Mrs. Peters 2nd Grade Learning Ninjas Parent Manual 2017-2018 Our Lady of the Valley Catholic School
August 2, 2017 Dear Parents, Welcome to 2nd Grade! I am delighted to be teaching your child this year. This is a very special year for your child. I am blessed to be a part of your child receiving their Sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist. Your second grader is very curious about the world around them making it an exciting and challenging time to teach. My most important goal is to provide an education to the whole child (mentally, physically, socially and spiritually) in order to reach their potential. I look forward to being partners with you to achieve this goal. I was born in the Philippines. I came here to the United States when I was in 4 th grade. I attended St. Francis Xavier School and John Carroll High School. I received my Bachelor s of Science in Elementary Education from UAB. After graduating, I married my husband, Boyd and we moved to the northeast. I taught math and science to 6 th -8 th graders at School of St. Elizabeth in Bernardsville, N.J. for two years. Also, I taught 4 th and 5 th grade at Harding Elementary School in Harding, NJ for two years. I took a break from teaching when I had my children, Victoria and Alexander. I am starting my 11 th year here at OLV having been a substitute teacher my first year and the 2 nd grade aide for 3 years. I look forward to this school year. Please feel free to contact me at if you have any questions or concerns. In Christ, Mrs. Janice Peters 2 nd Grade Teacher jpeters@olvsch.com
Here is an overview of your child s 2nd Grade year to help you become more familiar with what will be happening. My basic curriculum revolves around the Alabama Course of Study and the Diocese of Birmingham Benchmarks. It consists of these subject areas: Religion Language Arts (Reading, Spelling, Phonics, Grammar (English), and Writing) Math Social Studies Science Religion Our religion book is We Believe Jesus Shares God s Life published by Sadlier. The book uses direct references to the Bible and our Catholic Catechism. It is a great aid in our journey toward receiving the Sacraments. In addition to reviewing prayers they learned in Kindergarten and First Grade, we will learn the Morning Offering, The Ten Commandments, the Mysteries of the Rosary, and the Act of Contrition. There will be tests after each chapter and unit. We will attend Friday morning mass at 8:15. Our class will prepare and lead the mass on Fridays one or two times during the year. Language Arts I will be using an integrated approach to teach the many skills needed to read, comprehend, write and spell, both grammatically and creatively. Reading- GOOD READING IS A RESULT OF FREQUENT READING. The children will be required to read for fifteen minutes each night. They should read aloud to an adult. I encourage you to read to your child as well. They write down the book or story in their reading log. Spelling- The children will have a weekly spelling contract. The contract will be sent home every Friday and should be returned the following Friday. They will have a pre-test of the week s spelling words at the beginning of the week. Spelling tests will be on Fridays. Handwriting- We will be checking handwriting in all subjects. Best handwriting is expected at all times. We will work on manuscript writing and then introduce cursive in the spring. We will be using Handwriting without Tears. Math The Math program is Scott-Foresman s envisionmath. This program provides the children with many opportunities to foster new problem solving skills. Math concepts will be taught and reinforced using manipulatives, playing games, mental math and real life situations. In addition, writing in math and working in cooperative learning groups will take place.
Science We will be using the HMH Science Dimensions based off of the Next Generations Science Standards (NGSS). We will explore science through technology, engineering and math the same way real scientists do. We will investigate and learn about the engineering design process, matter, environments for living things and the earth s surfaces. Social Studies Our social studies book is published by Houghton Mifflin. We will study communities, states, people and the places they live, map skills, with some American history and geography. We will start the year off learning about our families when we celebrate Grandparent s Day on Friday, September 8th.
2 nd Grade Classroom Procedures Newsletter A class newsletter will be emailed to you every Friday and posted on the web. If you don t have access to email, I will be glad to send home a hard copy. The newsletter will include homework, tests and upcoming events in the classroom and in the school. Journal Your child s take home journal will include homework, tests and other important reminders. Please read and sign your child s journal each night. It is our primary means of communication. Write messages to me in the journal if needed. Class work The daily class work will be sent home the following school day in your child s take home folder. Please keep it in a safe place and go over it with your child. It can be beneficial when studying for a test. Homework Homework is a very important part of second grade. It will be assigned Monday-Friday. It will consist of nightly reading, journal and reading log signed and a review assignment. The children must begin to work independently and become responsible for their work. Homework is expected to be done neatly and turned in on time. Homework Passes Throughout the year, the students will receive homework passes. Homework passes are accepted for one homework item, unless noted. It is between you and your child when they can use one. Attendance Sickness- If your child is ill and unable to attend school, please call the office or send me an email. If you would like work to be sent home, please let me know by 10:00 A.M. This will give me time to prepare the work that needs to go home. Tardiness- School begins at 8:00. The tardy bell rings at 8:00. Students arriving after the tardy bell rings must be signed in at the office by a parent. Make Up Work An excused absence will allow a student to make up missed work. Make up work should take approximately the same time as the time missed from school. Unexcused absences will be treated according to the school handbook. Conferences If you wish to have a conference with me to discuss matters about your child, you can email me at jpeters@olvsch.com to set up an appointment.
