Kindergarten Parent ~ Teacher Conferences
Thursday, 11/6/08 and Thursday, 11/13/08
3:30 - 6:30 p.m.
Parent-teacher conferences occur at least once a school year. Many schools opt to have at least two a year, to help keep parents apprised of the progress their child is making in class. The teacher will spend time preparing what she has to say. The parents can do the same.
Parent-Teacher Relationship
Take advantage of opportunities to establish a relationship with the teacher. Attend any “getting-to-know-you” sessions. Visit during any Open Houses or Parent Nights. Make it a point to introduce yourself to the teacher and connect yourself with your child. Share any information that may help the teacher better understand your child (e.g. fears, special needs). Do not offer up a lot of personal information and do not request it from the teacher. Keep the relationship on a professional level. Remember she is your ally!
Communication with the Teacher
Be sensitive to the teacher’s availability for conversations outside of the parent-teacher conference. She should provide you with “office hours” for phone conversations. She may provide an e-mail address for correspondence. She may also accept little written notes from you to her. Communicating with the teacher shows that you are interested in your child’s progress. It also allows for fewer surprises at the actual conference time.
Communication with the teacher includes many things. Ask questions about daily work and assessments. Ask what behaviors the teacher is noticing at school. Share behaviors you are seeing at home. Alert the teacher to any changes that may be occurring in the child’s life. You don’t have to give specifics, but giving her notice that situations are changing will help her understand behavioral changes at school.
Preparation for the Parent-Teacher Conference
For at least a week before the conference, start compiling your notes. Make a list of any questions you may have, with examples. List your concerns. List positive comments about what you’re seeing.
Attending the Parent-Teacher Conference
Be courteous to other parents. Arrive to your conference on time and end on time. Everyone has a busy schedule. Follow-up conversations can occur at a later date, either in person or by phone or email.
Be courteous to the teacher. Let her speak first. Be a good listener and keep an open mind. Jot down any suggestions she may give then think about them. Don’t attack her if you disagree with something she says. Voice your concerns. If needed, sit on your comments and wait until you have calmed down and can rationally discuss them. If that doesn’t work, set up a meeting with an administrator to help work out your problems.
Take advantage of the time you are given to speak and share your concerns. The teacher should be respectful of you, as well, and listen with an open mind. Ask what you can do at home.
Following up a Parent-Teacher Conference
As needed, set up a follow-up appointment to discuss further progress, based on suggestions discussed during the parent-teacher conference. The more issues occurring, the sooner the follow-up needs to be.
Keep track of suggestions made by the teacher, your implementation of the suggestions, and any successes or failures.
Third Grade November News
Mrs. Blum and her language arts students will be concentrating on writing informational reports. Their first report will be on “LADYBUGS.” All of the students are making a great effort to accumulate 15 A.R. points for the second quarter.
Mrs. Albert and her little scientists have been observed working with some very interesting creatures. Seated in a cozy circle in the hallway outside their classroom, all students were intently working with insects. Some of these insects were huge in size brandishing bold colors and sharp pinchers!! Please, don’t worry parents. The insects were all made of plastic.
Mrs. Wagonfield’s math students are expending a great deal of energy in the computer lab. FAST MATH is a program every child works on every day of the week. It is so beneficial and also a lot of fun. Ask your child about it. The computer lab gives them more practice as they prepare for the math OAT. Pro-Ohio Math and CCC Math are additional programs provided for the children. The students are now beginning SUBTRACTION. How exciting!
Mrs. Kowalk’s classes are focusing on Historical Fiction for the upcoming quarter. She really knows how to make reading so much fun, and a concentration on historical fiction helps the students to learn about the past in a fun and interesting way. Reading material will be provided by many of the creative Magic Treehouse books. Mary Pope Osborne is the author of interest. It’s no wonder Mrs. Kowalk’s students love to read.
Computer Lab
We have been very busy in the Computer lab so far this year. The 1st grade classes are working on a program called Success Maker or CCC. CCC’s educational software is designed to improve student’s learning with comprehensive and interactive learning experiences. This is done through the use of multimedia instruction, activities, and tools. 2nd grade does CCC along with Fast Math. Fast Math is a program that assesses individual students’ fluency with basic math facts and then provides instruction and practice to fill in the gaps. Students start to develop automatic recall of basic math facts. 3rd -6th work on CCC, Fast Math and Pro-Ohio. Pro-Ohio is a diagnostic tool to help teachers prepare students for success on the Ohio Achievement tests.
