Class Disclosure

Mrs. Ritchie’s
   2nd Grade       

Class Disclosure

  2024-25 

kritchie@dsdmail.net

 

Attendance and Absences 

Regular attendance is important to success in school.  Every time your child is absent, he/she misses instruction. We know that illnesses and vacations come up.  If your child is going to be absent, an e-mail is greatly appreciated.  I will compile all of your child's missing work, and your child will get the work when he/she returns to school.  As per school policy, no work will be sent ahead of time for vacations.  Your child has the equivalent of one school day per day missed to finish his/her work. Students with 10 or more absences are considered chronically absent and will receive a letter from the administration. 

Behavior and Expectations 

              1.  Be Safe. Be Kind and Respectful. Be Responsible. 

            2.  Listen to and follow directions. 

            3.  Stay on task and work quietly. 

            4.  Turn in your best work. 

  • Students will earn classroom money for exhibiting appropriate behavior in class.  Students can spend classroom money during our class store, which will be held at the end of each month.  Students can lose money and/or recess time for inappropriate behavior. 
  • “Out of this World” tickets can be earned for exceptional behavior and meeting academic standards.
  • An "Off-Course" card will be given for severe or repeated misbehavior.  Administration will meet with your student, and you will be contacted.  Consequences for receiving an Off-Course card may include needing to pay classroom money and missing class store.

Birthdays

Birthdays are a wonderful time to let each child know they are special. Every child will receive a birthday letter from the children in his/her class, which will be made into a birthday book. We will celebrate half-birthdays for those with summer birthdays. Each month the PTA has a birthday table, and invitations will be sent home prior to the event. School policy does not allow for treats or toys to be sent to class.

Communication 

The best way to communicate with me is through email.  I typically check it before and after school.  I will get back with you as soon as I can.  If you have a change of plans about how your child needs to get home, please contact the office at 801-402-0400.  They will make sure that your child and I get the message since I am not able to check my email while I am teaching.  I will be emailing you a weekly newsletter to keep you updated on what is going on in our class. 

Curriculum 

  • Language Arts:  Move from decoding words to reading for understanding, long vowels sounds, and parts of speech. 
  • Speaking and Listening:  Be able to listen to a presentation and contribute through discussion to build understanding.  Be able to tell a story or recount an experience by speaking in complete sentences. 
  • Writing:  Write informational, opinion, and narrative paragraphs using complete sentences; using basic graphic organizer to develop ideas. 
  • Math:  Place value to 1,000, add and subtract three-digit numbers with regrouping, counting money, telling time, graphing, story problems, measurement, fractions, 2-D and 3-D shapes, beginning multiplication concepts. 
  • Social Studies:  Citizenship, map reading, continents, holiday celebrations, types of communities, economics.
  • Science:  States of matter, living things, and landforms. 

Dress Code 

  • Footwear:  No flip-flops.  Sandals that fasten around the ankle area are okay.  Students need to wear gym shoes to participate in P.E.  Students can change into gym shoes prior to PE if they want to wear different shoes during the day.
  • Clothing:  Hats and hoodies worn on the head are okay for recess, but not in the classroom.  All shirts must have sleeves.  No tank tops or spaghetti straps unless a sleeved shirt is worn underneath.  Also, shirts must cover midriffs.  Shorts and skirts must come to your student's fingertips when their hands are at their side.  For girls who wear skirts and dresses to school, please wear a pair of leggings or shorts underneath.  Also, please dress appropriately for the weather.
  • Hair:  No mohawks or extreme hairstyles. 

Exiting the Building 

All students are required to exit out the west doors (rear) of the school.  If your child needs to meet up with a sibling, please arrange for them to meet outside at the back of the school.  Please arrange playdates before school.  Students may not use the phone to ask permission to go home with a friend. The south side of the school is for drop-off/pick-up only.  Students must use the crosswalks to cross the street. Bikes and scooters must be walked at all times on school property.  Please be respectful of other's property when coming to and leaving school.

