Welcome to Our
First Grade Parent
Night!
Moseley Elementary
Welcome to First Grade!
 Arrival: Instruction begins at 8:10 a.m. The first bell rings
at 8:00 a.m. Students should be dropped off in the
cafeteria. Parents wishing to walk their child to class must
enter through the front office and sign-in.
 Tardies: Each child is counted tardy after the 8:10 bell
rings. Excessive tardies can interfere with your child’s
daily academic start. Multiple tardies can keep a child from
being awarded a Perfect Attendance or Excellent
Attendance award at the end of the school year.
 Absences (Excused/Unexcused): Parents must call in
before 10:00 a.m. on the day of the absence AND provide
a note within four days of the absence.
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 Dismissal Time: First grade dismissal is 3:20PM outside,
under the awning. Each class has a designated window to sit
under. Children must go to the window and then say
“goodbye” to their teacher to ensure safety. If students are
not picked up by 3:30, you will need to sign them out from the
office.
 Doctor’s Appointments: Please try to schedule in the
afternoon, if possible.
 Special Needs: Please inform us of any health concerns,
changes at home, etc.
 Changes in Work or Home Phone Numbers: Please keep
us up to date on any changes in numbers for emergency
reasons.
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 Lunch Money: You can put money in your child’s account any
morning. Parents may specify how money is to be spent
(breakfast, lunch, and/or snacks). Please put your driver’s
license number on all checks. Also, consider putting a little
money in the lunch account even if you always send a lunch (in
case he/she forgets the lunch). There is no borrowing of lunch
money from the office or staff. If your child does not have
money in the account, a sandwich and milk will be provided.
 Birthdays: Due to district policy, birthday treats are no allowed
at lunch. You may send cupcakes or cookies which will be
passed out by the teacher later in the day. Please do not send
items that need to be cut or plated.
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 Background Check: A background check is required to
be on file for any adult who volunteers in Grand Prairie
schools. It must be filled out yearly. Please feel free to fill
it out online here at school if you do not have a computer
at home.
 The background check is located at:
https://webapps.gpisd.org/hrproject/tssp/tsspvol.cfm
 You may not attend field trips or volunteer at the school
without a completed and current background check.
Because the background checks take time to process,
please do not wait until right before a field trip to complete.
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Class Subjects
 The subjects we cover during first grade are:
 Reading and Writing (English Language
Arts/Spanish Language Arts)
 Math
 Science/Health
 Social Studies
 Music, Physical Education, and Art
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Reading
Balanced literacy program based on the ELA/SLA TEKS:
 Phonemic Awareness-sounds of the language
 Phonics-sounds & letters
 Reading Comprehension-understanding what one
reads
 Word Work-vocabulary development & word wall
words
 Fluency-read “like you talk” with accuracy &
expression
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Reading
How can you help with reading at home?
 Be sure your child reads every night. We will send
home leveled books on most homework nights, but any
additional reading time will pay off in a big way.
 Take your child to the local libraries. Your interest in
books will help your child see the importance of
reading.
 Work on the word wall words with your child to help
him/her learn to read them automatically.
 Encourage your child to try different reading strategies
when he/she gets stuck. Some great strategies that we
will be working on in class are listed on the following
handout.
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Writing
 Writing Instruction: mechanics of writing, the
writing process (pre-writing, rough draft, revising,
editing, published draft), and proper penmanship
based on the ELA TEKS
 We will also be implementing the Write from the
Beginning writing program this year. The program
will be used in all grades at Moseley.
