1. Porter’s Procedures Answers to all of your “What if…?” needs.

2. Greeting Come in, find your place, sit and listen for the greeting. This is QUIET time for Mrs. Porter to get her teacher business done and start class.

3. Review Talk with Mrs. Porter about what you REMEMBER from the previous class. This time is to help your brain access and hang on to information you’ve already learned.

4. At work Busy busy learning time! Students are actively participating in the lesson. (making art, drawing, working, singing, moving, dancing, etc.)

5. Clean up Stop what you are doing, look to Mrs. Porter for instructions on how to clean up or what to do before you line up.

6. Exit / End Close your mouth (and keep it closed) Line up however your class is supposed to line up. Face the front keeping yourself to yourself

7. Please take care of your business before or after Fine Arts. In case of an emergency, let Mrs. Porter know that you just can’t hold it any longer and then go and come back quickly and without disrupting class time.

8. This is for your safety. You will never be instructed to do anything that will hurt you, and if you think otherwise you need to ask Mrs. Porter about it RIGHT THEN.

9. Grouchy grumpy days happen to everyone, but this is supposed to be a FUN class, so if you’re having a bad day, please just TRY to have fun with Mrs. Porter and your class for 25 minutes. Attitude is a choice. Choose wisely.

10. Mrs. Porter is easily distracted. When she gets distracted, she repeats herself. When she repeats herself, you get bored. When you get bored, you stop learning. When you stop learning, Mrs. Porter isn’t doing her job. When Mrs. Porter isn’t doing her job, she gets fired. Don’t let Mrs. Porter get fired.

11. There are lots more of you than there are teachers. If you see someone struggling, ask them if you can help. Be a good friend, but don’t do their work for them. (That’s called “cheating” and cheating is very, very bad!)

12. As always, if you can’t say something nice, keep it to yourself. You don’t HAVE to say EVERYTHING you think. Speaking of thinking… 

13. Mrs. Porter can’t read your mind and she doesn’t live with you. If something crazy is going on in your life and you’re having a hard time in class, you need to let her know so she doesn’t just think you’re being lazy or disrespectful. Tell her what’s going on. She’s here to HELP you!

14. You only have 25 minutes of learning time in Fine Arts, 2 days each week. You get 30 minutes at recess EVERY day. I don’t take your recess away from you, so please don’t take my class time away from me. Time is precious.

15. “You don’t have to BE the best, but you do have to TRY your best.” Everybody has to try everything. No excuses, no whining. Just try it.

16. If you don’t make a mess, there’s nothing to clean. Sometimes messes happen anyway. If you make a mess, clean it up. If you see a mess, help out and clean it up.

17. If it’s not yours, don’t touch it. (This goes for art work, folders, supplies, chairs, desks, body parts that aren’t attached to you, hair, jackets, lunch boxes, food, drinks, homework, books, etc.)

18. Stay safe. Always. Think before you act. NO ONE should EVER get hurt in Fine Arts.

19. Be nice to Mrs. Porter’s stuff or she will stop sharing with you and you’ll get to learn about art and music by doing research papers and completing your projects at home using your own supplies on your own time. Just like the earth, everybody has to take care of it, or nobody will have it.

20. If the answer to any of these questions is “no,” then please keep it to yourself.