Mrs. Petersen's Class News
August 2015
Welcome to the 2015-2016 school year!
I hope that you had a relaxing weekend!
We had a great first week back to school! It has been so much fun getting to know each of your children! What personality! We are off to a great year!
I will be sending home a monthly newsletter to let you know what we are working on as well as important dates to remember. Should you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at any time. My e-mail is jennifer.petersen@cabarrus.k12.nc.us or I can be reached by calling Coltrane Webb, 704-782-5912.
We had a great first week back to school! It has been so much fun getting to know each of your children! What personality! We are off to a great year!
I will be sending home a monthly newsletter to let you know what we are working on as well as important dates to remember. Should you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at any time. My e-mail is jennifer.petersen@cabarrus.k12.nc.us or I can be reached by calling Coltrane Webb, 704-782-5912.
A few notes...
I appreciate all of your patience as I learn the in's and out's of Coltrane-Webb. For the past 8 years, I have been teaching at Bethel Elementary, also located in Cabarrus County, but things can differ from school to school. Coltrane Webb has been wonderful and I am elated to be a part of the CWES family!
Our lunch is from 12:30 until 12:55. Families are welcome and encouraged to join their children for lunch! This week our bodies have been adjusting to having a later lunch schedule. Because the children are adjusting well, we have decided to not have a snack each day. Children are allowed to have a water bottle at their seat to stay hydrated.
Our lunch is from 12:30 until 12:55. Families are welcome and encouraged to join their children for lunch! This week our bodies have been adjusting to having a later lunch schedule. Because the children are adjusting well, we have decided to not have a snack each day. Children are allowed to have a water bottle at their seat to stay hydrated.
STEM Folders , Planners and Homework... oh my!
Each child has been given a blue STEM folder. STEM folders will be used to send home any notes from the office as well as your child's completed classwork.Please be sure to check your child's STEM folder and return it to school on a daily basis. Each Monday, homework for the week will be sent home in your child's STEM folder. Your child will be expected to read for a minimum of 20 minutes per night as well as complete a math worksheet. Please help your child to log what they have read on their Daily Reading Log. Daily Reading Logs will begin this week and will also be housed in your child's blue STEM folder. Completed homework should be sent back to school by each Friday in your child's STEM folder.
Each child has also been given a STEM Academic Planner. Planners will be used as a means of communication between us and will be checked every day. Please feel free to use the Planner to communicate things such as a change in transportation, an absence excuse, a question that you may have and so on. There will also be times where I may write a note about your child's day in your child's STEM planner. Your child will be communicating with you how their day was in their STEM Planner. Please be sure to check and initial this daily.
Each child has also been given a STEM Academic Planner. Planners will be used as a means of communication between us and will be checked every day. Please feel free to use the Planner to communicate things such as a change in transportation, an absence excuse, a question that you may have and so on. There will also be times where I may write a note about your child's day in your child's STEM planner. Your child will be communicating with you how their day was in their STEM Planner. Please be sure to check and initial this daily.
Behavior Expectations
Behavior is proactive in our classroom! I expect your child to make good choices each day and to follow the Coltrane Cougar Traits; to be respectful, responsible and safe. Good behavior is vital to the academic growth of each child in our class and positive behavior will be rewarded! Each child has been given a Cougar Card in which they have with them at all times. Each time your child is displaying a Cougar character trait, they may get a stamp on their Cougar Card for the corresponding trait (safe, responsible or respectful). Once your child has received 10 stamps in each of the 3 areas, they will be given a prize and will get a new Cougar Card! This is a school-wide initiative!