2 nd Grade Classroom Procedures Ninja of the Week Your child will get to be the Ninja of the Week. You can sign up your child at the Open House. They will be given a mini-poster to fill out the week before. They get to present to the class. Your child is allowed to bring anything to share about themselves during their week. Lockers Your child will have their own lockers this year to store their backpacks, jackets, sweatshirts, etc. and any after school activity items. No other items such as locker decorations will be allowed in the locker.
Discipline Plan Classroom Expectations /Teach - To's/ REFOCUS The goal behind teaching classroom expectations is to explain and demonstrate the rules and routines that reinforce the skills that every student must have in order to be a successful learner and allow the teacher to be a fair disciplinarian. TEACH TO S Teach-To s are behavioral lesson plans that systematically teach what appropriate behavior looks like, feels like, and sounds like. They are designed to eliminate repeated warnings and multiple requests to maximize learning for all students. The steps are as follows: 1. The classroom expectations are introduced and taught during the first weeks of school using the Teach-To s. (Teachers frequently reinforce Teach-To s throughout the year as well.) 2. When a student misbehaves, the teacher asks herself three questions: a) Am I able to teach? b) Are the other students able to learn? c) Is the misbehaving student able to learn? 3. If the teacher cannot answer "yes" to all three questions, a verbal reminder of the classroom expectation will be given to the student. 4. If the behavior stops, the student will be reinforced with a positive acknowledgement. 5. If the behavior continues, noncompliance is exhibited and the student will be asked to REFOCUS at a designated classroom location. 6. During REFOCUS, the student will think about the incorrect behavior choice, develop a plan to correct the undesired behavior, and then engage in a short dialogue with the teacher to discuss the problem-solving plan. 7. The student will then return to engage in classroom activities. REFOCUS REFOCUS is not a consequence or punishment. It allows students to take responsibility for their own actions and then solve problems in a positive manner. Disciplinary actions are done quickly, calmly, and professionally. Children are given a choice and provided guidance and correction when needed. In order to provide all students with a proper learning environment, it may be necessary to invoke the following consequences for students who are refocused repeatedly for the same and or/multiple offense(s): Parent phone call or e-mail Parent conference Referral to principal Major offenses as listed in the school handbook are subject to more stringent measures.
CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS C ome prepared for class. H and in work on time. R espect others. I ll listen and follow directions. S afety first, last and always. T alk and work quietly. Though these expectations are rather broad, they do cover all aspects of behavior. As a class, we will discuss and practice expected behaviors at the beginning of the year and throughout the school year. We will be using a colored chart to supplement our behavior and our choices as Learning Ninjas. Your child will have a clip that they will physically move up or down the chart, depending on their choices. I believe this will be a positive way for students to monitor their choices and will give them behavior goals to strive for. Please keep in mind that your child may not move every single day. For them to move up, they must go above and beyond in their behavior choices! The chart on the next page explains how the clip Super Student! chart works. If you reach SUPER STUDENT, you will be rewarded for your positive choices Way to Go! Excellent Effort Ready to Learn Make Better Choices Teacher s Choice Parent Contact As you continue to make positive choices, you are one step closer to hav- Making a good choice will help you move up to the blue section of our chart. You will get to start out each day on READY to LEARN. You will move your clip up or down depending on your choices each day. If you receive a warning, you will move your clip down to help you remember to think about your choices. If you continue to make poor choices, you will move their Clip to Orange. This will result in a consequence that is appropriate for the choice that was made. Different choices require different If you still choose to make bad decisions, you will move to Parent Contact. Parents will be contacted by me via telephone, email or note depending on the severity of your poor behavior choice.
Snacks You may send a snack and drink for the afternoon. A boxed drink or bottled water and either a fruit or a small bag of salty snack would be preferred. Please do not send candy or carbonated drinks. Money Please put money sent to school in an envelope with the child s name and the purpose of the money. Milk tickets are $15.00, make checks payable to OLV Milk. Ice Cream Tickets are $15.00, make checks payable to OLV Lunch Program. The OLV Library will host a Book Fair in the fall and spring. Your child will be able to buy books during the fair. Birthdays Cupcakes, doughnuts, or cookies for the entire class may be sent to school in recognition of your child s birthday. Please send a note in advance when you will be sending in treats. PARTY INVI- TATIONS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BE GIVEN OUT AT SCHOOL. Volunteers All volunteers must complete the Diocesan Child Safety Class and have a background check. You may do an on-line Youth Protection 1 by going to the diocese website at www.bhmdiocese.org for a fee.
September 8 th October 4 th December 6 th December 9 th, 9AM March 22 nd May 3rd May 5 th, 9AM May 6 th, 2PM Grandparent s Day Eagle Flight Fun Run Children s Theatre; St. Paul Cathedral* First Reconciliation Desoto Caverns Shrine of the Blessed Sacrament-Hanceville* First Communion Practice First Communion Third Thursday of the month is SHARING and CARING Thursday. Our service project is to collect canned goods from all the homerooms for Oak Mountain Missions. *Awaiting for confirmation
Please send in the following items: *one box of tissue (200 count or larger) *one container of hand sanitizer *one container of Clorox wipes Label all your child s belongings. 2 book covers/ book sox to cover Reading and Social Studies textbooks. Cover all workbooks with clear contact paper. You may purchase it from HomeDepot, Walmart, etc. Please return all forms from Open House by Monday, August 14th. Salamat