Busy Bee Newsletter
Welcome to the Hive
August 2014
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Welcome to 4th grade! We are very excited to get to know you and look forward to a great year! Mrs. Brogan, Mrs. Moore, and Mrs. Paulet will be your teachers. Mrs. Brogan will be teaching Science and Math. Mrs. Moore will be teaching Social Studies and Language Arts. Mrs. Paulet will be co-teaching a Math class with Mrs. Brogan and a Language Arts class with Mrs. Moore as well as some Science and Social Studies with each teacher.
We wanted to share our pod policies with you in hopes of answering any questions you may have. Please feel free to contact us if you have a question you didn’t find an answer to below or if you have a concern. We will be happy to help. You can reach us by:
- Sending a Note
- Phone: 667-3719
- E-mail:
Late Work
Students have the opportunity to turn in late work for a 10 point reduction of their grade (absent work will be counted at full grade, unless that is turned in past the allotted amount of time students have to make it up). Students may need to stay in for recess if work is consistently late or there is an assignment(s) that is quite late. Pink notes are given each time an assignment is late/missed. It will be the responsibility of the student and the parent to return the signed slip or the student will miss recess.
Grading
Grades will follow our school’s handbook policy. Each grade will be out of 100%, but will have weighted categories.
Tests and quizzes: 50%
Classwork and homework: 40%
Effort: 20%
Pinnacle Grade Book
As parents, you can log on to the Pinnacle Internet Viewer (PIV) to check on your child’s progress. You will be getting your child’s number to log on to the Pinnacle Internet Viewer in the mail in the next couple of weeks. There are several symbols that you may come across:
“X” – This means that your child was not responsible for completing and turning in that particular assignment. It does not affect their overall grade.
“Z” – This means that your child was responsible for completing and turning in the assignment and did not. The “Z” stands for Zero and does count against their grade. Be concerned if you see a “Z”.
“!” – This means that a grade has not been entered yet. Your child was responsible for completing the assignment and turning it in, but their grade hasn’t been put into the grade book yet. This may be because it was turned in late, they needed extra time to complete it, etc. A grade should eventually be entered.
Spelling
Fourth grade does not have a spelling book or weekly spelling lists. In lieu of doing weekly spelling lists, we will be working on word work in Language Arts. These skills include prefixes, suffixes, figurative language, Greek and Latin Roots, parts of speech, etc.
There are 100 sight words, from the Dolch word list, that all fourth graders are required to master by the end of fourth grade. Twenty five of these words will be assigned at the beginning of each quarter in a cursive handwriting packet. This packet will serve as the word list and cursive practice. There will be one spelling test the last week of each quarter with the 25 words that were assigned that quarter. The packets will also be collected the last week of the quarter for a grade.
Graded Paper Envelope
Graded work will be kept throughout the week and sent home once a week in a manila envelope. This will need emptied, signed and returned the next school day. Occasionally, correspondences (notes from the office, graded paper, etc.) will come home at other times, and these will be found in the take home section of the child’s binder.
Absences
When students are absent, they miss the learning activities that have taken place that day, and many of these cannot be sent home. It is the student’s responsibility to get missed assignments from the teacher when they return to school. This work should be completed ASAP, depending on how your child is feeling. Students have one day for each day they were absent to make up their work. Parents also have the option of picking up student work if ample time is given. We ask that if the student is only out one day, that they rest that day and make up the work once they return.Please remember that you need to call the school office, 667-3719 when your child is absent. When your child returns to school, you also need to send a written note stating the reason for the absence.
Birthdays
Birthdays are always a special time for students! They are allowed to bring in a treat to share with the class, but we ask that the treat be nut free as we do have a student with a nut allergy. If you’re unsure about a treat your child would like to bring in, feel free to contact us.
Homework Procedures
Most homework will consist of work not completed during the school day, reading, or studying for upcoming tests. Students are expected to write all assignments in their agenda every day. To start the year, we will stamp, sticker, or sign each child’s agenda to verify that they have all assignments written down every day. Homework will sometimes be used as a graded assignment, or used as a completion grade. Homework will not always be graded; sometimes we will go over it in class.
The ABC’s of Homework-
- All by myself: Provide a place in your child’s room where he or she has all the necessary supplies and can work away from family activities.
- Back off: Homework is your child’s responsibility, and the assignments given are ones that 4th graders can do. Send a message of “You can do it” to your child.
- Call it quits: Set a time at which schoolwork is put away for the night so that there is time for family activities and relaxation.
Healthy Snacks
We do have a longer school day this year, so healthy snacks may be sent. One a day should be sufficient. Please do not send in junk or messy food and only water as a drink (Please no powders to add to the water. This gets real sticky if there is a spill – thank you.)
Newsletters
We will send home newsletters once a month. Please take the time to read it when it comes home. It will contain important information about events, curriculum, tests and schedule changes. We will also post newsletters on our website.
Binders
Please do not allow your child to take anything out of their binders unless it is in the front "take home" section. Many of the papers contained in the binder are things that are works in progress and are needed in class.
Webpage
Please check our website daily. It will be updated with daily homework, important reminders, upcoming important events, eDays (should we have them), etc. To get to our class website go to the District webpage and click the button at the top for “Schools”. Find L.T. Ball and click on it. Once on L.T. Ball’s webpage, click the button at the top for “Staff”. You can then click on Mrs. Brogan, Mrs. Moore, or Mrs. Paulet. All of our names are linked to the same webpage. On the home page of our webpage, there is contact information.
Ways Parents Can Help
Your encouragement, interest, and support of school are so important. Let your child know that learning is his or her most important job. Show your child that you value education by having him or her here on time every day. Expect and encourage your child to meet realistic high standards. Expect work to be completed on time. It’s good to remember that parent help and encouragement are essential, but it is your child’s responsibility to get the assignments, do them carefully, and turn them in on time. Please contact us at any time with any questions or concerns. Education works best when everyone on the team works together. You can send a note, email, or call the office and we will respond in a timely manner.
Classroom Rules-Mrs. Brogan/Mrs. Moore/Mrs. Paulet
4th Grade
Class rules are established to enable all students to learn, while the teacher shall have the opportunity to teach without disruption. A safe and satisfactory atmosphere will be developed if everyone follows the class rules.
Bee a good listener
Bee respectful to yourself and to others
Bee safe
Bee the best student you can be
Positive Consequences
Extra credit opportunities
Free time
Positive praise and letters home
Corrective Actions
Warning
Strikes
Pink note sent home to be signed and returned
Inside recess
Call home and explain your actions
Removed to principal’s office
We realize this is a lot of information at once. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions you have. We’re looking forward to a great school year!
Mrs. Brogan, Mrs. Moore, and Mrs. Paulet