in their seats and ready to learn by 8:10. Please make sure that your child is on time for school. Upon the third and any subsequent unexcused late arrival per 9- week grading period, students will receive a zero for the first or last subject of the day. Jameson

2. 4. Breakfast: Students eating breakfast need to be in line by 7:55. Accommodations will be made for students on late buses. 5. Specials: Monday: Media Center/ FitnessThursday: Art Tuesday: P.E.Friday: Music Wednesday: Computer Please Note: Our class will be going to P.E. on Tuesdays. We will also have Fitness on Mondays for the first semester. Please make sure that your child wears tennis shoes on these days. Students not wearing tennis shoes will not be allowed to participate. 6. Lunch: Our class will be going to lunch at 10:55. You are welcome to come and eat lunch with your child. However, I ask that you please meet our class in the commons area so that instructional time is not interrupted. Lunch pricing information can be found in the Student/Parent Handbook. 7. Transportation: You must send a note with your child if they will be going home in a way that deviates from their normal routine. Please include a telephone number on the note where you can be reached. Our school secretary will call you during the day to verify the transportation change. 8. Visitors: When visiting our school, please sign in at the front office and receive a visitor’s pass. No exceptions. It is important that we know who is in our school so that it can be a safe environment for all students. 9. Toys & Games: Please do not allow your child to bring toys or unnecessary items to school. The school cannot be responsible for lost or broken toys. Items such as radios, video games, etc. will be sent to the office and will have to be claimed by the parents. 10. Ice Cream: Third grade students will have the opportunity to purchase ice cream every Wednesday. Ice cream is $1. I ask that students do not bring in this money earlier in the week so that we do not risk it getting lost/stolen.

3. 11. Binder: Each student will need a 3-ring binder. This notebook will be used for all subjects. All homework and class work will be kept in this binder for review and studying at home. Once papers have been moved to the Keep At Home pocket, they may be removed, kept for review, or trashed. Please pay close attention to papers in the Return to School pocket. These papers must be read, signed/filled out, and returned as soon as possible. This notebook will also serve as daily communication between the teacher and parents. I hope I have answered all questions. If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact me and I will be happy to answer them. Thank you for your support of the students at Springfield Elementary. I am excited and look forward to a great year! Sincerely, Ms. Jameson

4. Third Grade Supply List Personal Supplies These materials will be used by your child only and will be kept with them or inside their desk at all times. Pack of #2 pencils and erasers Paper (wide ruled) Scissors 3 composition notebooks 2-inch 3-ring binder ( trapper keepers optional ) 8 dividers for notebook Pencil bag to fit in binder ( helps keep up with supplies ) Crayons, markers, or colored pencils Index Cards Class Supplies These materials will be considered “community property”. Please do not write individual names on these items because they will be used by all students. Dry erase markers Glue sticks Optional Donations Donation of these items will be greatly appreciated but are not required. Clorox wipes Boxes of tissues Liquid hand soap Germ-X Ziploc bags Band-Aids Baby wipes Bags of Skittles or chocolate M&Ms (no peanut or peanut butter) Jameson

5. Homework will be assigned every night with the exception of Friday. Students are expected to do their homework at home. Homework is to be completed by the student. Parents are encouraged to check over homework when it is completed or show your child how to do the problem when they get stuck. Remember, your child has to be able to do these types of assignments independently. Students who do not complete homework will do so at recess. No exceptions. Students will receive a grade for every 10 homework assignments in every subject. The assignments will count 10 points each. If a student does all ten days of homework they will receive a 100 as a homework daily grade. The grade will drop ten points with every missed day of homework. Parents, please note that homework grades count as 10% of your child’s overall grade in each subject. A parent note is required for missing homework in the case of an emergency. Your child will not be docked points on their homework grade if they bring in a parent note indicating the emergency. Students will still be expected to complete their homework at recess. If your child leaves their homework in the classroom they will lose points. Homework will be recorded in the student’s agenda daily. Homework will NOT be posted on the webpage. Students are responsible for writing down their own homework assignments. Students will be monitored during the first 9 weeks to make sure they are writing down their assignments neatly and accurately. Following the first 9 weeks students will NOT be monitored. I will not write student’s homework down for them.

6. Tests will be on the weekly newsletter and will be written in student agendas. Study materials will go home prior to the test so that students are given time to study at home. Tests will not be sent home; due to county policy. If you would like to come to the school and look at your child’s tests please make an appointment with the teacher. All test scores will be sent home on the child’s weekly report which will be in the red folder. Projects will also be listed in your child’s agenda as well as on the newsletter. When students are assigned a project it will come with a list of requirements and a rubric that will be used to grade the project. Parents are encouraged to HELP students with projects. If you are having difficulty purchasing materials for the project and need assistance please contact me immediately. Projects are worth 1 test grade. There will be one project per 9 weeks (if this changes parents will be notified). Parents will be notified about any reading projects in advance.

7. What is in the “Red Folder”? Your child’s red folder contains their weekly reports and their homework/worksheets/tests that have been graded for the week. They will also contain any important information or notes that need to be signed. When does the “Red Folder” come home? The red folder goes home every Monday. When do I return the “Red Folder”? The weekly reports sheet inside of the red folder needs to be signed and returned the following day. If the sheet is not returned, the teacher will call home to remind the parent about the folder. What about daily behavior? Students will not receive daily behavior notes unless there is a behavior problem. We will be using class DoJo this year and parents can access their child’s daily behavior online (see behavior section of the packet.)