Welcome to the 2 nd Grade!

1. Welcome to the 2nd Grade!

2. Specials • We will have PE every other day. • Please make sure your child wears tennis shoes to school on those days. If not, they will sit out of PE activities as a safety precaution, and too many days out will affect their PE conduct grade.

3. Arrival and Dismissal Arrival • Children are dismissed to their classrooms at 8:10. After 8:20, a tardy slip is required for admittance to the classroom. • Our learning time begins as soon as the announcements end, and we appreciate your help in making sure your child is on time and ready to learn! • Morning drop off is 7:55. If you need to drop your child off earlier, please look into the YMCA. Rainy day Dismissal • Dismissal • You can receive rainy day notifications by texting “follow jwepta” to 40404.

4. Reporting Absences • To report absences go to the JWE website. • Please do not call to report absences.

5. Changes in Transportation • All changes of transportation must be made in writing. • Please do not write transportation changes in the planner or in an email. This is for the safety of your child and helps dismissal go more smoothly. • Anyone who checks your child out of school will be required to show picture identification and must be listed as an emergency contact on the enrollment card.

6. Campus Visitors • Every visitor entering the building is required to have a driver’s license to register with raptor. • You may pre-register for big events.

7. Clinic • The clinic is for sick children only. • Not only are they missing valuable instruction time, but may also get exposed to many illnesses.

8. Lice • We are no longer allowed to communicate with parents regarding lice. • Please check your child’s head regularly.

9. Lunch • You may pre-pay for your child’s lunch by sending a check to the classroom teacher on Mondays or on the online Mealpay through the KISD website. Please make checks payable to KISD food services and include your child’s name on the check. • The price of a school lunch is $1.90 for children and $2.85 for adults. Breakfast will be served at our cafeteria in the mornings for $1.00.

10. Lunch Visitors • Parents are welcome to join their child for lunch but may not provide lunch including competitive foods, to any child other than their own. • Visitors having lunch with a student must sit at the visitors’ table with their child only. • If a student forgets his/her lunch at home, you will be required to get a raptor badge and walk it down to the cafeteria to put on the lunch cart by the door.

11. Lunch Volunteers • Please help your child practice opening items such as juice boxes and fruit cups. • We have a limited number of cafeteria volunteers, and it may take a while before they can get around helping everyone. • Please discuss proper lunchroom etiquette with your child.

12. Birthday Treats and FMNV • Foods of minimal nutritional value (FMNV) will not be served by the cafeteria or used in the classroom. • Parents may send birthday treats to school for the students to enjoy during recess. • These treats need to be left at the front office to be delivered to the classroom before 10:00. • Please notify the teacher before the day you send treats in case of allergies and/or multiple birthday treats on the same day. • Please send individual, easy to serve treats, as they will be served on the playground (no cookie cakes or cupcake cakes). • Also birthday invitations must be sent through the mail and not passed out at school even if the whole class is invited.

13. Discipline Our goal is to establish a classroom where everyone can learn and all children feel comfortable and happy. In second grade, we follow the same rules and consequences stated in the school wide discipline plan. If a student chooses to break a rule, he or she will put the daily folder in the yellow tub. This is just a warning. If he or she continues to have difficulty following the rules, the folder will then go to the red tub resulting in a mark. Students who choose to follow the rules and make good choices will receive tickets. These tickets will be traded for goodies from the class store. We would appreciate any donations made to the class store.

14. Folders and Time Tracker

15. Daily Folder • This is the red folder that goes home every day. • It will have homework, the discipline card, and occasionally a book order or other classroom/grade level communication. • Please look at the folder every day and discuss any discipline marks or praise your child for making good choices. • The discipline card should be signed on Wednesdays.

16. Wednesday Folder • This is the plastic “Wrangler” folder you purchased from the PTA. • It will go home on Wednesdays and will have school wide and PTA communication, as well as graded work. • Sometimes forms such as yearbook orders, hoe-down tickets, and other important information are in the Wednesday Folder. Please sign and return the folder the next day. • Any notes that need direct attention should be sent in the red daily folder and not in the Wednesday Wrangler folder.

17. Time Tracker/Planner • Every day, your child will write down the homework assignment and any other pertinent information in his/her Time Tracker. • Occasionally, I will write a note to you, so please check and initial your child’s planner daily. • It is a quick and easy way for you to help your child with organization. • The best form of communication with the teacher is through email. • Please do not write important notes in their planner, as these are not seen by me until the end of the day.

18. Homework Schedule • Our homework schedule is as follows: • Monday: Language • Tuesday: Reading • Wednesday: Math • Thursday: Word Works

19. Homework • All homework is to be returned the next day with the child upon arrival at school. • If your child does not have his/her homework upon arrival, this will result in a folder mark. • We are trying to develop individual responsibility in second grade.

