Classroom routines, procedures and norms

To the parents/guardians of Tammy,

My name is Jeanne Lee, and I am a student observer from California State University
Dominguez Hills in your daughter’s classroom. I am writing the letter to inform you about
Tammy’s academic progress and goals, as well as behavioral goals. Students in the
class, including Tammy, are aware of our classroom’s daily routines. The classroom
rules and norms were set from the beginning of the school year, and it has been
followed and respected by everyone in the school. Each morning starts at the library as
students arrive at school. Then, they are escorted to the classroom to hang their
backpacks and take out homework folders. Once everyone enters the classroom, they
begin their school day with breakfast. After breakfast, students have time to go to the
bathroom and get ready for active learning. Each day has different schedules and
different learning activities. On Mondays, students get to go to the computer lab and
work on ABCYa or personalized AmplifyELA. On Tuesdays, the students participate in
Learning Academy, a differentiated small group learning station. The classroom has a
couple rules of how to treat one another, such as using kind words and not to get mad
when you lose. They are always reminded to treat each other with respect and be a
peacemaker, not a peace breaker.

Academic goals and progress

This past week, I assessed Tammy on letter sound identification. Tammy was given a
paper with different alphabets. First, I asked her to identify the letter. Then, I asked her
to tell me what each letter sounds like, letter sounds. The letter identification and sound
identification are critical for students to build fluency. Tammy was able to identify every
letter except lowercase b and lowercase d. She was little confused about identifying and
differentiating these two letters. The confusion between b and d is quite common in
kindergarteners. However, she was only able to recognize 70% of the letter sounds. My
goal for Tammy is to master letter sound identification by this school year. After the
assessment, I decided to give her more support for letter sound identification. I use
flashcards to practice phonics with her. Also, giving an example helps her to make a
connection between letters and its sounds, such as “a for apple” or “b for boy.”
There are great technology resources that Tammy is familiar with. ABCYa is a website
with lots of visuals and fun activities that will help Tammy to develop letter sound
identification. Tammy has used this website numerous times so she will be familiar with
how to navigate through the website. It will be helpful if Tammy could go online for 30
minutes a day to practice her skills.

Behavioral goals and progress

Tammy is an enthusiastic learner. She positively cooperates with her classmates, She
is good at emphasizing with other people. I enjoy working with Tammy and seeing her
actively participating in class. While working with Tammy, I noticed that she is eager to
share her idea or opinion during class discussion. She sometimes upsets other friends
because she would say when it is not her turn to talk. I understand and see this as a
good thing; however, during her interaction with peers, it might be something that I have
to remind her. When I see Tammy being little bit aggressive with her sharing, I would
quietly and respectfully go next to her and just tap her on her shoulder. That is all it
takes for Tammy to realize what she is doing. The school is always reminding students
to be a peace maker, not a peace breaker. I am aware that this is not an easy thing for
Tammy to fix right away, but she is making a great effort towards it. I know she does not
have anyone around her age to interact with at home, it will be great if you can practice
with her taking turns and waiting for turns while sharing. Also, Sesame Street and TBS
have great contents for young students. It will be beneficial for Tammy to watch a
couple episodes.

Student's self-assessment and reflection

Although Tammy’s eagerness is something that is not a significant problem, I believe

that it is important for Tammy to remind herself and reflect upon her behavior. It might
be a good practice for her to go over her day before she sleeps and revisits what she
has done well and what she can make it better. The reflection will yield a great outcome
if you can help her with it. Just listening to her self-reflection or discuss her days will be
a great support. I believe self-reflection before bed is not only good to her eagerness, it
will be a good opportunity for her to look back at her daily lives and it will allow her to
grow into a beautiful human being.

Letter closing

It is a pleasure having Tammy in the classroom. She is indeed a gem and adds so
much personality into the class. I personally enjoy working with her, and I am excited to
see her grow. I do want to support in her letter sound identification, so she can have
that mastered before she moves on with 1st grade. Also, I would love to see her start
decoding simple CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant words, such as cat and bed) words.
I will do everything I can to help her thrive in the classroom. Please help me to support
Tammy in her learning journey. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out
to me via email, phone call, or conference.