ABCs of First Grade
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Absences: If your child is absent please call the office in the morning to let us know. The office number is 216-651-5212.
Attendance: Daily attendance is crucial for your child's learning. Please be sure he or she is in school the entire day.
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Breakfast: If you child is having breakfast at school, please have him or her here early enough to eat.
Book Orders: Each month your child will bring home a scholastic book order paper. This is a great way to build your child's library at home. Also when you order our classroom earns points to put towards books for the classroom. You may either send the order back in with your child with the payment or order online. Your payment may either be exact change cash or a check made out to Scholastic Book Orders. The information to order online is under the Book Order tab on this website.
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Communication: Communication between parents and teachers is critical. Please keep me updated with any information I should know. You can reach me at the school at 216-651-5212 OR you can email me at alferio.jennifer@constellationschools.com.
Conferences: There is a mandatory conference at the beginning of the school year. Throughout the year please feel free to contact me to schedule a conference if you have any questions or concerns. I want to be in contact with parents often so that we can help the students the best way possible. If I ever feel the need to meet with you, I will also contact you to schedule a conference. Keep in mind that conferences are not a negative thing. I may contact you to let you know about positive things your child is doing also!
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Daily Schedule: Our classroom daily schedule is posted on the website under Our Schedule.
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Early Dismissal: If you need to pick your child up early from school, be sure to sign him or her out in the office. This should only be done in an emergency. It is important for your child to be in school the entire day.
Emergency Information: The office ALWAYS needs emergency contact information. If your address or phone number changes during the year, please update it in the office. If there are other people that may be able to pick your child up, they need to be on the emergency form in the office.
Email: My school email is alferio.jennifer@constellationschools.com. I check this email at least once a day. Please feel free to email me with any questions or concerns.
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Folder: Your child will be given a folder to take home all of his or her papers. I will also be giving each child a red folder to keep at school for any work we are still working on. Please always empty your child's folder. Also if you have any notes that need to come to school for me or the office please put them in the folder so the note gets to school safely.
Field trips: We will be taking a few field trips this year. Before the field trip, I will be sending home a field trip permission slip. The permission slip needs to be filled out in order for your child to attend. For some trips we will also be asking for chaperones. In order to be a chaperone, you need to go the the main office in Parma and be finger printed.
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Give me 5: This is the way we get the students attention in school. When a staff member says to "Give me 5" the students should all put their hand in the air. Give me five stands for:
*Eyes are watching
*Ears are listening
*Hands and feet are still
*Mouths are Quiet
*Brains are thinking
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Homework: Students in my classroom have homework Monday through Thursday. They are expected to be responsible and complete their homework on time. Homework is necessary so all students get the practice they need to master the concepts we are working on in class. Your child will also recieve "fun homework" each month. This homework is supposed to be done together as a family. It is to encourage children to use their imagination and creativity. There will be directions on each page they recieve.
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Independence: Independence is a goal for all students because it builds self-esteem and self-confidence. Second graders are capable to doing many things on their own so they will be encouraged to do things on their own in my classroom.
Illness: If you child is ill, please keep him/her at home. If he/she becomes ill at school, heshe will be sent home. Once again please be sure the office has all of your updated information in case we need to get in contact with you.
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Jackets: Please be sure your child has on a jacket when it starts to get cooler because we will be going outside for recess. It is also a good idea to write his or her name in the jacket in case it gets misplaced.
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Keep: Keep yourself updated by reading our weekly newsletter that your child will bring home.
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Label: Please label everything your child brings to school. (bookbag, books, coat, hat, gloves, etc.)
Lost and Found: If you child happens to lose something in school, please check the lost and found.
Lunch: Your child can either bring their own lunch to school or get lunch from school. The office will be sending home a monthly lunch menu. Please choose the days your child will be getting lunch from the school and return it to school promptly. If you do not circle a day on the lunch menu, your child can not eat school lunch that day. We only order enough lunches for students who circled the date on the lunch menu. If you are packing lunch, please be sure the lunch does not need to be heated. There is not enough time or microwaves to heat student lunches. Also please pack a healthy lunch.
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Medication: Medication must be kept and administered in the office. Students are not allowed to have medication with them during the day. (This includes chapstick.)
Money: When sending money to school for any reason, please put it in an envelope with your child's name on it and where it is to go and what it is for. The envelope should be put in the child's folder. Students should not bring money to school that is not in a labeled envelope.
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Newsletter: Your child will be receiving newsletters from the school monthly and from the classroom weekly. Be sure to look them over for important information.
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Outside: We will be going outside for recess if weather permits. Please have your child dressed appropriately.
Office: Office hours are 8-4 everyday. The school phone number is 216-651-5212.
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Photographs: I love taking pictures of all of the exciting things we are doing in the classroom. Please be sure to fill out and sign the photograph release form so your child can be included in the pictures.
Parent Involvement: I love having parent volunteers in the classroom. Please let me know if you are interested. Also let me know the things you are willing to do and what days and times you are available. Also remember if you would like to volunteer you must be fingerprinted at our main office in Parma.
Progressbook: You may check your child's grades on progressbook. You will be able to see grades for each assignment they complete.
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Questions: If you ever have any questions, please contact me at 216-651-5212 or alferio.jennifer@constellationschools.com.
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Report Cards: Report cards are handed out every nine weeks.
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Specials: For our specials schedule please look under the Specials Schedule tab.
Star Student: I will be choosing a student to be Star Student each week. Please fill out the papers and return them to school so your child can feel like a star!
Spelling Words: Spelling words will be given to the students every Monday and they will be tested every Friday.
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Theme: Our school-wide theme this year is Go for the Gold (Olympics).
Take Home Folder: On the first day of school your child will be given a take home folder. Please empty this folder each night. If there is anything important coming back to school such as notes, paperwork, or money please put these things in the folder.
Toys: Toys are not allowed in school. The only time students are allowed to bring toys to school is if we earn it as a class or when they are student of the week. A note will be sent home to let parents know their child is allowed to bring in toys. If toys are brought to school other days they will be taken away and kept until a parent comes in to pick them up.
Tardies: If your child is tardy, he/ she must go to the office to get a tardy slip. Please try to be on time everyday. Learning starts at the beginning of each day!
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Uniform: Your child must be in uniform each day. If he/she is not in uniform you will recieve a dress code infraction notice. A sample dress code infractions is given to each parent at the beginning of the year to show what we look for daily.
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Visitors: Visitors are welcomed in our school. Please be sure to go to the office to get a visitor's badge before you go to the classroom. Do not go directly to the classroom.
Vacations: Plan vacations around the days we have off of school. If a student misses school for vacation, it is counted as an unexcused absence.
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Website: Check my website for information on our classroom.
Wishlist: The classroom wishlist is on the website. Some items may be things you have at home while others need to be purchased. Please help with what you can.
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X'tra TLC: Your child will probably need some extra TLC the first few weeks of school. It is hard to get back in the swing of things after having the entire summer off. Please try to help them adjust at home, and I will do my best in school.
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You- You are the most important part of your child's educational team. I look forward to working with you to help your child be the best first grader he/she can be!
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Zzzzzz: Sleep is very important for first graders. At this age many children start trying to negotiate thier bedtimes but keep in mind many still need 8-9 hours of sleep a night.