Mrs. McCurley's 1st Grade

Acceptance: In our classroom, students will treat classmates and others with respect. All members of our classroom will feel special, because we will accept everyone reagardless of the ways we are different.

Agendas: your child will be given an agenda the first week of school. The agenda will be our main means of communication. On the top line (beside SUNDAY), your child will write the title of the story we are reading for the week. Homework assignments will be written in the agenda each day. On the right page, I will correspond with you about your child's behavior. You will also find Vocabulary Words and Spelling Words glued on this page also. THE AGENDA IS VERY IMPORTANT. I communicate to my students that it is their responsibility each night to show the agenda to their parents, have their parents sign it, and bring it back to school each day. If the agenda is lost, it will need to be replaced for a fee of $ 7.50.

Art: Mrs. Satterfield is our Art teacher and she is totally AWESOME! The students always look forward to Art class. We go to Art class every other week. It's amazing what First graders can create!

Attendance: First grade is a continuous experience with each day's learning built on the day before, and haphazard attendance will not benefit your child's learning. If your child must be absent, be sure to send a note of explanation each time he/she is absent. A prolonged illness, as well as excused absences, require a doctor's excuse. Any child who has 10 or more unexcused absences will be referred to the Discipline Board.

Basic Skills: First grade is an extremely important year in your child's life. Here, the foundation for your child's school career will be laid. The basics of reading and mathematics will be taught and reinforced throughout First grade. 

Being the Best Person: I hold high expectations for each and every student in my classroom. I expect and encourage my students to do their best in everything they do, whether writing a story or being a good friend.

Birthdays: If you would like to send a birthday treat with your child on or near his/her birthday, please feel free to do so. These treats will be eaten during our snack time....around 2:00. Birthdays are recognized during our calendar routine as well. We will recognize summer birthdays at the end of the school year. Please do not send birthday party invitations to be distributed at school unless all children in the class will receive one.

Books: Our classroom has a wonderful selection of books for students of all reading levels. Students learn to read best by being surrounded by books. I hope that you will surround your child with good books at home.

Bullies: NO BULLIES ALLOWED! Bullying will not be tolerated! Any form of bullying will be documented and reported to the office.

Communication: Communication is important. feel free to contact me whenever you have a question or concern. You can reach me by phone (731.686.0840), in person, by e-mail (mccurleyt@milanssd.org), or by sending a note with your child.

Conferences: Parent/Teacher conferences will be held on two separate afternoons in late September/early October (see MSSD Calendar). During these conferences, we will be discussing your child's strengths and weaknesses, homework, behavior and any concerns you may have. It is essential to the success of your child for us to work together in order for your child to learn all that he/she can and to be ready for the next grade level, therefore, your attendance at these conferences is important. I will send home a conference time request form, and will try my best to schedule you at one of your three requested times. After receiving the form (the first will be sent around the middle of September), fill it out and send it back as quickly as possible. The time slots fill quickly.

Discipline: I do not anticipate many behavior problems. We will be very busy learning and having fun. However, if a child chooses to not follow the rules or directions certain consequences will follow. You will receive a written notice inside the agenda of what happened and what action was taken. At the beginning of school, your child may bring home several behavior notes, because he/she may be testing limits. Understand that this is normal. Please discuss the rule(s) being broken, helping your child to understand that if the behavior continues, consequences will be given. In order for all children in our class to learn, they need rules and guidelines to follow. Without this structure, the behavior of some children may distract others, prohibiting them from learning. I'm sure you desire your child to become all he/she can be. With your support of our classroom discipline system, I will be better able to teach and help your child reach his/her potential. 

Donations: We are very lucky to have an administration that provides us with most of the supplies we need. However, there may be times we need special items for an acitvity or program. Please visit our "WISH List" on the Parent Corner page!

Dress Code: simply.....khaki, navy blue or black pants/shorts/skirts (no cargo pockets)...denim is acceptable....solid colored collared shirt or polo with no logo. To read the Dress Code Policy, click here. 

Emergency Card: Emergency contact cards are kept in the office and nurse's clinic. If your home or work number changes, please inform me or the office.

Enrichment: Those students performing above grade level in any subject, will be given opportunities to strengthen their understanding of concepts. Reading chapter books, researching a topic, book reports, and projects are a few of the many enrichment activities that may be provided for those who need a little extra.

