About Fourth Grade

Dear 4-L Parents,

I would like to welcome you to fourth grade at Indian Trail School.  I am very pleased to have your child in my class and have enjoyed getting to know every one of my fourth grade students.

Important Information:

Starting Times:

Regular School Day: 8:40 a.m.  – 3:17 p.m.

Early Release Time (See district calendar for dates): 8:40-1:00p.m.

Welcome to my fourth grade class!  I look forward to partnering with you, in order to maximize your child’s academic, social, and personal growth. Although Open House is just around the corner, September 7th,  I’d like to share some important information with you, in regard to some fourth grade expectations and ways you can support your child outside of school.

Reading
1. Reading outside of school is very important! Your child is expected to read a book at home 30 minutes (5-7 days a week).
1. Be on the lookout for a form that your child will record the when he/she reads.

Math
1. Practice 10-15 minutes per day (3-4 days a week)  and memorize basic math facts of: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
2. Students will take regular timed tests on these facts.
3. A great resource for practice is my blog; there are plenty of links that can be used to practice math facts in a fun, engaging way.

Organization:
Assignment notebook:  students will use to write down homework assignments daily. Please check and sign nightly, to ensure that homework is complete and ready to be returned to school.
Take-Home Folder: will be brought home from school and returned to school daily.  This will be used for graded papers and communication from school, which should be emptied on a regular basis.
Accordian Folder:  will be used to organize resources that we use on a daily basis that will be kept at school in their desks.

Homework:
In addition to nightly independent reading, homework should not take longer than about 40 minutes to complete.  However, there may occasionally be long-term projects that require a little more time and planning… be on the lookout in the assignment notebook.

In order to for students to be prepared for class and to teach and promote responsibility, assignments need to be finished by their due date. If an emergency arises, please let me know, so I can accommodate.  If turning in work becomes a chronic problem, students will be given an overdue work notice to complete the work at home or recess.

Behavior Expectations
Our fourth grade behavior plan is based on positive reinforcement.  There will be a variety of incentives that will encourage students to work together in different ways.

4-L Classroom Rules:
1.  Be respectful to all class members, teachers, and visitors to our classroom.
2.  Be responsible for your actions, behavior, and work.
3.  Come prepared to class with all materials and ready to learn.
4.  Always try your best.

Recess/Lunch: is every day from 11:30-12:20. Students need to be prepared to dress for a variety of temperatures and weather conditions.

Supplies
In addition to required fourth grade supply list items, your child will also need the following by Friday, August 26th:
1. A smock for art, labeled in permanent marker, with your child’s full name
2. If you would like to send a pair of gym shoes to be kept at school, with your child’s first and last name labeled on each shoe, please do.

Snacks
1. Healthy, fruit or fresh veggies to adhere to our district’s health food policy.  (Please visit the district website for more information).
2. Water bottles (no juice or sport drinks) are fine, but please send only those with sport tops to avoid spills!

Birthdays
1. Treats are ALWAYS welcome, but also need to adhere to the district’s food guidelines.
2. Please make sure you provide the necessary plates, napkins, flatware, etc.
3. Treats can either be dropped off in the office by you or sent with your child in the morning.

If you have any comments, questions, or concerns prior to Open House, or at any point throughout the school year, please do not hesitate to contact me.  I can be reached by email, voicemail, or by a note sent in with your child.

Thank you in advance for all of your support!  Please sign and return the back page to indicate that you have read this letter.  I look forward to welcoming all of you at Open House on Wednesday, September 7th and to a productive year!

Scholastic Book Orders:

Throughout the year, students will receive book order forms from Scholastic, which include quality literature for reasonable prices. These orders will also help our class earn points to add new books to our classroom library.  I encourage parents to order online

Home-School Communication:

If you haven’t done so already, please sign-up for my blog: http://blogs.nssd112.org/slabellarte/ My site provides many helpful resources, dates, and even sites for student online learning. At Open House, I will model how to sign-up for a subscription, so emails will be sent to you as I update my site.

Thank you for your support and cooperation. Let’s have a great year!

Sincerely,

Stefanie Labellarte

224-765-3474

slabellarte@nssd112.org

“It is not so much what is poured into the student, 
but what is planted that really counts.”

-E.C. McKenzie