Welcome to Mrs. Oen S HOMEROOM

Welcome to Mrs. Oen’s HOMEROOM, MATH, and SOCIAL STUDIES CLASS!!

Dear Parents, I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome you to another great school year! I look forward to an exciting and rewarding school year for you and your child. Together we can expect your child to meet the challenges of fifth grade and reach their individual potential. I am your child’s homeroom teacher and I am anxious to get started teaching your child Math and Social Studies. I look forward to getting to know each and every one of you throughout the year. Ms. Sanders will be teaching Reading/Language Arts and Science to your child, with her classroom being connected to my room. Below, you will find information pertinent to my classroom.

 First, a little background information about myself. I have completed my undergraduate studies in education and concentration in mathematics at Bowling Green State University. I then obtained my master’s degree in Teacher Leader: Curriculum and Instruction from Wright State University. Before moving to Troy, my husband and I relocated to the Cincinnati area and I taught one year of third grade. We then moved to the area and I taught a year of second grade in Sidney. In 1999, I began teaching first grade in Tipp City Schools until May 2010. I then decided to make a lateral career change to 5th grade, as I was looking forward to new challenges, as well as utilizing my strengths in Reading/Lang.Arts and Math to reach each individual student’s highest potential. The past six years in 5th grade have been fabulous, but I am always very excited to build upon, tweak, delete, and expand ideas from my previous years.

 My hobbies include traveling, water sports, skiing, exercising, reading, baking, and most of all…spending time with my friends and family .

 My husband and I live in Troy, along with our two children. Kathryn is in 8th grade at Tipp Middle School and Andrew is in 5th grade at LT Ball. And…how could I forget our rescue dog, Angel. It has been such a great summer together, as we have had a lot of fun and laughter I’m sad to see the summer months slip by, but I do believe it is time for a routine schedule in our household.

MRS. OEN’s CLASSROOM RULES

WE WANT TO BE A CLASS that is polite, friendly, complimentary, fair, honest, accepting, and hard working.

WE WANT TO BE A CLASS (part of the world) that sets an example for others in all we do, respects self, others, and property around us, and treats others how we expect to be treated. We want to make a difference at LT Ball Intermediate School.

MOST OF ALL, WE WANT TO BE A CLASS that is responsible for our work and actions, comes to class prepared and ready to learn, and follows directions. We also want to listen carefully, remain seated, raise our hand to share, listen to other’s ideas, and have a love for learning

CONSEQUENCES—REFER TO SCHOLAR DOLLAR PLAN *Warning *Loss of 5 minutes recess *Loss of 10 minutes recess while writing note to parents explaining situation. Note must be signed before recess is reinstated the following day. *Visit with the principal/Loss of classroom jobs or responsibilities.

HOMEWORK POLICY

1. Homework is due on time. A notice will come home with the late assignment noted, along with a parent signature being required.

2. If homework if LATE… -Students will receive a deduction of 10 percentage points off final assignment grade if turned in one day late.

- Students will receive a deduction of 20 percentage points off final assignment grade if turned in two days late and recess will be used to complete assignment.

-Students will receive no credit, 0%, on assignments turned in beyond two days late. However, recess will still be used to complete the assignment.

**exceptions will be made on larger assignments (i.e. reports, projects, etc.), and if we have individualized educational plans we are working with. Please note, if the assignment is not turned in within the two days for credit, it still needs to be completed and turned in to ensure understanding of the concept. Beyond deduction of points and effort points (which will affect final course grade), other classroom consequences will/may be implemented until assignment is completed. **Let’s be sure to turn things in on time!!!

MAKE UP WORK 1. Students have 5 days to complete make-up work. 2. It is the student’s responsibility to get make-up work and ensure it is turned in. I will have the day’s assignments collected in a folder. Other Information PARENTS: If you child brings home papers with errors, please sit down and review the paper. This is great teaching tool for learning from mistakes, to learn what we learning in class and how your child is progressing.

BINDERS: Do not take anything out of the binders unless it is in the “take home” section. Many of the papers contained in the binder are ‘work in progress’ and are needed in class. However, it is your child’s responsibility to clean out their binder and keep it tidy.

 Students may bring water bottles to class. You might want to place a sock around the bottle if you think the bottle might sweat. No snacks please

 Students may want to keep a spare sweatshirt in their locker. Our building tends to be a little chilly at times.

 Students should not be spending more than an hour a night on homework. Please contact me if your child’s homework exceeds this time frame.

 If you have an urgent message, please contact the office staff and send me an email.

 Our Related Arts schedule will run on a ABCD rotation (Art, Music, Gym, Computers) Students should dress accordingly on Gym days. Our class rotation will begin on Wednesday with “A” Day being ART, and will rotate thereafter. If school is cancelled, the day of return will be the next Related Arts. (EX: if the cancelled day was supposed to “C DAY”, then the first day of returning back to school will be “D DAY”. I will send this calendar to you each month via email and it will be posted on my webpage. ***A= ART B= MUSIC C= GYM D= COMPUTERS

 Students are allowed to celebrate their birthday with a class treat. If you have a summer birthday, you may celebrate your half birthday. We currently have 24 students in our class, with the possibility of move-ins/outs. Be sure to contact me prior so we can discuss arrangements, special medical needs, and allergies.

In math, I will be completing pretests with the students to better meet the needs of your child with the skill at hand. This will also provide me with pertinent information as to who may need extra help or additional extension activities in class, as well as during Breakout at the end of the day. The GO MATH book is online, located at my webpage. Your child will have his/her username and password written in the front of their agenda.

In math class, your child can expect to have homework daily, as well as weekly Math Challenge Problem Solving scenario (this will start in a few weeks) We will also be completing iReady activities in class, as your child also has open access to build on these skills at home by accessing the iReady site any time.

If you have any questions, concerns, or information that needs relayed to me, please write it or attach it in the assignment notebook or email me, as I will do the same when necessary. For more information about my classroom, please log onto our school website. My website will be updated with important information for you to view. Homework will also be posted daily. Grades are posted on Pinnacle Grade Book. Please note, our grades are weighted. Keeping tabs on your child’s progress through this program is a great way to stay informed. I also encourage the students to take ownership of their grades and frequently check their grades online. Make note, a “Z” in the gradebook stands for 0% and means your child did not hand in the assignment. This is red flag to all, as this impacts the overall score. An “X” means your child was not responsible for the specific assignment and was excused. This does not affect their overall grade. If you have questions on gradebook, please contact me. If you have lost your PIV (Pinnacle Grade Book) log in, please contact the office.

It is my hope that this newsletter has answered some questions you might have had about your child’s school year. If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at the school or by writing me via email (located below). I look forward to working with you throughout the school year to help meet the educational needs of your child. By working together as a team, we can ensure your child will be all they can be! Please make note that our classroom door is always open for guests. Feel free to stop in and join us in our learning

Welcome Back,

Christa Oen [email protected]

I dreamed I stood in a studio and watched two sculptors there, The clay they used was a young child’s mind and they fashioned it with care.

One was a teacher; the tools she used were books and music and art. One was a parent with a guiding hand and a gentle loving heart.

And when at last their work was done, they were proud of what they had wrought For the things they had worked into the child could never be sold or bought.

And each agreed he/she would have failed if he/she had worked alone For behind the parent stood the school, and behind the teacher stood the home.