All About Grade 1
1K Classroom Procedures
Student Arrival and Departure
If you drive your child to and from school, please make sure that you arrive before the first morning bell rings at 8:10 am. Coming into the class late disrupts the morning routine and students miss out on valuable information that is covered. When picking up your child, please have a meeting place where you can be located each day. Please have siblings meet in the same place each day also. This helps to limit anxiety and confusion for your child. The students in 1K will enter and exit through the doors in the alcove.
Reading Program
At Nose Creek Elementary, our main focus is reading. In order to ensure that all students become successful readers, a variety of different reading/writing programs will be used to cover the curriculum for grade one.
Along with this, there will be a home reading program that will begin mid to end September. I can’t stress enough the importance of reading with your child on a nightly basis. When you are reading, ask your child a lot of questions to make sure that he or she understands the story. I know that many of you have a lot of activities happening in the evenings, but it is important that you try to set aside a small amount of time for reading. Please use the home reading logbook (Book Buddy) to record all of the books your child reads. I would like the students to read nightly and return their book bag the following day. Please ensure that you and your child take care of all the items in the bag, as you will be responsible for replacing them if they are lost or damaged.
Fry Word Lists
The grade one classes at Nose Creek Elementary School use the Fry Word lists as a guideline for the basic sight words that we would like the students to learn. Some of these words are the same as the sight words that will come home on the homework sheets. The Fry words can be found in the Book Buddy. I will be testing the students on these words regularly and when they are able to read them all without sounding them out, they will move onto the next level. Please try to set aside some time each week to practice these words.
Spelling
Starting in January, your child will be bringing a spelling list home every Friday. The words will be written in the agenda. Please spend time looking over these words with your child, to help them prepare for the test on the following Friday. Some suggestions for how these words could be practiced, would be to have your child read the words, write them out, quiz your child orally, make the practice a game, put the words in a word search, and anything else that you can think of to make the learning more fun.
Lunch
Students will require a snack and nutritious lunch every day. Sending a healthy lunch and snack will help to fuel your child’s body and brain. Please ensure that students have the appropriate cutlery needed and that fruit etc. is cut up ahead of time. As well, please note that there is no access to microwaves. It is also important to ensure that your child has something to eat prior to coming to school in the morning. Research has shown that people are more productive throughout the day when they have eaten a healthy breakfast. Nose Creek is a peanut/nut aware school. Please avoid sending any food items that contain nuts. We have a strict no food sharing policy in our classroom and we will take all necessary precautions to ensure that all of the children are safe and healthy while they are in our care.
Volunteering
Grade one classrooms are generally quite busy, often with a variety of activities happening at one time. Any extra help that you can offer is greatly appreciated. We often need help with listening to reading, daily class activities, and preparation for future activities. I will be using the website, signupgenius.com, for parents to signup on their preferred day. Information on how to login and sign up will come home in September.
Birthdays
In each classroom, birthdays will be recognized on or near the date of each child’s birthday. Summer birthdays will be recognized during the month of June.
Agenda
The students will each have an agenda. This agenda needs to be brought back to school every day. Please try to look at this every night (don’t forget to check the pouch in the front) and initial to show that you have checked it. I will sometimes write notes in here about how your child is doing, or there will be reminders about activities that are coming up. I would appreciate if you also would write notes in the agenda about any questions or concerns that you have. I check them every day, and I find it to be a great communication tool! The spelling words will also be written in the agenda every Friday.
Current Events
In order to add to our grade one social studies program, we will regularly be taking a close look at some current events. If you have any events happening in your family, have your child write or draw a picture about it and bring it in. Also, if you are reading the newspaper together and see anything interesting and appropriate for grade one, please send it in.
Water Bottle
I encourage all students to keep a water bottle at their desk. It can only contain water. I don’t allow juice or other beverages. If your child would like to keep a bottle at his or her desk, please make sure that it is one that won’t spill a lot if it is accidentally knocked over. Bottles will be sent home every Friday to be cleaned and should be returned every Monday.
Inside Shoes and Dressing for the Weather
Nose Creek Elementary School has a two-shoe policy; all students will be required to have a pair of proper indoor running shoes that will not leave marks on our school floor.
Please ensure that your child is dressed appropriately for the weather every day. The weather is not always predictable or enjoyable, but it is still valuable for students to have outdoor recess for fresh air and exercise.
Label Everything J
I strongly recommend that you label all items that your child brings (coats, shoes, backpacks, lunch bags, hats, mittens). Labelling will help limit the amount of lost belongings that collect in the school lost and found bin.
School Supplies and Kleenex
Last but not least, I would like to remind you that all school supplies are provided. However, with the many colds that are passed around throughout the year, we tend to use a lot of Kleenex. I would like to request that all families send in 1 box of Kleenex to start the year. I will send out another request if/when we run out midyear.
Please let me know if you have any questions about any of the above items. As well, feel free to contact me throughout the year if you have any questions or concerns. My email is bkoop@rockyview.ab.ca and the school phone number is 403-945-1001.
