August 2014

Dear Parents,
Welcome to a brand new school year. We have enclosed information
in this ac!et on classroom and school rocedures. Please read the
information very carefully, and let us !now if you have any secific
"uestions.
# would li!e to ta!e this oortunity to introduce myself to you. #
currently live in Atlanta and love reading, traveling, and outdoor
activities. $his summer, my husband and # traveled to the %rench
Polynesian islands. We stumbled uon the true meaning of aradise
on those beautiful islands. &oming bac! home to the ' hour time
difference was "uite a challenge, but worth it( )ow #*m rearing to
tac!le a new school year. Which reminds me+,o %alcons( #n
addition to my love of traveling, # love )%- football. Don*t even get
me started on how sad # am that $ony ,on.ale. has retired.
# am rearing for my 11
th
year of teaching elementary school. #
graduated from /ennesaw 0tate 1niversity with both my 2achelor*s
and 3aster*s Degree in 4arly &hildhood 4ducation. # can honestly
say that # love being a teacher. # loo! forward to a ositive,
growing, challenging, and motivating year with your child. %eel free
to contact me if you have any "uestions, comments, or concerns.
4mail and notes are the best way to contact me.

0incerely,
3rs. 5ill Par!er
4mail6 5ill.0wanger7cobb!12.org
Phone6 '89:;<4:902=
August 2014
Welcome to ;
th
,rade(
# am so e>cited to begin this year with your child( #t*s a big year and
will be filled with lots of learning and new e>eriences(
# would also li!e to introduce myself to you. # live in &hero!ee
&ounty with my husband and 2 children. /atie is a sohomore in high
school and &aleb is a rambunctious = year old. 3y family and # love
to travel and stay active. We sent much of our summer on the go
from the beaches of %lorida to the mountains of $ennessee. 3y
husband and # stay active by being in constant cometition with our
%itbits ?# was winning most of the summer@. We are also running
our first half marathon in )ovember. 4>citing( An a rofessional
note, this is my <
th
year of teaching elementary school. -i!e 3rs.
Par!er, # also graduated from /ennesaw 0tate 1niversity with both
my 2achelor*s and 3aster*s Degree in 4arly &hildhood 4ducation.
# love teaching and loo! forward to sending this year with your
child as they learn and grow into students ready for middle school.
Please feel free to send me an email or a note in the agenda if you
have "uestions or concerns.
0incerely,
3rs. Amy Bester
4mail6 Amy.Bester7cobb!12.org
Phone6 '89:;<4:902=
Agenda (Planner)/Discipline Plan
Each child will have an agenda book he/she will use daily. Your
child will be responsible for writing homework assignments
in the agenda every day. Additionally, we will communicate
notes about your childs behavior in this agenda. Please
check this nightly. Use this agenda to communicate to us
as needed. You will also find the schoolwide behavior
plan ! positive incentives listed in the agenda. "ead this
information carefully and go over it with your child.
School Hours
#he school opens for children at 7:15 every morning. EA$%E time will continue to
take place from &'()*')). +hildren arriving at the school after 7:50 are considered
tardy and need to check in to the office. ,tudents need a minimum of ten minutes
to get into their classrooms, unpack and prepare themselves for the day. #he
students are dismissed at -'-). .f you need to pick your child up from school,
please do so in the front office. /o students will be dismissed between 0'12 and
-'-). #his is a safety issue. **IMPORTANT NOTE FOR THIS YEAR: If your child
arrives AFTER 7:!a"# a$ adul% M&ST 'al( hi")her i$%o %he office* Also#
%here 'ill +e NO early chec(ou% af%er ,:-." for childre$ so .la$
accordi$/ly***
Transportation
#ransportation changes must occur in writing. #here is no e3ception to this county
wide rule. #his is to ensure your childs safety4 #he note needs to include your
childs full name, parent signature, the day ! date of the change, ! the type of
change. 5ake sure you include the new bus letter or the name of the adult picking
up your child. 6lease do not email transportation changes to us.
Thursday Folders
Each #hursday, your child will have a weekly folder that will contain any class work
completed during the week. Additionally, important news and information from the
school will go home in this folder. 6lease check this folder every #hursday and look
at the hard work your child has produced during the week and school information.
This 'or( should +e clea$ed ou% of %he folder 'ee(ly a$d re"ai$ a% ho"e*
Homework
7e will not overload your child with homework. 8owever, we
do feel that homework is very important. 8omework is
designed as a review of concepts taught in the classroom.
.t is a time for your child to share with you what he/she is
learning in the classroom. Please make sure your child does
his/her homework every night. Your child will write the homework
assignments in his/her agenda daily. 6lease use this as a checklist for daily
homework completion.
Lunchroom
+onsult our class blog and +obb +ountys homepage for all of the updates and
information regarding lunch ! lunchroom procedures.
rading
#hroughout +obb +ounty, fifth grade uses the following grading system'
+ontent Area/Academics'
A9 :)0))
;9 *)*:
+9 &1&:
<9 &)&(
=9 >: and below
;ehavior, ,pecial Areas, 8andwriting, and 7ork ,tudy ,kills'
?9 ?utstanding
,9 ,atisfactory
/9 /eeds .mprovement
** Ma(e sure you have your child0s Sy$er/y lo/i$ i$for"a%io$# so you ca$
access your child0s o$li$e /rade+oo( %hrou/hou% %he school year* **
!ater "ottles
;rains grow and need plenty of nourishment, @ust like flowers. 7e believe in
nourishing our brains. Each child is permitted to bring a water bottle to class.
7ater bottles may be filled up in the morning during morning work and, at times,
once in the middle of the day. .f your child plays with his or her water bottle, he or
she will be asked to put the water bottle away. .f the water bottle becomes a
constant distraction or causes a large increase in restroom usage, then your child
will be asked not to bring a water bottle to class anymore. <ont worry. #he class
will have some water breaks at the water fountain.
Snack
,nack time will be incorporated during class time. 6lease
send a healthy snack4 Fruits, vegetables, yogurt are
ideal snacks. Additionally, your child may bring in granola
bars and trail mi3 balanced out with fruits ! vegetables
throughout the week. ,ome ideas include' bananas,
strawberries, applesauce cups, apples, grapes, cup or can of
peaches Acan must be a pull off topB, carrots, or celery with peanut butter. ;e
careful if you buy the little fruit gummy snack packs. ,ome are packed full of sugar.
You want to find some that are made from natural, not artificial fruits. 8ave fun with
this idea. You can even write a note on your childs banana peel. ;rainbased
studies support nutritious snacks to stimulate brain activity, instead of sugar and salt
snacks which rapidly increase and then rapidly decrease energy in an unhealthy
way. #oo much sugar decreases your childs ability to truly focus on tasks at hand.
%ets give the children brain power and healthy snack habits. %ets help the children
keep their minds turned on4
#n$ormation at %our Fingertips
You will need to check our class blog on a weekly basis. #his will be a critical tool
for communication about school assignments, pro@ects, ! information. 5ake sure
both you and your child are consulting this site weekly. ?ur blog address is'
https'//amyhester.edublogs.org