August 5, 2013

Dear Families-

We had a great first two days at school! I am so excited to continue to get to know all my new first graders as the year goes on.

Dollar dress down day is this Wednesday, August 7^th. For those of you new to La Paloma, dollar dress down day is the first Wednesday of every month. This means that your students may wear an outfit of their choice to school that day if they bring a dollar to put towards our classroom fundraiser. Please make sure that school dress code still applies: no tank tops, short shorts, or open-toed shoes.

Thank you so much to everyone who sent in supplies! They are very much appreciated. If you have not sent in supplies, please at least send in the binder as soon as possible! Thank you also to everyone who returned the first day forms. If you did not, please do so as soon as possible! They help me so much!

I wanted to give you an idea of what our daily schedule is like and some things you can expect this year.

Our Schedule:

8:30-Breakfast and Journal

8:50-Calendar/Read Aloud

9:00-Phonics

9:45-Reading

10:50-Lunch

11:30-Read Aloud

11:45-Writing

12:15-Math

1:00-Partner Work

1:45-Recess

2:05-Science/Social Studies/Character

3:00-Read Aloud/Clean up

3:15-Dismissal

Our specials schedule:

 P.E.-Tuesday and Thursday

Music-Wednesday

Computers/Library-Friday.

I will send home a newsletter most weeks so please make sure to check your child’s folder. The La Paloma Link will also be sent home every week so please read that as well for additional school information. I will post my newsletters and spelling lists on my blog. The address is misscochranlpa.blogspot.com.

I will pass out homework on Fridays and it will be due the following Friday. It will be a packet of work and will get longer as the year goes on. It is not meant to be time consuming or difficult, rather it is a review of the concepts we have been learning in class. If your child is struggling with homework, they are probably struggling in class as well.

First grade is a challenging year. We are learning how to read and write at a higher level as well as learning a variety of math concepts. The absolute best thing you can do for your child is to read to them and have them practice their reading at home. Throughout the year I will send home tips on helping your child with reading at home. Although we read quite a bit at school, nothing can replace that extra attention at home.

We are very busy in first grade and are working all day! Please make sure your child is arriving to school on time and is not being picked up early. They miss valuable learning even if they just miss the first or last 30 minutes of the day.

Please make sure your child is not bringing any toys to school. They are a distraction and frequently end up lost or broken which causes problems. Thank you for your help with this!

Please make sure you are checking your child’s folder daily. Please take out any work or notes that are in their folders and please check their behavior calendar. Please leave their behavior calendar in their folder until the new one is put in.

If at any time during the year you are concerned about your child’s progress or have any questions about anything please let me know! I am more than happy to answer questions or talk with you about your child. The best way to reach me is via e-mail. My e-mail address is jcochran@lpatucson.org. I will get back to you within 24 hours. You can also send a note in your child’s folder, I check these daily.