May 23, 2022
Dear Parents,
It is hard to believe, but this is the last full week of school. I want to thank you all for the opportunity to be your child’s first grade teacher. It was a joy to work with, laugh with, and watch each child’s accomplishments this school year! Also, thank you for all of your support, and encouragement. I greatly appreciate all you have done for your child and myself…as they say “It takes a village to raise a child.”
Please continue to read to your child this summer and since they have become such great readers, have them read to anyone and everyone that will listen to them! ☺ Also practice math facts with your child over the summer. There are some great programs on-line, but good old-fashioned flash cards are great! On Friday, May 28, I will be sending home a summer folder with some reading, math, and writing activities inside. I will also be sending home your child’s report card and our handprint scrapbook they have been working on all year. Thank you to Miss Dawn for working with each child all year on the scrapbook pages. I hope you enjoy them! ☺
On Wednesday, May 26, we will be walking to and from the Northside Field and having a pizza lunch. Please make sure your child wears tennis shoes, and not sandals or flip flops. Just an FYI, the temperature is to be around 64 degrees. ☺ We will have our North Elementary School picnic on Friday afternoon. There are a lot of fun activities planned for the children. There will be no school on Monday, May 31, as it is Memorial Day. Thank you to all who have served. Tuesday, June 1, will be Award’s Day and it is also the last day of school. The children will be dismissed for the summer at 11:15 and no lunch will be served.
This week we will be starting to clean out our desks, cubbies, and classroom. I remember when my son would bring home a big bag of items on the last day school, and I would have to go through it all .Yikes! I am going to send a few things home each day this week, so you will not be bombarded with it all at once. Please make sure to check your child’s backpack nightly. Thank you!
The end of the school year is always bittersweet, even though summer vacation is wonderful. I have “loved” every child in my class, and will miss them dearly. Each year it is so hard to let the children go and move on to second grade. Your child will always have a special place in my heart! Thank you for sharing him/her with me!
Have a safe and enjoyable summer!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Martin ☺
Dear Parents,
It is hard to believe, but this is the last full week of school. I want to thank you all for the opportunity to be your child’s first grade teacher. It was a joy to work with, laugh with, and watch each child’s accomplishments this school year! Also, thank you for all of your support, and encouragement. I greatly appreciate all you have done for your child and myself…as they say “It takes a village to raise a child.”
Please continue to read to your child this summer and since they have become such great readers, have them read to anyone and everyone that will listen to them! ☺ Also practice math facts with your child over the summer. There are some great programs on-line, but good old-fashioned flash cards are great! On Friday, May 28, I will be sending home a summer folder with some reading, math, and writing activities inside. I will also be sending home your child’s report card and our handprint scrapbook they have been working on all year. Thank you to Miss Dawn for working with each child all year on the scrapbook pages. I hope you enjoy them! ☺
On Wednesday, May 26, we will be walking to and from the Northside Field and having a pizza lunch. Please make sure your child wears tennis shoes, and not sandals or flip flops. Just an FYI, the temperature is to be around 64 degrees. ☺ We will have our North Elementary School picnic on Friday afternoon. There are a lot of fun activities planned for the children. There will be no school on Monday, May 31, as it is Memorial Day. Thank you to all who have served. Tuesday, June 1, will be Award’s Day and it is also the last day of school. The children will be dismissed for the summer at 11:15 and no lunch will be served.
This week we will be starting to clean out our desks, cubbies, and classroom. I remember when my son would bring home a big bag of items on the last day school, and I would have to go through it all .Yikes! I am going to send a few things home each day this week, so you will not be bombarded with it all at once. Please make sure to check your child’s backpack nightly. Thank you!
The end of the school year is always bittersweet, even though summer vacation is wonderful. I have “loved” every child in my class, and will miss them dearly. Each year it is so hard to let the children go and move on to second grade. Your child will always have a special place in my heart! Thank you for sharing him/her with me!
Have a safe and enjoyable summer!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Martin ☺
- Welcome To First Grade!
Welcome to First Grade! I am Mary Martin and will be your child’s first grade teacher this year! I am so excited for another school year at North Elementary. I am looking forward to getting to know you and your child. We will be learning so much and will be having lots of fun while doing so. I can’t wait for all of the successes that will come this year with your child. Just so you know a little about me, for the past thirty-five years it has been my passion being able to teach first grade. My husband Paul and I have one son Tyler. We also have two furry members of our family, our cats Magi and Frankincense (Frankie). This letter is to provide you with important information about North Elementary and our first grade classroom. Please keep this letter in a safe place so you are to reference during the school year. Thank you!