20. Homework Cont. • Your child should review addition and subtraction facts to 18. • The second grade website has many internet services that can be used at home to practice fast facts and other skills. • Oral reading is an important component for developing fluent readers and being read to strengthens comprehension. • While these two activities are not included in the weekly homework, they are instrumental in developing fluent and successful readers.

21. Homework Cont. • Homework will be checked in class and complete assignments will be given the grade of 100. • In the event that a child forgets homework, he or she will be given a mark on their expectation card, but full credit will be given if the assignment is returned the next day; therefore, it isn’t necessary to bring it up to put in teacher’s mailbox. Assignments that are not present in the classroom first thing in the morning will result in a mark. • Homework assignments that are more than one day late will receive a 0.

22. Curriculum • KISD curriculum is aligned by grade level and is consistent throughout the district. Mastery of specific concepts is expected at each grade level, and students expand and build on those concepts as they continue through school.

23. Reading Curriculum • Reading is taught using both guided reading groups and whole group reading instruction. • Guided reading groups will provide instruction and skill strengthening at each learner’s reading level. • During whole group reading instruction, we will introduce new skills and build comprehension through various activities. • During small group and independent reading activities the teachers will assess various reading skills. • These grades will appear in the Home Access Center, but may not come home in the Wednesday folder due to the use of grading rubrics and teacher observation.

24. Math, Science, and Social Studies Curriculum • Students will also be receiving grades in all subjects for work completed in journals or Interactive Student Notebooks (ISN). • Your child will be using a Math/Science/Social Studies ISN which may be sent home as needed.

25. Word Works What is Word Study? • Word Study is a conceptual way of thinking about how to read, understand, and spell words. It is a rich and rigorous way of thinking about words and how we use them. Word Study contains three critical components which are essential for students to become readers and writers. Word Study includes: • Phonics • Spelling • Vocabulary Word Study PowerPoint • http://www.katyisd.org/curriculum/Documents/Word%20Study.pdf

26. Katy ISDFact Fluency PlanPurpose-It is designed to help students develop fluency and automaticity of basic facts. This will be accomplished through a balanced approach focusing on conceptual understanding, math fact strategies, and the relationships between operations.

27. How is it different than Fast Facts ? • Fact strategies will be the focus and they will be worked on in math workstations. The strategies will also be taught by the teacher in daily math instruction. • Fact checks are given throughout the grading period as an informal assessment to inform instructional strategies that are best for each student. These are NOT graded but they are timed and self reflection is an important focus. Time allotment is 1 minute and 30 seconds for each set of operation problems. • 1st graders will NOT be timed on the district assessment but it will be graded as one 90% grade. • 2nd -5th graders will have one timed district assessment at the end of each grading period which will count as one daily grade. (90%) Time allotment 1 minute and 30 seconds also.

28. How can we help at home? Encourage your child to practice strategies at home using the parent calendar on the grade level website for game ideas and strategy procedures. Talk to your child about improving their previous time and reaching for automaticity with basic facts.

29. Grading • On written work where complete sentences are expected 1 point will be deducted for missing capitals and punctuation and 3 points will be deducted for incomplete sentences. • Also, 1 point will be deducted for words misspelled that are listed on the page. • We spend the first nine weeks reviewing complete sentences. Our goal is to transfer the fluency of the children’s speech into fluent writing. • We encourage the children to work hard and do their best work, and sometimes they need extra time to finish an assignment. They may keep the assignment in their Work In Progress folder and complete it the next day. • Students are expected to complete all assignments during class time. Assignments not completed by the end of the following day’s extended learning time the assignment will receive 10 points off each day for the first three days that the assignment is not complete. After the third day it is a zero.

30. Schedule • Everyone received a class schedule at Meet and Greet in your beginning of the year folder. • Please refer to your teacher’s schedule when scheduling appointments.

31. Photography • Unfortunately due to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act parents are not allowed to take photos or videos during school functions/performances that are closed to the public. • An area will be set up during each event for you to take your child’s individual photograph.

32. Extra Information • When parents are invited to an event, please let us know if you are unable to attend. • This is especially important for our 2nd grade Sweetheart Tea on February 8th. • We will be happy to find someone to sit in your place, so your child will not be alone.

33. Communication • I believe that the key to a successful year is communication. • Each week you will receive a newsletter by email. The purpose of this email is to let you know what objectives will be covered each week and if we have any special events. • I want to be your partner in your child’s education. • If you ever have any questions, concerns, or just want to tell me how much your child is loving 2nd Grade; please do not hesitate to email or call me. • Thank you in advance for your help and support at home!! • I am looking forward to getting to know all of you and having a fabulous year!