Home-to-School Connection Blythe-Bower First Grade Information 2019-2020 Welcome to Blythe-Bower First Grade! We look forward to working with your child this school year. At any time, feel free to contact us by note or phone call to the school (479-5121).
VITAL INFORMATION We must be able to reach you during school hours. Please update us immediately if there is a change in any of the following and we will see that the office is informed. Thanks so much! We must have...... your address, emergency contact phone numbers, the way your child is to go home, who is - or is not - to pick up your child. About... The Take-Home Folder and the First Grade "Home-to-School" Connection Your child’s Take-Home Folder and Agenda goes back and forth from school to home. Your child is responsible for seeing that it gets home each afternoon and back to school the next morning. It may contain teacher and/or school related notes and has dated space for teacher or parent notes. Please check your child’s folder or agenda each day to see if there are any behavior concerns. Also, check for the weekly newsletter “First Grade Home School Connection” which is usually given on Mondays. It will contain important news and information, lists of spelling words, and content about other subjects being studied. Once reading groups begin, your child will be assigned reading homework Monday through Thursday. The reading homework baggy will consist of a form to write the date and title of the book and a place for you to sign. The baggy book should be read by your child along with you or another adult. Sometimes lists of sight words, word family study, or sentences will also be added, so that you may help your child practice their reading/writing skills. There will also be seatwork papers or other miscellaneous papers from the day in the folder. Please take all these papers out of the folder and keep at home unless there is a note indicating it should be returned. Most of the classroom papers are sent home to let you know what is being studied or as optional practice.
FAMILY VISITS to BLYTHE-BOWER You are welcome in our classrooms to observe, volunteer or just touch base. A drop-in visit to the classroom is not a good time for us to discuss your child, however. We are available for conferences when the children are out of the classroom from 12:35 - 1:20 on most days. Just let us know. Please be sure to sign in and out at the office each time.
HOMEWORK Together, we partner to create the best possible learning outcome in your child’s first grade educational experience and first steps to lifelong learning.
READING – “Baggy Book” Reading (Monday - Thursday) Sight WORDS (100 WORDS LIST) and/or Word Families SPELLING – Test on Fridays (Words are in the newsletter.) Math – Although math is not routinely required, please check the newsletter for specific math skills studied each week. We recommend Basic Simple Counting (by 1’s, 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s) and Addition/Subtraction and math facts. These are always a good idea to practice. Computer – See our website for online practice. http://www.bblearners.weebly.com
MONEY All money sent to school needs to be in an envelope or baggy marked with your child’s name and a form or note explaining why the money is being sent. Children are to turn it in to us when they get to school.
LUNCH TIMES Lunch will vary about five minutes by teacher, but generally it is: 10:50 – 11:25. Please let us know in advance if you plan to eat with your child. A note in the Take-Home folder will be fine.
BIRTHDAYS School policy prevents us from having birthday parties, but feel free to provide juice, cupcakes, cookies or Little Debbie-type snacks on this special day! You may come at lunchtime and pass them out or simply send them to school with the birthday child. To avoid hurt feelings, we ask that your child NOT pass out party invitations - unless every child in the class is getting one.
ITEMS NOT TO BRING TO SCHOOL To ensure a SAFE and distraction-free learning environment, please do not allow your child to bring any items that are not on the supply list. The Blythe-Bower Student-Parent Handbook states: Students are prohibited from bringing the following items to school because they are considered disruptive: i-pods, radios, CD players, head sets, video games, cameras, sports cards, other types of cards, magazines, skateboards, or any other novelty item that may be considered disruptive. After one warning, the first grade staff will collect disruptive items and keep them until the last day of school unless a parent comes to the school and signs it out. STUDENTS MAY NOT HAVE CELL PHONES ON SCHOOL PROPERTY.
PROPER GYM ATTIRE All students are expected to participate in physical fitness activities and need to wear appropriate shoes and clothing. Children wearing flip flops must sit out - which can affect the report card grade. Also, we go to the playground most days and mulch can hurt tender feet that are not protected by sneakers. Shoe strings can be another danger to consider. Make sure your child’s strings are not too long. Shoe tying is an important skill to practice at this age.
MEDICATION AT SCHOOL If your child needs to take medication during school hours a parent or guardian will need to deliver it to school and fill out the proper forms concerning dosage and times.
RESTROOM Your child will be given opportunities to use the restroom and get water at various times during the day. Please discuss with your child the importance of going to the restroom at these times. Let us know (in writing) if your child has a medical condition that would cause him/her to need to go to the restroom more often. Our bathrooms are cleaned after school. To keep them sanitary and fresh-smelling during the day, children are expected to clean up after themselves before leaving the restroom.
