Classroom Information

I would like to share with you a little information about the classroom and daily procedures:

· Subject Areas: Your child will be spending their day in a variety of environments. Part of their day will be spent learning in my classroom and other parts of the day will be spent in their general education rooms. These times and learning environments are individually scheduled according to each child’s I.E.P. Both curriculum and I.E.P. goals will be taught across environments throughout the day. Individual schedules are attached to give you a better idea of how your child spends his/her day.

· Character: The character traits of respect, responsibility, honesty, and kindness play a very important role in our classroom. Throughout the year, we will have many discussions/lessons that will help each child recognize these values and how to instill them in their own lives. Please talk to your child about these character traits at home and reinforce good choices that they make outside of the school environment.

· Behavior Plan: The expectations for all students are to act respectfully, responsibly, and honestly across all environments within the school. In order to monitor these expectations, there is a chart on the board, which is divided into 5 sections. The sections range from +3 to -3. Each student will have their name on a magnet and will begin the day in 0. During the day their name can move up when they make good choices or down when they are not following the expectations. Good choices might include raising their hands to be called on, assisting a classmate, following directions, or being on task for duration of the lesson. Students can also earn an extra point for being prepared with homework and materials. This system gives students the chance to redeem themselves. The first thing in the morning it is each student’s job to fill out their incentive chart that keeps track of where they were at the end of the day. They then move the names back to 0. At the end of each week is a reward day. Depending on how many points they have, students can choose rewards such as playing educational games, a chance to read or have lunch with another teacher, computer time, or free homework passes. Students may also choose to save their points to “buy” a bigger reward or prize the next week.

-If students are having difficulty making good decisions, they will lose points and will be given time to reflect on their decisions by completing a “Cool Down Card” to make a plan to improve their behavior. I hope that you will discuss your child’s successes with them and help them plan to make good choices!

-Severe behavior such as continued disrespect or violence towards an adult or another student will result in more severe consequences.

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