Slower Paced Conference

Our Parent/teacher conferences felt rushed this time. 10 minutes barely allowed me to relay necessary information to you and didn't give us much time to discuss our individual expectations for the year. With most of you, I missed hearing about your child's and your needs and would love to hear more.

In case you felt as rushed as I did, here is what I'm expecting of you and your child this year:

Routine:
Procedures for birthdays, checking kids in and out of school, what to send with your child, ect. will be explained in a letter from the first grade teachers (printed on yellow paper), in your child's folder.

Reading:
Our minimum goal is to have each child read 100 minutes a week. Although, if you read together for 20 minutes each day, you will more than amply meet this goal. Practice is what develops this important skill. I wish I could read with every student 1 on 1 each day, but beyond some small group interaction, I don't get enough opportunities.

For a little variety, if your child has read 20 minutes and wants to do more, I would be happy to count time spent reading on Starfall.com. It is excellent for beginning readers and doesn't link to other sites. However, this site shouldn't be the only reading practice they get.

Please document all reading minutes in the planner, send it with your child on FRIDAY, and I'll return it to you on Monday. Anything read on Friday through Monday can be written in under the comments section.

Please note there are two copies of the list of high frequency words. Please give one to Grandma, Dad, Babysitter, or to anyone that your child spends much time with that would be willing to practice with them. (or if you're like me, you may want save the extra list in case you lose the first one) If your child passes off all six lists before the middle of April, they will get to play outside with Mrs. Anderson at a special extra recess.

Please work on these lists. It will make a huge difference in your child's reading ability. I realize some of your children already know most of the words, so we can quickly pass their lists off and let them make a necklace as soon as possible.

Math drills:
Please practice putting numbers in order from 1 to 20 and descending from 20 to 1, which will help prepare them for adding and subtracting. Choose 2 numbers and talk about bigger, smaller; greater than, less than; more and fewer. Please discuss and use all of these terms so your child will become familiar with them. When they are good with 2 numbers, choose 4 and have them put the numbers in order from the least to the greatest.
I hope this helps. I feel like I was running a race as we talked. I wish I could have heard more from you. Please use the planner to write me notes about your child or e-mail using the address I showed you on the book order form.

I am looking forward to collaborating with your child and you this year. If we work together, we will successfully advance your child's education and have a positive experience in the process.
Thank you.
Mrs. Reeder