Parent+Information-+From+Parent+Night

** Mrs. Dana Smith, Room C112  ** Hello Parents! Things have gotten off to a great start here in room C112! I have enjoyed beginning to get to know each student in our classroom and I look forward to learning even more as the school year progresses! In order for you to understand how our classroom operates I would like to explain a few important things that your child may or may not have mentioned to you already. ** __ Communication: __ ** I feel that communication between the school and home is essential! Please feel free to contact me here at 745-5491, extension 3505. If I am unavailable, please leave a message, a number where I can reach you, as well as a best time to return your call. You may also e-mail me at dsmith@danville.k12.in.us. I check my e-mail daily and I can respond quickly! ** __ Student Laptops: __ ** This year in particular will be very exciting for the students in this classroom! This classroom is one of two classrooms in the district that is piloting the use of Netbooks! I am personally looking forward to integrating technology into our daily lessons to make learning even more fun and engaging! I have started creating a Wiki page for our class that will include links to our classroom blog (where I will be posting our class newsletters), student work, information about myself, our class schedule, and much more! Here is the link to the Wiki page: http://danamsmith.wikispaces.com I will be updating this page as often as I can, so please check it out! ** __ Schedule: __ ** 8:33-8:50: Quote of the Day/Vocabulary Word of the Day/Community Circle 8:50-9:50: Math 9:50-10:00: Restroom/Drink Break 10:00-10:40: Social Studies (Mrs. Van Paris) 10:50-11:15: Recess 11:15-11:45: Lunch 11:50-12:30: Science 12:35-1:15: Special 1:15-1:30: Spelling 1:30-2:00: RTI 2:00-3:05: Language Arts *Writing *Reading *Language 3:05-3:22: Wrap-up/SSR ** __ Expectations: __ ** During the first week of school our class created a mission statement. This mission statement was created by the students stating why they are here in the classroom, what our goals are for this year, what we can do to accomplish these goals, and how we know if we are succeeding. I feel that this mission statement reflects the expectations for our classroom. Take a moment to read through our mission statement. ** // Class Mission Statement  // ** // We are here at Danville Middle School to learn new things, have fun, do our personal best, make friends, and be successful. We will do this by working together as a team, listening to one another, respecting one another, helping one another, and supporting each other. We will know that we are succeeding when we trust our classmates, have positive attitudes, meet our goals, and we work hard to achieve good grades on test, quizzes, and projects. //  ** __ Homework: __ ** I try not to give a lot of homework. Generally, any homework will be work not finished during the day, as well as study time for tests. If your child is continually bringing home a heavy load of work everyday, please contact me! Please ask your child, or check your child’s assignment notebook daily for any homework assignments due. At the end of each day, as a class we go over any assignments that need to be completed. I will also post any homework on Harmony. ** __ Behavior/Discipline __ ** In our classroom I use the “Oops Book.” Each week every student begins the week with 100 points. If a student is being disrespectful (i.e. talking when the teacher is talking, talking when a classmate is talking, or not on task) the student will mark in the “Oops Book.” Students will also mark in the book if homework is not completed or important papers are not returned. I will always give a warning to the students first in regards to respect issues, but if the problem continues that is when students will mark in the book. Each time a student marks in the book for responsibility, 5 pts. will be deducted from the 100 points that they begin the week with. Each time a student marks in the book for respect, 10 pts. will be deducted. If a student is sent to the office for any reason then 30 points is deducted from this 100 points. The number of points students’ have at the end of the week determines the students’ “Character Traits” grade. When students mark in the book, the students write the date and why they are signing the book. Parents are welcome to look at the book at anytime if they wonder why their child signed the book. Any student who does not mark in the book at all during the week will get the opportunity to participate in the fifth grade Friday Challenge! Every Friday afternoon the fifth grade teachers will organize some kind of fun activity for the students who did not have any deductions during the week. Their good behavior and responsibility will be rewarded! As a class we have discussed what kinds of behaviors are expected. We have also discussed how important it is to be responsible and do homework and not lose important papers. I also use “Gotcha” tickets in our classroom. If students are “caught” being helpful, being on task, or for various other positive behaviors then the students get a “Gotcha” ticket. On this ticket they write their name and what they got “caught” doing. Every two weeks I will draw several “Gotcha” tickets out of a hat. If a students’ ticket is chosen then they get to pick a prize out of the “Prize Box.” Obviously, the more tickets the students accumulate, the better of a chance they have at winning! To give the students incentive to complete assignments throughout the week students will participate in a game called Homworkopoly. This game looks very similar to a Monopoly. If students complete all assignments throughout the week, on Friday’s they will get a chance to roll a dice. They will move their game piece on the board and if they land on spaces such as “Chance” or “Community Chest”, there are many different kinds of rewards such as, sitting in the teacher’s chair for the day or having lunch with the teacher that students can choose from. ** __ Grading Scale: __ ** 100- A+   93-99- A    90-92- A-    88-89- B+    83-87- B    80-82- B-    78-79- C+    73-77- C    70-72- C-    68-69- D+    63-67- D    60-62- D-    59 and below- F    Your child may also bring home a paper that has a check +, check, or check – on it. Here is the value of those marks. Check + = 100% Check = 85% Check - = 75% ** __ D and F Papers: __ ** Anytime a student gets a “D” or an “F” on a test or quiz I ask that the student get that paper signed and brought back the next day. ** __ Newsletter: __ ** I will post the “Smith Sizzler” every Monday on our classroom blog in order to recap what has happened in the classroom the previous week. There will also be important dates listed in the newsletter such as test dates, project due dates, upcoming field trips, and anything else that is deemed important.
 * Important Information **