Ms. Willie S Class Handbook

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mqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyMr. Martin’s 4th Grade Class Handbook uiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfgPolicies/Procedures and Class Outline hjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvb2014-2015 nmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwert yuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdf ghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcv bnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwer tyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasd fghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcv bnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwer tyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmrtyuiopasdfghj klzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbn mqwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwerty uiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwertyuiopasdfg 4 th Grade Overview

The fourth grade curriculum is designed to reflect the creativity, eagerness, and burgeoning independence of fourth graders. We engage students by asking them to explore the physical world, to investigate classic works of literature, to express themselves through creative writing, and to deepen their understanding of how mathematical and scientific processes occur in the real world.

The lessons and activities are designed to foster academic independence by encouraging skill mastery, critical thinking, and artistic expression. As we provide opportunities for the fourth grade child’s awakening intellect, we also support those inner values that were so much a part of the early grades.

In the fourth grade curriculum, every effort is made to integrate the subjects so that the fourth grade student can easily make connections and form a solid foundation for future learning.

The social studies curriculum provides the basic substance for all studies, exploring but not limited to such topics as local geography, state history, and change over time, patterns of behavior, and ethics. In language arts, students write regularly in their Daily Journal, read several works of literature, learn spelling and grammar skills, and write poetry and fiction. The math curriculum extends their knowledge of content and has them relate what they know to their lives currently. In science, we will follow the scientific method to study physical, earth, and life science.

Please keep in mind that circumstances change, and we must remain flexible. Therefore, all information provided is subject to revision. Procedures for Non-Instructional Routines

Expectations of Student Behavior:

Please refer to the student/parent handbook in the daily planner for school wide rules. Students are expected to follow the expectations posted in the classroom. The Houston Independent

School District code of student conduct will also be enforced.

Presentation of Rules and Procedures

During the first week of school, all rules, positive and negative consequences are reviewed with the students in each class. These will be reviewed throughout the year, when needed. Rules and procedures are posted in the classroom. Students and parents will sign a form verifying that they have reviewed and accept the terms and guidelines issued in the Code of Conduct.

Consequences for Violating Class and School Rules/Policies Individual Plan: If classroom expectations are not met, problems will be handled on an individual basis. A Flip Card system will be used this year as follows:

GREEN: Ready to start the day (all students begin here each day)

YELLOW: Warning! Think about your actions. Lose 5 minutes of recess. ORANGE: Lose 10 minutes of recess time AND silent lunch. Students will write a note home and explain. RED: Go to principal’s office.

*Serious offenses (fighting, weapons, etc.) will go directly to red card and principal's office.

Student Records:

All biological parents have the right to see student records. Please contact the teacher to make an appointment. All grades are recorded in the grade book. Student records are kept in student work portfolios, writing portfolios, and permanent records. Conferences will be held as needed at the request of the parent or teacher.

Procedures for Instructional Routines

Classwork and Homework Policy:

Students’ papers should be properly headed including the student’s first and last name, date, subject, and book page number, if applicable. All work should be neat, legible, complete, and represent the child’s best effort. Correct grammar, sentence structure, and spelling are expected.

Students will be asked to do again work that is unsatisfactory. Due to individual differences in learning styles and work habits, time spent on homework each night will vary from child to child. Your child should write down all homework assignments in his/her agenda daily. If your child checks into school for a day (even if he/she checks in late or checks out early), he/she is responsible for completing that day’s homework for all classes he/she attended prior to leaving school by the next day. In order to receive full credit, assignments should be completed neatly, accurately, and on time. All students are required to read 100 minutes per week of self-selected reading. Students are also expected to set and meet Accelerated Reader point goals per nine weeks.

Daily Planners:

Plan books are a lifeline from school to home. It is required that students bring their planners to school and home daily, as well as to each classroom. Ample time will be given for students to record their daily homework assignments and other school related information. Students are expected to copy the exact wording of homework assignments in a legible handwriting. If a plan book is forgotten, misplaced, or lost, students can write homework assignments on a sheet of notebook paper. Students will be required to replace their planner if it is missing longer than one week. Plan books are also used as a communication tool from home to school. If a parent writes a note, please instruct your child to bring the note up to the teacher at the start of class, rather than at the end.

Late Work: All homework and classwork is due the following day, unless indicated otherwise by the teacher. Late work will be accepted one day beyond the original due date, but there will be a deduction of 10% as a penalty. Major projects will NOT be accepted late. Advanced notice and ample preparation time is given to students.

