HERE ARE ANSWERS TO A FEW FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS.
- Are Agendas to be signed every night?
- How can I reach you?
- Do you really LOVE chocolate?
- May I send in birthday treats or invitations to birthday parties to school?
- What do I do with the Friday Folder?
- What should a 5th Grade project look like?
- Is is true there is no more Accelerated Reader Program at Mountain View?
Are Agendas to be signed every night?
Yes, not only signed but assignments should be checked against
the actual homework done to see that they are completed. This is
also a great place to jot me a note if needed. I will respond
there or in a separate note or email.
Make sure your child knows to show me their agenda if you do
write a note in their agenda, as students are assigned the job of
checking that agendas are initialed daily.
How can I reach you?
You may email me at Christine.Weiss@cobbk12.org I check my email
at the end and beginning of each day. If you choose to phone the
school, we cannot interrupt instruction but you can leave a
message with the secretary who will put it in by mailbox which I
check after lunch. I try to return all phone calls if required,
after school. Our instructional time is very valuable, so
our policy is to limit any interruptions during the time that
your students are here for their own benefit.
Do you really LOVE chocolate?
You betcha! But as is apparent from my less than svelte body...I
am trying to curb my enthusiasm!!
May I send in birthday treats or invitations to birthday parties to school?
YES to one; NO...NO...NO to the latter! You are welcome to send
in Birthday treats to school for your child to share. They will
be passed out in the cafeteria during our normal lunch time.
Please do not send in anything that would require refrigeration
or individual cutting required by an adult as there just isn't
the facility or time for that.
Invitations to a personal off campus party can only be sent to
school with your child to distribute if THERE IS AN INVITATION
FOR EVERY CHILD IN OUR CLASSROOM. If the invitations are only
for a few, you must find a delivery means outside of school.
This helps to avoid any hurt feelings. Thanks in advance for
being considerate.
What do I do with the Friday Folder?
Friday Folders come home every Friday. They are an excellent
teacher/parent communication vehicles. You will see any
behavioral issues noted for the week, such as missed homework,
too much talking etc. Look for comments or stickers in the
Comment column, sign or initial in the Parent column.
You are welcome to write me a note there also. Take out all of
the papers from the left side of the folder and review. Please
take this time to look over graded papers, they require
signatures and have teacher comments. Often there are papers from
the school that require your attention and signature.
You may return them in the Friday Folder with your child on
Monday, when all Friday Folders must be returned, minus the
school papers and signed by you.
What should a 5th Grade project look like?
First, students must research their topic using a varied group of
sources: books, encyclopedias, web sites. Next, they should take
notes from these sources that they may wish to use. After
gathering information, pictures, maps, etc. that are needed for
the project, students should use a graphic organizer to organize
the information they intend to use into a workable
group of facts. A rough draft should be written from this
organizer.
STUDENTS MUST NOT COPY FROM THEIR SOURCES. ALL INFORMATION IS TO
BE REWRITTEN BY THEM IN THEIR OWN WORDS. If they do not
understand the information they should get explanations that
assist in their understanding so that they can write that
information in a fifth grader's words. Cutting and pasting from
internet sites and turning in that as their product is
unacceptable. Finally, all material should be presented in
a ;final copy format - no grammatical or spelling errors, neatly
written or typed on the computer, pictures printed and mounted
for a professional appearance. They should be proud of their
work. Their finished product should be THEIR work. Help is
always needed and appreciated, but the project should be their
work not an adults.
Is is true there is no more Accelerated Reader Program at Mountain View?
Yes! In its place 5th Grade is still mandating at least 20
minutes of independent reading each night to be monitored by
parents. We are excited to begin the "Hooked on Books"
Reading Club that will correlate with their independent reading.
Students have been given a composition book which will be their
person Reading Response Journal. Daily they will respond to what
they have read at home in this journal using higher level thinking
questions we have provided for them. Teachers will be randomly
collecting these journals to monitor their written responses and
respond to them. We hope this will foster a love of reading
rather than a desire to accumulate points. Fifth Grade students
are still expected by the county and state to read a minimum
of 25 on-level books during their school year.
We are off to a great start!