The school wide Open House will be on Monday, August 23 from 5:00-7:00. Mr. Bianco, our principal will be addressing the parents and students at 5:30 in the gym. If you are unable to make it to the Open House, please contact me if you would like to make other arrangements to bring in your child on a different day. I want you and your child to feel as comfortable with school as possible. It would be greatly appreciated if your child would bring in his/her school supplies during the Open House. Please label all of your child’s supplies.
There are many important items and information I would like to share with you concerning the upcoming school year in first grade. In addition, this year I have also included a separate note that references the safety guidelines and procedures we will be following this year to keep your child healthy and safe.
School Hours and Absences
Our school day begins with the first bell at 8:05 and school officially beginning at 8:10. Lunch and recess are from 11:20-12:00. The afternoon recess is 1:32-1:45. Our school day ends at 3:15. There will be more communication about the drop off and pick-up routine coming from Mr. Bianco. If your child is absent, please call the North School Office by 9:00 a.m. at 906-779-2626.
Contact Information
I am looking forward to a great year, even though times are quite different than previous years and what we are used to. I will be using Google Classroom this year and will be introducing your child to it at the beginning of the school year. This is important if we need to go to virtual learning at some point during the school year. Your child will already be familiar with it. You will receive an invite to my Google Classroom as soon as I collect all of the parent emails. Communication is so important to me and for a successful school year. If you ever have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me. My email address is [email protected] which I check often during the day. The phone number at North Elementary is 906-779-2626. If I am not available at the time you call, I will get back to you as soon as possible. I have set up a text messaging system called REMIND that you may sign up for. It is a great way for me to send out important school messages and reminders to our entire class. We are also able to message each other privately so all the parents do not see our communication. The instructions for you to sign up for this will be attached. Again, in the case that we may need to go to virtual learning, Remind is another great way to keep in touch. I would greatly appreciate you signing up for this. I also have a website that you can get to from the District Website which is www.imschools.org or you can get there directly by going to http:/mkmartin.weebly.com. Here you will find my lesson plans, weekly reading vocabulary and spelling words, weekly parent letters, along with pictures I take of our class and school events.
Red Folder
Due to trying to eliminate as many things being shared between school and home, I will not be sending home my regular communication folder as I have done in the past. Instead, every Monday (or the first day of the school for the week) your child will bring home a RED FOLDER. This folder will include notes from the office and classroom, my weekly parent letter, the weekly spelling words, high frequency words (reading vocabulary words), story vocabulary and academic vocabulary for the week. You will also find your child’s completed work from the previous week. I will also send home weekly homework packet which will include spelling word practice, a decodable reading story and a math practice page. Please make sure the completed homework packet is sent back to school every Friday, in your child’s Red Take Home Folder. This extra weekly practice will greatly benefit your child. Again, since we are trying to eliminate the number of items going back and forth from home to school, please keep all of your child’s completed work, and notes at home. Please return your child’s RED FOLDER back every Friday.
Breakfast, Snack, and Lunch
Breakfast and lunch is free for every student. Breakfast is available to students beginning at 7:30 every morning. Even though breakfast and lunch is free, it is very important that you still fill out the forms for district funding of our meal program. Thank you! Our daily snack time is usually between 9:45- 10:00. Since many children have allergies or are particular about what they eat, I ask that each child bring in their own individual snack every day. If you would like, you could send in a box of crackers, granola bars, fruit snacks, etc. that your child could keep in his/her cubby. I also have a refrigerator in the room if you would like to send in a perishable snack with your child. Please do not send in any candy with your child for snack time! I also have a Snack Shelf for children who forget their snack. I will periodically ask for donations for the Snack Shelf. This year I am asking for snacks that are individually packaged. Unfortunately, students will not be able to share any snacks. Your child may bring juice or a water bottle for snack time also.
Our lunch and lunch recess is from 11:20-12:00. Your child may choose to take hot lunch or the peanut butter and jelly option from the cafeteria, and their lunch also includes milk. If your child brings a cold lunch and does not bring a drink from home, they may purchase either chocolate or white milk from the lunchroom, for $.50. The charge for milk can either come off of your child’s lunch account or he/she may pay the lunch ladies when they get their milk. It will help the office if you send in lunch money on a weekly or monthly basis in sealed envelope labeled with your child’s name, my name, and lunch money amount written on the front. I will make sure it gets put into the drop box in the office. The menu for the first week of school is as follows:
Wednesday, August 25-Chicken nuggets, garlic bread, corn, and peaches.
Thursday, August 26-Corn Dog, baked beans, carrots with ranch, and applesauce.
Friday, August 27-Pizza, tossed salad, and a slushy cup.
