Koala-ty Organization Always Leads to Achievement
The KOALA Book is a 1-inch binder that goes back-and-forth between school and home each day. It is one of the best tools for daily parent-teacher communication, and it also promotes student responsibility and organizational skills. The KOALA Book contains the sections listed below. Items are placed in the KOALA Book daily, so please check all of the sections each night.
Inside Front Pocket (Papers from School, Notes for Mrs. McBride): This front pocket of the binder is where students will place any papers from school. Please make sure you check this pocket daily! Parents can also use this pocket to return any forms or notes.
Zippered Pouch- KOALA Kash: Koala Kash is a school-wide incentive program. Students can earn “Koala Cash” for positive actions, which they can then spend at our school store. Students are responsible for keeping their Koala Cash safe in this zippered pouch.
Log-On Information: Throughout the school year, your child will receive log-on information for many different online resources. It can be difficult to keep track of all those usernames and passwords, so this section of the KOALA Book will house all your log-on information in one easy-to-locate place! Please feel free to add any other usernames/passwords your family might need.
Class Information: This section contains important information about our class that you might need to reference throughout the year, including policies and routines, a class list, and schedules.
Resources: Although the 2nd grade team is not assigning formal homework, this section contains resources to support your child’s learning at home, including a list of the 2nd grade sight words and activities that you can use to practice spelling our weekly phonics patterns. Other resources may be added to this section as the year progresses.
Inside Back Pocket (Completed Work, Keep at Home): This is the completed work section in which students will put their work done in class that they can now keep at home. (or any other papers that can be kept at home). Please empty these papers as they are sent home. The KOALA Book will become too full if this section is not emptied regularly.
***2nd Grade Homework Policy***
Research shows that 20-30 minutes worth of homework is the most beneficial for students in the 2nd grade. Therefore, we ask that students read a book of their choosing for 15-20 minutes each night, and spend the other 10-15 minutes building family community. This can include helping cook dinner, organizing their bedroom, setting (or cleaning) the table, folding or putting away laundry, or even simply playing a game with their brother or sister. We ask that during their 20-30 minutes of nightly “homework,” that there is NO screen time due to their increased usage of laptops and other devices while at school. Occasionally there will be some take home projects and/or classwork that will need to be completed at home. Most nights though, we ask for them to follow the instructions above in regards to their daily homework.
We hope this helps teach students the importance of giving their best effort while at school, while also keeping a strong bond with their family-mimicking what we hope their adult life will be like. We look forward to a great year!