First grade is a wonderful and exciting time. This year your child will
learn to read, take journeys through many good books, learn to add and
subtract, tell time, count money, be scientists, do experiments, explore
different countries, be artists and authors making his/her own books- just to
name a few of the great things planned for this year.
I am very excited about having your child in my class this year. I
will work very hard to make this year a successful one for your child. This
letter covers some basic information for you and your child. I look forward
to working with you as a team to make this year a wonderful year.
Lyon Binder- A binder will be sent home daily. The binder is divided in the
following way:
Left Hand Pocket- homework, take home story for the week, letters from the
school or teacher, and/or other items that need to be completed and returned
Mesh Zipper Pocket- vocabulary cards, money for lunch, field trips, etc.
Monthly Behavior Chart- (first page)- please sign daily and leave in the
binder
Homework Divider- the first section contains the homework contract, the
week’s spelling and vocabulary words and stories
Information Divider- the second section contains helpful information on how
to study, reading comprehension questions, math facts, high frequency words,
class rules and management plan, and other information at different times of
the year. I will note in the weekly letter when something new is added to
this section.
Right Hand Pocket- Papers completed in class. These are to be taken out and
left at home.
Please bring the Lyon Binder back to school every day!
Homework- Homework Contracts are sent home every Monday with the assignments
for the week. The homework contract is located in the binder designated by
the “Homework” divider. I do not believe in assigning a lot of homework.
However, please encourage your child to do his/her best work on what is
assigned and check it when he/she is finished. I will go over homework
assignments with the class before going home each day. Students should be
able to do his/her homework independently. The only exception is reading.
YOUR CHILD NEEDS TO READ OR BE READ TO EVERY NIGHT! Also, make reading fun.
Let your child see you enjoy the book. At the beginning of the year your
child may need you to read all the words of a book to them. THIS IS OKAY!
Many studies have shown children benefit greatly by someone reading to them.
It really prepares them to read and makes them better readers because they
have watched you read to them over and over. Soon they will be reading and
only needing help with a few words and then they will be reading on their
own. Still listen to them when they read and help with words, not only how
to say them but what they mean. Ask questions about the story after your
child finishes reading. I will send home example questions in “Information”
section of the Lyon Binder.
Vocabulary words will be listed on the Homework Contract and flash cards
should be kept in the mesh zipper pocket in the Lyon Binder. Please have your
child read these each night. Practice the ones he/she has trouble with and
talk about what each word means by defining and giving example sentences. It
is sometimes helpful to have your child draw a picture on the card with the
word as a visual reminder until he/she knows the word by sight. Some of the
words can be sounded out, but most are high frequency/red words that do not
follow English Language rules and just have to be memorized. Your child will
read the current week’s words and review words from the previous week to me
every Friday for a reading grade.
Lyon’s Cub Roar- The Cub Roar will be a portfolio folder located in the Lyon
Binder. Your child’s weekly graded test papers will be located in the left
hand pocket of this folder each Wednesday. Any correspondence from the
school and/or school district will be in the right hand pocket of the
folder. There will be a Cub Roar Sheet in the middle of the folder with the
date, behavior grade for the week, a place for comments, and a place for you
to sign. Please sign the Cub Roar Sheet and return the test papers on
Thursday. The purpose of this folder is for you to see the skills your child
has mastered and those he/she may still need to work on. It is also another
way we can communicate with each other.
Money- All money should be sent in a sealed envelope with your child’s name,
teacher’s name, amount, and reason for the money written on the outside.
Please place this envelope in the mesh zipper pocket in the Lyon Binder.
Lunch money can be paid daily, weekly, or monthly. Please note the lunch and
breakfast prices. Lunch is $1.00 for full price and $.60 for reduced.
Breakfast is $.60 for full price and $.40 for reduced. Extra milk is $.30.
Supply Fee- Please send in your $10 supply fee as soon as possible. This
money helps cover materials our class needs throughout the year.
Management Plan
Our Class Rules
1. Be respectful.
2. Be responsible.
3. Be courteous.
4. Be safe.
Our class rules will follow Elmer’s Expectations for the school. Over the
next month (and beyond) the class will define these expectations and have
extensive discussions on what they look like and mean in our classroom. For
example, the standard rule of “Keep your hands, feet and objects to yourself”
falls under the expectation of “Be safe”. I will send home what we discussed
as a class to show how your child understands these rules after Labor Day.
The expectations and what that means to the students will also be posted in
the classroom.
In an effort to promote a more positive climate and an atmosphere of helping
others and good citizenship, I am implementing Elmer’s “Paw”some Behavior
Wall. A child can come to school and follow the rules and do his/her own
work and stay on green. This is great. However, I want to challenge the
children to go beyond just being on green. I want to challenge them to do
something for someone else or our class. For example, being kind to a
student, being a good friend, helping someone with their work (when
appropriate), helping someone pick up their crayons when they have spilt, or
another action that shows good citizenship. Students do not have to do these
things to be on green, but if they do these kinds of things, they get to put
their name/clip on the “Paw”some Behavior Wall. When this happens the
student will be praised extensively and go to a special treasure box. You
will see a paw print on his/her behavior chart in the Lyon Binder for the
day. That means they went above and beyond that day! I am hoping this will
create a wonderful atmosphere of caring and unity in our classroom.
All clips start on green every morning. If a student chooses to break a
rule, then he/she will move a clip. (He/she will have had many warnings
before the first clip is moved.)
1st Time: Clip moves from green to yellow = warning
2nd Time: Clip moves from yellow to orange = conference with
teacher/possible time out
3rd Time: Clip moves from orange to red = Loss of part or entire recess
4th Time: Clip moves from red to blue = call/note to parent and loss of recess
* Students on orange (two or more times), red, blue, or who have received a
discipline referral to the office (long form) are NOT eligible for “Super
Star” recess for that month.
Rewards:
Praise Candy Good note home Lyon Buck Stickers Treasure Box
“Free Time” Super Star Recess
Extra Computer Time And Much More!!!
*Students who get on the “Paw”some Wall get to pick from a special treasure
box.
*Students with green at the end of the day get a reward (a treat or Lyon Buck)
*Students on green (or above) for the entire month will get a big prize at
the end of the month. (Ex. Ice cream, Happy Meal, Popsicle, etc.)
Main Goals for the Year
1. To teach your child how to read and comprehend what he/she just read.
2. To give your child a love of reading.
3. To teach your child how to deal with and solve problems in an
appropriate manner.
4. To teach your child how and when to add and subtract and have a solid
understanding of numbers.
5. To differentiate instruction and activities to meet the needs of your
child.
6. To create a safe and caring classroom environment in which your child
understand that it is better to try and fail then to not try at all and that
we all make mistakes and we learn from them.
7. To make school a place where your child wants to come and learn.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns please feel free to contact
me:
(985)892-0869 school, (985)807-8003 cell, write me a note and send with your
child to school or e-mail me beth.lacassagne@stpsb.org. I look forward to a
wonderful year!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Lacassagne