Transportation
Again, Mr. Bianco will be providing more information about the drop off and pick-up routine. Your child’s safety is very important to me. I will take every precaution when your child is in my care. I like to make sure I know exactly how they are coming to and from school. If your child is riding the bus to and from school and you are unsure of what their bus number is or a pick-up and drop-off spot, please contact the office at 906-779-2626. If you are driving your child to school or your child is walking in the morning, please make sure they arrive to school on time. Children who arrive to school after 8:10 a.m. are considered tardy. The office keeps a record of these tardies and they will be documented on your child’s report card. If your child is taking the bus home at the end of the day, I will be placing a bus tag on them for the first two weeks of school. This will help your child to know where to go and will give the bus driver all the information they need to get your child home safely. Please make sure your child brings it back to school each day. Please let me know or the office know if your child will be going home a different way than what we have recorded, by calling the school office at 906-779-2626. We will not let your child go with another adult or take a different way home unless we have notification from you. Thank you!
Classroom Management
I am delighted that your child is in my class! We can all look forward too many exciting and rewarding experiences as the year progresses. I love to celebrate wonderful behavior and hard work! I also believe in having a classroom where every student feels safe, comfortable, and happy. I want each and every child to succeed. In order for this to happen, I make sure that I have a well-managed class. I believe that children need to learn the importance of accepting responsibility for their actions. All children are expected to follow classroom and school rules and procedures along with our new mask and social distancing guidelines. I will help them learn to do so in a positive and fair manner. Good discipline allows teachers to teach and students to learn. This is the right of every student.
I use a Stoplight Behavior System as my visual management tool. On the board there is a poster entitled “How Am I Doing Today?”. Every student starts on the “green light” each day. If a child chooses not to make good choices, he/she is moved up to the “yellow light” which means slow down and think about his/her choices. If a child continues to make poor choices, he/she is moved up to the “red light.” If a child is on the red light, he/she will have a conference with Mr. Bianco which could result in loss of recess time, time in the office, or an office referral being sent home. I am confident that your child will make wise choices and will be responsible for his/her own behavior. I look forward to establishing the best possible learning environment for your child. With teamwork and cooperation among parents, teacher, and students, we will have a terrific year! I truly appreciate your support with this plan, and if you ever have any questions, comments or concerns please feel free to contact me.
We Are a Classroom Family~~In this room, we:
*Raise your hand and wait to be called on.
*Follow directions the first time they are given.
*Do your work, and be on task.
*Always clean up your mess.
*Keep your hands, feet, and other objects to yourself.
*Use on inside voice.
*Keep the classroom supplies neat and organized.
*Stay in a straight line when walking in the hall.
*Follow the playground rules.
*Always be kind and respectful to others.
Birthdays
Birthdays are very important and special to the children. We will be celebrating each child’s birthday during the year. We will celebrate it on the day it occurs unless it falls on a weekend or a holiday, in which case we will celebrate as close as possible to the actual date. Summer birthdays will be celebrated throughout the year on the date of your choice. This way each child will have a special day during the school year. If you wish you may send in treats to share with the class, but please don’t feel obligated. For safety reasons, I am asking you send in prepackaged treats or something prepared from the store. At this time, we have 20 students in the class. I know birthdays are very exciting, but I ask that you please do not send invitations to school unless the whole class is invited-which may not be able to take place this year. I understand that it is difficult to invite the whole class, but there are often broken hearts of those that do not receive an invitation. If you only are able to invite a few children and cannot find addresses, just email me or come talk with me and we can work something out so I can discretely get the invitations out to the invited children.
Special Classes Schedule
Listed below is our schedule for our weekly special classes. This schedule is tentative. Please be sure that your child has gym shoes and is dressed appropriately for physical education (gym) days. If your child is unable to tie their shoes yet, please send in Velcro shoes. When we check our library books, they should be returned at least one day before our scheduled library day.
Monday-9:25-10:00-Dance and Movement with Mr. Williams
Tuesday-9:50-10:31-Art with Mrs. Bray
-12:55-1:25-Physical Education
Wednesday-10:45-11:20-Music with Mr. Williams
-12:15-12:45-Library
Thursday-12:35-1:20-Drama with Mrs. Basanese-Hill
Friday-12:55-1:25-Physical Education
-2:00-3:00-Chromebooks
Wish Lists
We will have various special activities and celebrations throughout the school year. There will be a wish list posted outside of our door for items needed for each event and a note will also be sent home.
I am glad to have your child in my class, and I am looking forward to a wonderful school year. First grade is a very critical year because your child will be learning how to read, write, and learn many basic math skills that will impact their entire educational journey. Your child will already be forming an attitude toward school that will last a lifetime. I will do my best in teaching your child this school year, but of course, you are their first teacher! I can’t wait to begin working with your child. I hope you will share in the growth and excitement that will be taking place in our classroom.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Martin :)