1K Classroom Procedures
Student Arrival and Departure
If you drive your child to and from school, please make sure that you arrive before the first morning bell rings at 8:10 am. Coming into the class late disrupts the morning routine and students miss out on valuable information that is covered. When picking up your child, please have a meeting place where you can be located each day. Please have siblings meet in the same place each day also. This helps to limit anxiety and confusion for your child. The students in 1K will enter and exit through the doors in the alcove.
Reading Program
At Nose Creek Elementary, our main focus is reading. In order to ensure that all students become successful readers, a variety of different reading/writing programs will be used to cover the curriculum for grade one.
Along with this, there will be a home reading program that will begin mid to end September. I can’t stress enough the importance of reading with your child on a nightly basis. When you are reading, ask your child a lot of questions to make sure that he or she understands the story. I know that many of you have a lot of activities happening in the evenings, but it is important that you try to set aside a small amount of time for reading. Please use the home reading logbook (Book Buddy) to record all of the books your child reads. I would like the students to read nightly and return their book bag the following day. Please ensure that you and your child take care of all the items in the bag, as you will be responsible for replacing them if they are lost or damaged.
Fry Word Lists
The grade one classes at Nose Creek Elementary School use the Fry Word lists as a guideline for the basic sight words that we would like the students to learn. Some of these words are the same as the sight words that will come home on the homework sheets. The Fry words can be found in the Book Buddy. I will be testing the students on these words regularly and when they are able to read them all without sounding them out, they will move onto the next level. Please try to set aside some time each week to practice these words.
Spelling
Starting in January, your child will be bringing a spelling list home every Friday. The words will be written in the agenda. Please spend time looking over these words with your child, to help them prepare for the test on the following Friday. Some suggestions for how these words could be practiced, would be to have your child read the words, write them out, quiz your child orally, make the practice a game, put the words in a word search, and anything else that you can think of to make the learning more fun.
Lunch
Students will require a snack and nutritious lunch every day. Sending a healthy lunch and snack will help to fuel your child’s body and brain. Please ensure that students have the appropriate cutlery needed and that fruit etc. is cut up ahead of time. As well, please note that there is no access to microwaves. It is also important to ensure that your child has something to eat prior to coming to school in the morning. Research has shown that people are more productive throughout the day when they have eaten a healthy breakfast. Nose Creek is a peanut/nut aware school. Please avoid sending any food items that contain nuts. We have a strict no food sharing policy in our classroom and we will take all necessary precautions to ensure that all of the children are safe and healthy while they are in our care.
Volunteering
Grade one classrooms are generally quite busy, often with a variety of activities happening at one time. Any extra help that you can offer is greatly appreciated. We often need help with listening to reading, daily class activities, and preparation for future activities. I will be using the website, signupgenius.com, for parents to signup on their preferred day. Information on how to login and sign up will come home in September.
Birthdays
In each classroom, birthdays will be recognized on or near the date of each child’s birthday. Summer birthdays will be recognized during the month of June.
Agenda
The students will each have an agenda. This agenda needs to be brought back to school every day. Please try to look at this every night (don’t forget to check the pouch in the front) and initial to show that you have checked it. I will sometimes write notes in here about how your child is doing, or there will be reminders about activities that are coming up. I would appreciate if you also would write notes in the agenda about any questions or concerns that you have. I check them every day, and I find it to be a great communication tool! The spelling words will also be written in the agenda every Friday.
Current Events
In order to add to our grade one social studies program, we will regularly be taking a close look at some current events. If you have any events happening in your family, have your child write or draw a picture about it and bring it in. Also, if you are reading the newspaper together and see anything interesting and appropriate for grade one, please send it in.
Water Bottle
I encourage all students to keep a water bottle at their desk. It can only contain water. I don’t allow juice or other beverages. If your child would like to keep a bottle at his or her desk, please make sure that it is one that won’t spill a lot if it is accidentally knocked over. Bottles will be sent home every Friday to be cleaned and should be returned every Monday.
Inside Shoes and Dressing for the Weather
Nose Creek Elementary School has a two-shoe policy; all students will be required to have a pair of proper indoor running shoes that will not leave marks on our school floor.
Please ensure that your child is dressed appropriately for the weather every day. The weather is not always predictable or enjoyable, but it is still valuable for students to have outdoor recess for fresh air and exercise.
Label Everything J
I strongly recommend that you label all items that your child brings (coats, shoes, backpacks, lunch bags, hats, mittens). Labelling will help limit the amount of lost belongings that collect in the school lost and found bin.
School Supplies and Kleenex
Last but not least, I would like to remind you that all school supplies are provided. However, with the many colds that are passed around throughout the year, we tend to use a lot of Kleenex. I would like to request that all families send in 1 box of Kleenex to start the year. I will send out another request if/when we run out midyear.
Please let me know if you have any questions about any of the above items. As well, feel free to contact me throughout the year if you have any questions or concerns. My email is bkoop@rockyview.ab.ca and the school phone number is 403-945-1001.
