I can't believe the first quarter is already over! I'm always surprised at how quickly the school year goes by! Report cards will be coming home on Monday and we'll have our school-wide awards assembly Tuesday morning at 9am. You are more than welcome to come to the awards ceremony. It'll be the band's first live performance of the school year!
I believe I told everyone during our parent teacher conferences about our classroom management plan, but wanted to reiterate it in case their were any families that I forgot to mention it to. When students are given an extra reminder of what respectful behavior is, their name goes on the board as a warning, the next reminder is a check and a chat with me a recess, the second check is a visit with the principal and the third check is writing a letter home to explain what happened and how's it going to be different the next time. Please keep in mind that being respectful could be as small as raising your hand instead of calling out or not chatting with your neighbor during silent reading. The kids have come a long way since the beginning of the year and are doing a really nice job. Mrs. Babcock observed one of our writing classes and complimented the whole class on how respectful and engaged they were!
I also wanted to remind all of you that our homework is posted weekly on our class website if you ever need to refer to it. My homework policy is that kids can choose to write down the assignment if they want to, but it's not mandatory. If the homework is not passed in on the day it is due, no questions are asked, but it is expected the following day. If on the second day it is still not passed in, then a note will come home that needs to be signed by you and returned with all of the completed homework. This is simply to keep you in the loop about missing work. If a student forgets to bring back the parent signed letter, then I will give you a call.
The kids are excited to start our ocean unit soon, which will be our last science unit before we switch to Social Studies. They have been very engaged with Literature Circles discussions. I look forward to having them again in the spring.
As always, please contact me with any questions, comments or concerns by phone (389-1514) or email (jbenn@rsu1.org).
Enjoy the weekend!
-Jenn