Additionally, our class will be working on a "point system". We will be using a clip chart to encourage positive behavior. Each day your child will begin on green "ready to learn". If your child ends their day on green, they will be awarded 1 point. This is the expectation of each child. Great behavior will allow a child to "clip up" and to earn more points. Poor behavior will cause a child to "clip down" resulting in the loss of points. Positive behavior is encouraged and children are always given the opportunity to "fix" their behavior throughout the day. Your child will record how many points they earned at the end of each day in their planner. Please talk with them daily about their choices and praise them for any points earned. Should your child have a tough day, please talk with them about what happened and help them with strategies for making tomorrow better. Points can be cashed in for rewards such as the ability to use a fancy pen for the day, to switch seats with a friend, to bring a stuffed animal to school or a trip to the treasure chest!
Additionally, our class will be working on a "point system". We will be using a clip chart to encourage positive behavior. Each day your child will begin on green "ready to learn". If your child ends their day on green, they will be awarded 1 point. This is the expectation of each child. Great behavior will allow a child to "clip up" and to earn more points. Poor behavior will cause a child to "clip down" resulting in the loss of points. Positive behavior is encouraged and children are always given the opportunity to "fix" their behavior throughout the day. Your child will record how many points they earned at the end of each day in their planner. Please talk with them daily about their choices and praise them for any points earned. Should your child have a tough day, please talk with them about what happened and help them with strategies for making tomorrow better. Points can be cashed in for rewards such as the ability to use a fancy pen for the day, to switch seats with a friend, to bring a stuffed animal to school or a trip to the treasure chest!
A Peek at our Week... Read on to see what we have been learning all about this week!
Social Studies
This week we will continue to learn all about Communities and being a responsible, respectful and a safe Citizen! We have learned that we are all a part of our own classroom community and have enjoyed learning all about each other through our "All About Me" bags! We also worked on our first PBL! The children had to work collaboratively to build a tower using only 20 pieces of spaghetti, tape, string and a marshmallow. It was a great lesson on teamwork and communication! Each group worked hard to build an impressive tower!
Math
In math, we are working on place value! We are reviewing how many ones, tens and hundreds are in a given number. We are also reviewing counting by 1's, 5's and 10's in preparation for learning how to tell time and count money!
Reader's Workshop
We have been working on learning the procedures and expectations of Reader's Workshop. This week, each child will be choosing their own special spot in our classroom to read in and will be "shopping" for books on their level! We are also preparing for our MClass reading assessment. MClass is a state initiated assessment that gives us the base-line level each child is reading and comprehending. 2nd Graders are expected to be reading and comprehending at a Level N by the end of this year.
Writer's Workshop
In Writer's Workshop, we have been reviewing writing conventions. We have learned that a strong sentence has a subject and a predicate and that we always begin our sentences with a capital letter and end them with proper punctuation. This review is in preparation for the narrative writing that we will be doing!
Upcoming Important Events!
Mark your calendars! Here are some important upcoming dates to remember...
Tuesday, September 1st
Join us for our 1st PTCO meeting! 7:00 pm in the library.
Friday, September 4th
Box Tops Collection! Send in any Box Tops that you may have at home!
Monday, September 7th
No School in Observance of Labor Day
Wednesday, September 9th
Girl Scout Parent Meeting 6:30-8:00pm
Papa John's Day
Tuesday, September 15th
Listening with Dr. Lowder 6:30-8:00 Concord High School
Friday, September 18th
Parents Night Out
Wednesday, September 23rd
Progress Reports go home
Thursday, September 24th
Skate Night
Friday, September 25th
Uniform-Free Day!
Tuesday, September 1st
Join us for our 1st PTCO meeting! 7:00 pm in the library.
Friday, September 4th
Box Tops Collection! Send in any Box Tops that you may have at home!
Monday, September 7th
No School in Observance of Labor Day
Wednesday, September 9th
Girl Scout Parent Meeting 6:30-8:00pm
Papa John's Day
Tuesday, September 15th
Listening with Dr. Lowder 6:30-8:00 Concord High School
Friday, September 18th
Parents Night Out
Wednesday, September 23rd
Progress Reports go home
Thursday, September 24th
Skate Night
Friday, September 25th
Uniform-Free Day!