Welcome to Our Class Blog

Welcome, everybody! The purpose of this post is to illustrate ways and strategies to link us all together. This blog will be a meeting place and a sharing place for us all so that my classroom becomes yours. While Henry County Schools maintains an open visitation policy for parents and guardians, I know all too well how difficult that can be to schedule. I am also aware that we may, at times, have guest speakers from the community that you wish to engage with. This blog will be a platform to integrate all of that. I want the parents, guardians, and community to have a stake in your child's classroom with me! Currently, Henry County Schools is preparing three different options for when we return to school. Once we know what has been decided upon, I will let you know and I will update you on how I plan to move forward. Updates are also regularly posted on the Henry County Schools website here: School openings and safety measures will also be discussed at monthly board meetings. Because of COVID-19, they are being held virtually but can be watched by the community here: I utilize mastery-based methods in my classroom so even if a student fails to show mastery during the test time, there are other opportunities to show that they have mastered the concept. We continue moving forward, but we never stop learning. I use positive reinforcement and celebrate students trying in a safe place. Learning takes place in a manner in which students are comfortable voicing their ideas, sharing with peers, and revising their ideas when more information becomes available. This is the very essence of the scientific method. My goals are to: *connect parents and guardians to their child's science classroom *integrate community members into our class *be open and transparent about what we are learning about and why *offer support by means of additional resources that reflect what we are learning and how parents/guardians can help *offer scheduled meeting times for face-to-face learning in the event we are not in school as planned *post links to free websites that offer valuable tools to ensure your child's success *celebrate our students and our community *Be easily available to our parents and guardians so that we can collaborate to ensure success As part of the blogging experience, I would also like to connect with other educators, students, and communities through utilizing subscription services to their blogs as well. The more we connect and share, the better we will be together. Henry County Schools utilizes the hashtag #bettertogether and #ExpectExeptionalHCS and I intend to provide you all with an exceptional experience. Parents, guardians, students, and the community alike are encouraged to subscribe to this blog or to my wiki to receive important information about the class. Thank you for being here and I look forward to working with you.