| Dear Fourth-Grade Students and Parents, I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to Mrs. Donohue's Reading class for the 2009-2010 school year. The purpose of this communication is to inform you of some of the policies which will be implemented in my Reading class this year. MATERIALS: Each student must have with them at all times a blue/black erasable pen, a red erasable pen, a six-inch ruler and a highlighter. The highlighter will be used mostly to help the students attend to the directions that must be followed for various activities. The students must have a separate Reading notebook and a Reading folder. They must come to class with a library book in hand in the event that they finish their work before others in the class. NOTEBOOK: The students will write vocabulary words for each story in the notebook. They are to follow the same format for each story. They must include the part of speech and the definition for some, but not all, of the words. I have advised the students to study these vocabulary words (spelling, part of speech and definition) as often as necessary using a method with which they are comfortable (e.g. flashcards). We will review vocabulary words by means of games (e.g. Bingo) and using words in creative sentences. The children will be tested on these words. While on the topic of the notebook, I also invite you to occasionally look through the notebook for notes and strategies that will be glued onto the pages. I expect the students to refer to these strategies when answering comprehension questions at the end of their stories. COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS: At the end of each story in their Reader, the students are required to answer comprehension questions. The answers must be written in complete sentences with proper capitalization and punctuation. They must follow the Completing Story Questions Strategy which can be found pasted in their notebook. This strategy is also useful for other subject areas in which they are required to answer questions. As a matter of fact, I have stressed to the students that whatever they learn in Reading class should be carried over to all of their other subjects--how to make inferences, cause and effect, main idea and details, comparison, etc. Of course, comprehension will be assessed by means of more informal activities and games, as well. We will be reading two "trade books" this year in addition to the stories in our Scott Foresman anthology. SKILLS PRACTICE SHEETS: These papers serve the purpose of acclimating the students to important test-taking skills including skills required for standardized testing. Skills Practice papers cover topics such as those mentioned in the previous paragraph as well as phonics and grammar skills. Decoding skills are so important considering the kinds of vocabulary words to which the students will be introduced. Grammar skills, as you know, need constant reinforcement and practice. I am well aware that this practice must also be in the form of written expression. More about that later. THINK TIME: Both oral and written expression will be emphasized in Reading class. The students will learn to respond to story questions in an oral as well as a written mode. They must learn to think before they speak--to formulate their answer in their minds, first. In order to achieve this skill, I allow the students "Think Time", a period of about 30 seconds to think of what they want to say. We will also utilize the "Think, Pair, Share" routine in which students are asked to think about the question, pair with a partner to discuss the answer, and share their answer with the rest of the group. WRITING ASSIGNMENTS: In addition to classroom writing assignments, I will occasionally give writing assignments for homework. I feel that this allows the students more time to think about what they want to say and how they want to say it. Sometimes, the assignment may be very short; sometimes, a longer piece of work will be assigned. Please encourage your child to think for him(her)self. HOMEWORK: Habitual missed homework will result in a lower effort grade. Four homework slips in a marking period warrant an N in effort on the progress report. ACCELERATED READER AND BOOK REPORTS: All fourth-grade students will be required to earn a designated amount of Accelerated Reader Points per marking period (first period-6, second period-8, third period-10). Students will participate in the Book It program, and it is recommended that they choose Accelerated Reader books for their Book It projects. When choosing an AR book, it is suggested that students in grade 4 may go down one and 1/2 grade levels and up two grade levels. This may be adjusted for individual students at the discretion of the teacher and the librarian.Students will keep track of the books they are reading and points they are earning on an Accelerated Reader Chart that will be kept in their folder. * Please note that students' Accelerated Reader points will be posted on Power School at midterm so that parents can access this information and be aware of how many points their child has earned and how many points are still required. The points will be averaged into the total number of points earned for Language Arts. Therefore, their grade may be lowered until they have earned all required points. The points will be updated by the end of the trimester. Please impress upon your child the importance of not waiting until the last minute to read their books and take tests. READING PACKETS: Once a week, usually on Tuesday, I will send home a packet of papers of the previous week's work. There will be a Parent Signature slip to be sent back to me the next day. Should you have any comments, please feel free to use the back of the paper. I feel that it is very important for me to make sure that the parents are aware of the work that their children have been doing. You might also check to see the work that they have done in their workbook and copybook. Occasionally, a paper may be stamped as such: "Parent Signature--Please Sign and Return". GRADED WORK: Reading grades are based on daily Skills Practice pages, workbook pages, written answers to comprehension questions after each story, creative writing assignments, Unit tests, and Accelerated Reader. Students will also be assessed through informal, anecdotal means. PORTFOLIOS: I will be implementing a portfolio system. A portfolio is an organized and purposefully selected collection of work that shows achievement, effort, and growth in writing. The system will allow the children to watch their progress and chart their growth in the area of writing. Classwork and some homework assignments will also be kept in the portfolios. TUTORS: If your child is working with a tutor, please let me know. I believe that it is very important for the teacher and tutor to have open communication in an effort to meet that child's needs. I'M HERE TO HELP: I am available at lunch time every day and in the mornings between 8:00 and 8:30 should the students need me. Occasionally, I will ask students to see me at recess time. If they turn in a paper that is totally unacceptable, I will require them to do it over; and this usually occurs at recess time. I am aware of the fact that the children need exercise; however, they also need to learn to be responsible. I usually allow them at least a little time to be outside to get some fresh air unless they choose to stay inside the whole time. I hope that this communication has made some of my policies clear. Should you ever have any questions, please feel free to contact me at any time at mdonohue@stjohnhydes.org. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please sign and return. I have read Mrs. Donohue's policies for Language Arts class. ____________________________________ _________________________________________ (Parent Signature) (Student - Grade) |