Welcome To Third Grade At Castle Hills Mrs.

Jesse Room B2 2013 2014

Dear Parents/Guardians. Your child is now a third grader! Im so excited to have the opportunity to work with your child this school year. This is my 12th year teaching third grade in the Colonial School District. I have my Bachelors Degree in Elementary and Special Education. I have my Masters Degree in Literacy. I am also a certified reading specialist. As your childs teacher I hold high expectations for both your child and myself. I believe it important for your child to view their learning environment as friendly, safe, and secure. It is just as important that it should be fun and interesting, while also stimulating and challenging. Key areas that will be emphasized this year are respect for oneself and others, building self confidence, and becoming more independent. I feel strongly that a childs education depends on the combined efforts of the child, parent and the teacher. Therefore I will contact you if I have any concerns or need your assistance. I urge you to do the same. Looking forward to a successful year!

Mrs. Lisa Jesse

2013 2014 Classroom Schedule

8:20 8:40 8:45 9:45 9:50 10:20 morning routines/breakfast math math intervention

10:25 12:05 reading/ language arts 12:10 12:55 LUNCH/RECESS 1:00 1:45 1:50 2:20 2:25 3:10 science/social studies reading intervention SPECIAL Monday art Tuesday gym (please wear sneakers) Wednesday gym (please wear sneakers) Thursday music Friday library 3:14 dismissal

Classroom Management
Positive Reinforcement!
I will provide positive comments and feedback to students on a daily basis. In turn, students will be encouraged to speak this way to each other when working in cooperative situations. Castle Hills has implemented a school-wide behavior incentive program where students can earn chess pieces. Chess is an acronymbe Cooperative, be Helpful, Exceed expectations, be Safe, make Smart choices. These chess pieces can be cashed in at the school store which comes to each hallway on a cart every 2 weeks. Also these chess pieces can be saved and used to pay for entry to a school wide celebration. Each marking period offers a new type of celebration activity. Several times a week certificates are given out to a few deserving students. This lets students know that their hard work is noticed.

Expectations
We use the Six Pillars of Character in our classroom to remind ourselves of how we are expected to behave. Students know that they must display these traits at all times. Trustworthiness Be honest Dont deceive, cheat, or steal Be reliable do what you say youll do Have the courage to do the right thing Build a good reputation Be loyal stand by your family, friends, and community Respect Treat others with respect; follow the Golden Rule Be tolerant and accepting of differences Use good manners, not bad language Be considerate of the feelings of others Dont threaten, hit or hurt anyone Deal peacefully with anger, insults, and disagreements Responsibility Do what you are supposed to do Plan ahead Persevere: keep on trying! Always do your best Use self-control Be self-disciplined Think before you act

consider the consequences Be accountable for your words, actions, and attitudes Set a good example for others Fairness Play by the rules Take turns and share Be open-minded; listen to others Dont take advantage of others Dont blame others carelessly Treat all people fairly Caring Be kind Be compassionate and show you care Express gratitude Forgive others Help people in need Citizenship Do your share to make your school and community better Cooperate Get involved in community affairs Stay informed; vote Be a good neighbor Obey laws and rules Respect authority Protect the environment Volunteer

Consequences
Green Light, Yellow Light, Red Light I try to keep track of behavior misconduct in a low key way. I want students to understand there are consequences for inappropriate behavior, but I want to do so in a way that minimizes the loss of instructional time. On the chalkboard is a traffic light. Students will remain on green unless their behavior is a problem. Step 1: nonverbal warningthe look Step 2: student moved to yellow A this is only a warning Step 3: student moved to yellow B student must owe recess Step 4: student moved to red A must write a note to parents explaining what they have done to disrupt or cause problems in the classroomnote must return to school signed by parent Step 5: student moved to red B parent phone call Step 6: If all else fails, student will be referred to a principal

Homework is a very important part of a childs learning experience. Homework is the connection between home and school. It will mean a great deal to your child to be able to sit down with you and show you all they are learning in class. It will also be a way for you to strike up a conversation about what they did that day in class. A simple 5 minute conversation with your child where they detail for you their learning can help them retain the important information.

Typical Daily Homework Assignment o Math one math practice page a night o Reading One reading/language practice page a night Read for 30 minutes a night Parent initials on homework cover sheet that child has read for 30 minutes that evening Students need to choose a variety of fiction and nonfiction books when reading at home. Students may borrow books from my personal classroom library and the school library. Please refer to the website www.arbookfind.com to type in the title of a book to find the reading level. You can use this resource when choosing books for your child at your public library or the book store. I provided you with your childs reading level range. As this range may change throughout the school year, you will be notified. Otherwise, please make sure they are only reading books in this range as a higher reading level will not benefit them. However, if you are reading a book aloud to your child, feel free to read from any reading level you prefer.

Parent/Teacher Communication
Notes and progress updates will be sent home on an as-needed basis. I will also email and call home if necessary. Email is the most efficient form of communication I use to relay information to you about your childs performance in school. I encourage you to respond to these emails. I also encourage parents to email me at school. This is the best way to contact me (even better than the telephone). My email address at school is lisa.jesse@colonial.k12.de.us. I will usually email you back the same day. If you havent heard back from me by the following day, please resend your message. My website is up and running! The website address is www.mrsljesse@weebly.com Please visit the site often for important news and information. Conferences will be scheduled after the first and second marking period report cards are mailed out. These are the only times that conferences are offered throughout the year. However, please feel free to initiate a conference or phone conference at other times throughout the year when you have questions or concerns. Please mark your calendars now for these scheduled conference dates: November 25 & 26 January 30 & 31 No school for students! No school for students!

Any other comments, questions, or concerns will be addressed individually and as needed. Please feel free to contact me by note, email, or telephone. (302) 323 2915 x202

Other Information
Absences/Tardies/Early Dismissals
Your child will be responsible to make up all assignments that he/she misses due to absences. However, classroom discussions and activities done during the school day are often difficult to make up and your child will fall behind if he/she is frequently absent, tardy, or leaves early. Please make sure you send in a note explaining the absence as soon as your child returns. Birthdays School policy does not allow food to come into the classroom from outside. Absolutely no Due to various food allergies, we have to be very careful about food being brought in from the outside. If you want to send in something for the class other than food or candy that will be fine. An example would be a special pencil. Different Dismissal Please, please, please send a note to school if your child needs to go home a different way than usual. School policy says that students will go home their normal way unless parents call or send in a note. Personal Items Please label all your childs belongings that they take with them to school. This will prevent mix-ups on look-alike articles of clothing and will help lost items get returned to your child. Do not allow your child to bring in toys or anything of significant value to school.

Important Websites
www.mrsljesse@weebly.com classroom website

www.arbookfind.com access book levels for most books

www.tumblebooks.com books read aloud to students online username: castlehills password: books www.coolmath4kids.com math fun and practice for a rainy day www.funbrain.com math and reading games and practice www.starfall.com for our struggling readers