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1st Grade

A Handbook for Mrs. Swanson’s Class
2012-2013

Absence	If your child is ill, please call the office (234-4460) and inform us of your child’s absence and the reason for it. This is for your child’s safety. If a student must leave early for a doctor’s appointment, go to the office to sign him out and the secretary will call him to the office. Never send another person to pick up your child without informing me or the secretary.

Attendance	A successful school experience is the responsibility of the child, the parent and the school. Your child's progress, both academically and socially, is influenced to a great extent by daily participation. Regular attendance without tardiness is a key.

Arrival and Dismissal	Pupils should arrive between 8:15 and 8:30 AM. Students should not arrive prior to 8:15 AM (unless they are eating breakfast at school) since supervision by the school staff is not available. No child or parent should be in the building before this time. School begins promptly at 8:30 AM and afternoon dismissal is at 3:30 PM from the fence by the bottom of the elementary building. Please pick up your child promptly. If you are late, look for your child in our classroom or in the office.

Art	We will have Art Class on Friday afternoons. We will also complete art projects at centers during the week. If you have an idea or would like to assist with a project please notify me.

Backpacks	To help your child carry messages and information to and from school, you are asked to provide a backpack. Students will be given a folder for me to send notes and information to you and for you to send notes to me. Please have your child remove the notes and papers each day from the backpack.

Birthdays	Birthdays are special occasions for young children. If your child wishes, he/she may bring a treat for the class. We will celebrate summer birthdays during the school year. I will let students choose the day that they wish to celebrate their birthday. Just let me know in advance what day they choose.

Book Orders	Every month I will send home a Scholastic Book Club Catalog for you and your child to look over. These clubs offer wonderful books at reduced prices---what a great way to build your home library! If you choose to order, you can place your order on my website or return the order form to me. Please make your check payable to Scholastic Book Club if you return the order to me.

Breakfast	A school breakfast is served every morning from 8:00-8:15 AM. I will send home a copy of the breakfast/lunch menu every month, so your child will know what the cooks will be serving. Students who want to eat breakfast should enter from the gym door promptly at 8:00.

Calendar	A calendar of events for kindergarten will be posted at our elementary web page on the kindergarten Wiki Page. I will also send notes home regularly reminding you of special events.

Computer	We are fortunate enough to have three computers and a SMART board in our classroom. We will visit the computer lab once a week. We use a variety of age-appropriate programs that reinforce math, readiness and reading skills. Children will work on the computers during center time.

Conferences	Parent/Teacher conferences are held after school (usually from 2:30- 8:00 PM) twice a year. You will receive your child’s report card and we will discuss your child's accomplishments, strengths and overall progress. Please feel free to schedule additional conferences at any time throughout the year if the need arises.

Discipline	Our classroom is a small community where teamwork and good relationships are expected. We will spend time learning class procedures and practicing them. Each student is expected to act within our standards of behavior. To establish good order and help the children learn self-control, they will be guided to respect themselves and their companions through specific directions, positive reinforcement, suggested new activities and responsible actions. Our classroom discipline system includes a Humpty Dumpty wall. Each child will have a Humpty. The first time a child breaks a rule, he will be given a verbal reminder. Nothing further will happen as he reflects on whether that behavior was a good choice. The second time a child breaks a rule their Humpty will be tipped. The third time the child breaks a rule their Humpty will fall off the wall and they will not get to go to the classroom treasure box on Friday. Every child will begin the day with their Humpty sitting tall on the wall. If your child’s Humpty falls off the wall I will send home a Humpty Dumpty paper letting you know what happened. You are required to sign it and send it back with your child on Monday morning. As a class we will create a list of classroom rules the first few days of school. We will send you a copy of them to discuss at home. We will also post them in the classroom and talk about them daily. Thank you for working with me to make sure that we have a safe and comfortable learning environment.

E-mail	You can contact me via my email address: deb.j.swanson@k12.sd.us I will check my email on a daily basis. If you need to discuss something urgently, please call me at school instead. The office will make sure I get your message.

Emergency Card	Please complete and return the enrollment sheet promptly (if you did not complete it during registration). If your home or work phone number changes, inform the office so you can be located quickly if an emergency occurs.

Emergency Closings	If schools are closed for a snow day or any emergency, radio stations KWYR or Magic 93, or the local TV stations (CBS) will make an announcement, generally by 7:00 A.M. You will also receive a phone call from the school superintendent stating that the school has been closed.


Field Trips	We plan some field trips that are both fun and educational for the children. Usually we will be able to walk to our destination. If we need any chaperones I will notify you in advance. Please make sure your child comes prepared for a walk. (Good shoes and a coat or jacket-if needed.)

Fire Drills	Fire drills are held several times throughout the year. All students will participate and are expected to walk quickly and quietly to their designated exit. We will practice and become familiar with procedures before our first scheduled drill.