Family: It is very important to me that the children and myself come together as a big family. We work together, play together, learn together, eat together, and much more. From the start, I encourage the children to respect, love, and take care of each other. With our classroom family, there are no limits to our accomplishments.

Field Trips: We will be taking at least two field trips this year. When a field trip form is sent home, please try to return it the next day, if possible. I have had to leave several children behind in other classrooms, because a permission slip was not returned. Chaperones will be chosen on a first come basis.

Fund Raisers: Our school participates in several fund raisers to provide the school with necessary equipment such as computers and technology. We hope that everyone will participate. When the fundraiser orders come in, we will notify you so that if you have a large order, you can come to the classroom to pick it up. It is often difficult or impossible for the children to carry the order home on the bus.

Grading: Assessment of student learning is very important in order to find out where students are successful and where they may need some extra assistance. The following grades will be taken each week and will be used to calculate final grades for each progress report and report card period:
Language Arts:
1. Phonics Assessment
2. Vocabulary Tests
3. Reading Assessment

4. Daily Work--workbook pages, practice work, sound sheets, etc.
5. Accelerated Reader-students scores will be recorded for the story of the week
Math:
1. Timed Fact Tests
2. Math Assessments 
3. Daily Work
4. Other Tests - Students will be given a short test every 10 lessons.

Spelling:

1. Daily Work

2. Spelling Tests

Grading Scale:

100-93 A

92-85 B

84-75 C

74-70 D

69-0 F

Guidance: Mrs. Karen Cotham is our Guidance Counselor. We visit with her once a week. She is also available for individual and small group counseling.

Homework: Each student will have a homework folder that will be taken home each night. In the left folder pocket, you will find classwork that can be reviewed and "left" at home. In the right folder pocket, you will find homework that needs to be completed and brought "right" back the next day. We will have homework Monday through Thursday (short assignments on Wednesday night). No homework over the weekend!

Hugs and High Fives - BEWARE! Mrs. McCurley loves to hug on her students (only if they wish) and give High Fives. I've noticed that hugs and high fives become contagious!

Laughter: I LOVE TO LAUGH! Laughter is an important part of our classroom. Laughter is good for everyone and helps learning blossom and grow. Students are not expected to be perfect, but understand that everyone makes mistakes and learns by trying new things and being able to laugh and learn from their mistakes.

Lessons: The lessons planned for each day are taught in a variety of different ways and group arrangements. Some are taught as a large group, others take place in smaller groups. Some activiities are student led, as they choose the skills to work on. 

Library: Our class will visit the library once a week. our librarian is Mrs. Kathy Fuchs. Your child will check out a book when we visit the library and return it the following week. If your child forgets to return the book, they will not be allowed to check out a new book until it is returned.  

Lunch: Students may eat lunch in the lunchroom or bring their lunch to school. Lunch costs $1.35 per day. When sending your child's lunch money to school, please label it with your child's name, what it is for "lunch money", and your child's lunch account number. Please do not mix lunch money with other money. These monies go to different places and are unable to be separated in the classroom. We would love for you to visit us for lunch. We eat at 10:15

Mathmatics: We will be using the Saxon Math program. Students will come to understand the meaning behind addition and subtraction, problems solving, and other skills. Students will be instructed in math each day. Just as sight words are important to reading, reciting addition and subtraction facts are equally important to achieve success in math. Please drill your child on these using flashcards or timed tests.

Money: Please remember when sending in money to school, place it in an envelope and label it with your child's name and what it is to be used for. Many times I have to return money because it is not in an envelope and the child has no idea what the money is for.

Music: Our class will go to Music class every other week. Our Music teacher is Mrs. Suzanne Trull. First grade will perform a special musical near the end of the school year.

Nurse: We are very fortunate to have such a wonderful nurse at Milan Elementary. I take care of minor hurts in the classroom, such as minor scratches or scrapes. Most of the time, students will only be sent to the clinic if I feel they may be running a temperature, or if they are in some sort of accident on the playground. If your child needs to take medicine during the school day, you must personally bring the medicine in the original container to Nurse Ann (see policy in our handbook in the front of your child's agenda). The nurse is the only person allowed to administer medicine. Please do not send your child to school with a fever. We do not want others in our classroom to become sick.

No Naps: Students in First grade do not take naps. There may be times when the class as a whole has had difficulty following rules and may need to rest to get control. After lunch, we will have a short 5-10 minute quiet time. Otherwise, we will be involved in learning from 8:00 to 2:35.

