Parent Handbook for Mrs. Dillon’s Fourth Grade Class
You are cordially invited to be a partner in your child’s education.
Homework: Some homework will be given to enrich the skills that have been
taught in class. Math Study Links will be assigned throughout the year.
Students are also expected to read a book at his/her ability level for a
minimum of 20 minutes each night. Spelling words and multiplication facts
will also need to be studied at home on a weekly basis. In many cases,
homework is simply class work that was not finished. I try to give ample
time in class for the completion of most assignments, but some students work
more slowly than others and must finish at home. You will find the homework
in the blue class work folder in the unfinished work pocket. It will go home
everyday. I encourage you to set up with your child a scheduled time for
homework each day. Students should be able to do most assignments
independently, but do help if it is completely necessary. If you notice that
your child is not able to do an assignment on his or her own, please send a
note or jot a note to me on the assignment. I will contact you if your child
is falling behind or turning in poor work.
Blue Class Work Folder: In order to help students keep their assignments
organized, they will be given a blue folder with two pockets
labeled “Finished Work” and “Unfinished Work”. After an assignment is
completed, it is to be placed in the “Finished Work” pocket. When an
assignment is not completed in class, it is to be placed in the “Unfinished
Work” pocket. Study links that need to be completed at home will also be
found in the unfinished work pocket. The unfinished work needs to be
completed that night for homework. Your child will need to turn in all of
the assignments the next day. Each week your child will be given a list of
spelling words. This list is to be kept in the front pocket of your child’s
blue folder. This will allow your child to have access to the words no
matter where he/she is at for the night and for spelling activities we
complete in class. It is important that you check your child’s Blue
Assignment Folder and Planner each night. Please do not take out and keep
any assignments. I expect all assignments to be turned in the next day. As
a general rule, late assignments will be marked down one grade for each day
they are late.
Student Planners: Your child will be given a student planner to write the
daily assignments in every day. Any graded papers or school notes will be
placed inside of your child’s planner at the end of the school day. You may
keep these papers at home. Your child needs to make corrections to any paper
that earned a grade lower than a C. The assignment grade will be raised if
all the corrections are made and it is turned in within two school days with
a parent signature. If your child is missing any assignment, I will write a
note of the missing assignment inside of his/her planner. It will be your
child’s responsibility to gather the necessary materials to complete the
missing assignment.
Your child will also be writing “Table Talk” messages inside of his/her
planner. The messages may consist of a single word or phrase of something we
learned that day for you and your child to discuss. This will allow you to
teach your child what you know about the topic or even for your child to
teach you something new. The purpose is to get your child talking about
school instead of replying with the famous “nothing” when asked what was
learned in school today.
It is very important that you show your child how much you value his/her
education by reviewing the planner and graded papers each night. Please
initial the planner after reviewing it. I would also appreciate your help in
making sure the planner and blue folder are returned to school each day.
Absences: When students are absent, they are responsible for making up the
work. Students will have an absent folder on their desk when they return.
Much of our classroom activities cannot be done at home such as experiments,
group work, in class learning games etc, so regular attendance is encouraged!
Grading: Fourth grade students will earn letter grades on their report
cards. 3 report cards will be given along with 3 mid marking period
reports. Students will be given letter grades on their daily assignments,
quizzes, and tests. The grades are converted into points when entered into
the grading program.
Daily Assignments: 10 points
Quizzes: 15 points
Tests: 25 points
Math study links will earn 2 points if completed with few mistakes, 1 point
if completed with many mistakes and 0 points if incomplete or evidence of no
effort.
Effort: Students are always expected to turn in their best work. Students
are highly encouraged to correct low scores to make sure they understand what
was being taught.
Language Arts: Our district uses the Treasures Language Arts Program from
Macmillan/McGraw-Hill. Each week we will be focusing on different
vocabulary, comprehension, grammar, and writing skills. Students will also
be given weekly spelling lists to learn spelling rules, phonics, and word
patterns. A spelling test will be given at the end of each week. Visit
their website at www.macmillanmh.com. They have activities that reinforce
the theme of the week as well as vocabulary and spelling word games.
Accelerated Reader: Students will receive a classroom A.R. goal for each
term. This is based on the student’s individual reading ability. Students
may write a book review for any book that is not an AR book and I will give
credit toward the goal. Students may also use the free Internet site:
www.bookadventure.org to take tests. Please send in a print out of the test
results for any test taken this way.
