The ABCs of First Grade

A is for ATTENDANCE and ABSENCES

Attendance Your child will do their best if they are at school on time every day! It is important
that your child has time to unpack and settle in before announcements begin! School opens at 8:00
am and dismissal begins at 3:00 pm. Your child will be tardy after 8:20 am. If you arrive after 8:20
am, please park your car and take your child to the office to sign in and fill out a tardy slip. A slip
needs to be sent to the classroom with your child.
Absences If your child is absent, please send an excuse note within 2 days. If your child is absent
due to illness, please also email the nurse at nurse@ihmschoolmd.org with a list of symptoms and/or
diagnosis.

B is for BIRTHDAYS
We love to celebrate birthdays! Please keep in mind that you must notify your childs homeroom
teacher 2 days in advance. Please remember that we do our best to accommodate your request,
however due to scheduling we will inform you of the best date to send your treats in. Thanks for your
cooperation!

C is for CALENDARS
Calendars - You will find a 2014-2015 IHM calendar on our school website. All dates are subject to
change and we will let you know of any changes as soon as we find out about them! We will also keep
you informed of important dates through our websites (http://msbeck-ihm.weebly.com, mssalamone-
ihm.weebly.com or http://mrscernik-ihm.weebly.com).

D is for DAILY COMMUNICATION and DISCIPLINE
Daily Communication - Please check your childs backpack DAILY for their OWL binder. This is how
we will send a note to you or will look for messages and information coming to us. Please make sure
any money, including lunch money, and field trip money, are put in the money pouch (in a marked
envelope). When students arrive at school daily, their first task is to empty their OWL binder to
their homeroom teacher. You may also e-mail us at lbeck@ihmschoolmd.org,
gcernik@ihmschoolmd.org, or dsalamone@ihmschoolmd.org.
Discipline IHM has begun a positive behavioral intervention and supports (PBIS) program as a
framework for a positive learning and discipline environment. The goal of this program is to
recognize the positive expected behaviors regarding the 3 Rs (Respect, Responsibility, and Ready).


E is for EXTENDED DAY PROGRAM
The Extended Day Program is offered at IHM each afternoon and before school. Please visit the
schools website for more information or contact Mrs. Pat Plowman (Director) at
pplowman@ihmschoolmd.org.

F is for FIELD TRIPS
Field trips play an important role in our curriculum and foster learning for the children. We will be
asking for parents to chaperone field trips. If you volunteer to chaperone a field trip, you must be
STAND trained.

G is for GUIDANCE COUNSELOR and GRADING SYSTEM
Guidance Counselor - Mrs. Siobhan Powers will complete a lesson with our class at the beginning of
the school year. The children always look forward to this special time. Please let me know if you
would ever like your child to speak to a guidance counselor for any reason.
Grading System The following are the codes that are used on the Progress Reports:
I Independent: The student understand concepts/skills and works with little or no
reinforcement or assistance.
P Progressing: The students understanding of concepts/skills are developing and are in
need of occasional reinforcement and assistance.
E Emerging: The students understanding of the concepts/skills are still at the
beginning level and/or need reinforcement and assistance.
NA Not Assessed at this time: Is used if that standard has not been assessed during the
current trimester.

H is for HOMEWORK
Homework is assigned Monday through Thursday. Parents are required to check homework for
neatness and accuracy. Any errors that you notice on the homework should be brought to your
childs attention. It is important that you try to elicit the correct answer from your child rather
than telling them what it is. When an assignment is completed to your satisfaction, please sign it.

Have a definite period for homework. Be sure to have a specific place for doing homework that is
free from distractions and clutter. A desk or table in their room or other quiet place is the most
preferable. Your child should be able to do the work independently, after you have given the
directions and the assignment is understood. A normal nights homework should take no longer than a
half hour. Please make your child responsible for putting books and school supplies back in their
book bag and returning them to school the following day. The children are held responsible for
homework that has not been completed. If homework is not completed because the child forgot,
he/she will be given the chance to complete it the next night, along with any new work that has been
assigned for that night. A continuance of forgetfulness will be handled through a parent-teacher
conference.

All homework is posted on teachers websites. The first grade teachers websites are:
http://mrscernik-ihm.weebly.com http://mssalamone-ihm.weebly.com
http://msbeck-ihm.weebly.com

I is for INFORMATION and INTERIMS
Information - We will always do our best to provide you with current school and classroom
information. Please feel free to keep us informed of any academic, emotional, or behavioral concerns
you may have regarding your student. Together we can work to make this year the best possible
educational experience for your child!
Interims- Interims will be sent out three times per year, prior to each progress report.

J is for JOURNAL
We will be keeping Journals this year! These journals will stay at school and come home at the end
of the year. You will be amazed at all of the things your first grader learns this year!

K is for KIDS
Please send your children to school in their school uniform and as the weather cools down, please
dress your child in layers! Dont forget to wear gym uniforms on gym days. Please label all sweaters,
coats, lunch boxes and book bags!

