Open House Presentation 2014-2015

1. Welcome to
Kindergarten!
August 11th
, 2014
Mrs. Brown’s Class
Room 26

2. Dear Families-
Welcome to Kindergarten! My name is Claire Brown and this is my
ninth year teaching. I am really excited to get the school year started and on
its way! I have many fun ideas and things planned throughout the year.
To start off, I would like to tell you a little bit about myself both
personally and professionally. I am originally from Lafayette. I went to
Mayflower, Southwestern, and McCutcheon and graduated from Purdue
University. I love going on vacations anywhere there is a beach and the
ocean. I also enjoy both watching and playing different types of sports. Go
Cubbies! My husband is an Assistant Principal at Lafayette Sunnyside
Intermediate School. We have one daughter, Hatley aka Hattie Faith Brown
who is now two years old and a baby on the way due October 25th
!
I would like to work closely together with you, and I believe frequent
communication is vital. If you ever need to get a hold of me I can be reached
at school. I arrive by 8:00 each morning and am usually in the building until
at least 4:00. The phone number is 538-3875, extension 1720. If I am
unavailable please be sure to leave me a message with your name and a
number where I can reach you. You may leave me a voicemail 24hrs/day, and
I will return your call as soon as possible. If you would like to send me notes
via email, my school email address is cabrown@tsc.k12.in.us. I will try to
return all emails at the end of the school day.
Be sure to keep up with our classroom daily or weekly checking the
classroom blog, Instagram and our school Facebook page, as well as signing
up for REMIND text service!
I am looking forward to having a wonderful school year with both you
and your child!
My Favorites:
Food: Pizza
Movie: The Notebook
Color: Teal
Drink: Diet Mountain Dew/Vitamin Water
Season: Spring & Summer
Sport Teams: Cubs, Bears and Purdue
Animal: Giraffe
Hobby: Running, being outside & playing w/ Hattie Mrs. Brown

3. Home Folders
The take home folder will be sent home every day and needs to be returned to school
every day. It will contain your child’s papers, newsletters, important information and behavior
chart. Please check the folder each day. If you have a note for me, put it in the folder and it will
return with your child every morning. Please be sure to empty your child’s folder each evening
and to check for important information. Thank you!
Attendance
Regular attendance is a key to success in the classroom. However, if your child is ill and
cannot make it to school, please call the office and inform them.
Book Orders
At the beginning of each month, I will send home order forms for books. The books are
reasonably priced and provide good reading material for beginning readers. Please do not feel
obligated to purchase any books. However, if you do wish to order books, please send a check
and the order form in an envelope with your child's name on the outside. Please make sure you
make checks payable to the BOOK CLUB'S NAME, and remember to put your child's name on
the order form. You can also order the books directly from the website using our classroom
code. The more books you order, the more free books we can get to add to our classroom
collection!
Parties
We will be having several parties throughout the school year. We will have a Fall Party,
a Winter Party, a Valentine’s Party and an End of the Year Party. I will send home a note for
donations a week or so before the scheduled party and will take volunteers at that time if any
parent is interested in attending the party and helping out. If you are interested in being a room
mother and being part or the planning process for these parties be sure to let me know and sign
up!
Celebrating Birthdays
Birthday celebrations are an important part of being a child. If you would like to send in a
birthday treat for the class on your child’s birthday (or ½ birthdays if their birthday falls during
the summer or holidays), please let me know! If you choose to send in a treat (please NO
cupcakes), we’d appreciate the necessary napkins, plates, etc. Also, students may not pass out
invitations for personal birthday parties at school. You will need to contact those students by
phone or mail. Thank you!
Weekly Poems
Every week your child will bring home a poem of the week. This poem is one that we
practice daily in the classroom. The poem will have the sight word of the week, as well as
phonics skills to practice. The back of the poem has a different task for each night to complete
as a family. The poem is to be completed and returned by Friday when we will perform as a
class and cut and paste it into our poetry journals. By the end of the year, you child will have a
journal filled with all the poems from the year that they can read!
Donations
Every so often a new donations list will be sent home in a newsletter. Items on the
donations list are used to enhance our curriculum in order to give your child a more hands-on-
experience in kindergarten. Your help is greatly appreciated!