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Math
TEKS to be covered:
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Number Concepts-comparing, ordering, place value to 99, coins
Fractional Parts-whole objects, sets
Addition and Subtraction-up to 9 + 9 = 18 and 18 – 9 = 9
Patterns-repeating & additive patterns
Number Patterns-skip counting by twos, fives, tens; odd and even
numbers; order numbers by place value; addition & subtraction
Geometry & Spatial Reasoning-two- and three-dimensional figures
Measuring Using Nonstandard Units-length, area, capacity,
weight/mass; temperature
Time-on the hour and half-hour; ordering events by duration
Probability & Statistics-graphing, identifying events as certain or
impossible
Problem Solving
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Science
TEKS to be covered:
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Scientific Processes
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investigations following safety procedures
developing scientific inquiry
developing critical thinking
using scientific tools in observations
Science Concepts
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properties and patterns of organisms, objects, & events
systems have parts and are composed of organisms and objects
changes that occur
living organisms and nonliving objects
the needs of living organisms
natural world of water sources & rocks and soil
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Social Studies
TEKS to be covered:
•History-origins of customs, holidays, and celebrations; concepts of time and
chronology
•Geography-relative location of places; purpose of maps and globes; human
and physical characteristics of the environment
•Economics-goods and services; not being able to have all the goods and
services one wants; value of work
•Government-rules and laws; role of authority figures and public officials
•Citizenship-good citizenship as exemplified by historical figures and ordinary
people; customs, symbols, and celebrations
•Culture-how families meet basic needs; importance of family beliefts,
customs, language, and traditions
•Science, Technology, and Society-how technology has affected daily life in
the past and present
•Social Studies Skills-critical thinking skills; communicating in written, oral,
and visual forms; using problem solving and decision-making skills
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Dual Language
Purpose:
The purpose of the dual language program is to
create bi-literate students who will be able to work
successfully in cooperative settings as well as
independently.
First graders that participate in the Dual Language
Program receive Spanish Science and Social
Studies instruction from Mrs. Nester and English
Mathematics instruction from Mrs. Timms.
Students will receive Reading and Language Arts
Instruction in their native language.
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Enrichment
Our first graders alternate between
Music, P.E., and Art classes each
day.
 Our music teacher is Iris Bich.
 Our P.E. teacher is Jason Bentley.
 Our art teacher is Jessica Ivory.
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Grades
Report Cards
 Numerical grades are given in first grade.
 Grades will be reported online. Parents may visit Skyward
online from www.gpisd.org to view their child’s grades.
 It is the parent and/or guardians responsibility to check their
child’s progress online through Skyward in addition to checking
the grades sent home on work in the Homework Folder.
 Printed report cards are only sent home if a student has an
average below a 73 in any subject.
Progress Reports
 A printed progress report will be sent home for students who
have an average below 73 in any subject.
 If the student begins to show failing grades after the initial
progress report, another progress report will be sent home.
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Discipline
Character Counts
 We encourage the pillars of “Character Counts!” which are :
Respect, Responsibility, Trustworthiness, Fairness,
Citizenship, and Caring.
 One student exhibiting the “Character Counts!” pillar of the
week will be selected from each class to be honored during
announcement time on Fridays. Students may also be
honored during our quarterly Pride Rally.
 Your child’s behavior will be reported every day in the
homework folder. Please sign the behavior sheet each
night.
 The behavior expectations are based on the class’ specific
Social Contract of rules they agreed to follow. The Social
Contract is a part of Capturing Kids’ Hearts.
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Behavior Sheet Example
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Homework
Homework Folder
 Homework is an important way for first graders to practice
the skills learned at school. We will send various
assignments home for you to do on Monday through
Thursday nights.
 Homework typically consists of reading the weekly poem and
leveled reader, a short word wall/phonics activity, and a short
math practice.
 Nightly homework also helps to teach the children
responsibility. The homework should not take more than 30
minutes.
 Please have your child read every night even if it is not listed
on the homework assignment sheet.
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Homework Sheet Example
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Let’s Keep in Touch!
 Parent Conferences: Conferences can be scheduled in
advance with your child’s teacher from 1:45-2:35PM or
after school on Mondays or Thursdays from 3:304:10PM. Tuesdays are set aside for tutoring (more info
coming soon) and Wednesdays are set aside for staff
meetings.
 E-mail:
 Hayley Bishop- hayley.bishop@gpisd.org
 Lisa Francis – lisa.francis@gpisd.org
 Rachel Guzman – rachel.guzman@gpisd.org
 Edna Nuno-Nester – edna.nuno-nester@gpisd.org
 Leeann Timms – leeann.timms@gpisd.org
 Moseley Office- 972-522-2800
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Let’s Keep in Touch!
For more information during the year:
 GPISD Website: www.gpisd.org
 Moseley Website: http://moseley.gpisd.org/
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Let’s Have a Great Year!
Moseley Elementary
1851 Camp Wisdom Rd.
Grand Prairie, TX 75052
972-522-2800
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