Welcome to second grade! I hope that you and your family are as excited about beginning a new school year as we are. I am beginning my twenty-fourth year at Shepherd. Mrs. Swartz is beginning her nineteenth year. My undergraduate and master degrees were received after getting four daughters into school. I am a National Board Certified Teacher in the area of Middle Childhood. 

I am looking forward to working with your child this year and helping him/her to achieve his/her potential. Through the remainder of this letter, I will share some of my beliefs and classroom policies. 

Parent/Teacher Relationship – I believe that a good parent-teacher relationship is necessary for maximum school success. Throughout the year I will communicate with you through notes, newsletters, and conferences. I encourage you to contact me if you have any questions or concerns at any time. You can call me at school during our enhancement time, send notes, or e-mail.

Parent Participation – Throughout the school year there will be a variety of special classroom activities and celebrations. I encourage you to attend these functions when possible and to support them by sending needed supplies or treats. Your support of school activities makes your child feel important and sends the message that you value school. 

School Attendance – Your child’s regular and prompt attendance at school is crucial to his/her success. I can’t emphasize this point enough!!! Please make sure that you read the new attendance policy in your brown folder. There is also a form to fill out telling how your child will receive the missed work. Your child might have siblings here at Shepherd, maybe a neighbor, or you can always pick up after school. Just be sure to fill out and I’ll have a record of what to do and expect. 

Changes in Transportation – If you plan to pick up a child that normally rides the bus, you must send a written note. If no written note is received, your child will be sent home by his/her usual method of transportation.

Money – On occasions it is necessary to send money to school. Always send money in an envelope with the following information written on it:

1. Your child’s first and last name.
2. The amount of money.
3. The purpose of the money (lunch, pictures, fund raiser)
4. My name.

This helps us out tremendously and reduces the likelihood of errors. Also, if the envelope is left on the bus or dropped in the hallway, this information will help the money to be returned to my classroom.

Birthdays – Birthdays are special occasions for young children. If your child wishes, he/she may bring treats for the class on his/her birthday. Just please send a note a day or two in advance, so I can give you an exact number of children and set aside some class time for the party. 

Snacks – Since we are a Peanut - Free Quad of Second Graders, we are asking for a donation of $3.00 a month.  From this money, a volunteer is getting the snacks for us this year.  Please have your money in by the 5th of each month.

Homework and Brown Folders – Students will be bringing home blue homework folders each night. A homework schedule should be in the homework folder at all times. Work should be corrected or finished and returned to school. Brown folders will be sent home each Friday with completed graded work. Please look at the work with your child. This will encourage the child and also give him/her a review at the same time. There will be a weekly behavior sheet to sign and return on Mondays in the brown folder. The graded work should not be returned in the brown folder. The brown folder along with the signed behavior sheet is returned to school each Monday. 

In Closing – I would just like to say that I am looking forward to a great year working with your child. I would also like to suggest that you save this letter for future reference. Let’s keep our expectations high and your child will excel.