4. Snack
A 15-minute snack period is scheduled each day. Please send an individually wrapped
snack to school with your child every day unless otherwise notified. Be sure to write your child's
name on it, to ensure your child gets his/her snack. The snack needs to be one that your child
can eat quickly and needs to be in a disposable container. No candy, please!
Book Bags
Please see that your child brings a book bag to school every day. This will help get
things home easily. This needs to be large enough for the child's folders to fit in. Ask your child
each day to show you his/her papers. As your child brings daily papers home, it is very
important to review these. Extra reinforcement from home is crucial in your child’s education.
Rest Time
Every day the class will take part in a rest time. This time is for students to reflect on
their busy day and relax before packing up to go home. Your child needs to bring a blanket to
school on Monday morning. This blanket is left at school in a blanket bag and will be sent home
every Friday to be washed and returned on Monday. Please avoid sending in a large blanket
that your child could potentially struggle putting into a medium sized blanket bag.
Brownie Bucks
The class and individuals are able to earn “Brownie Bucks” throughout the day. They are
able to earn these multiple ways. Compliments from staff members and after a specials class or
lunch, kind deeds in the classroom, following the character traits and MME pledge and many
more! The list is endless as to how the students can earn these bucks. The students will use the
bucks they earn and have the opportunity to “shop” in a classroom treasure box as a reward.
Arrival and Dismissal
Students who walk or are being transported to school by parents may not arrive prior to
8:45 a.m. If special arrangements are needed the school office should be notified. Students who
are not riding the bus to or from school need to be dropped off and picked up at the back of the
school. The car line will begin at the back of the school and proceed along the west side of the
building. Dismissal for car riders and walkers will be announced at 3:20. There will be teachers
at the back door guiding this process. If your child needs to be a car rider or ride on a bus that is
different than your normal procedure, please send a note that day to the teacher to avoid any
confusion, as well as for safety reasons.
Room 26’s Weekly Specials Schedule
*Monday: ART 1:45-2:15
*Tuesday: GYM 1:45-2:15
*Wednesday: MUSIC 1:15-1:45
*Thursday: Library 1:15-1:45
*Friday: COMPUTER LAB. 1:45-2:15
--Tennis shoes must be worn on P.E. days to participate.
*Lunch/Recess: 12:00-12:50

5. Website/Classroom Blog Information
If you would like to keep up with our daily and weekly happenings in our classroom,
follow these steps to get to the classroom website, as well as my classroom blog. I love
the use of technology and I post pictures, lessons and many other exciting happenings
from our classroom on a weekly basis on the blog. The website has important
documents, as well as the weekly newsletter posted.
 Go to the TSC website: http://www.tsc.k12.in.us/
 Click on Staff Info at the top left corner of the screen
 In the Search Staff box write Brown and then hit enter.
 Under the word WEBSITE you will see a paper with a globe. Click on that icon, next
to my name.
 Browse through my home page, links, documents and policies.
 There is also a link to my classroom blog on the website.
http://mrsbrown26.blogspot.com/
iPAds
We will be having a classroom set of iPads this school year. The iPads will be assigned to each
student, but only used in the classroom. They will not be allowed to take them home. We will use these
learning tools at various times throughout the day. The students use these as a choice during our
independent working time for Daily 5, morning work, writing time, math time, free time and so much more.
We will continue to use all of our other tools in the classroom such as papers, pencils, crayons, play-doh,
paints and BOOKS! I believe that in the ever changing world of technology it is important for students to
learn by using various tools and this is just one of the many ways we stay in engaged in hands on
learning activities in my classroom!
Instagram
We would love for you to peak into our classroom by viewing pictures we post on
our class Instagram account. Look us up by using the handle @mrsbrownK26.
Remind
Do you want to have text reminders of various special days, activities in our
school and classroom, as well as reminders about homework and due dates? Send the
text @mrsbrown26 to 317-333-6825. I will send out group text messages when
needed.