Absence Procedure:

We must have a parent note, e-mail, or phone call explaining an absence when a student returns to school. All communications must be sent to the attendance office when the child return’s to school. Failure to do so will result in an unexcused absence. Work following an excused absence must be made up within two school days.

Extra Credit:

There is no “extra credit” in our classes. To earn the best grade possible, complete class work, homework and projects on time.

Projects:

Projects are a part of the learning process in my class. All projects will include directions, a timeline for completion, grading expectations and a scoring guide. This will allow students to organize their time to complete the project and earn the best score possible. Since students will be given ample time to complete their projects, late projects will not be accepted unless there is an absence on the due date. It will then be expected on the day the student returns to school.

Grades and Graded Papers

Students will receive a mid semester evaluation from Mr. Martin and 9 week report cards as determined by district guidelines. In addition, progress reports will be given which gives details such as specific tasks and missing assignments. Graded papers will be sent home in the Thursday Communication Folder. Students will be assigned numerical grades. Assessment Grading Scale 90-100 A Excellent 80-89 B Above Average 70-79 C Average 60-69 D Below Average 69-Below F Unsatisfactory

Assessment Procedures All teachers use the district weighting system. Grades will be weighted based on categories of class work (40%), homework (10%), quizzes (10%) and tests/major projects (40%). Some project grades reflect scores of 4, 3, 2, 1, or 0. Grades can also be recorded as fractions: Number correct/Total # of questions. All grades will be recorded in a grade book and the GradeSpeed system. Columns will be labeled with the type of assignment and the date.

Communication with Parents: Daily communication will take place in the student’s planner and/or via email. Thursday folders will be sent home weekly. Weekly folders, parent notes, phone calls and conferences are frequent means of communication.

Conferencing:

We are available as a team to schedule conferences to discuss with parents about a specific student’s needs, grades or progress. Please email or call us in advance to set up a conference time to discuss any concerns about assignments or progress. Keep in mind that instruction and planning time is valuable. Therefore, I will be unavailable to conference or take phone calls during the instructional day. Unannounced or unplanned visits are also discouraged. My contact information is the following:

Jeremy Martin [email protected]

T.H. Rogers (713) 917-3563.

Academic Honesty and Integrity

All students must always submit work that represents his or her original work, words, or ideas. If any words or ideas are used that do not represent origination from an individual student, the student must cite all relevant sources. The student should also document the extent to which such sources were used. Words or ideas that require citation include, but are not limited to, all hardcopies or electronic publications, whether copyrighted or not, and all verbal or visual communication when the content of such communication clearly originates from an identifiable source. In the online course, all submissions to any public meeting or private mailbox fall within the scope of words and ideas that require citations if used by someone other than the original author.

Academic dishonesty could involve:

• Having a tutor or friend complete a portion of our assignments

• Having a reviewer make extensive revisions to an assignment

• Copying work submitted by another student

• Using information from online information services without proper citation

MATHEMATICS COURSE DESCRIPTION

In fourth grade, students engage in a deeper understanding in topics that they have previously learned. They will strengthen their skills with numeration, operations, fractions and decimals, geometry, and finally probability and data analysis. Students start with place value and reading decimals up through the billions. Then we move into addition and subtraction. This is followed by problem solving with multiplication and division. Students will then explore how fractions are created and how we use different operations to combine different parts. When we move into geometry we are looking at perimeter, area, and volume. We will spend a good amount of time practicing our measurement skills. All throughout the year, our recurring topics will be measurement and data displays. At the end of the year, we will begin to do a step-up to the next year. This year we will be using a new resource adopted by the district called Texas Go Math! This resource will be used in conjunction with our curriculum designed by the district.

SCIENCE COURSE DESCRIPTION

In fourth grade science, the students will explore the natural phenomena of the world. We start with lab safety and the scientific method. We will follow the Texas State curriculum, and we will use the National Geographic materials as our primary resource. In addition, the district has adopted a new resource called Science Fusion that we will be using. We break our science curriculum into three large units: physical, earth, and life.

Physical We start with physical science as our first large unit. This unit encompasses matter, mass, and measurement. Then we move into forces in nature. Through discovery and the scientific process, we learn about electromagnets and circuits. Earth When we start earth science, we look at how our earth and moon relate to one another. We then move into resources, natural, renewable, and non-renewable. Then we discuss natural disasters such as volcanoes, earthquakes, and other weather forces.

Life  Life science encompasses many different cycles. We discuss food webs and their importance with their respective ecosystems. We learn the relationships between predators and prey and carnivores and herbivores. We look at how plants grow, and we even dissect a flower.