Johnson Memo: Monday Memo

Grab your morning coffee, I've got lots of tidbits to share...

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:
*While Mrs. Lauth is on maternity leave her substitute in the elementary will be Lisa Blanton. Lisa will only be here on Mondays and Wednesdays (she works in Neosho on the other days).
*There are several sign-up sheets in the mail room: Time for me to read to your class, Detention duty, District Newsletter, Committees, etc. Please make sure to sign up for each.
*I forgot to include the certified recess duty schedule in your handbooks. That doesn't mean you're "off the hook!" ;) It's in your mailbox.
*You'll notice that we don't have a grade level meeting scheduled during our in-service days to determine our new goals for the year. This is because we already have a jam-packed schedule, so we will be discussing goals and if any changes will be needed for the math section of our report card (on September 25).
*If you're looking for a book to read on the first day of school, I have several to loan out since I'll be reading the Bucket Filling books. I have: First Day Jitters, The Night Before Preschool, The Night Before First Grade, The Kissing Hand, and Miss Nelson is Missing. Just let me know if you're interested.
*For the first 2 days of school, here is the "Recess Orientation" Schedule to mark in your lesson plans:
Wednesday: 9:30-9:45 5th Grade
10:15-10:30 5K
12:30-12:45 1st Grade
Thursday: 9:30-9:45 4th Grade
10:15-10:30 3rd Grade
12:30-12:45 2nd Grade
Please come with your class to these so we are all on the same page with the recess rules and feel free to chime in if Sarah or I forget something.

For Open House:

*This year I will be giving a parent presentation in the gym at 5:30, 6:00, and 6:30. I will be talking about: our new website, common core standards, new math curriculum, Daily 5/Cafe, Bucket Filling and encouraging parents to read at home to their children and volunteer sometime this year.
*In your mailbox you will each find 1 copy of a grade level specific handout for parents on what students will learn for Math/Language Arts with the new common core standards. I thought this might be great to give to parents at Open House, but I will leave it to your discretion to review and see if you want to share it that night or not. Here is where I found them online.
*I have several ideas from Pinterest below, but here are some other tips/ideas for Open House:

-Have a welcome message for families on the board or doorway that also tells them what to do (ex: Find your desk, put supplies away, etc.)

-Have a sign-in sheet for parents (you will need to turn in totals to Marie).

-Have a sign-up sheet for parent teacher conferences in October (then when you send home that form later it will just be a reminder...the majority of the scheduling will already be done!)

-Have a stack of papers on each desk: parent contact information, student interest survey, whatever froms you typically send home during the first week of school.

-Have an index card or "Open House Parent Note to Teacher" on each desk so that if a parent has a concern you can ask them to write on the card. You can tell the parent that you can follow-up with a phone call or conference to discuss their concerns (not at Open House).

-Have a Classroom Scavenger Hunt or Open House Activity on each students' desk.

-Provide parents with stationary to write a special note to their child (maybe the first "drop" in their bucket?)

-Share your wish list (items you hope to have donated for the class). This could be apples hanging from a tree or small slips hanging by magnets on your whiteboard.

Ideas for Open House:

Read about this idea here

Idea for seeking donations

Download this handout here

"Task" for students at Open House. Read more here

Idea for the first day(s):

*Looking for books to start off your year? Donalyn Miller (author of The Book Whisperer) gives a great list of books here that help to build community at the same time.