Welcome to the
Parent’s Corner! There are
many resources here for you and your 4th grader.
If you cannot find something here or if you need more information about
something, please send me an email.
When students are
absent, they are expected to make up the in-class work and homework they
missed. Please let the office know
if you will be picking up your child’s homework or if you want it sent
home with a sibling or neighbor. If
requested, the homework will be waiting for you in the office or sent to a
sibling’s classroom.
Otherwise, the student will have an “absent folder” on their
desk when they return to school.
Students have the same number of days they were gone to finish and turn
in their absent work. Many of the
activities we do at school (labs, experiments, projects, etc.) cannot be done at
home so regular attendance is extremely important.
Each student has
to have an assignment book to write down their assignments. Time will be given each day for students
to record their homework. Each page
of the assignment book is for a different school day. The students are responsible for
bringing home their assignment books every
night and a parent or guardian must sign the “Parent Signature”
box at the bottom of the page for that day. If students do not have their assignment
books signed, they will lose recess or other free time. Please check your child’s backpack
for their assignment book each day.
Students may bring
in treats for their birthdays if there is enough for each student in the
class. Also, birthday treats and
other snacks brought into school to distribute to the class must be
store-bought. Store bought cupcakes
or individually wrapped snacks are great choices! Also, please be aware that many students
in the school may be allergic to peanuts.
Students and their families will have the opportunity to purchase books
from Scholastic book orders. I will
always post the due date on the assignment board at least one week in
advance. You can send your order to
school along with a check made out to “Scholastic Book Clubs”. You may also order
online….username and password will be available in the near future!
The 2010-2011 District 401 calendar is available on the District Homepage
as well as Elmwood’s homepage.
Any events happening in our classroom will be posted the week before in the
weekly newsletter. Remember,
Wednesday is Late Start!
The classroom
website is updated weekly to provide students and their families
information about what is happening in 4th grade. You can find spelling words,
homework help, and educational links.
The “Student Showcase” section is a wonderful place for
students to show off their hard work and to tell their families what they are learning
in 4th grade. If you
look on the homepage you will see a map near the bottom of the screen. This map plots where people have
accessed our page around the world.
Feel free to share the website address with friends and family and add
it to your bookmarks! http://www.mrskanas.net
We will be having classroom parties for holidays such as Halloween,
Valentine’s Day, etc. If you
are sending your child to school with snacks, make sure they are individually
wrapped and that there is enough for each student. Please do not send your student to
school with cupcakes, cookies, or other large snacks because the room parents
provide these kinds of treats. On
days such as this, students sometimes have an abundance of sugary snacks so
pencils, stickers, small toys, and other items are great alternatives to candy!
I
have three basic rules in my classroom: Be
respectful. Be responsible. Be ready to learn. We have a baseball-themed behavior
plan in our classroom. Students are
given “strikes” for disrespectful and disruptive behavior. The first strike is a warning, the
second strike results in loss of recess, and a third strike results in a
written reprimand that must be signed by a parent. Repeated or extreme behavior will result
in administrator intervention.
E-mail
is a great way to send me a message or ask a quick question. I check my e-mail several times a day
and I make sure I check it around 6:00 p.m. incase of homework questions. Email me at: kanasj@epcusd401.org
Severe
weather or other events may cause emergency closing of school. Please check the District 401 Homepage to see if school is
cancelled.
The 4th graders will be going on
field trips this year as well as participating in several “in- school
field trips”. I will always
send home information in advance about any field trip and will put a reminder in
the newsletter. If you would like
to chaperone a field trip, please let me know. You must fill out a form in the office
to chaperone a field trip.
Students will have gym class twice a week. Please make your child wears or brings
gym shoes to school on a day they have gym class. Also, Mrs. Scimeca and I both encourage
students to bring water bottles to school.
They can bring their water bottles to gym class and keep them at their
desk after gym.
4th
graders are assigned homework Monday through Thursday. Students should bring home their
assignment book every day and the page must be signed each night. Students who turn in all their homework
for a week will be part of the “Homework Club” and may receive
incentives such as a homework pass, stickers, Kanas Cash, pencils, and other
prizes. If a student does not have
their homework, they must finish it at recess or other free time. If a student has two or more missing
assignments, they will have to bring home a note for their parents to
sign. In addition to homework,
students should read independently every day. Students can earn Kanas Cash by filling
out a weekly reading form, having their parents sign it, and turning it in on
Friday morning.
We will be practicing throughout the year to take the annual ISAT tests
in March. This year’s ISAT
tests are scheduled for the week of March 3rd – 8th,
2009. Students should get a lot of
sleep and have a healthy breakfast before tests. Student attendance for the week of ISAT
testing is extremely important.
Kanas Cash is our
classroom “currency” that students can earn for turning in
homework, keeping their desk clean, helping other students, participating in
classroom activities, reading each night, and showing good behavior. Students can use their Kanas Cash to
“purchase” prizes from our prize box. Students are encouraged to put their
Kanas Cash in a safe place.
Students will visit the school library once a week and can check out two
books at one time. In addition to the
school library, students can read books from our classroom library. If a student wants to bring a classroom
library book home, they must notify me and fill out a “check out”
slip.
