Dear 1st Grade Families,
Hello! Welcome to Mrs. Stefanich’s 1st grade class. The following classroom handbook contains many of the policies and procedures that will be in place for the 2017-2018 school year. Please take some time to review the information and keep it in a place where you can access it throughout the year.
I am so excited to get to know your child this year! This is my eleventh year teaching! I am looking forward to another great year in first grade. I live in Holland with my husband and our twin boys, Kingston and Kyrie who are starting first grade this year as well! I also have a three year old son, Ezra and a one year old daughter, Justice.
Please feel free to contact me any time you need to. My information is below:
Communication
Communication is SO important in your child's education. Please feel free to contact me anytime you have questions or concerns.
Email: mstefan@hpseagles.net
Written Notes: Please write me a note concerning special events. For example, if your child is getting picked up instead of riding the bus, I will need to see a note from home. Without it, I will put your child on the bus. Please also let me know if you need to pick a child up early or drop them off late due to appointments, etc.
Absences
It is very important that students are in school every day. If your child is ill or has an appointment and will be missing school, please call the office at 896=-9375 to let us know. If you pick your child up from school before the end of the day you must go to the office to request his/her dismissal. The secretary will call the classroom to have your child meet you in the office. If an extended absence is necessary, please let me know a few days or weeks in advance so that I can have your child’s work ready before you leave. In the case that your child needs to leave school for an appointment, later in the afternoon works best.
Peanut-Free School
Due to severe allergies, our school is peanut-free. This means there can be absolutely no nuts in any classroom for any reason. When choosing a snack for your child to bring to school, please remember that having peanuts as an ingredient could cause a severe allergic reaction for another student. Please also remember that many snacks do not have peanuts in them, but have been packaged or produced in a building where there are peanuts. If the packaging says “May contain peanuts”, this is not a safe snack. Thank you for considering this important fact when sending your child's snack. Other items containing peanuts are okay for lunches, just not for snack.
Snacks
For optimal learning, it is important that students do not feel overly hungry. If first graders are concentrating on their growling bellies, they will not be focused on their learning. Each morning students will have an opportunity for a healthy snack and a break. I encourage you to send along a daily snack with your child. Healthy snacks include crackers, cereal, pretzels, carrots, yogurt, etc. Cookies, cupcakes, and candy will not be acceptable for a morning snack. Thank you for your help!
Birthdays
We would love to celebrate each child’s birthday as a class! On your child’s birthday, he/she is welcome to bring a small (non-food) treat for the class, yet it is not necessary. As a school policy, no birthday treats may be food items. If you would like to send a treat, you can send pencils, stickers, temporary tattoos, and many other fun non-food items. Birthday celebrations will usually take place sometime during the last hour of the school day. Summer birthdays may be celebrated on the student’s half birthday. (Ex. If your child's birthday is on July 29, we can celebrate on January 29.) Students whose birthdays are on the weekends may celebrate with the class on Friday. There are 23 students in our class.
Book Orders
Book orders are a great way to build your child’s home library at a discounted rate. Book orders will be sent home several times throughout the year. If you would like to order, please fill out the order form, include your child’s name, and write a check or money order for the exact amount made out to the book company (ex: Scholastic Book Club). Please do not make checks out to me. You may also order books online. Please reference book order notes as they come home for more information.
Classroom Expectations
- As a class we developed a class promise together. We will discuss what things are important to us, and how we want to behave in our classroom. Here are some common themes that often end up in a class promise:
- Have a positive attitude
- Take good care of each other
- be nice
- Treat others how you want to be treated
- be respectful
- Don’t litter
- Listen to the teacher
- Don’t talk when the teacher is talking
- Don’t talk back
- Always try your best
- Tell the Truth
- No Bucket Dipping
Classroom Supplies
Students will need:
- A backpack or school bag in order to transport important items to and from school.
- A folder to keep in their backpack for mail and notes home.
- A pair of headphones/earbuds for our listening center.
- A clean pair of tennis shoes for gym class each week. Students will leave these shoes at school so they are always available.
- All other items were listed in the back to school welcome letter. Please see me with any questions!
This is a lot to ask of you. So please provide what you are able. Regardless of what you send to school, your child’s school needs will all be met and they will have access to all the materials they need. Thank you for your generosity.
Crayons, pencils, erasers, paper, and other materials will be provided. If you would like to donate supplies to our class please see the list of donation suggestions. We can always use these items, so feel free to send whatever you can throughout the year! Thanks in advance for your classroom donations!
- 1 Gallon freezer bags with zip tops
- Ziplock bags (sandwich size)
- Disinfectant wipes
- Kleenex! Kleenex! Kleenex!
- Hand Sanitizer
Daily Reading
Homework is an important responsibility builder and also serves as a way for students to practice skills that need to be mastered in 1st grade. One of the most important pieces of homework your child will have is to read every night. Reading to, with, and by your child is very important in first grade! Later in the month, your child will be involved in our WEB (Wonderfully Exciting Books) program in which they will bring books home on a regular basis to read as homework. These books will be students selected at their “independent” reading level.
Report Cards and Scoring
I will be reporting on your child's progress formally three times a year. I will be reporting their achievement on standards for first grade. Hudsonville uses the following scale:
3* - Advanced
3 - Proficient
2 - Progressing
1 - Beginning
Thank you! I am looking forward to a fabulous year in first grade!
~MacKenzie Stefanich
