Mrs. Buhac 4th Grade Room 21 2014 - 2015

Communication Class Dojo emails, messages & reports Remind texts Life Folders!!!** Student Planners Phone Email** (jbuhac@wcusd.org) Website** at http://teacherweb.com/CA/VineSchool/MrsBuhac

Room 21’s Rules Follow directions immediately. Follow CHAMPS guidelines. Always be on task. Keep hands, feet and objects to ourselves. Be an active listener. Use appropriate language. The students in Room 21 worked together to create these rules, signed them and know that they are responsible for following these rules. These are the things they decided were important to them and what they need to do to be successful 4th graders. Please support them by reminding them to always follow THEIR rules.

Room 21’s GUIDELINES THE SIX “BE’S” BE responsible! BE kind and caring! BE respectful! BE trustworthy! BE a team player! BE a positive thinker! Guidelines and Rules are two different things so as a class, students in Room 21 worked together to create these guideline as well. Guidelines help students think about how to act, behave and “be” at any given time. Please talk with them about their understanding of the different between guidelines and rules and why they chose these.

Behavior & Consequences We use ClassDojo to track student behavior. Each day, your child has the opportunity to earn positive & negative points based on his/her behavior. ClassDojo Messaging allows me to send quick messages straight to your cell phone! Sign up through ClassDojo! You do not need a smart phone to receive messages! If you need help signing up, please let me know. I you need another copy of your child’s unique code please let me know. In addition to tracking behavior I use Class Dojo to send reminders about things like conferences, major due dates, field trips, etc. Positive Consequences Team points Bee Bucks Eagle Awards Teacher recognition Peer recognition Negative Consequences Yellow Card – Warning Blue Card – Loss of a privilege and/or parent contact Red Card – Visit with Dr. Torres and parent contact Please review your Class Dojo account daily or at least weekly (Friday emails) as well as your child’s life folder for behavior updates. Team points will be given to encourage teamwork among students. The table that has the most points at the end of the week will be able to pick their jobs for the following week.

Homework & Reading Log Homework vs. Classwork Reading Log Homework is usually built into my classwork and there will NOT always be another assignment required. Please ask your child to explain their agenda to you. When homework is assigned it will be posted daily on the board. It is the student’s responsibility to copy these into their Student Planner. Daily and Weekly Must Do assignments not completed in class ARE TO BE COMPLETED AT HOME. This is the majority of homework in this class. Classwork assignments should be copied into Student Planners so students can plan their time properly. Spelling words are to be copied into Student Planners on Monday. All Must Do’s are due by FRIDAY. Monthly/Quarterly projects based on curriculum Reading Log Research has never shown a convincing link between traditional nightly homework and a positive effect on student learning. However, it does show that students become better readers by reading at their ability level or at a slightly higher level. It also shows that children who read consistently will have a richer vocabulary and writing ability. Reading Logs sent home as needed Must be enjoyable and not below reading ability for Reading Log Can they read a favorite book that IS below their ability?

C.H.A.M.P.S. C- Conversation H – Help A – Activity M – Movement CHAMPS is a school wide behavior program that we will be using this year. Students are provided with clear expectations for every activity and each period of time in the classroom, as well as around the campus. C- Conversation H – Help A – Activity M – Movement P – Participation S - Success This will help students by having consistent expectations and rules no matter where they go. We are very excited to share this positive and proven method to help our Vine Eagles achieve their Personal Best!

Life Folders * * * * * PLEASE review the life Go home every Tuesday Weekly Progress Report Missing assignments Behavior grade Area for comments Bi-weekly/Monthly newsletter to keep you informed * * * * * PLEASE review the life folder with your child every week. This is one of the most crucial forms of communication between school and home.

Grading Daily Practice: Formal Grading: Rubrics Stamps, smiling faces, stars, stickers, check marks Formal Grading: 1: Student is working far below grade level. Minimum effort or understanding. 2: Student is working at a basic level (starting to get it but not quite there yet). Keep trying! 3: Student work is proficient and meeting grade level expectations. Pyramid of Success being used. 4: Student work is above grade level expectations. Personal best in effort and achievement. Rubrics

Book Orders Monthly or every other Use checks made out to Scholastic Book Clubs Send book order (with STUDENT NAME) in an envelope marked “Book Order” with child’s name and amount enclosed. Competitively priced and great for class points to build our library

Team Eagles Important News There are some new polices as well as some to remind you of - Perfect Attendance: NO tardies, must attend school until at least 12 p.m. EVERY DAY. Parking lot is closed, an adult MUST pick up the student. I will not send students across the parking lot or across Vine without an adult. College Shirt Wednesdays Birthday policy

Team Eagles E – Expect success; learning is our job! A – Accept responsibility G – Give our best effort L – Learn tolerance E – Encourage others S – Show respect to everyone! Be part of the team… JOIN PTA!