Things You Need to Know 2016-17

Teacher: Patricia Sjodt (pronounced showt)

Room No: B3
School Phone: (626) 966-1753
Email: psjodt@cousd.net
Class Website: sjodt.weebly.com
CONTACT INFORMATION:
I am available for conferences from 7:30-7:50 a.m. and from 2:20-3:30 p.m. daily,
except for Wed. afternoon. Wednesday is our early release day for teachers to
attend meetings. Generally, I will not be available on that day. Please arrange a
meeting ahead of time so that I will be sure to be in the room. Should you need to
reach me at school, please leave a message with the office and I will return your
call at my earliest convenience. You may also reach me by email at
psjodt@cousd.net.
WATERBOTTLES:
I ask that the water bottle be one that can be capped tightly so as to avoid spills.
Sports bottles or bottles with a twist cap work best. Please label your childs water
bottle clearly with his/her name. Water is the only liquid permitted. Students may
not put sports drinks, cool-aide, soda, fruit juice, flavored water, or Crystal Light in
their water bottle.
PARENT VOLUNTEERS:
Second grade will not have an aide to help us. In order to better meet the needs
of the students, I am asking for parent volunteers. If you are able to volunteer for
30-45 minutes a week, please talk to me or send an email to psjodt@cousd.net.
Grandparents are also welcome. Many of the tasks requested will be light duty and
will only take about 15-20 minutes to complete. I usually have a Friday Parent who
corrects and records tests. I also have a Friday Homework Helper who corrects,
records, and puts in the new homework. If you have a special skill youd like to
share with us, please let me know. Many items may be taken home to complete and
can be sent through your child. Your time is valuable and I appreciate your
willingness to volunteer in our classroom or complete work at home.

JOIN PTA:

Please join PTA and help us win a reward.

LUNCH ACCOUNTS:
You may go online to our district web site and pay using your credit card. Go to
Quick Links, hover over Parents and click on Pay for Lunch, PayPams. If you
have questions about payment options please contact the Cafeteria Manager at
Badillo. When sending cash or a check with a student, please seal your payment in an
envelope marked with your childs name and teacher. Students paying for their
lunch receive an individual account accessed only by their lunch card. Please make
sure your child learns their lunch number by heart.
FREE BREAKFAST AND SNACKS;
Breakfast and snacks are available free of charge for all students. Breakfast is
served at 7:30 a.m. Students who would like a snack can go to the cafeteria, punch
in their lunch number and take a snack to morning recess.
HOMEWORK POLICY:
Homework will be sent home on Monday and should be brought back to school on
Friday. There will be no homework over the weekend. Children and parents need a
break from homework. Weekends are for resting and family activities.
Students who do not follow homework procedures will receive a lower grade on
their report cards. I do not correct homework. It is monitored, spot checked,
and recorded if it has been completed. If I see that many of the children are
incorrectly completing an assignment, I know to review that topic. It is your
responsibility to see that your child is doing the homework correctly.
All homework assignments are to be turned in Friday morning. Should a student not
complete the homework assignment, it will be recorded as a missing assignment. A
reminder notice to submit the missing work the following school day will be sent
home. Please schedule a time and a place for your child to do his/her homework
assignment. Assignments are to be completed by the child, but they need to be
monitored by an adult. Homework completed in any other handwriting but the
students will not be accepted. Many day care and after school programs provide
homework assistance. If your child completes homework at a day care or an after
school program, please be sure to review your childs work to ensure that it has
been completed correctly.
DISCIPLINE POLICY:
We will be using a clip chart behavior model. The children will move their numbered
clothespin up or down a chart according to the choices they make in their daily
behavior. The categories are: pink-outstanding, purple-great job, blue-good day,
green-ready to learn, yellow-slow down, orange-teachers choice, red-parent

