School Policies
Classroom policies
Teacher Information:
Audrey Reese
[email protected]
801-610-8101 ext. 112
http://reeseclassblog.weebly.com/
BONNEVILLE ELEMENTARY–
Learning for a Lifetime
Attendance
Please help your child to arrive on time to school every morning. Missing a few minutes of instruction time throughout the year can really add up! Start now to form this important habit and respect for education.
Early arrival (more than 15 minutes before school starts) at school is discouraged, as no supervision is provided. Students should be in the class line by our outside door at the first bell. Students who arrive after the late bell should go to the office first and will be marked tardy. If a student arrives at school after 10:00, you will need to check him/her in at the office before he/she comes to class.
Prior to vacations, or during extended illnesses, please make arrangements with us through a phone call, note, or email for make-up work. Please excuse all absences by calling the school office within 3 days of an absence.
Behavior Management
Students are expected to be respectful of others and to stay on task in the classroom. We handle problems in the classroom with discussion, problem-solving, and a natural consequences system. School and classroom rules will be discussed at length and agreed upon the first couple of days of school. Students will then sign a form agreeing to the rules and consequences, and the form will be sent to you to sign and return.
We will be learning a lot of skills that will help your child to make more responsible individual choices. If a student is disrupting a lesson, and has not complied with a request to get back on task, he/she will be asked to sit at an isolated “Think Time” desk until he/she is ready to be responsible again. I will also pull your child aside for a few minutes during their recess to discuss their behavior for that day and make plans to improve in the future. Individual students may need a modified behavior plan, and we can discuss that as the need arises.
Birthdays
We love to celebrate everyone’s birthday!
If you would like, you are welcome to send treats with your child on his/her birthday to share with the class. Please keep in mind the district policy of no homemade treats. Some ideas for treats are: small candy bars, twinkies, hostess cupcakes, suckers, rice krispie treats, etc. There are 32 students in our class.
Birthdays that land on a weekend or holiday are celebrated on the last school day before the weekend or holiday. Summer birthdays between the end of the school year and the beginning of the next year will be celebrated the last week of school.
You will receive a reminder note with this information the week of your child’s birthday.
Communication
It is very important that we work together to ensure that your child has a good school year. Please call if you have any questions or concerns. The best time to reach me at the school is between 3:30-4:00 p.m. If you need to inform me of something pertaining to the current school day, call between 7:30 and 7:55 a.m. However, this is not the best time for a longer conversation, as I am getting ready for the school day to begin.
It is difficult to take a call during school hours, but you may call and leave a message. (Of course, for emergencies, the office can ring you through to our classroom or deliver a message). The school's number is 801-610-8101. The classroom extension is 112.
Feel free to email me with questions or comments at any time. This is probably the very best way to contact me. I will usually check email before school, at lunch, and after school.
· [email protected]
If you would like to visit in person about your child, please make an appointment. If you just drop by, we will not be able to give you our full attention. You may also send a note to school in your child’s “Home to School Communication” folder, which will be answered promptly.
My class website will have both informative and fun items. You may access it directly at:
http://reeseclassblog.weebly.com/
Bookmark it on your computer for easy access throughout the year.
Each Monday a classroom newsletter will be posted on the Class Website to inform you of all upcoming important matters. Please let me know if you are unable to access the online version and we will make arrangements to send a printed copy.
Curriculum
We will be following the Utah Core Standards. They are available for viewing at www.uen.org/core.
Dress
The school guidelines for student school attire are as followed:
1. All children should dress modestly, and appropriate for the weather.
2. No short-shorts or biker shorts. Knee shorts are O.K.
3. “Grubby” clothing or clothing containing vulgarities, profanities, obscenities, or advertisements for alcohol, tobacco, or drugs are never acceptable. Clothing which is ragged, tattered, or deliberately distracting in appearance must be avoided.
4. Hats or other headgear should not be worn indoors.
5. Tank tops or bare midriff shirts or blouses are unacceptable.
Students need to dress appropriately, with running shoes, for PE on Fridays.
Donations
As teachers, we appreciate any donation you feel able to give. There are various ways that you can donate to our class. You may donate monetarily to our class fund through the Alpine Foundation. You may also donate items that we use often throughout the year.
Some ideas: Kleenexes, anti-bacterial wipes, paper towels, paper cups, fun band-aids, small, inexpensive - (think 6- for-$1) toys or treats to add to our prize box, fun, colored pens for writing, various sizes & colors of paper for writing, envelopes, 3 x 5 index cards, and Ziploc bags.
Healthy Habits
Sleep: Did you know that information does not go into a child’s long-term memory until he/she sleeps? It is also difficult to concentrate when you are tired – we all know that! Therefore, making sure your child gets adequate rest is very important to learning!
Breakfast: Please make sure your child gets breakfast every morning, so he/she can focus on learning.
Homework
It is helpful to set aside a particular time and place to do homework each day, with a minimal of distractions and with supplies on hand to complete assignments.
