Newsletters

Dear Families,

Welcome to grade 3!  I am delighted to have the opportunity to work with your child this year.  I have been teaching for sixteen years and it is my passion. I have two children of my own, so I understand how important it is to know your child is cared for when you are not around.  My philosophy is to provide each of my students with an environment which is safe and bursting with opportunities for discovery. To make learning fun, challenging and exciting and to instill in each child self-confidence and determination in order to develop “I can-I will” type of attitude.  

We will be working together to make our class a happy and healthy environment for everyone.  

Grade 3 is a very challenging year.  The curriculum is more demanding and of course EQAO testing.  I have taught grade three for many years so I have the tools and knowledge to guide them and prepare them to succeed this year.  They will learn a lot and my hope is to help them develop a good work ethic that will help carry them throughout life (starting at a young age is the KEY to developing a good work ethic)!!!!!!

Classroom Rules:

In order to have a safe learning environment for all, we have some classroom rules.  Each student has also signed a class promise and it will be posted in our classroom as a daily reminder of what is expected of them in and outside the classroom.

GREEN, YELLOW, and RED

We have a colour system that is a visual aid which helps students see if they have to improve their behaviour.  If the student is following the rules, their name will be in green. If their name stays in green by Friday, their name will be entered into a draw to win a prize out of our classroom treasure chest.  If they get 3 warnings for not following rules, their name is moved to yellow and they will have to stay in for 5 minutes of recess to talk about how they can improve their behaviour. If they continue to get warnings that day, they are moved to red where they will have to stay in for the entire recess and practise appropriate behaviour. In that case, I will be calling home to discuss this with you.  I have told each student that they always have a chance to improve their behaviour and move back down to green at any time.

Gym:

Please make sure your child has indoor shoes.  If your child cannot tie laces, velcro is recommended for safety purposes.                               

Homework:

The students will be given time in class to complete work.  I will never send homework home if they haven’t had time in class to work on it.  If they are unable to complete it, they will be bringing it home for completion. Any unfinished work that is sent home must be completed and returned to me the next school day.  The students will be writing any homework they have in their agenda. This will help build responsibility. Please take the time and sit with them in a quiet place and monitor their completion.  Please do not correct their work. Their performance helps me to assess their capabilities and how I should structure my future lesson planning. I thank you for your assistance in this. Please sign and return any tests or projects sent home.  I will be putting them in their learning portfolios that will be sent home at the end of the year.

Word Study:

Each week the students will be writing their new spelling words in their agenda.  Students will be working at their own pace, which means that the spelling words will not be the same for everyone.  Repetition is key in the primary grades. Your child may have had some of these words in grade 1 and 2, but still need more practice spelling them.  I will be able to figure this out when I evaluate their spelling in the first few weeks of school. I will give them a test to assess where they are in their spelling abilities and where they will start.  Students will do a variety of spelling activities with their words throughout the week. There will be a test every Friday. I will be looking to see that they not only do well on their tests, but that they can use and spell these words in their daily writing.

Agendas:

The agenda is a very important communication tool.  I asked your son/daughter to have their agenda signed every night, even if they don’t have any homework.  Please check for any messages that I may be include. I will be checking their agendas every morning so please feel free to write to me if you need to.  At times, I will include notes in the front pocket of the agenda, so please check there as well.

Please communicate to me any health related issues your child may have.  The more informed I am, the better I will be able to respond in case of an emergency.  

Needed

We are always in need of baby wipes to help keep our classroom and our hands clean.  We use dry erase markers a lot. We are always in need of extra. I may send home notes during the year asking for volunteers to bring items needed for a learning project.  Please know that this is voluntary, and you are NOT required to send these items.

The Importance of Communication:

I believe that communication is the key to a successful classroom experience.  I will be communicating as paperless as possible this year. My classroom blog will be my primary source of communication and will be updated weekly.  I will post learning goals at the beginning of each math and language unit to let you know the curriculum expectations. I will also post fun activities/photos of our class.  It is your responsibility to check the blog regularly to stay up to date. You can subscribe to the blog via email, so you will be notified as new content is posted. More information about the class blog will be sent home soon.

PLEASE VISIT MY BLOG:

As a parent myself I am so curious to see what my children are doing throughout their school day.  I will post pictures of what the students are doing on a regular basis, so please enjoy having a sneak peek into our classroom.  If you do not wish to have your child photographed, please let me know. You can view my blog through the school website or directly at jamminwithmrsjames.blogspot.com

Snacks and Lunches:

Your child will have a  morning and an optional afternoon snack (I understand that some children have extra curricular activities after school, and might need this afternoon snack).  They will have about 5 to 10 minutes for snack time. I encourage all students to choose a healthy snack, especially in the morning. Our school is a peanut allergen aware school, so please avoid sending in peanut/nut products.

My goal for this year is to provide an enriching environment while incorporating Catholic values and beliefs.  I look forward to the partnership between school and home.

If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me at school.

Sincerely,

Mrs.  James