Grade 5 - 6 A to Z
Ms. Katie Mariasine
Arrival and Departure: For safety reasons, non-staff cars will not be permitted on campus. Parking is available at the library on chemin de la Bastero (which is to your immediate right as you turn at the lights into chemin du Grand Roule), or on rue de Verdun (outside the Mulatiere Hotel de Ville).
Assemblies: Primary school assemblies are an opportunity for the students to share some of their projects with a larger audience. Parents and family are encouraged to attend when possible. The dates and times for the assemblies will be announced in the newsletters and homework book.
Attendance: The school opens at 8.15 am at which time a teacher will be on duty to monitor the students on campus. Children are invited to join their classroom between 8:15 and 8:30. Classes begin at 8.30 am and finish at 15.10 pm. All absences must be accompanied by an explanatory note upon the child’s return to school.
Birthdays: Student birthdays will be acknowledged at school; after all it is a special day. However, cakes, sweets and celebrations be enjoyed outside of school hours. Birthday invitations should not be distributed at school unless all students in the class are invited.
Change: Mark this word in bold letters, because it will affect your life in the next 3 - 4 years. Student changes during adolescence are the most dramatic of a lifetime in physical, intellectual and social areas. Right when you think you understand, you will find that the early adolescence has changed again. Do not be alarmed; it is usual and only requires some education on the part of the parent as well as a lot of patience. (Parent conferences are a great place to discuss student change)
Classes: Students in grade 5/6 stay with their homeroom group for most of the day, but will move to a different area for art, French, library, music, PE and science. Students are provided the expertise of specialized teachers, but retain the class cohesiveness of a primary school environment.
Classroom Location: The primary school is located on the second floor. As you enter the school foyer, walk to the left of the atrium area in the center, go through the green double doors to the stairwell on your left and climb the stairs to the next level. This is the primary area. The grade 5 - 6 class is the second door on your left.
Clothing: There is no school uniform or formal dress code. As children will be expected to have year round outside play, a named raincoat is essential during the rainy season and in the winter months. At other times the students should dress according to the weather and the season.
Footwear needs careful consideration . . . sports shoes or tennis shoes are not adequate in the winter, snow boots are clumsy and open sandals can be dangerous. No thin shoulder straps, short skirts or revealing clothing should be worn.
Correspondence: Personal notes to parents will be written in the homework book. Please check it every night and sign it when there is an entry to show that you have read it. You are also welcome to write notes to me in the homework book. I check for comments every morning.
Field Trips: There will be a number of school-sponsored field trips throughout the year. Parents/guardians are asked to sign a general permission slip allowing their child to leave the school campus, on foot, to participate in neighbourhood activities or projects relevant to a particular topic being studied. This permission also covers day trips in the region using public transportation or school buses. Parents/guardians will be informed in advance of all day trips planned. No further response will be needed unless the parent wishes to withhold permission for the specified activity. Students cannot participate in field trips unless they have this written general permission from their parent/guardian.
First Day: On the first day parents are welcome to accompany their child to the classroom, but it is not compulsory. Some students are independent and prefer to enter without their parents. If this is the case, I look forward to meeting you in the near future.
Please ensure your child comes to school with all of their stationery supplies labelled with their name, grade and subject. This can otherwise take up a lot of valuable class time. I also recommend that they bring a bottle of drinking which can be filled up at the water fountain.
Homework: The average amount of homework is approximately 45 minutes - one hour per night. This amount may be longer at the beginning of the year as students work to learn good study skills associated with efficient homework study. In addition, the time may vary if the student is working on a large project. However, learning to complete efficient and quality homework is a skill that develops unevenly in students. The actual time spent on homework varies significantly between students. If your child consistently works two hours or more a night, contact me to analyse the situation. Homework is not meant to dominate a student’s out of school time; they need time to enjoy their childhood through a variety of interests.
All homework will be listed in the homework book. The homework book can also be used for home/school correspondence. Please take the time to revise your child’s homework and sign the homework book and the homework assignment each night. Homework is a great opportunity for parents to observe what their child is covering at school as well as a chance for your child to receive positive, individual attention for an extended period.
Illness: If a student is sick, parents will be contacted and expected to collect the student promptly. If your child is ill, please keep him/her at home until fully recovered.
