Welcome to Open House 2012! Mrs. Lavelle’s Class Grade 6

Important Things to Remember  Cell phones are not allowed in the classroom. If students have cell phones, phones are to remain turned off in their lockers (Please refer to WSS Handbook).  Students should adhere to the WSS dress code. A few items from the dress code that are not allowed are flip flops, spaghetti straps, and short shorts/skirts. Also, jackets are not allowed in the classroom.  Please check your child’s red folder for important forms that need to be returned in a timely manner.

WSS Anti-Bullying Policy  Physical or verbal threats that happen on a repeated basis towards a target student are considered bullying.  Students are encouraged to stand up for one another if they witness a classmate being bullied.  Students are encouraged to tell an adult at school and an adult at home if they are being bullied or if they witness someone else being bullied.

Math- Mrs. Lavelle  Common Core Standards  Teacher-selected math books with supplemental materials  Common Formative unit assessments (CFAs) modeled after the NYS test  Part 1: Multiple Choice  Part 2: Short Answer and Written Response  Final Exam

6th Grade Math Curriculum  The Number System  Decimals  Fractions  Ratios and Proportional Relationships  Percents and Measurement Conversions  Expressions  Equations  Inequalities  Area, Volume, and Surface Area with Nets  Statistics

Components of Reading- Mrs. Olear  Guided Reading:  Weekly Comprehension Skills Strategy instruction to implement skills  Differentiated Instructional Levels Small Group Application  Shared Reading:  Core novels, Read-alouds (Teacher discretion), Nonfiction  SSR/D.E.A.R. (Silent Sustained Reading) Student driven selections

Components of Writing- Mrs. Olear  Modeled Instruction  Use of Picture books and various writing genres.  Direct Modeling (teacher discretion)  Conferencing  Peer conferencing  Teacher conferencing  Word Study/Spelling/ Grammar  Application of Word Study to our writing (Taught by homeroom teacher)

6th Grade Science- Mrs. Lavelle  Organisms  Ecology  Astronomy  Chemistry  Weather  Earth Science

6th Grade Health Health is taught as a separate course at William Street (Mrs. DiMarco is the Health teacher) Students have Health 3 times a week for one half of the year (Students have Art 3 times a week the other half of the year)

6th Grade Social Studies- Mrs. Olear  Ancient Civilizations  Mesopotamia  Egypt  India  China  Greece  Rome  Arabia  Time Periods  Early Man- Stone Age  The Middle Ages  Renaissance  Reformation  World Religions  Judaism  Christianity  Hinduism  Buddhism  Islam

6th Grade Social Studies- Mrs. Olear  What You Can Look Forward To…  Study Guide  Textbook  Videos  Hands-on activities  Dramatic Role- play  Visuals  Web hunts  Review Games

Homework Policy  Homework will be assigned to reinforce classroom instruction  Homework is due the next school day unless otherwise noted  Homework will be posted on a daily basis in the classroom and on our classroom websites  Homework that is incomplete or missing will need to be completed by the next day  If a homework is incomplete/missing, a blue sheet will be sent home to notify the parent(s)/guardian and will need to be returned the next day with parent/guardian signature  Homework is not graded, but completion of homework will be included in a student’s quarterly grades

Grading/Testing Procedures  Students’ grades will be comprised of assignments, quizzes, tests, and homework participation  Tests are given for every unit and are weighted more heavily in student averages  Students will be informed in a timely manner about quiz/test dates Parent Portal/ eSchool  This year, parents will have access to grades on eSchool (through Parent Portal).  Grades will be posted on eSchool in a timely manner.  The due date you see is not the actual day that was attached to the assignment/quiz/test. It is a default date the computer uses when teachers enter data.  If you have problems with the Parent Portal, please call the main office.

Classroom Behavior Policy  Student behavior, preparedness, and homework completion are monitored on a weekly basis. Our team uses a checklist to keep track of student infractions.  Students will lose Friday free time according to how many infractions they incur throughout the week.  Discipline and behavior issues are initially handled by the classroom teacher. If need be, issues regarding students will be handled by school administrators.  The school has a discipline documentation procedure in place. Documentation will be placed in student files and sent home to parents.

Birthdays and Holidays  Students are allowed to bring in a birthday treat to be passed out during their lunch. Birthday treats should not require any cutting,scooping, etc. (no beverages please).  We do not have holiday parties. However, students are allowed to bring in a treat to pass out to the class on days of/before holidays.

Important Dates to Remember  Parent conferences are Thursday, November 29 th and Friday, November 30 th  NYS ELA Exams will be given April 16 th - April 18 th  NYS Math Exams will be given April 24 th - April 26 th

Closing Thoughts  Please refer to the WSS Handbook for other information not mentioned tonight  A copy of this PowerPoint will be available on my classroom website  Please sign up for parent-teacher conferences if you haven’t already done so