6. PBIS
We have identified 5 Grinder Goals that follow the TSC Lifelong Guidelines.
We are Respectful.
We are Cooperative.
We are Responsible.
We do What’s Right. (Integrity)
We do our Best. (Perseverance)
All staff will be on the lookout for great behavior and may reward students from other
classes with Great Grinder Tickets. Staff will also correct inappropriate behavior with
a short conversation about the procedure and a Grinder Reminder.
Students receiving a Grinder Reminder will move a step on the classroom discipline
plan. Students receiving a Great Grinder ticket will have their ticket tallied in the
classroom for a “whole class” reward and they will also place their ticket in the grade
level raffle jar for random drawings.
Classroom teachers will have a classroom clipboard that travels with the class in all
areas of the building including lunch, recess, and specials. Student infractions during
the school day will be recorded on the chart. Daily behavior charts are located on the
shared drive. The data from the daily behavior charts will be compiled on the PBIS
“Behavior Gradebook”, which gives students a percentage for the 9 weeks. First 9
weeks, students must earn a behavior percentage of 80% or better to attend the
quarterly celebration.
During the morning announcements, the school recites our MME school
pledge. The staff at MME also has a school wide vision that enforces each
staff member’s goals and beliefs for every student at MME.
Mayflower Mill Pledge
I am proud to be a student at Mayflower Mill.
Today I will do the right thing and treat people right.
I promise to be the best I can be!
Mayflower Mill Elementary Vision
We believe all students deserve a safe and structured learning environment. We
believe all students deserve to be surrounded by dedicated adults who believe in them,
encourage them, and have high expectations for their success. We believe all students
deserve teachers who utilize a wide variety of instructional strategies to help them
achieve. We believe all students deserve opportunities to experience the world around
them and to become productive citizens in a global society. We also believe that
parents are our partners in education and play a key role in student success. As a
school community, we will strive each day to give all of our students the tools they need
to become responsible well-educated citizens.

7. Expectations and Discipline
My expectations of students are based on the lifelong guidelines. I use positive
rewards for meeting those expectations and consequences for choosing inappropriate
behavior.
Five Basic Rules in our classroom are as follows:
1. Follow directions quickly.
2. Raise your hand for permission to speak.
3. Raise your hand for permission to leave your
seat.
4. Make smart choices.
5. Keep your dear teacher happy! 
Rewards
 Personal satisfaction and pride
 Each student starts off on “Ready to learn at
the beach” every day on our behavior chart.
When I catch a student making good choices
they have the opportunity to move their clip up
the chart with the goal being the “Top Surfer”!
Each portion above the starting point earns
something extra if the clip is there at the end
of the day.
 Brownie Bucks!
 Positive phone calls or notes sent to parents
 Positive reinforcement from principal
 The entire class may earn a class reward if
they earn all ten surfboards on the board.
 A chance to choose a prize from the treasure
box when the student receives 10 stickers on
his/her behavior chart.
Consequences
 1
st
offense: Verbal warning.
 2
nd
offense: Student will move his/her clip down
to the yellow “Sink or Swim” and will lose 5
minutes of recess.
 3
rd
offense: Student will move his/her clip down
to the orange “Wipe Out” and will lose 10
minutes of recess.
 4
th
offense: Student will move his/her clip to the
bottom of the chart on the red that says “Shark
Tank” and will lose 15 minutes of recess. If
he/she ends the day in this spot, I will send a red
note home explaining what rules were broken. If
needed I will also call the parents. The red note
must be signed and returned by the parent the
following school day.
 5
th
offense: Student will move his/her clip to my
desk and will visit the principal.
Examples of possible reasons for consequences:
*Level 1 (verbal Warning): being off task, talking aloud during quiet time, etc….
*Level 2 (1 clip move) lose(whatever you want): anything from level 1 plus: name calling, pushing/shoving in line,
etc…
*Level 3 (2 clip moves) Lose additional something: all of 2 plus inappropriate behavior with a sub, etc.
*Level 4 (3 clip moves) Parent contact: all 3 plus foul language, bullying, etc…
*Level 5: 4 clip moves) office referral: all of 4 plus, hitting, kicking, destruction of school property, etc.
Whole Brain Teaching
Whole Brain Teaching is highly structured, interactive, educational silliness.
Students follow along with the teacher doing various interactions. These interactions
use movement and voices that are used to increase the number of times students
repeat core information and practice basic skills, as well as learning a new concept. I do
not plan on using this for every lesson throughout the day, but will incorporate bits and
pieces into our daily routine.