Grades

Students are expected to turn in all assignments, and to do their best. Report card grades are based on assessments.  Language Arts tests will be given weekly.  Math quizzes are also given frequently (about once a week).  Math tests will be given at the end of each math unit. Science and social studies grades are based upon participation and knowledge of concepts. Grades for art, music, computers, and P.E. are based on appropriate class participation. You may check your child’s scores on your myDSD account. The grade breakdown is as follows: 
3 – 85% or higher: grade-level work 
2 – 60-84%: below grade-level work 
1 – less than 60%: well below grade-level work 

Homework 

A homework packet will be sent home on Monday and is due on Friday. Homework will consist of language arts and math review concepts. Students are strongly encouraged to read at least 20 minutes every night.  They can do this silently or orally. It is crucial that they read, as it will help their fluency adn comprehension.  Moon Steps practice counts as reading minutes.  A monthly reading calendar will be sent home before the beginning of the new month for students to track their minutes. Reading calendars are due at the end of the month unless otherwise noted.  Students can earn classroom money for nightly reading when they turn in their calendars.

Laptops 

Please sign-in to your guardian account on myDSD to complete the parent acceptable use agreement.  Students will complete the acceptable use agreement at school.  Every 2nd grade student will get to use their own laptop computer.  The laptops will stay at school.  Use of the laptops is a privilege.  Students who abuse this privilege will have their laptop taken away and will be given similar work in paper format instead. 

Moon Steps

Your child will receive his/her very own Moon Step book.  This book consists of reading concepts and practice that will greatly help your student continue learning how to read.  There are nine steps with ten pages for each step. All students will start on Step 1, page 1 with letter sounds.  There is a parent guide to help with multiple sounds for the same letter. In order to pass off a page, your child needs to be able to complete the page independently and accurately. If your child practices 5-10 minutes and cannot independently and accurately finish the page, write the date on the bottom of the page and practice again the next day.  If your student passes off the section, write the date and your initials at the bottom of the page.  Have your child bring his/her book back to school the next day to pass it off. Students who pass off a page at home will then read the same page to a volunteer the next day at school.  Students who successfully read their page with the volunteer can then earn a sticker on their Moon Step chart to track progress. Students are limited to passing off one page per day so that everyone can have an opportunity to read every day.  Students will earn “Out of this World” tickets for each step they complete. There will be a special award for completing the entire book.  Passages are not timed.  It is recommended that students practice for 5-10 minutes every night.  This can count as part of your child’s nightly reading minutes.  

Prep Schedule 

Monday – PE 1:35 - 2:15
Tuesday – Music 1:45 - 2:15
Wednesday – Computers 1:35 - 2:15
Thursday – Art 1:35 - 2:15

Library, STEM, and counselor lessons to be determined.

Priority Skills – End of 2nd Grade Goals 

These goals are minimum benchmarks.  Students are encouraged to exceed these goals to better prepare them for third grade.

  • Reading:  Read 87 words per minute with 97% accuracy on the Acadience Test. 
  • Writing:   Write an informational paragraph consisting of one main idea sentence, three detail sentences, and a concluding sentence using correct punctuation, capitalization, and spelling 2nd grade high frequency words correctly. Include pertinent vocabulary words that relate to the topic and provide elaborative examples or explanations.
  • Math:  Compute addition facts up to 18 and subtraction facts from 18.  Complete 32 addition facts and 25 subtraction facts in separate two-minute timed tests. 

Safe Schools Procedures 

Please update your emergency contacts with the office or online with your myDSD account.  Anyone who is not on your emergency contact list will NOT be able to check your student out of school.  All visitors are required to check-in at the office with photo ID, sign-in on the computer, and always wear a visitor badge or sticker.  This includes class parties and field trips. HINT: take a picture of your ID, so you can show it from your phone.  If you need to check your child out early, you will also need to show your ID.  If you need to come into the school, please use the parking lot on the east side of the school. 

Technology Policy Basketball Starburst.jpg

Smartwatches and cellphones are allowed if they stay off and are kept in a student’s backpack. Smartwatches are not allowed to be worn during school hours.  Students can put them back on once they exit the building after school.

Toys

Please do not send toys to school, even if they are for recess.  Trading cards, action figures, stuffed animals, make-up, pencil sharpeners, and anything that a student may play with that distracts from learning are considered toys and will be confiscated. Basketballs, soccer balls, Nerf balls, and jump ropes can be brought to school to play with at recess. 

XTRA Math and IXL 

Your child will use these two math programs during the school day.  Xtra Math practices fact fluency with addition and subtraction.  Your child may practice this at home if you choose. IXL is a math program with lessons that align with the lessons I will be teaching.  Students will work at their own pace to complete these lessons.  If your child does not complete the IXL lessons in class, it will be sent home as homework. 

 

Thank you! Please contact me if you have any questions.