Book Reports and Projects: Each term students will read a novel at their
reading level and complete a project. Students will be asked to share their
book projects with the class. Depending on how the class silent reading time
was used, some students may need to do more at-home reading in order to
complete the book and project by the deadline. Book requirements and project
directions will be put in the back clear pocket of your child’s assignment
folder at the beginning of each term. The directions should be kept in this
safe place so your child has them at school and at home.
Everyday mathematics: There are six strands of content studied by students:
1) Operations and computation 2) Numeration 3) Patterns, functions, and
algebra 4) Data and chance 5) Measurement and reference frames 6)
Geometry. In this program, emphasis is placed on linking new knowledge to
students' past experiences, discussing and sharing new ideas, using and
comparing equivalent expressions, expressing numbers in context by using
units, and learning about the reversibility of things. There will be class
activities, the student journal, discussions, games and practice as well as
the "at home" component called the "Study Link." Students have been issued a
hardback Student Reference Book which contains mathematical essays which
provide examples and explanations, a game section, a data section, a glossary
of terms, an index, and an answer key for "Check Your Understanding." The
reference book may be used at home, but must be brought back to school each
day.
A parent letter will be sent home at the beginning of each unit. I encourage
you to keep this inside of your parent folder for your reference. The
purpose of this letter is to help you understand what your child is learning
in math class and so that you can assist your child with his/her study links.
Math Facts in a Flash: We will be using this computerized program to help
reinforce your child’s basic math facts. There are 65 timed tests in all.
The program allows each child to work at his/her own pace.
Snacks and Water Bottles: Students may bring a healthy snack to eat each
day. Good items to send for a snack would be fruit or vegetables,
applesauce, yogurt, cheese sticks, crackers etc. Please do not send items
with lots of sugar in them. (No Candy) Bags of pretzels, boxes of crackers,
etc would be greatly appreciated to keep in our snack cupboard for any
student who forgot a snack for the day. I also allow the students to keep a
water bottle with a spill proof lid at school. This avoids several students
waiting in line for one drinking fountain!
Parent Volunteers: I cannot imagine teaching without the assistance of parent
volunteers! Parents play a critical role in the functioning of our
classroom. In order to help in the classroom or chaperone on field trips,
all volunteers must fill out the district volunteer form and be approved at
least two weeks prior to volunteering. I encourage you or any family member
interested in volunteering to fill out the form at the beginning of the
school year.
Book Orders: Students have the opportunity to purchase books from the book
orders sent home. If I send two order forms home, feel free to combine the
two orders and use one check to pay for the books. Please make checks
payable to “Scholastic book Clubs”. Please let me know if you intend to give
the books as a gift to your child. I will be sure to call you instead of
sending your child home with them.
Mystery Readers: I would like to invite any parents, older siblings,
grandparents, relatives, or other special people to surprise your child by
being a “Mystery Reader” this year in our classroom. Students LOVE having
their family, friends, and relatives visit our classroom to share in our
learning by reading a favorite story aloud to our class. I will reserve
Thursday afternoons at 3:00 for our mystery readers. Readers are asked to
bring a book to read or read a teacher-chosen book from our classroom
library. Please contact me if you would like to be a mystery reader.
Arrival Time: I also would like to request that students arrive at school no
earlier than 8:20. It is not safe for them without any supervision. I
certainly do not want your child to get injured prior to the school day.
Friend of the Week: Every week a different student will be our “Friend of the
Week”. All week, this person will help in the classroom, get special
privileges, and lead the line. The “Friend of the Week” will also decorate
a bulletin board about him/herself.
Team Work!: I feel it is very important that we work as a team to help
provide your child with the best education possible! Please show your child
that you value his/her education by looking in his/her book bag each night,
helping your child with his/her homework, listening to your child read,
signing your child’s planner and Friday folder each week, and attending
school activities. If you have any concerns or are wondering why something
is happening, please feel free to call or email me at any time. I welcome
all concerns, ideas, and feedback that affect your child or our classroom.
If something is not working, I am more than willing to talk. I welcome all
feedback. I check my e-mail all throughout the day. I encourage you to
contact me this way. It is a great way to get instant feedback to your
questions or comments.
School Phone: 662-4921 ext: 2124
E-Mail: dillonj@bcschools.net
Class Website: I do maintain a class web page to help keep parents informed
of what we are doing in class. Daily assignments, weekly spelling lists, and
important dates can be found on this site. I encourage you to sign up on the
announcement link. This link allows me to type in a message and it will send
it out to you. The link is protected and I am the only one who will be able
to see your e-mail address. I hope you find this site useful and you visit
it often!
http://teacherweb.com/MI/AuburnElementary/MrsDillon/