Welcome to Mrs. Holmes’ Multi-age Class!
It is the beginning of a brand new school year and I for one, am excited to be working
with your child! I thought I would let you know a little bit about what to expect this year
in our multi-age class.
The first 6 weeks I will work a lot on setting routines in the classroom and building a
strong community within our class and school family. This in turn helps each student
know what is expected of them and creates a sense of independence.
I use different modalities in the classroom, because we all learn in different ways. I use
manipulatives for the learner who needs to touch and manipulate things. I use activities
that get us up and moving for those who have difficulty sitting (and who doesn’t need to
get up and move on occasion?) I use music and song for those who learn through using
the auditory senses, and I use a lot of visual cues in the classroom for those learners who
need to see it. I like to identify different strategies to accomplish the same thing and
point out that some things are easier and/or harder for each individual.
I encourage independence and accountability in the classroom that is why we take the
time in the beginning of the year to write our own classroom rules, along with exploring
the whole school. We take time to get to know each other’s likes and dislikes and are
able to identify how we all have things in common (and not).
There is a “take a break chair” in the classroom, because sometimes we all need to take a
minute (or two) to “take a break”. It is not used as a punishment, but as a time to stop
We will be using the reading program Treasures, I am very excited about it, it is a very
comprehensive program with many components including Science and Social Studies.
We will also be using Fundations for Phonics. I also do a lot of writing in class using
Six+1 Traits, along with other creative genres. We will do lots of reading in class ~
everyday! And I ask, and encourage you, as parents to read with your child every night at
home as a part of their homework.
Everyday Math 4 is the math program we use; there is a home/school connection with
this program. There is a parent letter for each unit to explain the philosophy of the
program and there is homework that will come home 3 to 4 nights a week, there will be
no homework on Fridays. Each student will get a homework sheet on Mondays to bring
home and I ask that you take a moment each night to sign off on it when they have
completed their work. Homework will consist of reading, math and practicing their Fry
words each night, it should not take more that 15-20 minutes, and often should not
exceed 10-15 minutes, depending on the student. If it does, please talk with me about it.
Our first Science/Social Studies theme will be community; this will tie in nicely with our
all school theme of “Community”, look for more information coming about that.
I feel strongly about the home/school relationship and open communication. So if you
ever have a question or concern, please contact me.
I look forward to working with your child and you this new school year! Here’s to a
It is the beginning of a brand new school year and I for one, am excited to be working
with your child! I thought I would let you know a little bit about what to expect this year
in our multi-age class.
The first 6 weeks I will work a lot on setting routines in the classroom and building a
strong community within our class and school family. This in turn helps each student
know what is expected of them and creates a sense of independence.
I use different modalities in the classroom, because we all learn in different ways. I use
manipulatives for the learner who needs to touch and manipulate things. I use activities
that get us up and moving for those who have difficulty sitting (and who doesn’t need to
get up and move on occasion?) I use music and song for those who learn through using
the auditory senses, and I use a lot of visual cues in the classroom for those learners who
need to see it. I like to identify different strategies to accomplish the same thing and
point out that some things are easier and/or harder for each individual.
I encourage independence and accountability in the classroom that is why we take the
time in the beginning of the year to write our own classroom rules, along with exploring
the whole school. We take time to get to know each other’s likes and dislikes and are
able to identify how we all have things in common (and not).
There is a “take a break chair” in the classroom, because sometimes we all need to take a
minute (or two) to “take a break”. It is not used as a punishment, but as a time to stop
We will be using the reading program Treasures, I am very excited about it, it is a very
comprehensive program with many components including Science and Social Studies.
We will also be using Fundations for Phonics. I also do a lot of writing in class using
Six+1 Traits, along with other creative genres. We will do lots of reading in class ~
everyday! And I ask, and encourage you, as parents to read with your child every night at
home as a part of their homework.
Everyday Math 4 is the math program we use; there is a home/school connection with
this program. There is a parent letter for each unit to explain the philosophy of the
program and there is homework that will come home 3 to 4 nights a week, there will be
no homework on Fridays. Each student will get a homework sheet on Mondays to bring
home and I ask that you take a moment each night to sign off on it when they have
completed their work. Homework will consist of reading, math and practicing their Fry
words each night, it should not take more that 15-20 minutes, and often should not
exceed 10-15 minutes, depending on the student. If it does, please talk with me about it.
Our first Science/Social Studies theme will be community; this will tie in nicely with our
all school theme of “Community”, look for more information coming about that.
I feel strongly about the home/school relationship and open communication. So if you
ever have a question or concern, please contact me.
I look forward to working with your child and you this new school year! Here’s to a