Dear New 4th Grade Families;
As your children’s new teacher I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself and share with you some of the things that you can look forward to seeing coming from 4th grade this year. With that said WELCOME, or BON BINI! Bon Bini means welcome. It comes from the native language Papiamento, from the Island of Aruba, about 14 miles north of Venezuela. My husband, Steve, also a teacher, our two children, Houston and Sydney and I, spent two years in Aruba teaching at the International School of Aruba. It was a great experience for all of us, and one that we will cherish for years to come.
Following our experience in Aruba we moved to Seattle where I obtained a job at St. George Parish School in the Title 1 room. For the past two years I have been working with students from Kindergarten through 5th grade in reading and writing. This experience has given me a great opportunity in working with assessments and knowing where students need to be by the end of each grade level. I will assess each student three times this year to make sure they are meeting standards. After each assessment you will receive a report of your child’s progress based on reading fluency, accuracy, rate, and comprehension. If there are any concerns for either you or myself we will schedule a meeting where we can discuss further strategies that may help your child so he/she can feel successful and meet standards for the end of the year. If you have further questions concerning assessment we can schedule a meeting through the office towards the beginning of the year.
Now for the fun part, the motto for this year is going to be, ONE HAPPY CLASSROOM. Fourth grade will be known as Angelville. The students will be put into neighborhoods or table groups in the classroom/village. Each group will come up with their own neighborhood name. Each member of the village will apply for a job in the village. They will apply for 3 jobs at the beginning of the year and after going through their applications I will assign village jobs. The application form will have a job description and salary. Each student will need to write one paragraph stating why they feel they would be suitable for that particular job in the village. Job assignments will change over the year where they can apply for new jobs.
Each week the students will be paid by the accountant. Each week the students will also need to pay rent for their space in the village to the banker. If rules are broken in the village penalties will have to be paid to the security guards who will then give the money to the banker. After 2 weeks we will have an auction. Students will be able to bid on items in the auction with the money that they have saved/made in their job. Fewer penalties mean more money to be spent at the auction. I could use some help from you parents with auction items. Any ideas you might have of things to donate would be awesome. If you have questions concerning items we can chat about it at the beginning of the year.
I am hoping to get a link from the school website to Angelville. I will be setting up a blog spot or website where you can see and read about the kinds of things that we are doing in Angelville. Each week the Bon Dia will be posted on the site. Bon Dia means ‘good-day.’ The Bon Dia will explain what we have done during that week and what you can look forward to in the future.
Homework! I am not a huge homework advocate. I am also a parent and realize how busy families are and the many activities students are involved in these days. A small homework packet will go home at the beginning of the week and need to be returned each Friday (this will mainly be spelling and a possible math sheet). The administrative assistant and postmaster in the village will help manage the comings and goings of the homework packets.
School work will be done in school. I always give ample time for school work to be completed in class. Occasionally it takes some students longer to get started than others, and so they fall behind in their work. Break time will be used to complete work that has not been completed in the time allotted. If break time is not sufficient enough time, this work will be coming home at the end of the day, and need to be returned the following morning. There are always exceptions to the rule. I will notify you if outside work coming home is an exception.
I ask that you send to school at the beginning of the year a picture of your child, and a picture your child’s hero, or someone your child looks up to (I do not mean celebrities, ex. Friend, family member). These do not need to be large pictures, smaller is better. These pictures will not be returned to you. I also ask that each student bring a journal to school, you can get them at Fred Meyer for around $2.
I am very excited about the start to this New Year. I do not have a school e-mail address yet, but will get one sent out as soon as I do. If you need to get a message to me you can call the school and leave one with the secretary--I have been in my classroom getting ready the past few weeks.
Enjoy the rest of summer,
Miz Stephanie Schmutz
As your children’s new teacher I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself and share with you some of the things that you can look forward to seeing coming from 4th grade this year. With that said WELCOME, or BON BINI! Bon Bini means welcome. It comes from the native language Papiamento, from the Island of Aruba, about 14 miles north of Venezuela. My husband, Steve, also a teacher, our two children, Houston and Sydney and I, spent two years in Aruba teaching at the International School of Aruba. It was a great experience for all of us, and one that we will cherish for years to come.
Following our experience in Aruba we moved to Seattle where I obtained a job at St. George Parish School in the Title 1 room. For the past two years I have been working with students from Kindergarten through 5th grade in reading and writing. This experience has given me a great opportunity in working with assessments and knowing where students need to be by the end of each grade level. I will assess each student three times this year to make sure they are meeting standards. After each assessment you will receive a report of your child’s progress based on reading fluency, accuracy, rate, and comprehension. If there are any concerns for either you or myself we will schedule a meeting where we can discuss further strategies that may help your child so he/she can feel successful and meet standards for the end of the year. If you have further questions concerning assessment we can schedule a meeting through the office towards the beginning of the year.
Now for the fun part, the motto for this year is going to be, ONE HAPPY CLASSROOM. Fourth grade will be known as Angelville. The students will be put into neighborhoods or table groups in the classroom/village. Each group will come up with their own neighborhood name. Each member of the village will apply for a job in the village. They will apply for 3 jobs at the beginning of the year and after going through their applications I will assign village jobs. The application form will have a job description and salary. Each student will need to write one paragraph stating why they feel they would be suitable for that particular job in the village. Job assignments will change over the year where they can apply for new jobs.
Each week the students will be paid by the accountant. Each week the students will also need to pay rent for their space in the village to the banker. If rules are broken in the village penalties will have to be paid to the security guards who will then give the money to the banker. After 2 weeks we will have an auction. Students will be able to bid on items in the auction with the money that they have saved/made in their job. Fewer penalties mean more money to be spent at the auction. I could use some help from you parents with auction items. Any ideas you might have of things to donate would be awesome. If you have questions concerning items we can chat about it at the beginning of the year.
I am hoping to get a link from the school website to Angelville. I will be setting up a blog spot or website where you can see and read about the kinds of things that we are doing in Angelville. Each week the Bon Dia will be posted on the site. Bon Dia means ‘good-day.’ The Bon Dia will explain what we have done during that week and what you can look forward to in the future.
Homework! I am not a huge homework advocate. I am also a parent and realize how busy families are and the many activities students are involved in these days. A small homework packet will go home at the beginning of the week and need to be returned each Friday (this will mainly be spelling and a possible math sheet). The administrative assistant and postmaster in the village will help manage the comings and goings of the homework packets.
School work will be done in school. I always give ample time for school work to be completed in class. Occasionally it takes some students longer to get started than others, and so they fall behind in their work. Break time will be used to complete work that has not been completed in the time allotted. If break time is not sufficient enough time, this work will be coming home at the end of the day, and need to be returned the following morning. There are always exceptions to the rule. I will notify you if outside work coming home is an exception.
I ask that you send to school at the beginning of the year a picture of your child, and a picture your child’s hero, or someone your child looks up to (I do not mean celebrities, ex. Friend, family member). These do not need to be large pictures, smaller is better. These pictures will not be returned to you. I also ask that each student bring a journal to school, you can get them at Fred Meyer for around $2.
I am very excited about the start to this New Year. I do not have a school e-mail address yet, but will get one sent out as soon as I do. If you need to get a message to me you can call the school and leave one with the secretary--I have been in my classroom getting ready the past few weeks.
Enjoy the rest of summer,
Miz Stephanie Schmutz