Students will be expected to read for at least 30 minutes each school day. Reading will need to be recorded in your child’s homework folder. In addition, they should spend about 10-20 minutes on additional assignments. Please help your child complete all homework assignments within 45-60 minutes. If it is consistently taking your child longer than this time frame, please let me know.
Homework Folders
Each student will have a 2-pocket Homework folder for transporting homework to and from school. Please encourage your child to take care of his/her folder and bring it to school every day.
It may be helpful for your child to have a certain place (an “IN Box”, if you will) where your child may put his/her folder when arriving home.
Please remove all items from the “Keep at Home” side of the folder each Tuesday. I have also found that some parents need to check their child’s backpack as assignments can get shoved in there instead of in their homework folder. (:
Library
We will be visiting the library as a class once a week on Tuesdays. Students will be allowed to check out 2 books and take them home as long as they are responsible and return the books on time.
You will be responsible to pay for lost or damaged books, so help your child keep his/her books in a safe place.
It is a great idea for your child to get a public library card, if he/she does not already have one!
Lunch
Lunch is from 11:25-11:45, and lunch recess is from 11:45-12:00. School lunch costs $1.75. Reduced price is 40 cents.
You are welcome to join your child for lunch at any time. An adult lunch is $3.00.
Your child may bring a lunch from home. Make sure his/her name is printed clearly on the lunch box or bag.
Milk may be purchased for 30 cents.
Medication
Only designated school personnel (school nurse, secretaries) may administer medicine, including over-the-counter and prescription medications, so please do not send these with your child. For prescriptions that need to be taken during school hours, the school must have the proper form on file. These forms are available in the office.
Parties
We will celebrate various holidays during the year with an hour-long party. If you would like to help with any of these, you can sign up at our Back-to-School Night.
Personal Items from Home
Please leave personal items at home including trading cards, cell phones, cameras, mp3 players, CD players, pets, toys of any kind, etc. These items will be taken away from students at school and a parent will need to come retrieve the item.
Students may not bring candy, gum, or any other treats to school unless it is for a special occasion such as a birthday or party. Food brought from home should be solely for lunch and should remain in a lunch box or bag until lunchtime.
Please label all coats, hats, gloves, lunchboxes, backpacks, etc. with your child's name.
Reading
The single most important thing you can do to help your child be a good reader is to read to and/or with your child every night.
Some students are at the point that you do not need to help them with their reading very often.
There are still things you can do to help your child.
When your child is reading aloud to you...
Please:
- Give your child wait time (5-10 seconds) to try a new word on his/her own.
- Focus on what your child is doing well.
- Take every opportunity to build confidence with specific praise.
- Be patient.
- Talk about the book with your child to help increase his/her comprehension.
- Be a good model of reading.
- Read aloud often to your child (bedtime is a great time!)
- Give your child a comfortable, quiet atmosphere to read in.
- Allow your child to “zip” through a book by reading in a memorized fashion.
- Spoil a story by making it a word recognition contest.
- Insist that every word is read correctly. Your child is reading for meaning.
- Criticize your child's reading or urge him/her to “try harder”.
- Compare him/her with other children.
- Expect rapid results. Learning to read is gradual.
Recess
Your child may bring a water bottle from home for drinks after recesses. It should be taken home daily to be washed and refilled with fresh water. I would suggest bottles with a wide mouth (like a sports bottle) or a new disposable bottle every 3-4 days. Your child needs to be able to get the lid on & off by himself/herself. Please write your child’s name on the bottle.
All students will go outside for recess unless the weather is particularly inclement or cold, at which time the entire class will remain indoors. It is important that children get this play & exercise time. If a child is well enough to be around other children at school, he/she is well enough to play outside. If your child has an injury or is ill, he/she must have a signed and dated note from a parent stating that the child may stay in for each day that it is applicable. However, please write a note only if your child has an injury or is ill.
Please help your child dress appropriately for the weather. It’s a good idea to check the weather forecast on TV or online each evening (give your child this job). Look in the school handbook for summer dress guidelines. In the winter, all students should dress to play outside.
Students are required to wear shoes at all times.
Volunteers
One way to help all students succeed is to have some extra adult help in the classroom. Students love to see their mom or dad during the school day. I will have sign-up forms at BACK TO SCHOOL night for specific volunteer times. I will also send home a note with volunteer needs that you may sign up for. There will be opportunities to help with class parties, come in to help students weekly or monthly, and even to do projects at home if you would like to help but are not able to come to school during the day. There will also be a few times during the year when we need parent volunteers to come with us on a field trip or for a school activity, and you will be able to sign up for those opportunities as they come up. There are also always opportunities to help the PTA!
If you are in the school to volunteer or for any other reason, please stop in at the office to sign in. This is a safety issue.
Thank you for allowing me to teach your wonderful children! This will be a great year!
--Mrs. Reese