Students should
deposit their lunch money in the bag on the outside of our classroom door. The lunch-staff collects the money each
morning. Please make sure your
child’s lunch money is in an envelope with their name written on the
envelope. You may pre-pay for several
weeks instead of paying each day.
Each Friday, a
weekly newsletter will go home with your child. The newsletter will include important
activities we did in school, next week’s
spelling words and dates of tests, and important reminders. Please watch for the “Weekly
Buzz” in your child’s take home folder.
If you would like to
volunteer in our classroom for classroom parties and celebrations, field trips,
or other projects, please let me know and I will make sure the proper form goes
home so you can fill it out and return it to the office. You must be approved by the office before
volunteering in the classroom or on a field trip.
Progress reports
will be sent home four times a year.
Progress reports must be signed by a parent and returned to school.
4th graders will
be assigned several projects this year.
The project instructions will be sent home several weeks before the
project due date. We will find
resources in the classroom library but you may need to go to the
Students will bring
home report cards four times a year.
In 4th grade, students are given grades for Language Arts
subjects, Math, Science & Social Studies. In addition, students are given grades
for Physical Education, Visual Arts, and Music on the 2nd and 4th
quarter report cards. Report card
envelopes sent home for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd
quarter should be signed and returned.
A list of school
supplies needed for 4th grade was sent home with your child with
their 3rd grade final report cards. Your child’s name should be
written on all school supplies.
Please make sure supplies are replenished throughout the year.
|
Qty. |
Item |
Qty. |
Item |
|
1 |
Calculator
– TI 30Xa |
1 |
Multiplication/Division
Flashcards |
|
1 |
12 inch ruler
(metric/standard) |
24 |
Pencils - #2 and
sharpened |
|
1 |
Pack of erasable
pens (blue or black) |
2 |
Yellow
highlighters |
|
2 |
Red pens |
2 |
Packs of wide
rule loose-leaf paper |
|
1 |
Assignment
Notebook (mandatory – given out at school) |
10 |
Pocket folders |
|
10 |
White envelopes |
2 |
Wipes |
|
1 |
Pair of scissors |
1 |
Hand sanitizer |
|
1 |
Elmer’s
Glue bottle |
1 |
Glue stick |
|
1 |
Box of crayons
(at least 24) |
1 |
Pack of colored
pencils |
|
3 |
5-subject notebooks
(wide ruled) |
1 |
Zippered pencil
case (no boxes please!) |
|
1 |
Small handle bag
to hold art supplies |
1 |
Old shirt to
paint in |
|
1 |
White poster
board |
3 |
Boxes of Klennex |
|
2 |
Rolls of paper
towels |
|
|
Each Friday, two
students will be chosen as “Shining Stars of the Week”. The students will be chosen by their
“shining star behavior” which includes things such as sharing, helping
others, being considerate, and following directions.
Spelling tests are
given on Thursdays or the last day of the school week if there is a
holiday. Please make sure your child
studies their spelling words throughout the week. Spelling homework is also due on
Thursdays.
Our weekly
spelling lists are available at
To access the
spelling lists on
The Student
Showcase is the part of the classroom website that is devoted to showing off
what the 4th graders are doing in school. The Student Showcase is updated weekly
and is definitely worth checking out!
There are pictures of activities, explanations of experiments, and
photos of student work.
Each day, students
will take home both their assignment books and take-home folders. Their take-home folders are used to
bring home announcements, notes for parents, and other information. Their homework will also be put in the
take-home folder. Students should
organize their folders so that the left side is the “take-home,
stay-home” part and the right is the “homework” part. Please empty the left side of your
student’s folder each day.
4th
graders will be given tests and quizzes in all curricular subjects. For most tests and quizzes, a study
guide will be sent home prior to the quiz to help students study. If a student receives
a “D” or an “F” on a test or a quiz, a form will be
attached that must be signed and returned to school the following day. Students may choose to correct their
test at home for homework and bring it back the next day to receive extra
credit.
Trailblazers
is a mathematics
program that integrates math, science, and language arts. The Trailblazers program is funded by
the National Science Foundation and is research-based. This math program is probably going to
look very different from what you remember from elementary school. If you are having problems helping your
child with their math homework, please do not get yourself or your child
stressed out or upset. Write a note
to me and I will do my best to get your child back on track. Here are some tips for your child’s
success in Trailblazers Math.
ê
Ask
your student questions about what they did in math. “Did you collect data
today?” “Did you use
any special materials in math today?” “Did you solve a
problem?” “Tell me how
you solved it.”
ê
Always
keep a positive attitude toward mathematics and school. Praise your student when they show good problem
solving or math skills.
ê
Practice your multiplication and division
facts! The better you know these facts, the easier
math will be.
Trailblazers
Homework Help – below
are .pdf files from the Trailblazers program to help
with homework. Please realize some
of these lessons and pages we do in school as a class. These are great resources if your child
is stuck on something you are not familiar with.
Students are
welcome to bring water bottles to school to keep on or under their desks. Not only does this save a lot of wasted
time leaving the classroom for drinks, but it keeps students hydrated and
refreshed all day. Please make sure
that your child has the type of water bottle that will not spill if it gets
knocked over (sport water bottles).
Only water can be put into the water bottles.
Created and maintained by:
Jamie Kanas ~ 2010– 2011
