August 6, 2009
Mrs. Courtney’s Class is Unique, but we all fit
together!
Dear Parents,
Hello! My name is Suzie Courtney and I am going to be your child’s 2nd grade teacher
this year. I feel honored to be working at Carlisle County and I am very excited about this year.
I am thrilled that your child is in my class and I can’t wait to get to know him/her. I also look
forward to working with you. I love parent involvement and believe it is vital in the success of
your child. I encourage you to volunteer throughout the year as often as you can; however, I do
understand that many parents are very busy with work and other obligations. In this letter you
will find important information about your child’s class. We went over much of this today in
class but I strongly encourage you to review it with your child. If you ever have any questions
please call or e-mail me. My phone number and e-mail address are at the bottom of the page.
Please call after school or during my planning period which will be 1:20-2:00 Monday-Thursday
and 2:05-2:50 on Friday.
Classroom Management
Color Cards: Hanging on the wall is a chart with slots, one for each student. In the slots each
student has their own group of cards. These cards are laminated pieces of paper, each a different
color. Every day the students will start on green but as the day progresses they may be asked (by
me or another teacher) to move their card. The colors and meanings will go as follows:
Color:
Meaning:
Point Value:
Green
Good, keep up the good work
0 points
Blue
Warning
-1 point
Yellow
Miss 10 minutes of recess
-2 points
Red
Miss all of Recess
-5 points
Black
Miss all of Recess & 1 ISS write-up
-10 points
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
The reasons why students may be asked to turn their card are:
Talking or yelling,
Out of seat,
Not following directions,
Hallway/bathroom behavior,
Lunchroom/special class behavior,
Not keeping hands, feet or objects to self.
Other
If a student has to move his or her card, we will write the above coordinating number in
your child’s agenda to inform you of the misbehavior.
At the first of the month each child will start with a 100% conduct grade. For each card
they are asked to move that card’s point value will be deducted from their 100% conduct grade
for the month. We reward the students who have at an 86% and higher conduct grade for the
month with a behavior party! While those students with less than 86% have to sit and do class
work in a separate room.
Reinforcement Systems:
One method of reinforcement I will use in my classroom is “Classroom Store”.
Throughout the month students will earn pennies for positive things that they do. Some
examples of positive things are: making a 100 on a test, showing improvement on a test or
subject area, letting someone else go first in line, holding doors open, etc. If I see someone do
something respectful or positive than I will reward him or her with a penny. At the end of each
week we’ll have an “exchange time”; during this time the students will be able to exchange with
me some of their pennies for nickels or dimes. This will allow the students to have fun while at
the same time sharpen their math and money skills. Then, on the last Friday of the month we
will have “Classroom Store”. On this day the students get to be proud of their accomplishments
over the past month by buying fun things with the money they earned. I will have toys, pens,
colored pencils, crayons, and some other fun things that the students will get to come up and pick
from. The items will have prices on them and the students will have to figure up how much they
have so they can see what all they can buy. This is a positive activity that promotes
improvement and being kind to others. It also gets the students involved and sharpens their
skills.
Daily Folders
Each day your child will bring home a folder. The left side will be labeled “Keep”. This
side will have worksheets and homework that your child has completed. You may keep all the
work in this side of the folder unless it is stamped “Sign and Return”. The right side of the
folder will be labeled “Notes”. This side will contain notes from the school, PTA, and myself.
Please make sure to look through the notes carefully, some may need to be returned and some
may just be information for you. This folder should be returned each day. Please put any notes
for me or the school in this folder, I will check them each morning.
Agenda Books
Today your child received an agenda book. Each day your child will be given time to fill
out their agenda; the agenda will be on the overhead for them to copy. The agenda book will go
home each night and you are expected to sign it, this lets me know that you have knowledge of
the assignments; the agenda is then returned to school the next day. Agendas are also a good
way for us to communicate. There is a box at the bottom of each agenda page for teacher notes
and one for parents notes, please feel free to leave any comments for me there. Agenda books
will be checked first thing in the morning, and if your child’s agenda is not signed he/she will
miss 5 minutes of recess.
Again, if you have any questions or concerns don’t hesitate to call or e-mail me. I will
send out a monthly newsletter to inform you of the upcoming activities or lessons that your child
will be participating in. I hope that this letter has helped you to gain insight into my classroom
and expectations. I am very excited about this school year and working with your children, I
know they will have a lot of fun and I will too. Thank you so much for your time.
Sincerely,
Suzie Courtney
Phone number: 628-3600 ext. 6019 E-mail: suzie.courtney@carlisle.kyschools.us
Planning Period: M-Th 1:20-2:00 & F 2:05-2:50
Please sign and return the bottom portion of this letter, but keep the letter for future reference.
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I have read and understand Mrs. Courtney’s classroom management
plan, reinforcement systems, daily folders, and agenda books.
____________________
Child's Name
________________________
Please sign and date