Very big Congratulations to Brandon Pendergrass who was the first student this year to complete the Fast Math program. Way to go Brandon!!
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Music News
Greetings from Lincoln’s Music Room!
It is with mixed feelings that I begin this school year knowing it will be our last together at Lincoln. I have taught music at Lincoln since 1982 and have come to love the old building and its families. However, I am equally excited about starting the next school year in a brand new facility. I’m sure we will never look back. Change is scary, but change is also good.
We actually have a double celebration this year because, not only is this the final year for Lincoln Elementary School, it is Lincoln’s 100th year. We have activities planned throughout the year, many of which will include music.
On September 19th our students and parents will march in the HHS Homecoming parade while singing the school song and a special song created for Lincoln’s 100th year.
October 3 will be “Lincoln Night” at the HHS football game. All Lincoln students, alumni, staff and former staff are encouraged to go to the game dressed in their Lincoln attire or orange and black. A group of Lincoln alumni will be singing the National Anthem at the beginning of the game.
On November 11, our annual Veterans Day program will have a special focus on Lincoln alumni and staff. If you know of any Lincoln alumni who are veterans, please invite them to our program and encourage them to send us a picture so they can be featured during one of our songs. More details will come later.
Our traditional time of singing around the Christmas tree will take place on December 16, 17, and 18. Again alumni and former staff members are encouraged to join us.
February 12 is Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday which makes it a great day to celebrate the man and the school. One of the events will be the presentation of a musical play “Tall, Tall Abe” by our 5th and 6th grade chorus.
Sunday, April 19 from 1:00 – 4:00 is the date for our community Open House. All of the students will be involved in performances throughout the day. Each grade level 1-6 will focus on one or two decades of music from 1909 – 2009.
On June 4, the last day of school, please join us on the front lawn for a final group singing of our school song.
A few important notes:
4th Grade: Be sure to pay your $5.00 fee for a recorder. If your child already has a recorder at home that he/she will be using in class it must be turned in before Sept. 26.
5th and 6th Grade: Get involved in chorus! Watch for permission/commitment slips.
Grades 2 – 6: Bring 2 AA batteries for our keyboards.
Art News!
Our theme for this year is “Reconstructing the Past, Building the Future!”
Lincoln artists have a very busy year ahead of them. They will be very actively engaged in two Art Fundraisers which will help raise funds to offset the price of publishing the Lincoln Commemorative book called “The Lincoln Legacy”. Intermediate art students have been busy interviewing, researching and writing for this book since last year and they will continue with this project this fall with the book being targeted for release Spring 2009. All Lincoln artists will participate in Kids’ Art Fair and Original Works fundraiser projects.
In the upcoming months Lincoln artists will be studying:
6th grade – one and two point perspective
5th grade 4th grade – recycling sculpture - This project is a required project. I haven’t received word from the environmental services for due dates. Because of the nature of the project most of the work will be done at home. Any object can be used but food! We ask when using food containers they use be washed completely prior to gluing and/or painting. The maximum dimensions of these works is 2’ x 4’. Consult with your child in the next week or two for a memo I’ll send home as soon as I hear from Environmental Services.
While in class, 4th and 5th graders will be studying form. They will also be working on artworks for Original Works fundraiser and Kid’s Art Fair!
3rd grade – will be studying Lincoln Elementary’s architecture. They will be doing drawings and building models of what Lincoln looked like when it was first built.
2nd grade – will dive into a study of color. In first grade they learned the primary and secondary colors. They will enhance their learning of color by studying value.
1st grade – will begin their study of color. They will use their knowledge to create works for the Kids’ Art Fair and Original Works. These artists will also be studying the fashions of students in 1909 compared to students of today.
Kindergarten – will study the properties of line. We will practice their knowledge and skills in creating underwater seascapes. These works will be used in the fundraisers scheduled.
Lincoln artist are off to a running start! It looks to be a very promising year!
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Alumni Central
As you probably know, Adams Elementary will be closing in June. Therefore, we are offering this commemorative ornament to current and past students and staff for ONLY $5. The ornament is clear, three inches wide and features the origina
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