August 27, 2015
Dear Parent(s),
We welcome you and your child as another school year begins. We are very excited
about working with your child and look forward to the year of opportunities ahead of us!
We would like to introduce ourselves:
Mrs. Juanita Burke will be teaching in room 102. My husband Tom and I have three
children. Our youngest son Kyle is a firefighter with the city of Dubuque. Our middle son, Chris,
teaches 8th grade Math at Roosevelt Middle School, and our daughter, Erin Palm, teaches
Kindergarten at Our Lady of Guadalupe. We are also blessed to have three grandchildren,
Olivia who is 7 and Aidan who is 4 1/2, and Declan who is 1 1/2.
Mrs. Heather Weig will be teaching in room 103. My husband, Don, is a deputy sheriff
for Dubuque County. We have two children. Our son, Kayden, will be in eighth grade at
Mazzuchelli Middle School and our daughter, Taylor, will be in sixth grade there as well.
We are excited to have Mrs. Cheryl Hemann working as an associate in the first grade
classrooms again this year.
In order to learn more about your child and how to better meet their needs, we ask that
you complete the ‘Parent Information on Child’ sheet included in your packet and return it to
school as soon as possible.
Below you will find some classroom procedures that we hope will help the year run
smoothly.
Home Folders-Your child will bring home a folder each day.
This folder will contain daily
work that your child has completed. Please have him/her share the contents with you that
evening. The following day the folder should be returned to school in a book bag along with any
correspondence, money for lunch, book orders, etc. In addition to this daily folder, each student
will be receiving a Friday folder that will contain any correspondence from the office, weekly
updates and tests. The Friday folder needs to be returned the next day of school.
Weekly Update-As part of the first grade behavior management plan, students will record
the color they earn each day on their weekly update. In order to keep you informed as to how
their week went, you can expect your child to bring this weekly update home at the end of each
week; please discuss these with your child. You can expect the first report at the end of the
second week of school.
Labeling of Items-Please write your child’s name on all of his/her belongings:
book
bags, lunch boxes, sweatshirts, boots etc. We do have a lost and found area, but cannot be
responsible for lost items.
Birthday Celebrations-Our Wellness Policy states that your child may celebrate their
birthday with a non-food item if he/she desires. Students are also encouraged to bring a nonperishable food item to donate to our birthday basket located in the hallway. Currently there are
23 students in Mrs. Burke’s class and 23 students in Mrs. Weig’s class. Children with summer
birthdays may choose a day to celebrate during the school year. We ask that you send a note a
few days in advance if your child wishes to celebrate their summer birthday during the school
year. Invitations can be passed out at school only if all students are invited to the party. For
example, all boys in the homeroom or all girls in the grade or all students in the class.
Show-and-Tell-One day each month will be set aside for your child to share something
from home with the class. Please remind him/her to bring possessions to school only on that
day. However, children may bring items at any time if they pertain to a unit of study.
Vocabulary Word List-Your child will begin work on a list of sight words, also known
as a Dolch List. These are words that are frequently used in reading, many of which cannot be
sounded out. We will work on these at school, but we ask that you also help your child study
them at home (about 10 min. nightly). Students should be able to recognize these words with
ease and be able to use the word in an oral sentence. Eventually your child will learn to spell
these words and use the words in their personal writing. In addition, we will also practice
weekly vocabulary words that are used in that week’s story from their reading book.
Book Orders-Book orders will be sent monthly.
If you do choose to place an order please
send a check made out to the company in an envelope with your child’s name. You may also
choose to order online using the class activation code located on the order form. This is an
inexpensive way to build a home library for your child.
Schedule-A calendar will be sent home each month to help keep track of the following:
Library-Mrs. Carol Woolf will meet with small groups once a week to check out books.
Technology-Mrs. Jenni Malcom will assist the teachers with the use of computers in the
classroom
Gym-Students will attend Gym Class twice a week with Ms. Carla Carton. Children will
need to wear gym shoes to school on those days. Mrs. Burke’s class has Gym on
Monday and Thursday, Mrs. Weig’s class has Gym on Wednesday and Friday
Music-Mrs. Mary Beth Ferring will instruct the students twice a week.
Art-Students will meet with Mrs Lori Lahey once a week.
We hope this information if helpful; please keep this letter for reference. We will send
first grade newsletters and calendars to you electronically each month to keep you updated on
topics we are studying and any upcoming events. If you would prefer a paper copy please let
your child’s teacher know through a note or email message.
In an effort to keep the lines of communication open, please let us know of any
questions or concerns that you may have. We also ask that you share any development in your
home or your child’s life that might have an effect on his/her functioning at school. Our school
E-mail addresses are located below.
Thank you for all you do and thank you for entrusting you child to us. Together we can
make this a wonderful year of growth for all.
Mrs. Juanita Burke [email protected]
Mrs. Heather Weig [email protected]