L is for LUNCH and LIBRARY
Lunch - Each child who would like to buy lunch through the schools program is eligible for a punch
card or may send lunch money in a labeled envelope daily. All lunch money needs to be sent in a
sealed envelope with your childs name, your childs lunch choice and the homeroom teachers
name so that the money is put into the correct lunch account. Punch card lunch balances are sent
home as they near zero. You are welcome to assist in our cafeteria for lunch duty! Please look for a
communication from the school to sign up.
Library We will visit Mrs. Karalenko in the Library once a week for 45 minutes! We will check out
one book per week. The book is due back the following week and incurs a fine of 25 cents for late
books.

M is for MEDICATION
If you need any type of medication to be administered at school, you must take the medicine to the
school nurse, fill out the necessary paper work, and pick up the medication. Medication should never
be sent to school in your childs bookbag. The school nurse is the only person allowed to administer
doses of medication at school.

N is for NURSE
If your child is sick, especially with a fever, he/she must stay at home until they have been fever
free for at least 24 hours without medication. Please make every effort to pick up a sick child ASAP
once the nurse has contacted you. They are no longer administering over-the-counter medication to
first graders unless in an emergency.

O is for OPPORTUNITY
There are many opportunities for you to be involved in our classroom! Please sign up if you are
interested in being a Room Parent! Thank you for your patience as we settle in to our routines and
expectations.

P is for PARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES
Conferences are held during the school year as needed. Students receive three progress reports per
school year.

Q is for QUIET VOICES AND OTHER CLASSROOM RULES
Our class rules are:
1. Raise your hand when you want to share.
2. Listen when your teacher is talking.
3. Follow directions.
4. Keep your hands and your feet to yourself.
5. Be safe, be kind, be honest.

R is for READING
Reading is a HUGE part of First Grade. Please encourage your child to practice their reading at home
with level-appropriate books ask your childs Language Arts teacher if youre not sure what is
appropriate. READ TO YOUR CHILD! This develops good listening habits, enriches their vocabulary,
and demonstrates an atmosphere of reading for pleasure.

S is for SPECIALS and SCHOLASTIC BOOK CLUB ORDERS
Specials We will rotate the following 45-minute specials: Physical Education (P.E.) with Ms.
Bennett, Art with Mrs. Dance, Music with Mrs. Bickraj, Library with Mrs. Karalenko, Spanish with Ms.
Fetzer, and Computer/Technology Education with Mrs. Maranucci.
Scholastic Book Club Orders Each month we will send home a few fliers from Scholastic. These
books are a great price and children love picking out their own books. In addition, your purchases
help to grow our classroom library! Please order online using our code (on the fliers) or send your
order and money in a sealed envelope labeled with your childs name and BOOK ORDER in the money
pouch.

T is for TRANSPORTATION
Transportation - Dismissal begins at 3:00 pm each day. If you must change the way your child goes
home, please send a written note in the OWL binder. You may also call the school at 410-668-
8466. Please do not e-mail transportation changes, as we may not be able to check it before
dismissal.

U is for UNDERSTANDING
In First Grade, we will talk about character education and will learn to be good friends and members
of our community during our school year.

V is for VISITING
Always remember to sign in at the front office when you visit the school. You will be given a Visitor
badge. If you are in the building without a visitors badge, you will be asked to return to the office
to get one. Please understand this is for the childrens safety.

W is for WORK HABITS
Encourage your child to always do their best work rather than accepting that which is not reflective
of their ability. PRAISE YOUR CHILD!

X is for EXHAUSTED
Your child needs adequate rest time each evening. It is hard to keep up with our schedule if we are
sleepy! Thank you for your help in this matter.

Y is for YES! ITS RECESS!
We will have recess every day that weather permits. Please send a jacket, gloves, and hat (labeled
with your childs name) to school on days that they are needed.

Z is for ZIPPER
This year your child needs to be able to zipper and/or button their clothing all on their own. They
also need to be able to tie their own shoes. PLEASE PRACTICE THESE SKILLS AT HOME until your
child has mastered them.


We are looking forward to an exciting year of growth and learning with you
and your child! Parents are the first teachers of their children and much
of the learning in the home takes place spontaneously. If parents
understand the goals of our classroom, you can also create opportunities to
strengthen concepts presented at school.

Communication by means of notes, emails, newsletters, website, and
calendars will help us form a partnership between school and home. We
strive to offer a balanced, well-rounded program that will meet your childs
physical, cognitive, social, spiritual, and emotional needs. Our goal is to
develop a positive self- image and to foster a joy of learning in each child.

Ms. Lauren Beck Mrs. Gail Cernik Mrs. Debbie Salamone
Email: Email: Email:
lbeck@ihmschoolmd.org gcernik@ihmschoolmd.org dsalamone@ihmschoolmd.org