ABSENCES AND EARLY CHECK-OUTS Please make every effort to have your first grader at school unless he/she is ill. If your child is absent, please send a NOTE explaining the absence and it will be filed in the office. Multiple unexcused absences may result in administrative involvement. All check-outs must go through the office. Try to schedule any appointments after 12:45 or at best after 1:30, if possible. Thanks!!
TARDIES The school doors open at 7:40. Many children eat breakfast at school at that time. Your child is expected to be inside his/her classroom by 8:30. All late arrivals are recorded on your child’s daily attendance record and multiple unexcused tardies may result in administrative involvement. Most of the children enter the classroom at 8:15 and have various routines and activities to begin.
AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS
AFTER SCHOOL UNIVERSITY (ASU) 504-6329 Open EACH Afternoon Until 6:00 Students remain at Blythe-Bower. Contact Heather Savage if you are interested in enrolling your child.
UNITY CENTER – 478-1661 Monday – Thursday Afternoons Until 5:30 (Program begins in mid-September.) 685 Benton Pike, NE Their van picks up students from Blythe-Bower and takes them to the Center. Call if you are interested in enrolling your child. 478-1661
Boys and Girls Club 472-0240 EACH AFTERNOON Until 5:00 A van picks up students from Blythe-Bower and takes them to the Tucker Unit. Call if you are interested in enrolling your child. 472-0240
CAR RIDER CARDS Each car rider’s family is issued a card which MUST be displayed in the car window each day. If the card is not present, the driver will be told to go to the office and present identification. This precaution ensures that a child is not handed over to someone who is not on the release card. Please let us know if you need more than one car rider card.
GOING HOME WITHOUT TEARS Your child will be sent home according to what is on the contact card which was filled out at the beginning of the year. If there is to be a change (even for just a day) please send a note or call the school (479-5121) to let us know about it. Be sure to indicate how long the change will last. Children occasionally announce (often at 3:15!) that they are to go home a different way but do not have a note from home. At these times we will attempt to contact you, but - if you cannot be reached - we must send your child home in the usual way. You can imagine the potential stress of a situation like this! An excellent idea is to use the Take-Home folder to note changes in how your child is to get home on certain days. Simply jot the way home in the section for that day's date. Make sure your child knows about this so he/she can inform the teacher of the notation. Otherwise, send a signed and dated note or call the school well in advance of 3:15. NOTE: If you need to change who is (or is not) allowed to pick-up your child let us know. The change will be made on the release card (kept in the office). The office will release your child ONLY to the people listed on the release card. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS What time should my child be at school each day? Children are not counted late until 8:30, but most of the children enter the classroom at 8:20. There is always something for them to get started on and they may use the restroom. The first few minutes ease everyone into the day. What is the breakfast procedure? Children eating breakfast at school must be in the cafeteria no later than 7:50. When finished eating, they are dismissed to the large gym where they will sit with their classmates until we get them at 8:19. What if my child does not want to go to school and/or has anxiety? Let your first grader know that school is a safe and happy place where the teacher loves and cares about each child. Once a child is settled into the classroom, things brighten up quickly. It just takes time for some children to get adjusted to the new environment. Should I walk my child into the classroom and stay with him/her? We have found it works out better if the children come in by themselves. We like to give our undivided attention to the children as they enter, and they need to be able to turn in notes or money. May I help at school? Yes! Blythe-Bower loves parent volunteers. Mrs. Linda Tyler, our parent coordinator will be happy to meet with you! Board policy suggests that you work in a room that is not your child's room. There are many opportunities to help out in our school. Let us know if you feel led to do this and we will find just the right spot for you. When should I keep my child at home? · If your child has lice. He/she will need to be treated and the nits removed with a special comb. Re-treating with lice treatment is recommended after several days. Note: Be sure to launder all bedding, the car, and any furniture your child may have had contact with. There are several lice repelling shampoos you might want to use in the future. Also, it is suggested that -once a week - run the fine toothed comb through your child’s hair thoroughly. This will hopefully weed out any stray lice or nits. · If your child has a virus with vomiting and/or diarrhea, wait 24 hours before returning to school. Your child is still contagious until symptom free for 24 hours. · If your child has a fever, wait 24 hours after the fever to return to school. · If your child wakes up and one or both eyes are red and/or stuck together. He or she may have PINKEYE (conjunctivitis). It is very contagious and needs medical treatment. · If your child has cold symptoms and a cough lasting more than a few days, or if it is a constant issue, please consider taking him/her to an allergist. · If your child has a Rash or itchy, red to brown raised patches of skin on scalp, arms, legs, trunk and/or face (even fingers, toes, and nails). It may be lighter in the center, resembling a ring. The area may blister and ooze. They may have the fungus RINGWORM. It’s highly contagious. · If your child has Blisters or sores on the face, arms and/or hands. It may itch. It could be the bacterial skin infection called IMPETIGO. It’s very contagious.