contact. All students will start each day on green-ready to learn. They will be
asked to clip up or clip down for certain behaviors. A behavior calendar will
come home every week in their homework folder. Your child will color a box each
day with the color of the space that their clip ends up on. You will sign (initial) the
calendar each day and return it to school the next day.
WEEKLY PROGRESS ASSESSMENT (Graded Papers):
Graded papers will be placed in your childs cubbie daily and your student should put
them in his/her cubbie to take home. Papers are returned as quickly as possible so
that students can see their progress. It is the students responsibility to take
these papers home. Please be sure to check your childs backpack and review graded
papers with your child. Graded papers serve as an assessment of your childs
progress. Some assignments we will complete together as a class. If it has no
graded mark, you will know that it was done together. Sometimes, I will ask the
children to give themselves a happy face or a star. We correct many pages
together. They are given time to finish their work. . If more than a third of the
children are still working, I will give them more time. When the timer goes off, all
pencils are put away and we correct with a red pen. They write in the correct
answers and count how many they got right. I let them know what a good score is.
I tell them that if they score below that number, they have to work harder and
listen more carefully. I spot check some pages and enter those grades into my
grade book.
ACCELERATED READER (AR):
We will be using the STAR Reading Test (first trimester only) and Accelerated
Reader program to support our Language Arts curriculum. The STAR Reading Test
is a diagnostic test that determines each childs reading level based on
comprehension skills. Each week students will check out books based on their
reading level. The class will visit the library each week as a whole, but students will
also be able to read AR books from our class library. At the beginning of each
grading period students will receive an individualized AR Goal based on the results
from their STAR Reading test. Students are given two goals: (a) to maintain 80% or
higher on quizzes and (b) to meet their individualized AR point goal. Students are
expected to work diligently to meet both AR goals and are rewarded for their
efforts.
Each time a student takes an AR quiz they receive a TOPS Report, which displays
the results of their test as well as their progress in meeting their AR Goals.
Children are required to read a book and take at least 2-4 AR tests a week.
Each book is designated with a particular point value. Most second grade AR books
range from 0.5 (half a point) to 1.0 (one-point).

Point Values:
Beginning chapter book 0.5 point
Regular chapter book 1.0 point
Picture Books 0.5 point
During each day, we will have D.E.A.R. time, (Drop Everything And Read). Students
will be given a grade level reading range determined by their STAR reading test.
They are to choose books from this range to take an AR quiz. Students will take AR
quizzes each Wednesday at the computer lab. However, students are welcome to
take AR quizzes whenever they are ready. Students must read a picture book 3
times before they can take a test. Chapter books need only to be read once. Once
a test is taken, your child cannot take the test again. They must score 60% or
more for the test to count towards their goal. Time will be provided for selfselected reading during D.E.A.R. time, but students should also read for a minimum
of 20-minutes each night as a part of nightly homework. Children can take AR tests
on books read at home. Please keep in mind that your local library has a large
selection of AR books. Students are welcome to check out additional books from
the Public Library or bring their own, and take quizzes on them at school. Simply
bring in the book or write down the title and author. We will look up the AR quiz
number at school. You can find AR books by going to AR Book Finder at
http://www.arbookfind.com. Please remember, that just because it is an AR book,
doesnt mean we have that quiz available. You can also load a free app called Book
Wizard from Scholastic. You need a free Scholastic account to log in. You can
then scan the ISBN number of a book to see what AR information is available. I
usually give a punch on students panther paw punch cards for those who score 100%
on an AR quiz. When a student gets 10 punches (including 100% on any test) he or
she will turn in the card for a reward coupon.
This year we are changing over to a new language arts program called Benchmark
Universe or Benchmark Advance. It will have diagnostic tests that will replace
STAR Reading and STAR Math tests. The STAR tests will only be available this
first trimester only. The new diagnostic tests measure in Lexile points instead of
grade level points that AR uses. We will use a conversion chart to choose AR books
since all my books are listed by AR grade levels such as 2.4.

ACCELERATED MATH (AM):

We will also be using the Accelerated Math program to improve our math
understanding. I will incorporate this program at computer lab time and students
can do it on the computers in class.

INCOMPLETE CLASS WORK:

Students who do not complete in-class assignments are expected to complete the
assignment at recess (up to 10 min.) and if needed, take the work home to be
completed. Even though adequate time is allowed to complete assignments in class,
there are occasions when a student needs more time. This does not reflect
negatively on the student. It is important that a child take their time to understand
the assignment rather than rush through it. Please check your childs backpack
daily. The incomplete class assignments are not recorded as homework. It is
important that your child takes responsibility for this work and communicates the
assignment to you. Your student is to return the completed assignment the
following day.

CLASSROOM RULES & PROCEDURES

TEACHING FOR RESPONSIBILITY:
Being responsible is a skill that all second graders can learn. By making children
aware of classroom rules and procedures, students understand what is expected of
them. They become aware of their responsibility to the classroom environment. We
are a community of learners and we must each do our part to ensure that each
individual is maximizing their learning potential. As a community of learners,
students work together to create classroom rules. This way, students take
ownership of their actions and become responsible citizens of the school. A copy of
our classroom rules is included in this packet. In an effort to support positive
behavior students will receive the following rewards as an incentive to follow
classroom rules and conduct themselves responsibly.

INDIVIDUAL REWARDS:
Receive a Badillo Panther ROAR ticket that goes to the office for a chance for a

monthly prize drawing.

Receive extra time on the computer.
Receive a reward coupon.
Clip up on the Clip Chart

We will also have a class reward system which consists of putting marbles in a jar
every time the class does something good as a whole or accomplishes a goal. When
the jar is full, we will have a class reward.

