Dear Parents:
Thank you to those of you who made it out for this mornings open house. To those parents who were not able to attend the following document is an outline of what we will be doing in class, and an idea of what to expect in terms of homework, discipline and classroom expectations. I would also like to ask those parents who I have not spoken with yet to please let me know if your child has access to the internet. The reason being that I would like to assign occasional activities that require the students to search online for information. I would also like to ask for some assistance in terms of planning field trips and other fun class activities throughout the year. As I am new to Honduras and the Spanish language I think I will need help in certain areas throughout the year. I know that in some classes they have 'classroom Mom's' who help out with this stuff. I don't think this is necessary exactly but if you could contact me if you have any ideas for some fun and educational activities outside of class that you might be able to help organize I would really appreciate it. And when we have events that may require assistance I'll be sure to let you know ahead of time so that you might participate and lend a hand if you're available to do so. My contact info and blog address can be found at the bottom of the following document. I look forward to continued contact with all of you throughout the year. All the best,
Jordan Rose
Classroom Information
Reading
We will focus a lot of time in the classroom on strengthening your child’s English reading skills, and helping them on the path to becoming a lifelong reader. In the class I have two main ways of teaching reading: the first is called reader’s workshop where the students will work on becoming better readers while reading independently and responding in written and oral form to the different texts that they read. The second is through guided reading where the class or groups within the class will read the same text together while thinking and discussing what they read and then practicing skills that will improve their reading appreciation and comprehension.
Writing/Grammar/Spelling
For our writing periods the class will spend most of the time in sessions that I call writer’s workshop. In these periods I will give the students lessons on how to write effectively in English, and then give them the freedom to write and practice these lessons in their writer’s notebook. There will be some whole-class writing assignments that I will give them, but the majority of periods the student’s will be encouraged to write things that are interesting to them, and things that they can then share with me and their classmates.
Grammar lessons will focus on the students’ learning important grammar rules and learning how to craft quality sentences and paragraphs.
Spelling lessons will work on building the students’ vocabulary and their grasp of the confusing rules of spelling properly in the English language. The lessons will introduce fifteen new words each Monday, the students then have until Friday morning to craft 5 good sentences using 5 of the 15 words and draw 5 pictures that demonstrate their understanding of 5 other words. They will also be quizzed on the entire 15 words that morning.
Math
Our math program follows the well-renowned Scott Foresman/Addison Wesley Grade 4 Math program. I will be following this program and covering roughly one lesson, per one hour class session. The students will have a follow-up homework assignment each evening that allows them to review and practice what they learned in class that day. There will be a test at the end of each chapter, and quizzes periodically to assess the students’ learning. I am planning to cover 3 chapters of the program each quarter.
Theme
Our theme unit is divided into two sections, Social Studies and Science. I plan to alternate these two sections to make it easier for the students to focus and to keep our classroom from getting too crowded with projects and homework assignments. There will be one Social Studies unit and one Science unit that we will learn about per quarter.
Character Studies
I plan to devote one period a week to understanding and fostering quality character traits within each student. These traits will focus on concepts such as: respect, honesty, responsibility, fairness, friendship, citizenship, and diligence. These lessons will focus on what it means to be a good person as well as a good student.
Homework
Almost every night your child will have reading homework and math homework. The reading homework most nights will be simply to read 20-30 minutes of the book that they are currently reading. EACH STUDENT SHOULD HAVE A BOOK THAT THEY ARE READING AT HOME AND IN CLASS. THIS BOOK GOES HOME EVERY NIGHT FOR HOMEWORK AND MUST COME BACK EVERYDAY IN THEIR BAGS. The math homework will likely be a photocopied page from that day’s math lesson, as I discussed above. The spelling homework will be due each Friday and will be completed in their spelling notebook. There will also be occasional theme and writing projects that may require parental assistance and/or computer and internet access.
If you ever have a question about homework please refer to your child’s “Learning Log”. It is a small blue notebook where they record their homework each night. If they can’t explain what it is they need to do for homework then they probably haven’t been paying full attention in class and will need to be reminded to do so.
Discipline
The Rules of the Our Class Are: 1) Respect your teacher 2) Respect your Classmates 3) Always Try!! 4) No Whining!! 5) Ask before speaking Spanish
The students should have a good grasp on these rules by now and the type of behaviour I expect from them. I have a simple 3 strike policy for punishing anyone who breaks one of our rules. The first strike of the day results in a warning, or yellow card for the student. The second strike is a red card and will lead to a timeout, either at the back of the classroom or in the adjacent class. The third strike will be more serious and will result in a discussion with Miss Cristiana or Miss Giles. At this point I will also likely call home to discuss the student’s behaviour with one of his or her parents.
Contact jrose@discoveryschool.hn or 95800073 blog: mrrosesclassblog@blogspot.com
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