Guided Reading	The most exciting thing in Kindergarten is learning to read! We will work in small groups on strategies and skills needed to prepare us to be good readers.


Gym	Our class will have a gym (PE) class two to three times a week. We will have a rotating schedule. Students should try to wear sneakers for gym class. If you want you can have your child keep their sneakers at school,

Hands-on Learning	I feel that the best way to help children learn is to make learning fun. Important concepts can be learned by doing meaningful hands-on activities. There are times when seatwork is required and necessary, but for the most part, our classroom will be an active learning environment.

Health	Please let me know of special circumstances which may affect your child. These could include medication that may make him sleepy, a death in the family, etc. Also, please let me know of any allergies your child may have, especially food allergies. We sometimes cook or do food activities to complement lessons in kindergarten and it would be helpful to know when I plan our recipes.

Help at Home	Your child is expected to know these readiness skills: Full name Address Telephone number Parents names Basic colors Counting to 100 Printing first name beginning with a capital letter and the rest in lower case Reciting the alphabet Shape names Sight words Birthday (month & date) Identifying numbers to 20 Identifying letter names Tying shoes Your extra help at home really makes a difference!

Home Reading Program	During the school year child will be taking home books to read at home. This is wonderful practice to build reading fluency and to reinforce the vocabulary words they’ve learned. When they return the book to school, they will read to me and I will send another book home. This is your child’s chance to show-off their developing reading skills to parents, relatives and friends!

Homework	Homework will be sent home from time to time. Completing and returning homework helps build a sense of responsibility and prepares him for the homework he will have to complete in later school years. Homework should be your child’s best work. From time to time I will be sending home tote bags or little suitcases that have some practice work in them that your child will need to complete, . In a few weeks your child will be bringing home reproduced books that they have worked with in school to share with you. These take-home books promote home involvement and allow for reinforcement of book concepts, reading strategies and beginning comprehension skills.

Illness	The question of when to keep your child home from school is often a difficult one, especially when decisions must be made first thing in the morning. It is important, however, to keep your child home if he/she is ill. This helps to make them more comfortable and prevents others from becoming ill. Children function more effectively in the classroom when they are healthy.

Independent Reading	Because children learn to read by reading, they need plenty of opportunities to read independently. Sufficient time and appropriate materials are necessary to develop and strengthen reading abilities. By giving the children time to read both at school and at home, we can work together to provide a literature-rich environment and a life-long love of reading.

Journals	One strategy that will be used to help convey the vital concept that print conveys meaning is the frequent use of journal writing. In these journals the kindergartners combine their emerging writing skills with their drawing skills. As the children are exposed to a variety of phonics and reading experiences, journal entries will move from drawings and inventive spellings towards more conventional writing.

Kindness	Students in our classroom are encouraged and expected to treat all members of our class as well as others with kindness and respect. Bothering others, bullying and interrupting learning will not be permitted.

Library	The children go to the library at least a couple times each week. In the library Mrs. Hanzlik will entertain them with a story and they will learn library skills. Students will be checking out books and they must return them if they want to continue checking out more books.

Literacy Centers	During literacy centers, children practice reading and writing skills while the teacher works with individual children or small guided reading groups. The center activities are designed to strengthen letter/sound knowledge, listening skills, oral language expression, rhyme, letter formation and cooperation.

Lunch	We will eat lunch from 11:40-12:10 each day. Children may bring a packed lunch from home or eat a school lunch. The lunch menu will be sent home each month in your child’s backpack. You may join your child any time for lunch. Please try to let me know ahead of time if you are coming. Thank you!

Math	The kindergarten mathematics curriculum provides students with mathematical experiences that help them develop number sense and a positive attitude towards mathematics that will continue through their school career and their lives. We employ a hands-on, problem solving approach.

Music	Our music teacher, Mrs. Carlson, will be teaching the children the basics of music education and will be sharing many wonderful songs!

Newsletter	I will be sending home a weekly newsletter in your child’s Friday folder. This letter will let you know about upcoming events and inform you what we learned and worked on during the week.

Nurse	We are fortunate to have a Linda Johnson working part time in our building. She will be able to assist us with minor injuries and health issues.

	The elementary office is located on Kellam Street. You should enter the building by the big cub bear. Our secretary is Jean Burfeindt and she will be happy to assist you with your needs. Mr. Bergeson, the elementary principal’s office is right next door.

Parent Involvement	Your support of school activities makes your child feel important and sends the message that you value school! We are always happy to have your help for special activities in the classroom. I will try to let you know at least a week ahead of time if I need help. Requests for help will be published in our weekly newsletter. I hope that you can come and join in the fun!