CLASS REWARDS:
Receive a Popcorn, Electronic Day, Ice Cream, or Nacho Party.
Receive an extra 10 minutes at recess for a week.

Choice of a fun art activity.

PROCEDURES

BEFORE SCHOOL PROCEDURES:

Students arriving for breakfast must be in line at the cafeteria no earlier than
7:30 a.m. Breakfast is served at 7:30 a.m.
Student arrival time is 7:55-8:07. Students may not arrive before 7:57. They will
line up along the B wing wall and wait for the bell at 7:57 to walk to the playground.
Children will walk in a line to the slider door. They will put their backpacks on the
ground in a line. When the 8:08 bell rings, students freeze, listen to directions
from the adult on duty for dismissal. They will walk to our slider door, pick up their
backpacks, and wait outside until I tell them that they can come in. They cannot
enter the room without me being in there. Remember the official start time of
school is 8:10. Children arriving to class after 8:10 will be considered tardy and
should go to the office for a tardy slip. Tardies will be noted on the report cards.
MORNING PROCEDURES:
Students should enter the room quietly.
All backpacks will be hung up in the closet. Children will have limited access to
their backpacks during the day. Anything needed is to be taken out and put in
their desk.
Place lunches and snacks by the door on the shelf provided.
Use the Smartboard to record your attendance.
Place lunch money in an envelope and put it in your desk.
Begin the assignment of the day --talking is NOT an option.
END OF DAY PROCEDURES:
Students should work quietly until called to retrieve their backpack and get lunch
boxes, water bottles, and put any papers from their cubbies into their green
communication folder.
Takehomework folder back to desk and color in the day of the week with the
corresponding color that the childs clip (clothes pin) ended on the behavior
clip chart. Put folder in backpack. If the color is yellow or lower, the folder
is to be brought to me so an infraction code may be entered.
This is the time to sharpen a pencil for the next day, if necessary.
Students will tidy up their areas, including the top of the desk, inside the desk,
and on the floor around the desks. I will check students areas before they can be
dismissed to line up at the slider door.

CLASSROOM PROCEDURES:
Students are to keep their desk and work area clean and organized and floors
clear of personal effects.
Backpacks are hung in the closet.
Jackets are to be hung on the childs chair or put in the closet with the backpacks.
Lunchboxes are to be stored on the shelf by the door.
As stated by the Badillo Handbook, cell phones are to remain in students'
backpacks and are to be turned off. They may only be used before and after
school. Students may not bring to school skateboards, skates, roller blades or
scooters.
Students are permitted to have Chap-stick but no lip gloss. Should this become a
distraction, a request will be made to remove it from the classroom.
QUIET TIME PROCEDURES:
Any time a bell is rung, or a timer goes off, or I hold my hand up, this is a cue that
talking is to stop.
CLASSROOM RULES:
Listen when your teacher is talking.
Follow directions quickly.
Raise your hand for permission to speak.
Respect others. Respect yourself. Respect school.
Be safe. Be kind. Be honest.
MAKEUP/MISSING WORK PROCEDURES:
Makeup and/or missing work will be put in the childs cubbie as assignments are
passed out.
Makeup/missing work must be completed within two days or it will not be
accepted. Of course, arrangements can be made for extenuating
circumstances.
HALLWAY PROCEDURES:
When in the halls, students will walk in single file with hands behind their back or
by their sides.
Students will keep hands, feet, and objects off of the walls at all times.
Absolutely no talking in the halls, as this disturbs other classes.
RESTROOM PROCEDURES:
Students are encouraged to take a restroom break during recess and lunch.

Students may leave the classroom for a restroom break as needed. If this privilege
is abused, parents will be informed. The class will not take a whole group restroom
break as this wastes valuable learning time.
New this year: Students will be give 5 restroom tickets a week, one for each day.
If a child needs to use the restroom during class time, he/she must turn in a ticket.
At the end of the week, students who have remaining tickets will put them in a
drawing for a reward coupon. The more tickets a child puts into the drawing, the
more chances they have to win.
Students leaving the classroom for a restroom break should follow procedures:
Upon leaving the room, acquire the necessary restroom pass.

Do not talk in the hall or restroom as this disturbs other classes.

Do not run, skip, or hop to or from the restroom. Walk directly to and from the

restroom at a reasonable pace.

