DISCLOSURE

Fourth grade is an exciting year! We will be focused on building a growth mindset, where failure is viewed as a chance to learn and improve. The students will become much more independent and self-motivated. In order to achieve these goals, there are a few expectations that need to be in place. The purpose of this disclosure is to explain these to you.
Please review them together with your child.

HOMEWORK

Homework should be a chance for students to practice and extend skills that they have already learned. I will never ask them to do something brand new or unfamiliar. I also acknowledge the importance of extracurricular activities and family/social time; therefore, I do not expect your fourth grader to spend more than 30 minutes per night on homework. Here are some things you can expect to see as homework: spelling practice, reading comprehension pages, math practice buddies or worksheets, fact fluency and silent or oral reading.

Math Fact Fluency

If your child does not come home with a reading or math worksheet (this will be noted in their planner), please encourage your child to spend use the extra time to work on math facts. Reflex Math is a great way to practice, but you can also use flash cards, timed math facts, or other math games you may have on the computer. Students are encouraged to reach 100% fluency in Reflex Math by October 31. Each student who meets this goal will get to participate in a pie-throwing celebration. These students will be allowed to throw a whipped cream pie in my face as a reward for all of their hard work! My goal is to get a pie in the face from EVERY student!!!

40 Book Challenge

Please have your child read each day. The goal is to read 40 books throughout the school year. Please keep track of books read on the 40 book challenge sheet, which is in their take-home folder, by filling out the Book Title, Author, # of Pages, Date Finished and Parent Initials. Books with 100-249 pages count as one book; books with 250-499 pages count as two books; and books with 500+ pages count as 3 books for that category. Students who meet the 40 Book Challenge will be invited to a celebration put on by the PTA at the end of the year. Additionally, students who meet the monthly book goal will also get to participate in a monthly celebration.

Homework is the student’s responsibility. Students and parents are responsible if signatures or initials are required on any documents sent home.

NOTE: If your student’s homework is taking longer than 30 minutes per night please let me know so we can make adjustments.

CLASSROOM SUPPLIES

I will provide all the needed supplies for your student. You do NOT need to purchase pencils, pencil boxes, folders, binders, etc. I will make sure that they have what they need to succeed! However, if they have a special pencil, pencil box, or folder, they are welcome to use those. Supply donations are welcome, please see suggestions below.

CLASSROOM DONATIONS

If you would like to donate to your child’s classroom this year, I would appreciate items such as Whiteboard Markers, Highlighters, Kleenex, Pencils, Washable Markers, Colored Pencils, Hand Sanitizer, Post It Notes, Books for our Library, Board Games, Kitchen Timers, Red Pens, Tape, Sharpies, etc.
Please do not feel obligated to donate. This is strictly voluntary.

Behavior

I firmly believe in positive reinforcement! Individual students are rewarded with “Something to Celebrate” tickets. The office draws winners from each grade level every week, and I do a class raffle for students to win a prize from the treasure box.

Our school-wide policy at Sunrise is to use precision commands to help students choose proper behaviors. These are polite, effective commands that include a preplanned consequence if they are not followed. If a student is having trouble following the rules these are the steps I will follow:

“Please . . .” (This is the first warning)
“I need you to . . .” (This is the second warning)
If the student is still not choosing the correct behavior, he or she will receive a consequence, which is listed in a hierarchical list: warning, loss of 1 choice activity, loss of two choice activities, loss of daily points on daily behavior tracker. If the misbehavior continues, then the student will be asked to complete a think time.

If there is a major discipline problem or a child has repeated think times, the student will be sent to the office with an office discipline referral, and the principal will notify you.

CLASSROOM RULES

Safe Inside and Out: Walk, especially with scissors! Push in your chair. Keep hands, feet, and objects to yourself. Keep your chair flat on the floor.
On Time and On Task: Get to class on time. Do your work quietly. Follow directions the first time. Be a polite listener.
Accept Responsibility: Think before you act. Listen to the teacher. Treat other people kindly. Accept the blame if you make a mistake.
Respect self, others, property: Pick up trash. Treat other people’s property nicely. Look at and listen to the teacher.

POSITIVE CONSEQUENCES

Positive Reinforcements
Specific Praise
Special Activities

BIRTHDAY TREATS

We have SEVERE allergies and dietary needs in our homeroom this year. For this reason, if you choose to send a birthday treat, please make sure it is some type of non-edible party favor.

PERSONAL ITEMS

Please label everything you send to school, including jackets and lunchboxes.
Any money you send needs to be in a sealed envelope with your child’s name and what it is for.

VOLUNTEERS

WE NEED YOU!!!
We are always seeking volunteers to help both inside and outside our classroom setting. If interested, please send me an email detailing what type of assistance you are interested in providing.

TEACHER CONFERENCING

In order to maximize learning, we must work as a team. Communication is a key factor in teamwork. For ANY in-person conference with me, I ask that you please schedule an appointment so that I can address your needs adequately. I can be readily contacted through email (jessica.miller@canyonsdistrict.org) and the remind app.