What are Grades Taken On?
Bible:
In the first grade Bible Class students learn about the many gifts of love provided for us by God.
God's gifts include creation, our families, friends, possessions, Jesus Christ and God's care for us. We
will attend Chapel on Mondays. On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays we will practice our
memory verse and study the story of the week. Sometimes we will read the story together, act the
story out, or perhaps draw or make things to help us learn the story. We will also fill out workbook
pages together in order to reinforce the Bible points for that week. We will also spend time on
Thursday applying the story points to our life in order for us to be more like Christ. On Fridays we
will have two assessments.
1. A quiz over the weeks story and Bible points. The quiz will typically (but not always) be 10
questions and could possibly include vocabulary words. You can check the Weekly Newsletter for the
scripture that the quiz will taken from. Students will only be quizzed on information gone over in
class.
2. Students will also be responsible for reciting their Bible Memory Verse. This will be out of 10
points. It will also be included on the Weekly Newsletter. If I call a student up to recite the Bible Verse
and they do not know it at all they can go back and study the verse. If they are then able to recite the
verse they can receive ½ credit (which would be 5 points). If students recite the verse perfectly
without help they will receive a 10. If students need a little help but can still do it their grade will be
marked off in one point increments depending upon the amount of help they need.
Their Bible Verse grade will be recorded on their Bible Quiz sheet so that parents can see how they
are doing on reciting their verses. We will study the scripture from the New International Version of
the Bible and it will be located on your Weekly Newsletter.
Social Studies/Science:
Grades in Social Studies and Science will be taken from projects, class assignments and tests. Each
chapter will be different depending on the material we are studying. Most projects will be done in
class. Projects will be graded on four things:
1. Following Directions
2. Completion of Project
3. Neatness of Project
4. Project containing correct information.
Please remember that papers that come home with a "fraction"grade - like 9/10 or 18/20 – were
taken for a grade. The bottom grade are the points possible and the top grade are the points
received. Please watch the Weekly Newsletters for information on what is happening in Social
Studies and Science. We will study Science for the first semester and Social Studies the second
semester.
Spelling:
Students will receive two grades a week in spelling.
1. During the week students will have a spelling worksheet to complete as independent work and
practice. This will be taken for a grade.
2. Students will also be tested each Friday on their Spelling and Word Wall Words. After a couple of
weeks into the school year I will give two random past Word Wall Words on the spelling test.
Math:
During math class we will have three rotations. Students will take turns meeting in a small group with
me for math instruction, completing independent math work, and playing math games. Grades will
be taken from the following:
1. Each chapter will have Check Your Progress sheets that will be taken for a grade.
2. There will be a chapter test for each chapter that will be taken for a grade.
Writing:
Our Writing grade will come from Writer's Workshop. Students' writings could be completed at
different times so you should not expect a writing grade to come home every Friday or even once a
week. As students finish the writing process for a piece of writing I will meet with them and fill out a
rubric that will give us the grade the student has earned. The rubric and the writing assignment will
come home.
English:
Grammar tests will be given on Fridays, but not every Friday. It will depend upon what the Grammar
and Writing objectives are for the week. The weekly newsletter will tell you if there will be a grammar
test that week. Occasionally grades will be given on in-class grammar assignments
(again - look for a "fraction" mark coming home on papers - 9/10).
Reading:
Reading will be taught using many different resources. There are several components to our reading
program.
We do follow the Houghton Mifflin Reading Series. However, we will also use trade books, books from
Reading A to Z, and other resources. You may also hear your child talk about Daily Five or CAFE.
Daily Five is the management tool we will be using to structure our reading program. During our
"Reading" class each day we will have three different mini-lessons that will focus on phonics,
comprehension, fluency, accuracy, grammar and/or vocabulary. Breaking up these three mini-lessons
will be independent work time for the children. They will have the opportunity to choose between
Working with Words, Work on Writing, Listen to Reading, Read to Self, and Read with a Partner. Each
round they will make their choice and work! During these independent times I will be meeting with
individuals or groups of student at what we call our CAFE. CAFE stands for Comprehension, Accuracy,
Fluency, and Extending Vocabulary. I will take advantage of this time to assess and teach children
according to their individual needs while students are extending and reinforcing their learning. The
more students read - the better they become at it!!!
Reading grades will come from the following:
1. Comprehension test over the weekly story from the Houghton Mifflin Reading Series.
2. Test (or assignment) over the comprehension skill taught during the week.
3. In-class assignments will also be taken for grades occasionally.
4. Students are also responsible for keeping a Reading Log. They are required to read 15 minutes,
four days a week. They are not required to read on Wednesdays, I do not want homework to interfere
with church activities. I will check reading logs on Mondays. If students read 15 minutes on Monday,
Tuesday, Thursday, and one day during the weekend then they will receive full credit. If they only
read two days, they will receive ½ credit, and so forth.
In addition, the report card this year will indicate your child’s individual reading level. This level is
determined using AR STAR testing, Dibels testing, and teacher observations and assessments.
Please remember this is all tentative! I may take grades on papers or projects that are not listed and
we may not always follow this exact schedule. Thank you for your understanding and patience. Please
remember that papers taken for a grade will be indicated by being graded with the amount correct
over the total amount, for example, 8/10 or 4/5.
