Mrs. Karren's Focus Areas

• Be Respectful
• Be Responsible
• Be reasonable
• Be a friend
• Be the best…  you can be!

CLASSROOM CITY:
            *My discipline plan is running a “city” inside the classroom.  The students get rewarded by earning money and fines are issued for not following the rules.  The students save their money to ‘shop’ at the class store once every nine weeks.  I will contact parents through student planners for any student getting more than $10 in fines a day.  If it persists I will contact the parents by phone.  Through the city plan I also teach economics and government.  Students will be sent to the principle only after parents have been contacted and the behavior is still continuing… except in the case of:  if the student is physically hurting themselves or other students, if a student is not in control of their anger, if a student is blatantly defying teacher and disturbing the class to the point of stopping the learning process. Our schools also use the “Virtues” and “Love and Logic.” programs.

STUDENT PLANNERS:

• A parent (or guardian) signature on the planner confirms that your student worked on homework.
• Students will have math, reading, and/or spelling homework every day.
• Missing work that has not been turned in will be circled in green ink.
• A sticker will be placed on that week if the student planner is completed.
• Blocks will be highlighted if there is homework due.

READING:

• Reading Street student groups will read textbooks to teach concepts. 
• Accelerated Reading (AR) is a practice program with home time planned for independent reading.
• Progress monitoring is done through AIMS Web.

MATH:

• Math Expressions textbooks have been passed out to each student and they can take them home each night. Classroom work and teaching will take place in these books daily.
• IXL and Accelerated Math(AM) will be extension programs.

LANGUAGE:

• Language is also taught out of Reading Street textbooks.
• We have daily writing in journals.
• Writing lessons are taught through writing workshops with 6 Traits.
• Spelling will have weekly homework assignments with lists attached to the student planner with tests.
• Other subject assignments will be graded for spelling periodically.

IDAHO HISTORY:

• Idaho history from the 1800s to present.
• The constitution and the three branches of government are studied.
• Maps of Idaho and its geography.

SCIENCE:

•  Scientific Theory
•  Solar System
•  Matter
•  Plants and Animal (adaptations)