Welcome to Second Grade!

I am looking forward to this new school year together!  I am excited to teach your child math, language arts, science and social studies in our homeroom.  I would like to share with you some things that will be helpful to know as we embark on this educational journey together!

Classroom Behavioral Expectations
1. Be safe.  This includes that when sitting in a chair, your feet on your body, and all four feet of the chair, are on the ground.
2. Take care of yourself.  This includes focusing on what you need to do in order to be successful and not telling others what they should be doing.
3. We take care of our classroom.  This includes using our supplies and the things our teacher provides carefully, and clean up after ourselves.
4. Do your best work.  Sloppy, not legible work, will not be accepted, and the student will have to re-do the assignment on their own time.
5. Put-ups, not put-downs.  If a student says something mean or rude to another student, they will be given a post-it note to write something nice about that student.  

Use of Technology in the Classroom
1.  Make good decisions.
2.  Think before you click.
3.   To be used for academic purposes only.
4.   Do not steal other people’s ideas, cite your sources properly.
5.   Playing games will result in the temporary loss of technology use.
6.   Being on inappropriate sites will result in a call home and loss of technology privileges.
7.   Don’t talk to strangers.  You don’t talk to strangers at the park, so you don’t talk to them on the internet or social media either.  
8.   Never share your name, age, address or any other personal information.  People may not be who they say they are, when on the internet or social media.
9.  Always use caution.
10.  If you have a problem, talk to a parent or teacher.

Consequences and Reward System
I use a “clip chart” where all students have a clothes pin with their name on it and all students start on the middle "Ready to learn" space each day.  When a student is following directions and displaying appropriate behavior, they will be asked to move their clip UP to “Keep it up!” and ultimately, “Outstanding Student.”  However, when a student makes a poor choice, they will be asked to move their clip down to “Make Better Choices,” then “Teacher Decides,” with the final consequence being, “Parent Contact.”  

I will communicate with you through a folder, that your student will bring home each day, with a calendar for the month, specifying their behavior they earn each day according to the clip chart.  When a student goes down to “Make Better Choices” or “Teacher Decides,” I will provide a reason or two why, so that you are informed as to why your child had to move their clip down.  Consequently, if a student has to move their clip to “Parent Contact,” I will be making a call home that day.  In addition, I ask that you initial the calendar each night, stating that you are aware of how your child behaved at school that day so that we can work together.  

As for rewards, I want to teach my students self-control and self-discipline and that “the best reward is the satisfaction of a job well done.” (Harry Wong.) If a student has 4 or less times they had to go down with their clip for the month, they will earn 30 minutes of free time on the first Friday of each month, where they can play games with other students.  Unfortunately, those who do not earn free time, will write a reflection on what they can do differently to earn free time the next month. 

HOMEWORK
Our school district does not require that students complete homework each night.  As a district, we would rather that the student spend time cultivating healthy relationships with family through quality time.  However, we do encourage you to read with your child every day!  This is a great activity to do to start winding down for the day.  Furthermore, if your student is absent, they will have make-up work that will need to be completed at home.

Tutorials  
I understand that not all students learn at the same pace and if your child is need of some extra help and instruction, I offer tutorials on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 7:15-7:45 am.  If these days and times do not work for you, please contact me and we can make arrangements.  In addition, I do not offer extra credit, as I would rather see your child successfully complete the assignment, and if it needs to be re-done a couple times until they understand the content material, then I will take an average of the top three grades.