Frequently Asked Questions: This page contains answers to common questions
of
students and parents.
- What are the rules, penalties and rewards of this class?
- What is the Daily Agenda?
- What type of homework do the students have in this class?
- What is the Monday Folder?
- How are the students graded?
- How is late work handled?
- How do the students pay for lunch?
- What about snacks?
- How are birthday treats handled?
- How do you pay for book orders?
What are the rules, penalties and rewards of this class?
In the first few days of school the students will be taught the
Classrooms Rules, Penalties, and Rewards. They will be presented
in the form of a Team Constitution as shown below. Please review
these with your child to help further internalization of these
rules, penalties, and rewards.
TEAM Constitution
In order to form a more perfect classroom where all can learn
and feel safe, we agree that all who enter this school and
classroom expected to follow certain rules. The rules are
written below. If these rules are not followed by anyone,
penalties will be carried out as written below. If these rights
are observed, rewards will be given as written below.
Rules:
*Treat others with kindness and respect
*Excellent attitude
*Act responsibly
*Make safe choices
Penalties:
*Receive 0-2 warnings
*Name is written on the chalkboard with a check for each penalty
that represents time taken away from recess and/or F.A.C. (Friday
Afternoon Club—reward free time)
*Lose a privilege
*Receive a Minor Behavior Slip that comes home for parents to
view (3 for same behavior results in a Major Slip)
*Receive a Major Behavior Slip that results in a visit with the
principal and the slip is sent home for a parent to sign (to see
what a Minor and Major Behavior Slip looks like go to the
Photos/Documents link)
Rewards:
*Get recess and F.A.C.
*Marbles in the marble jar for popcorn and movie
*New privileges offered
*Good notes to student and/or parents
*Good report on report card
What is the Daily Agenda?
Your child has received a Daily Agenda (Planner) that he/she is
to take home every evening and bring back to school every
morning. In the Agenda Notebook, he/she will list all
assignments given that day. Any assignments not completed during
the school day will be expected to be completed at home for
grading the next school day unless specified for a different
due date. Incomplete work will be listed in the section labeled
"HW" (homework). Each evening you will need to sign your
child's Agenda page so I will know that you saw the assignments
listed. At school, the page will be stamped twice to show that
1) your child wrote down all of the assignments and homework and
2) the page was signed by a parent.
What type of homework do the students have in this class?
In order to help your child learn responsibility and to develop a
daily routine that will be necessary in upper grades your student
will have homework every Monday through Thursday. The homework
will consist of possible unfinished work, reading for the Reading
Calendar, studying for a test, working on a project, practicing
math facts, or an assignment related to a subject and topic we
are learning in school. The homework will usually be short (no
more than 30 minutes). All homework should be listed in your
child's agenda in the section labeled "HW", so be sure to watch
out for these initials! I also try to list any homework
assignment in the newsletter, which is also posted on our class
website.
What is the Monday Folder?
All papers, final graded assignments, and school notes will be
brought home on Mondays in the Monday Folder. Also, look for
newsletters from me explaining the past week�s activities,
spelling list for the week, and upcoming events.
Please sign the Monday Folder each Monday and help your
child to remember to return it the next day.
Occasionally, I will have to send home school communications
on other days due to the urgency of the message. I will try to
remind students to be sure to give those communications to you
since you will not be looking for them.
How are the students graded?
In Gull Lake Schools, beginning in 4th grade, students are given
letter grades on their report cards. (A 100-90%, B 89-80%, C 79-
70%, D 69-60%, or E 59-0%). It is my goal that every student in
my class receives at least B�s on his/her report card. I hope
to achieve this goal the following ways:
In my classroom the students are required to perform at least a B-
(80%) or better on their daily assignments, quizzes, and tests.
If they do not, they will be required to redo the assignment or
correct the errors. The fixed assignment will be re-graded, the
2nd grade will be recorded, and the 1st grade disregarded. If
tests or quizzes are below 80%, I will require the students to
fix errors, but the final grade cannot exceed 80% for that test
or quiz. There are no make-ups for projects or spelling tests.
Extra emphasis is given for quizzes, tests, and projects when all
of the grades are averaged in at the end of the marking period.
Quite often I will offer recess, free time, or after-school
sessions to help students with remedial instruction or review for
upcoming tests. If I feel your child needs an after-school
session, I will send home a note to be signed by you and returned
before the session. These review sessions will be from 3:45-4:15
p.m. and you will need to pick up your child in the classroom at
the end of the session.
The purpose of these sessions is not to be a punishment, but
rather to provide encouragement and extra help. In fact, in the
past, students have requested to stay for an after-school session
or recess session in order to achieve his/her personal goals.
How is late work handled?
Since personal responsibility is becoming increasingly important
with each school year, I will let you know through the agenda
what assignments your child may be turning in late or are
missing. Please help your child to complete these assignments at
home in order to reinforce the importance of completing work. I
will also put a list on the board of students that I am missing
work from so he/she can work on it during any free time or recess
time at school. At this age I do not penalize the students
severely for late work of a couple of days since they are new at
learning this level of responsibility, but if an assignment is
more than two days late I may lower the grade when it is turned
in or give the student a zero for the assignment depending on the
length of time and the situation. As the year progresses I
may tend to be stricter with this policy since 5th grade is
around the corner!
How do the students pay for lunch?
On each Monday morning students who will be buying hot lunch
during the week will go to the cafeteria to deposit money in
their account. The money paid is credited in his/her account and
as lunches are bought at lunchtime the amount is subtracted from
the account. If students forget to go to the cafeteria on Monday
morning they may also pay for their lunch at lunchtime. The
cafeteria staff prefers the students use the credit system,
though, since money can be lost or stolen during the school day.
For students with cold lunches they may buy milk or juice with
cash or the credit system.
A letter from the cafeteria staff should be included in the
Monday Folder to further explain these policies and the prices
for hot lunches and milk.
What about snacks?
Please have your child bring a healthy snack (fruit, popcorn,
vegetables, crackers, etc.) to school each day since the children
tend to get hungry at other times besides lunch. Students may
eat their snack anytime just as long as it does not cause a
distraction. On half days you may want your child to bring large
snacks such as sandwiches, since we will not be dismissed until
12:20 p.m. and no lunch will be served at school.
How are birthday treats handled?
On or near your child's birthday (also half-birthday for summer
birthdays or "gotcha day" for those adopted) he/she may bring
cupcakes or any treat to celebrate. You do not need to notify me
of the date or time unless you plan on bringing in something
special such as pizza or ice cream. These foods will need to be
eaten right away, and our schedule will have to be "tweaked" to
allow the time for them.
How do you pay for book orders?
I will be sending home various book order forms throughout the
year. These offer a great opportunity to build your home library
for a discounted price. It's rewarding to see how excited and
motivated the students are to read when the new books come in
each month!
When ordering from these book orders, please send in the exact
amount in cash or a check payable to the book company. (No
checks to me, please.)