Classroom Policies, Procedures, and Communication-

Homework-

Homework helps teach students to work independently, to assume responsibility for their own work, and to be organized. It also helps to reinforce the skills and concepts taught in class that day. You can expect to have homework each night. Generally, we try not to exceed 50 minutes per night; however, some nights may be heavier or lighter than others. You can especially expect to spend more time on homework when a project due date is approaching. I always will give you enough advanced information on these due dates so you can plan your homework time accordingly. The amount of time you spend on homework also depends on your time management, work pace, and understanding of the concepts taught. Assignments must be written in cursive writing or they should be computer generated (with a few exceptions). Students may use pen or pencil as long as assignments are neat, legible, and have the proper heading. Our goal is to have all assignments completed to the best of our ability and turned in when due. However, I will accept late assignments with a deduction of 10% off the total score. Students may re-do any assignment (NOT TESTS) on which they scored LOWER than a 80% as long as it was initially turned in on time. To do this, students must correct answers on their page without erasing the original answers or find an extra sheet in our ‘extras basket’ and turn it in with their original paper. I will then AVERAGE the two grades for the final score. The goal is to learn from our mistakes and understand the concepts. I will not re-copy a page for a student who has lost their assignment or for a redo, I generally copy a few extras for the ‘extras basket’—please be responsible for your assignments! Missing assignments are counted as zeroes. My grading scale is as follows:

95-100A 77-79 C+ 60-63 D-

90-94 A- 74-76 C 59-0 F

87-89 B+ 70-73 C-

84-86 B 67-69 D+

80-83 B- 64-66 D

· Homework Help- available to all 5^th graders in Mrs. Massey's room during lunch recess (until 1:00)

· Homework pickup when sick - ready after the school day. Will put in the office or on the table outside of the office for you to pick up after 3:20 pm. Can not promise to get homework together if child is being picked up early from school without one day advance notice. Please let me know in advance via a note if your child will be leaving or arriving late due to appointments. This way they are prepared for the day and keep on top of work.

· Birthdays- treats need to be individual servings, please include any necessary paper goods, drop off at school. Avoid colored beverages such as red, blue, green, and purple as these colors will stain the carpet. Clear colored beverages are best.

· Snacks- bring a healthy and nutritious – snack break at 10:30 am

· Water bottles – feel free to bring a water bottle to keep on your desk

· IR book in school at all times - We'll read a different genre each month. Ask your child to show you the monthly schedule. Daily silent reading time will be provided during the school day. View a copy of the IR schedule at:

http://www.binford.mccsc.edu/~wtamborr/class/reading.html

· Book Adventure: http://www.bookadventure.org/- great site to help you find books of interest.

Classroom Communication-

· Red Communication Folder- sent home Mondays. Sign and return all graded work by each Wednesday.

· Monthly/Weekly calendars - look for it in red folder, post it in visible area at home

· "Good Morning" – morning messages are posted each morning with items for students to put on their desk, turn in, and “to do” before the 9:00 bell rings.

· Daily schedule – during our morning meeting we go over and discuss our schedule chart so we can be prepared and plan for the day

· “Homework” board – we keep a homework board displayed in our classroom and chart our daily assignments on the board for quick reference

· Assignment Books – all students need an assignment book which can be purchased through the office. We chart our work each day, throughout the day, and sign off assignment books where necessary

· "Dear Families" newsletter - periodic, requires a sign and return portion, to inform you about upcoming events, curriculum, projects, and opportunities for volunteering

· Mrs. Tamborrino's phone # at Binford - 330-7741 ext. 214

· I prefer to respond to your questions via my Binford phone.

· Talking in person is better than email communication

· Special Area Schedule:

· Monday-

· Tuesday-

· Wednesday-

· Thursday-

· Friday-

Other Items:

Reading:

· Book club orders - No cash. Send check written out to the name of the book club. The more we order, the more we get! We love lots of books!

· Reading Celebration - The last Friday of each month. Curl up with a good book and a snack!

· Daily independent reading time will be scheduled during the school day

Conferences

· We will begin conferences for our classroom during the last week of September and first week of October. I welcome students to join and lead the conference. They are the most important part of the academic team. Student participation in the conference process helps to decrease anxiety and increase self-esteem!

· Please sign up on Conference Schedule Sheet in hall before you leave.

· I will be sending home conference confirmation forms.

Volunteers

· We want you! Sign up for as much as you would like. See sign ups in hall. We have many opportunities for parents to help out with field trips, parties, guest speaking, special class projects, bulletin boards, writing editors, and more

Big Events in 5^th Grade:

Bradford Woods- October 18-20

Money ($80) and medical forms are due _________________________.

All Bradford Woods information will be sent home. You will be receiving important medical forms and general Bradford Woods information. Read through the Bradford Woods newsletter. It contains everything you need to know about our 2 ½ day stay at camp. We'll return from Bradford Woods between 10:30 and 11:00am on Wednesday, October 20. Please make arrangements to pick your child up at Binford when we arrive back from camp. Children are free to go home for the rest of the day once they have secured their belongings and medications. They'll probably want to rest!

· Medical forms/special dietary needs – please communicate these ASAP

· Packing demonstration in our classroom – Mrs. Tamborrino will demonstrate

· Your child should do the packing with your supervision. "You pack it, you carry it".

· We encourage letter writing although our stay is short. No phone calls home or parent visits permitted.

· No electronic equipment, flashlights, games, candy, extra food

· Plenty of day and evening activities- Night Hike, Dutch Auction, Dance, camper "duties", trail groups, Campers Recreation (archery, fishing, candle dipping, games with the LOTS Seniors

Exchange City, Indianapolis – April 19 – This all day adventure to Exchange City is one of the highlights of our Spring Semester. Students take an active role in running a kid-size simulated city called Exchange City. This experience supports our studies about economics. Students are given jobs in shops and earn an Exchange City paycheck that they deposit into their own Exchange City checkbook. They’ll learn how to work as a team to produce goods/services that they will sell within their shops. The goal for all the shops is to pay off their loan and in order to accomplish that, students will realize they need to produce goods and set prices on these goods to sell to Exchange City consumers.

The success of this trip is reflected on the parent coaches who volunteer their time to be trained for our day at Exchange City. If you have attended within the past 2 years then you do not need to be retrained. We will be sending out information and a “Call for Volunteers” during the Fall Semester.

The price during 2004 was $15.00; however, in the past we have applied for an Educational Opportunity Grant through the PTO. This grant money has paid for half of the actual cost so students needed to contribute $7.50.