Parent Involvement: I would love for all parents to be involved in the education of their children. For many students, homework will be something new this year. They will need your help and encouragement. We often have many get togethers or special events happening at school. Please show your child that he/she and school is very important by attending some of these fun school events. Read to your child and have your child read to you every day. Ask your child to tell you what happened at school today. Keeping involved in your child's education will assure a successful school career for him/her.

P.E.: Our class will have structed Physical Education two days a week. Twenty minutes of the class will be "free play" or recess time. Our P.E. coaches are Coach Trimmer and Coach Paterson.

Progress Reports: Students will receive progress reports four times a year. These progress reports come out around 4 1/2 weeks before report cards and will give you an idea of how your child is doing in all areas. 

Reading: Learning to read and strengthening reading skills are the most important things your child will learn to do this year. Studies have shown that those children whose parents are actively involved in the reading process will become the best readers. Reading to your child and listening to them read to you, taking them to the library and providing quality books at home is of the highest importance. Studies have also shown that those children who have not learned to read well by 3rd grade will struggle throughout school. Both you and I have an extremely important task to undertake.

Recess: Students will have recess each day for at least 20 minutes. We do not go outside when it is raining, when it is below 40 degrees or if we are under a heat advisory.

Report Cards: Students will receive report cards every nine weeks. The report card will give you an understanding of your child's strengths and weaknesses. The report card will be sent to you in an envelope. Sign and return the report card as soon as possible. I will be happy to mail a copy of the report card to parents who do not live in the child's custodial home.

Sight Words:  A sight word is a word that does not follow phonetic rules and must be recognized by quickly looking at it and recognizing it. Sight words are not sounded out. The more sight words a student can recite, the more fluently he/she will read. Sight words will be reviewed daily during Phonics and Reading instruction.

Schedule: Click on the Class Schedule icon on our homepage!

Scholastic Book Clubs: Each month I will be sending home book order forms for you and your child to look over. Scholastic offers lots of wonderful books at reduced prices. We also earn free books for our classroom for every dollar spent. You may also wish to purchase a book for our classroom. A sticker will be placed in the front of the book with your child's name written on it. Always make checks out to Scholastic Book Clubs. If you order from two separate clubs, add the totals together and write a check for the final total.

Transportation: Please make sure to notify me by written note each day  your child will be going home differently than the usual way. Many times children get very upset when they tell me they are supposed to be a car rider, but I make them get on the bus because there was no note in the agenda. A simple note will prevent a lot of problems.

Tardies: Please make sure your child is on time for school each day. School begins promptly at 7:50 and children are dismissed at 2:35.

Talking: As I said before, our classroom is an active place. Talking to friends about feelings and ideas is an important part of learning. However, many times students find it hard to follow my rules and instructions about appropriate and inappropriate times to talk. Students learn and practice what types of talking are allowed during specific times of the day. These guidelines are established in order for maximum learning to take place. I rarely have behavior problems in my classroom, with the exception of talking at inappropriate times. As a parent, I might understand how breaking rules about talking may seem less important than others, but I encourage you to support me in the enforcement of this rule, because it does affect your child's learning as well as other children. Basically, I expect students to whisper during morning work and other work times, but no voices are allowed while I am teaching, unless called on to answer a question.

Technology: Computers are very interesting to me. Our classroom has 3 computers. Computers will be used to reinforce math and reading skills. We will go to the Computer Lab each week. I will be posting links to the sites we visit in class under the "LINKS" section on our main page. I hope you will visit these sites with your child at home.

Visitors: Visitors must register in the office and pick up a visitors badge.

Volunteers: Our classroom will be very successful with the help of volunteers. I am hopeful that I can rely on parent help in the classroom. For a detailed list of ways you can help, go to our VOLUNTEER icon on our Parent Corner page..

Website: Please visit this website often. I try my best to keep it updated. If you have any suggestions about something you'd like to see on the site, please let me know.

Writing:Writing is closely connected to reading. Students use skills that they need to read and apply them to writing. Students also develop creativity through their writing. I encourage you to create a special place in your child's room for writing. Make a special box with crayons, markers, pencils, pens, erasers, stickers, glue, etc... that he/she may use to design and create wonderful stories. Students that write well also read well.

Year Long Learning and Fun: I am looking forward to working with many of you again and getting to know others. Your child will learn a lot this year and will be sure to have lots of fun in the process.

Your Ideas:....and suggestions are always welcome.