8. Mrs. Brown’s Weekly Schedule 2014-2015
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
8:50-
9:05
Arrival, Morning
Routine,
Announcements
Arrival, Morning
Routine,
Announcements
Arrival, Morning
Routine,
Announcements
Arrival, Morning
Routine,
Announcements
Arrival, Morning
Routine,
Announcements
9:10-
9:30
Morning
Meeting
-greeting,
sharing,
morning
message
Morning
Meeting
-greeting,
sharing,
morning
message
Morning
Meeting
-greeting,
sharing,
morning
message
Morning
Meeting
-greeting,
sharing,
morning
message
Morning
Meeting
-greeting,
sharing,
morning
message
9:30-
11:00
Daily 5 Reading
Block
Daily 5 Reading
Block
Daily 5 Reading
Block
Daily 5 Reading
Block
Daily 5 Reading
Block
11:00-
12:00
Writer’s
Workshop
Writer’s
Workshop
Writer’s
Workshop
Writer’s
Workshop
Writer’s
Workshop
12:00-
12:50
Lunch/Recess Lunch/Recess Lunch/Recess Lunch/Recess Lunch/Recess
12:50-
1:00
Read
Aloud/Calendar
Read
Aloud/Calendar
Read
Aloud/Calendar
Read
Aloud/Calendar
Read
Aloud/Calendar
1:00-
1:45
Daily 5 Math
Block
Daily 5 Math
Block
1:15-1:45
MUSIC
1:15-1:45
LIBRARY
Daily 5 Math
Block
1:45-
2:15
ART GYM 1:45-2:15
Daily 5 Math
Block
1:45-2:15
Daily 5 Math
Block
COMPUTER
LAB
2:15-
2:45
PEP/Snack/Rest PEP/Snack/Rest PEP/Snack/Rest PEP/Snack/Rest PEP/Snack/Rest
2:45-
3:15
Content Content Content Content Content
3:15-
3:30
Pack up/Dismiss Pack up/Dismiss Pack up/Dismiss Pack up/Dismiss Pack up/Dismiss

9. Schedule Explanations
 Announcements – Every morning the fifth grade students do the announcements on the
ENO board. The entire school recites the Pledge of Allegiance together and we stand quietly
for fifteen moments of silence. They inform the school of the date, weather, important events
that are happening at Mayflower and we learn a new vocabulary word each week. We finish
each announcement by reciting our MME school pledge.
 Calendar Time – We meet as a whole group and learn the day’s date, the days of the week
and the months of the year. We talk about the weather, count how many days we have been
in school, learn our numbers to one hundred, work on patterns and much more!
 Music and Movement – This activity allows the children to get up and move. We dance and
sing to at least two to three songs every day.
 Writer’s Workshop– Writing is usually an interactive lesson. I will start the year off with them
helping me write some letters on the dry-erase boards to complete a sentence about what
we did that day. Eventually, the students will be writing on their own, as their writing skills
progress. We write the date, their name and a sentence. We learn about what a sentence is
made up of (words, letters, and punctuation). We cover many standards during this activity.
They will be so proud when they are able to write this independently. Make sure you
celebrate this accomplishment when you see it come home in the folder! Each child will also
have a journal in which they will write a sentence and draw a picture every day. The students
will be taught mini lessons prior to independent writing that focus on various aspects of the
writing process.
 Daily 5 – During this time of day the children are engaged in meaningful reading and writing
tasks. The students have choices where they read to self, read to someone, work on writing,
work with words and listen to a story where they are either alone or in a small group using
instructional materials that allow them to explore and expand their literacy. The children
practice reading, writing, speaking, listening, and working with letters and words. We will
work towards the children doing these activities independently. While students work
independently at the stations, I will be pulling small groups of students for strategy reading
groups. We will work on fluency, patterns in words, reading strategies, predicting and
comprehension. Children will be placed in strategy groups according to their needs. The
leveled books go from Level A to Level Z. As your child progresses in reading, he/she will go
up to the next level.
 CAFÉ – This time works cooperatively with the Daily 5. I will teach mini lessons whole group
that focus on Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency and Expanding Vocabulary. After each
mini lesson the students will work independently at one of the Daily 5 literacy stations, while I
pull individuals and small groups to work on various aspects of the CAFÉ.
 Math: Our math time will consist of a mixture of whole group, small group, partner and
independent activities. We will eventually work into a Daily 5 math set up which is very
similar to the Daily 5 reading and writing where the students will work in pairs or
independently while I work with students one on one or in small groups. In between we will
have mini-lessons on various math concepts.
 Sharing Time/PEP- The surfer of the week is allowed to bring in items to share with the class
during his/her week. This is special only for this particular student and each child will have
his/her turn to be the surfer of the week and bring in items to share with the class. PEP is an
exercise activity we do as a class each day. It is to encourage a healthy lifestyle and to keep
our students moving and active throughout the day. Our P.E. teacher, Mr. Z, creates these
exercises to music on a tape that the class and myself exercise to each day. I will choose
one or two “peppers of the day” each day and this reward is given to students who worked
the hardest.
 Content: This portion or our day consists of learning our content areas such as science and
social studies.

