Welcome to Grade 2Dear Second Grade Families,
Below is important information for the school year. School Hours Drop-Off- The first bell rings at 8:10 am. Please meet on the hard top. Students who are late must check in with the office. If your child is going to be tardy or absent, please call the main office (781) 316-3760 and leave a message. Pick Up We will dismiss the children out the gym doors. If someone other than a parent or legal guardian is picking up your child from school we need to be notified. Either write me a note and send it in your child’s folder or call the office. Please do not send dismissal notes to me via email during the school day as it is not a guarantee that I will see them prior to dismissal time. Every Tuesday At 1:00 teachers are required to attend collaborative meetings right after pick up, so unless it is an emergency or occasional exception, I will not be available for meetings or conversations. Snack We will have a mid-morning snack each day. Please provide a healthy snack and drink. Due to students in our class with life-threatening food allergies, please send in nut-free snack choices. Water bottles- Students are encouraged to bring in “sport top” water bottles each day. Recess/Lunch 11:20- We will begin with recess. Then students will be escorted into the lunchroom for lunch. If your child is buying lunch or milk it would be helpful if you could pre-pay. Details are on the APS Website. If you are available to help students in the cafeteria, this is a great way to volunteer! Homework Although your child will not be expected to fill out a reading log, she/he is expected to read for at least 20 minutes every night, including weekends. This reading may happen anytime or anyplace after school. Having reading materials in the backpack or car could help encourage this important activity. During the bedtime routine is always my favorite time with my own children. We will discuss homework and reading habits in more depth on Curriculum Night (September 26th). Please contact me if you need any help implementing reading habits at home. Remember, reading at this age includes being read to and reading the pictures to infer meaning! Room Parents/Volunteers If you are interested in being a Room Parent, please let me know. We usually have two Room Parents who assist in a variety of ways which include:
We will also ask for volunteers for projects and field trip chaperones. Birthday Policy If you choose to celebrate your child's birthday in school, I ask that you do so with non-food items. In the past, children have donated favorite books to my class library in honor of their birthdays. Other children have brought in small goodies such as stickers or pencils. Please let me know if you would like other ideas. Specialist Schedule: 2019-2020 Monday: PE (wear sneakers) Tuesday: Art Wednesday: Music Thursday: Library (return books) Friday: PE (wear sneakers) Scholastic Book Club Orders Each month we will send home Scholastic Book Club catalogs. There are many genres and reading levels to select. Each time you order through Scholastic Book Clubs, you will earn a FREE Book Pick for our room. There is a Book Order link on our class website. Our class activation code is: LN2NV PTO Supplies Program- The PTO has been working hard to get students supplies. If you have not sent a check payable to the Stratton PTO, and are able, please do so at your earliest convenience. Class Communication Please contact me with a note sent to school or by e-mail. Depending on my schedule, the times I check emails may vary. If there is an urgent matter, please call Marie Fischer at 781-316-3753. Notices of up-coming events will also be sent home. I try to blog a few times each week about classroom happenings. Please visit our class website for more information: www.grade2rocks.com Dear Second Grade Families, Welcome to second grade! I can’t wait for the new school year. I hope you have been having a fun summer. This will be my 20th year teaching at Stratton School. I have taught first, second, and third grade. Grade two is so much fun! We will read and write amazing stories. We will play so many awesome math games. We will also study butterflies, bridges, Japan and so much more! On a personal note, I live with my husband Randy in Chelmsford with my son Brendan who is entering 6th grade, Nolan who is starting 4th grade and my step-daughter Sarah is going into 11th grade. We are a busy and active family. When we are not enjoying trips to Cape Cod and New Hampshire, you can find us on the baseball field or at the library. I am also a volunteer for the ONE Campaign (a non-profit organization co-founded by Bono to help end extreme poverty). During the year, I will send home newsletters with updates of our learning. I welcome you to email me with any questions or concerns during the summer and throughout the school year. I have included two surveys to be completed. It would be helpful to have these returned on the first day of school. Enjoy the remainder of the summer. I look forward to hearing about your summer adventures. We are going to have a fantastic year of learning! Sincerely, Mrs. Julie Barth jbarth@arlington.k12.ma.us |