Lateness: Any child arriving after 8:30am should report to the office and will be marked as tardy.
Library: Students have time built into their schedules to visit the library for book talks, reading time, or research. The timetabled days will be communicated to you at the start of school. Parents are also encouraged to visit the library after school with their child.
Lost Items: If an item is missing, a systematic search is a good first step to recover an item. To recover an item, students should check the lost and found in the lunchroom and on the shelf behind the glass windows of the secretariat, then inform a teacher. Remember to label all of your child’s school items, including school bags, lunch boxes, sweaters, and jackets.
Lunch: The lunch break extends from 12:20 to 13:10. Grades 5 - 6 students eat lunch with the whole school. Students are required to bring their lunch from home. This may be a cold lunch, or food that can be heated in the microwaves that are available for student use in the lunchroom. After 20 minutes of eating students clean their area and go to the playground to play. Unfinished lunches will be sent home. Please do not send soft drinks.
Make-up work: Students with excused absences are allowed extra days to complete assignments. The extra time for make-up work equals the amount of time absent. Students are encouraged to check with peers and myself regarding homework the day of their return. Parents are encouraged to allow students adequate recovery time from illness before resuming school work.
Mobile Phones: Students are discouraged from bringing expensive personal items to school such as mobile phones, computers, i-pods, game boys or money. If mobile phones are brought on to the school campus, they are to be switched off at all times and kept in school bags, otherwise they will be confiscated and parents will be asked to collect them from the office. The ISLyon is not responsible for damage to or loss of personal belongings.
Parent Contact Details: After the first couple of weeks at school, you will be sent a list of the telephone contact details of all primary students. This list can be useful for arranging after-school gatherings and meeting other parents.
Parent Helpers: Once we are settled in to our weekly routine I will be seeking interested parents to assist in the class/school with reading, library research, cooking, writing, PTA . . . to name a few. If you have an interest and the time, we would love to see you at school. Throughout the year I will also be looking for guest speakers to enhance our units of inquiry. Students love to see a different face in the classroom and hear a different voice… so do I. Think about it, we’d love to hear about your expertise.
Parent Meetings: Parent communication is a critical part of the primary school experience, and we would like to keep in contact regularly throughout the year. Parent meetings to discuss your child’s progress are held twice a year, in fall and in spring. Written reports are sent home after Christmas and at the end of the year. The precise dates will be indicated on the school calendar on the Website (under “Practical information”). Additional meetings can be scheduled at the request of the parents or the teacher if a more thorough discussion of a child’s progress appears useful. We will also be happy to chat with you over the telephone should you have a concern and be unable to come to the school due to other commitments.
Physical Education: The PE days will be indicated upon the start of the year in September. On PE days children will require a bag containing a clean T-shirt, shorts and gym shoes. We are in the process of designing a PE uniform; more about this will be advised at a later date.
Reading: Your child will have reading four nights a week. When your child has read to you please write the date, title of the book, and any comments in their reading log.
Reading should be an enjoyable, worthwhile experience for your child and you. Please take the time to create a quiet and comfortable environment. It is best to choose a moment when time pressures are less, as this added stress can sometimes create unnecessary distress. I would like to see grade 5 - 6 students reading for at least 20 minutes per night.
Children should be taught to take care of books; this includes turning pages, transportation to and from school, keeping books away from food, drinks, younger siblings and pets…. For protection the homework, newsletters, library books and the class readers will be sent home in the plastic folder with elastic.
School bags: Once the school bags have been emptied of the reading folder and any other equipment needed during the day, they are to be hung on your child’s hook outside the classroom.
Snack Break: There will be a 20 minute snack and play break from 10:40 to 11:00 daily.
Supplies: Throughout the year we require a few supplies for art, science and language arts. Schools are a wonderful place for recycling. If you have anything which you feel could be creatively useful, please let us know. Some items we always welcome are colour magazines, newspapers, supermarket advertisements (e.g. Auchan, Carrefour…etc), paper towel rolls, egg cartons, feathers, cones, polystyrene, gift ribbon, walnut shells, plastic containers, ice cream containers and lids to name just a few. Please send them in with your child; they will be greatly appreciated.
Welcome Evening: On Tuesday, September 19th at 19:00 a Welcome Evening will be held at the school.