Welcome Families and Students !!

Dear Families:

Welcome! I hope that everyone is enjoying this beautiful fall weather, and enjoying school so far. I am very excited for this school, and to working with you and your child throughout the year.
First, I would like to introduce myself. This will be my third year teaching sixth grade Language Arts and Science. In 2008, I completed my Master’s Degree in Elementary Education, with instructional focus on the integration of technology and community service within the classroom. Also here at the Greenfield Middle School I am the Student Council Advisor, and the Science Coordinator for the building. I love animals, and in my spare time outside of school I rescue cats and kittens and then work hard to place them into healthy, happy, loving new homes.
In order to help prepare for this upcoming school year in both Science and Language Arts I have included below an outline of the main topics and books we will be covering, along with a list of supplies that will allow students to be prepared for school.

English Language Arts:
English Language Arts this year will look different from previous years. This year we will be doing most of our instructional focus through reading different novels. Most of the novels relate and will be integrated into both the Science and the Social Studies curriculum. To give you an idea, I have attached a list of the novels we will be doing this year. Also in Language Arts we do lots of writing. I ask that students come to class open minded, willing, and prepared to write everyday. Some writing pieces we will be focusing on this year are how to write a formal letter, persuasive essay, creative writing, and descriptive writing. We also will acquire pen pals from around the United States.
Students also have a regular schedule of homework for Language Arts, where they will be required to read Monday through Thursday nights for at least thirty minutes a night. In the beginning of the year students will create a note book to log all of their reading in. Besides reading on a regular basis students have no other homework, unless they have not completed an assignment in school, if they are absent, or to study for a quiz or test.
Below you will find a list of supplies that I ask students come prepared to school with.
• Three-ring binder (one inch), with white lined paper and tab dividers
• Lots of #2 pencils
• Markers, Colored Pencils, and Crayons
• Highlighters (any color)
• Pocket Folder


Science:
Sixth Grade Science is very exciting! This year we will be learning about weather, how weather occurs, natural disasters, and we will even practice being meteorologists. Also this year in Science we will focus and learn about the six kingdoms of life, how species adapt and change to their environments, ecosystems and the species that inhabit those ecosystems, and we also have a unit on chemistry. In Science every day students are actively engaged in hands on activities and labs that will help further their understanding of the concepts we will be covering. I have always believed that children learn best from doing.
In Science students do not have homework on a regular basis. Students do have homework if they did not complete an assignment in the classroom, if they were absent from school, or to study for tests and quizzes.
Below you will find a list of supplies that I ask students come prepared to school with.
• Three- ring binder (one inch), with white lined paper and tab dividers.
• #2 pencils
• Glue
• Markers, Colored Pencils
• Pocket Folder

One important thing that is very different for both parents and children this year is the grading system. Students will now be receiving letter grades instead of numbers. Often this can be a hard adjustment for students, due to the fact that a three in fifth grade does not always equal out to an A in sixth grade. We will work together on this in the beginning of the year so students will fully understand this new grading system. Also as a parent you will now have access to Power School. Power School is just like a teacher’s grade book, but the great thing is you have access to see how your child is doing at any time. In Power School I will have every assignment listed with a grade so that you are always able to see how your child is doing on all assignments. In the beginning of the year you will receive a log in ID and a password so that you are able to access your account.
Sixth Grade is also an exciting year for field trips. This past year we went on numerous field trips to give students as many real world experiences as possible. For example, this year the Sixth Grade went to the Bronx Zoo in New York City, we went hiking, skating, to a Chinese Restaurant to have lunch, Camp Apex, and to the movies. This year our goal is to have students engage in these kinds of experiences as much as possible.
Parent-Teacher communication is important to me, so my door is always open. If you have something to share or any concerns ever arise, please don’t hesitate to send a note with your child, call or email me. I also have conference times during the day, if you’d like to speak with me in person. The times and days of these regular conference times will be sent to you in a later letter. Also by the beginning of the year I should have a classroom website set up so that you are able to always follow what is happening within our classroom. I also ask that if or whenever possible classroom supply donations are always accepted and welcomed. Some of the things we will need this year are the following; markers, crayons, colored pencils, glue, scissors, hand sanitizer, tissues, cleaning wipes and anything else that comes through that door.
Again, I am really looking forward to having your child this year and to working with you!

Sincerely,



Melissa Caloon
Sixth Grade Teacher