Parties & Celebrations	There are three main parties each year---Halloween, Christmas and Valentine’s Day. I will have students sign-up to bring treats to these parties on our come and go day. If you can assist with these parties please let me know. We will have some other celebrations that I will organize such as the 100th Day of School, Easter, Dr. Seuss Day, and our End of the Year Celebration.

Playground Procedures	Please review these playground rules and safety procedures with your child: 1) Play within the designated boundaries. 2) Get permission from the teacher if you want to leave the area. 3) Play safely. 4) Leave rocks and sticks on the ground. 5) Go down the slide. 6) Sit on your bottom when you swing. Do not twist the chains. 7) Line up and walk quietly through the building.

Questions	If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to e-mail me at deb.j.swanson@k12.sd.us or call the school 234-4460 and leave a message.

Recess	The children will play outdoors for 20 minutes twice a day unless it is raining or too cold to be outdoors. Please keep this in mind when helping your child to select clothing for the day. During the snow season students are required to wear snow pants and boots if they want to play in the snow. If your child is too sick to play outside, he is too sick to come to school. When weather will not permit us to be outdoors we will watch a video with the other kindergarten classrooms.

Report Cards	Report cards are issued every nine weeks. Our report cards are standards based. It is a checklist with kindergarten skills on it. We do not use a grading system.

Restrooms	We have a restroom in our classroom. Students will be allowed to use it whenever they need to. There are restrooms next to the lunchroom, too.


Science	We use the FOSS Science System. This system believes that students learn best by doing science. Students and teachers use kits to engage in enduring experiences that lead to a deeper understanding of the natural world. We will focus on wood & paper, animals, and fabric.

Shared Reading	Shared reading is an interactive process used with the whole class. As the teacher reads a story, children join in on phrases or words that they know. During subsequent re-readings, children read more and more of the text, until they are able to read the story independently. Shared reading is an opportunity for the teacher to model conventions of print and the use of reading strategies.

Show and Tell	Show and tell will be on the first Friday of each month. A notice will be sent home to remind students. This is the only day your child should bring a special toy, book, etc. If students are planning on bringing something that is alive they should notify me a head of time. Pets can not stay after Show & Tell is over.

Snack	Your children generally get hungry by mid-morning so the school does provide a healthy snack at about 10:00 each day. We will also have a glass of water with our snack. If students want to bring special treats from time to time that is certainly okay with me. Please notify me if your child has any food allergies, so I can let the other parents know.

Social Studies	The kindergarten social studies curriculum focuses on the students and how they relate to others in their families, classroom, school, and community. Holiday celebrations will also be highlighted. Activities will help the children engage their natural curiosity for the world around them.

Supplies	The children will need the following supplies for kindergarten. LABEL THE ITEMS WITH YOUR CHILD’S NAME. Backpack (to carry home those important papers) Box of crayons (no more than 24) Pencils (2 or 3 sharpened) Glue sticks An eraser School box to hold these supplies Pocket folder Dry erase marker A box of tissues *A box of sandwich bags It is really nice if students can replenish their supplies over Christmas break. If you buy doubles of everything before school starts you will save money. If you want to send it all when school starts then I can hold back the others until they need them.

Toys	Bringing toys to school is discouraged because they distract the children from learning. If a toy is accidentally lost or broken, feelings will be hurt. Students may bring in books that are clearly marked with your child's name.

	Unexcused absences will result if students do not bring a note from home or the school does not get a phone call. Please feel free to e-mail me if you know your child is going to be gone.

Visitors	CES has a policy that ALL GUESTS (including familiar faces) are required to check in at the school office. CES welcomes and encourages family involvement. It is important to remember that while this may seem inconvenient to frequent visitors, it is the goal and responsibility of the school to create a safe learning environment.

Website	School Web Page http://chamberlain.k12.sd.us/

Words (Sight)	Students will be learning lots of new sight words throughout the year. I will send home a copy of the words for students to practice at home.

Writing	Our writing program builds on what each child already knows. Writing begins with scribbles and proceeds to lines and circles, random strings of letters, words and spaces and eventually sentences. Your children will be encouraged and praised for all attempts and accomplishments in writing. Providing a risk-free environment is paramount to your child's progress in writing. If possible, please provide your child with writing tools, such as pencils, crayons, markers and paper at home.

eXtra Special	Kindergartners learn that they are eXtra special and unique. Kindergartners have opportunities to describe how they are alike as well as different from others. They share their culture and learn about different cultures within the class.

Younger Siblings	It is in your child’s and the program’s best interest to have our parent volunteers available WITHOUT younger children. This not only allows your full attention to be focused on the class, but also allows for some special time between you and your kindergartner. Thank you for making childcare arrangements for younger siblings.

Zzzzs	Make sure that your child gets plenty of rest. Setting and keeping a bedtime is a wonderful gift you can give to your child. It will help them to be alert and ready to learn each day!

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