Wash your hands after using the restroom.
Students should pay attention to what they are doing and where they are going.
No playing in the restrooms.
The last restroom break of the day should take place before 2:00.
p.m. Students will not be permitted to leave the classroom after 2:00 p.m. because
the restrooms will be locked. The restroom nearest the front of the school will be
open for students use after school.
LUNCHROOM PROCEDURES:
Students are permitted to bring their own personal water bottle and/or snack to
lunch. Children are responsible to keep track of their own water bottles.
Students will line up as directed.
Students will take their lunch card upon exiting the classroom if they do not know
their number.
Students are not to cut in line or save a place in line for someone else.
Students are to walk quietly to and from lunch.
Students are to listen to and obey the lunch aides.
No talking in the serving line as the servers cannot hear student selections.
Students are to choose a lunch tray, pick out their milk or juice, punch in their
lunch number and pay their money, if necessary.
Students are to add any desired food to their tray from the cart, and pick up
their utensils/napkins.
Students are to sit in single file at our designated table.
Talking should remain a quiet whisper.
Students must raise their hand to be excused from the table. Students are not
to leave their seat without permission.

Students are to be courteous and use good manners.

All food is to be eaten in the cafeteria. No sharing of food is allowed due to food

allergies.
At the conclusion of lunch, students must pick up the trash around their seating
area and follow the instructions of the lunch attendants.
Students will then walk to the exit doors and stand quietly in single file until the
noon aides walk them to the playground.

If you feel that your child is prone to restroom accidents, please keep a
change of clothes (pants and undergarments) concealed in your childs
backpack. Occasionally children have had accidents on the
playground. Keeping a change of clothes accessible prevents the
school from disturbing you at work and reduces the embarrassment
the incident may cause for the child.

LIBRARY PROCEDURES:
Upon entering the library, students are to drop off their books, find a seat on the
carpet, and await instruction. Later on, students will be allowed to look for a ew
book in their AR level upon dropping off their book.
Students are only allowed to check out one book at a time. Should a child have an
over due book, they are not allowed to check out a new book until the over due book
is returned. Please make sure your child keeps up with his/her library books.
There is absolutely no talking or playing in the library.
PLAYGROUND PROCEDURES:
Students are to line up as directed and stand on their assigned dot.
Students are not to cut in line or save a place in line for someone else.
Students are to walk quietly to and from recess.
Students are to be attentive and listen for the bell to ring or when the whistle is
blown for the conclusion of recess.
PLAYGROUND RULES:
1. Students are to swing only forward and backward on the swing. Students are
NEVER to jump out of a swing.
2. Sliding paths must be clear before anyone starts down the slide. Students are
not to climb on or up the slide.
3. Students are not to throw sand, dirt, or rocks.
4. Students are not to play with sticks of any kind.
5. Students are not to climb up or hang on the branches of the trees.
6. Students are not to leave the playground unless given permission by the aide or
teacher.

7. Students are to play safely and follow directions.

8. Students may not play tag.

CHECK OUT PROCEDURES:

Parents/Guardians must sign students out through the school office.
If pick-up has been authorized through the office, the secretary
will call the room to notify the teacher. The student will then be dismissed to
the office.
Please try to take your student out from class after 9:30 a.m. or we dont get paid.

AFTER SCHOOL PROCEDURES:

Students will be dismissed from class at 2:15 p.m. daily, except for 1:30 dismissal
on Wednesdays.
Parents may wait for their children by the school office. They may not wait by
our room.
Please designate a place to pick up your child and be consistent. You are to pick up
your second grader in front of the school cafeteria. An older sibling may escort
your child to Reeder gate and both can be picked up there.
Parents are to remain in their car and drive up as far as they can to allow more
cars in the parking lot. If you must leave your car, you must park in the street
first.
Students are only permitted to enter a car from the yellow curb. Parents are
not allowed to pick up children in the Red Zone between the office and the
Kindergarten classrooms. This only holds up the line.

In addition, please do not honk your horn to get your childs attention.
This can be a dangerous distraction for students entering cars. Thank
you for your patience and understanding. Your childs safety is our top
priority.

Important Notice: If your child is not picked up within 15

minutes of dismissal time, your child may be sent to Badillo
Day Care at your expense of $15/hr. If you know you are going to
be late, contact the office to make arrangements.

HIGH-FREQUENCY WORD LIST

2nd Grade

The children are responsible to be able to read all Kindergarten , first grade, and
second grade high-frequency word lists by the end of the year. A complete list will
be in their homework folders for them to learn.

5 STEPS TO HELP YOUR CHILD BECOME SUCCESSFUL

1. You can help your child by
praising your childs work.
not comparing your child to others.
being realistic in your expectations of your child.
2. You can help your child physically by
making sure your child receives adequate sleep.
setting a routine for your child.
showing your child a lot of love.
3. You can help your child academically by
talking with your child.
listening to your child.
reading to your child and having them read to you.
supporting your child as they complete his/her homework.
4. You can help your child in test-taking by
encouraging your child to do his/her best.
getting them to school on time.
ensuring they eat a good breakfast.
5. You can help your child in other ways by
keeping an up-to-date report on your childs progress.
getting to know your childs teacher.
volunteering.
supporting the PTA.

Day 6-2-17 (After Last Day of School)