10. Report Card Skills
This is a list of skills that will be tested for the report card.
1st
Nine Weeks
 Follows print from left to right and top to bottom
 Identifies letters from words and words from sentences
 Recognizes sight words
 Recognizes upper and lower case letter sounds
 Identifies the front cover, back cover and title page
 Define the roles of the author and illustrator
 Stays engaged in read-alouds
 Writes from left to right
 Understand and follow one and two-step spoken directions
 Speaks clearly and is easily understood
 Counts by 1’s to 25 (50, 75, 100 by end of year)
 Recognizes and sorts objects by color
 Counts sets of objects 0-20
 Describes the position of objects using positional terms such as: above, below,
beside, in front of, behind and next to
 Identifies and describes the following 2D shapes: circle, triangle, square,
rectangle and hexagon
2nd
Nine Weeks
 Says rhyming words in response to oral prompt
 Recognizes upper and lower case letter names
 Blends consonant-vowel-consonant sounds aloud to make words
 Segment Consonant-Vowel-Consonant (CVC) words aloud to tell sounds
 With prompting and support, identify author’s purpose
 Relates personal experiences to a story
 Writes from top to bottom
 Draws pictures and writes words for a specific reason
 Writes phonetically spelled words and CVC words
 Recognize and name ending punctuation
 Capitalize the first word in a sentence
 Handwriting - Correctly writes lower and capital letters
 Recognizes numbers 0-20
 Writes numbers 0-20
 Fluently add within 5
 Recognizes and sorts objects by shape
 Identifies and describes the following 3D shapes: cube, cylinder, cone and
sphere
 Decompose numbers less than or equal to 10 into pairs in more than one way

11. 3rd
Nine Weeks
 Counts the number of syllables in a word
 Recognizes long vowel sounds “a, e, i, o and u”
 Identify the opposite of a given word
 Add or substitute individual sounds in one-syllable words to make new words
 Identifies the setting, characters and main topic in a story
 Retells and identifies familiar stories using key details
 Tells a story the teacher or another person can write
 Counts to 100 by tens
 Identify greater than, less than, and equal to using sets of objects
 For any number 1-9 find the number that makes ten when added to the given
number
 Fluently subtract within 5
 Solve addition word problems
 Recognizes and sorts objects by size
 Compare objects based on length and weight
 Count forward beginning from a given number within a known sequence.
4th
Nine Weeks
 Compare and contrast within the same text, as well as two different texts
 Produces various types of writing, including opinion pieces, informative pieces,
and pieces including linked events
 Solve subtraction word problems
 Compose and decompose numbers 11-19 into tens and ones
 Draw 2D shapes: square, circle, triangle, rectangle and hexagon

12. *Be sure to write
your name and home
address on the
envelope and return it
to Mrs. Brown!