Brand new blog!

Welcome!

Welcome to my brand new blog!   I actually had to sit down for a good chunk of time with my 14 year old son to learn how to create it!   It sure is scary to know that your child knows so much more about technology than you do!   Now I know how my parents feel about programming VCR's, using email and the internet!  

Intentions

My intent for this blog is to post weekly what is going on in our classroom.  It will be like our weekly paper newsletter, but with more details for those of you who want more information.  If I get really good at this, I will eventually try to add some photos of our class, links to cool websites and more.  I may need another tutoring session from my son to learn all that, but he seems pretty willing!

About me

I have been a teacher in Hamilton since 1990.  I taught Developmental Kindergarten half time at Bentheim my very first year, and then moved into a first grade position at Hamilton Elementary in 1991.  I was hooked and have stayed in that position since then.  I went to Central Michigan University for my undergraduate degree, then received my master's degree from Western Michigan University.  Yes, I know they are rivals, but WMU was closer.   

I am married to my husband Dean, and have a son, Adam, who is 14 years old and starting high school this fall!   We live in Zeeland.  I enjoy taking trips to Chicago, playing games on the computer, snow skiing, reading, and teaching.  

First grade expectations

The first month or so, we will be doing some review of letters and sounds, math concepts and more.  The real challenge for our class will be getting used to school for a full day!   I know it seems unreal, but it takes many children a month or more to get into the routine of going to bed earlier and getting up much earlier.  When they are at school, they are nervous, tired, crabby, hot, and hungry along with the positive feelings being excited and happy.   You may hear things like, 'there are so many rules!'  or 'we don't get to play'.  They are correct when they say that for the most part.  There are a lot of 'rules'.   They need to learn to raise their hand to speak again, push in their chairs so that no one trips on it, be a good listener, walk quietly in the hall, learn how to get their hot lunch, change shoes, play nicely at recess, and so much more.  It takes first graders quite some time to remember the old rules and adapt to the new rules.  Bear with us as we learn them, and encourage them to help their friends remember the 'rules' rather than complain about reviewing them.   I don't know how much play time the kids had in Kindergarten, but in first grade, our 'play' consists of using math tubs to build amounts, sort, pattern or more.  We read books daily.  We do a lot of coloring to build fine motor skills.  We create some neat art projects to display on our bulletin boards.  But, sadly, we do not have a kitchen, big blocks to build houses, lego tables, etc.  

We take our Friday Folders home each Friday.  This folder is very important.  All the notes from our office are sent home on Fridays along with our weekly story from our reading series, decodable books from our series, and usually a math paper for the kids to compete at home over the weekend.  I do not send paper/pencil homework home during the week, but I do send one sheet for the weekend.  This is a way for parents to see what we are working on, provide some review for your child, and helps build a little bit of responsibility, as the homework sheet must be returned in the Friday Folder on Monday. I also send home our weekly newsletter in the Friday Folder.  The newsletter gives you a synopsis of what we completed for the week, the homework sent home, and the show and tell topic for the following week.   (I will also update this blog for more detailed information).

The Friday Folder has two sides.  On one side, it is labeled, "Keep at home".   Most of the papers in the folder are placed on this side, and you do not have to return them.  The other side is labeled, "Return to school" I believe.  Any papers on this side must be completed and left in the folder, which comes back to school on Monday.

Book It reading incentive program

In October or November, we will begin our reading incentive program.  More details will come soon, but basically, the kids need to read TO AN ADULT for about 10 minutes a day, or three hours in a month.  We track the hours on 'pink slips' and these slips may be returned every time your child reads an hour at home.  We also have a bulletin board in the classroom to track the hours turned in.  Any reading done by your child may be counted on the slips.   There will be many things sent home at your child's reading level to use, so do not feel you need to run out and purchase books for your child.

Volunteering

We will begin our WEB (Wonderfully Exciting Books) program in October or November.  Parents will be asked to volunteer to come to school for 90 minutes weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly to listen to the kids read.  Books at your child's level will be sent home nightly for practice (use these for our reading program).  The books come back to school daily, and are read to a parent, who then helps the child choose another book to take home and practice.  The parents also give me information about how the child is reading.  If you work outside the home and are not able to break away, there are other ways to help.  If you would like to come in and read to our class as a guest reader, like to bake, or would like to copy for me, or cut out things that are laminated, or donate items to our class, I appreciate all forms of volunteering!   If you have another idea, just let me know and we can try to work something out!

Contacting me

The best way to contact me is through email.  I open my email when I get to school and leave it open all day long.  During breaks I do check my email and can get back to you right away.  I also get my email on my phone, so if you email me early or late, I can usually respond from home.  I check my voice mail at school a couple of times a day, but do not always have time to make a phone call.    In an emergency, I can take a phone call at home, but prefer calls prior to 9:00 PM.  

email:    jferrell@hamiltonschools.us

School phone:   (269) 751-5413   x 307

Home phone:    (616) 748-4136

Closing

Thank you for taking the time to check out my blog.  Bear with me as I learn how to do this.  If you have any suggestions for neat links for learning games or activities, let me know so I can check them out and add to my blog if appropriate.