Welcome to Second Grade!
Room 148 News!
I am very excited for the 2012-2013 school year! I am
Mrs. Collins and I am thrilled to be your child’s teacher. The best way to communicate with me is through e-mail at mary.collins@cusd200.org
. I check it before school, during lunch and after school. You may also call the front office at 630-393-
1787 but e-mail is quicker. If your child forgets an item, you may drop it off in the front office and they will let me know.
I have many exciting things planned for the year. I will fill you in on all that on Curriculum night. But, there are a few things I need to share with you that just can’t wait. First and most importantly is a healthy snack! Please have your child bring a healthy snack each day to school to help get through the morning until lunch time. Snacks such as fruit, crackers, bags of
Cheerios, cheese sticks, and granola bars are all great choices.
Foods that require a spoon need to be saved for lunch. Chips, cookies and candy will not be allowed for snack time. Children may keep a water bottle on their desk if it has a sport top so they do not have to take the lid off to drink. They will be sent home every Friday for a good washing!
Every night your child will bring home their planner and homework folder. Please check it each night for parent mail and remove all graded work. Have your child return their planner and folder the next day with mail for me on the left side and completed homework on the right side. Please also sign your child’s planner once homework is completed on that specific day.
In addition to the homework pages included in the folder, your child is expected to read for 20 minutes per night. If your child goes to Club Read and is given reading from the reading teacher, then that counts for the 20 minutes. If you read back and forth

with your child, that also counts towards the 20 minutes.
Research shows that children who read at home in addition to reading in school make faster progress not only in reading but in vocabulary acquisition. It will be your child’s job to write in their planner each night what he/she has read and how long he/she read. Homework begins next Monday so keep your eyes open for a labeled homework folder to be coming home!
I truly appreciate and welcome parent helpers. I have parents help run off copies, gather materials or make items for the classroom, meet with small groups to hear them read, hang art work, or pull children to administer an assessment. The children also love to have parents do a Read Aloud. I have included a Parent Volunteer Calendar with this newsletter. If you would like to volunteer, please sign your name on the date(s) you’d like to come in along with the time you will arrive and leave.
I will probably be involved with the children when you arrive so I may just leave a basket and/or a note outside the classroom with a “to do” list. I thank you in advance for your help!
Finally, thank you for allowing me to spend the day with your child. I am looking forward to a wonderful year!