Welcome to Room 204!

: R E A D     C A R E F U L L Y :

This post contains 984 words that will begin to shape your year as a fifth grader. You may like to have your parents sit and read with you so that you can all be uber excited about fifth grade together!

Are you ready to read on about becoming fifth graders at Robinson?

I am so excited for what this 2012-2013 school year will bring! If you read the letter I sent to your parents, some of this may be a review. But just in case . . .

This will be my fourth year teaching, but my very first as a Roadrunner. I taught for three years in Chicago before moving to St. Louis. Yes, that's Chicago as in the Cubs, the Blackhawks, the Bulls, the Bears. I hope you don't count that against me. We may have some differences, but I married a St. Louis native who is all about the Cardinals and the Blues and so I'm slowly learning more about your sports teams. Maybe I'll cheer for them one day. Maybe. :) I'm married to my wonderful husband, Peter, and we are expecting a baby girl in September! [She's kicking as I type this and I take it as a sign of her saying hi to you!] I loved teaching 2nd grade, but I love teaching 5th grade a lot more! Why? Because you are becoming more independent, more responsible, more mature . . . eager to grow and learn in so many different ways!

I've told you some personal things about me, and I'll share more with you as our fifth grade journey progresses, but now it's time for you to get to know me as your teacher. So here are some things I value:

1. YOU

The number one thing to know about me is that I am rooting for you . . . ALWAYS. I will be your number one fan in and out of the classroom at all times [outside of your family, of course]. This means that I am even rooting for you next year or when you're on your way to high school! Sure, sometimes you will struggle and may even fail, which is totally okay! Even adults struggle and fail and you'll see that I will do just that this year. But it is how you get back up and finish your journey that helps you learn from your struggles and build character! And I will be the fan that sticks with you through the ups and downs this year may bring . . . just like how I've stuck it through with the Cubbies. :)

2. Respect

Yes, I am YOUR number one fan . . . but you are not the only one in OUR classroom. I am the number one fan for all of my students. I know you know this, but I am stating it here because I value it so much!

I value RESPECT. I give it and expect it in return in my classroom. I expect you to treat others the way you would want to be treated. We respect each other's personal spaces, ideas [even when we disagree!], backgrounds/cultures, and so forth.

3. Collaboration / Communication

I love collaborating! I love sharing ideas, getting ideas, trying new ideas with other people! I can't wait to begin working with the three other fabulous fifth grade teachers at Robinson so that our teaching reflects the best of four minds! What does this mean for our class? Well, it means that we'll be doing a lot of collaborating and communicating with one another. The more you share and the more you listen, the more you will learn and grow! I love group projects and/or group work and I encourage you to be generous with your great ideas and to be attentive to your peers' ideas, even if you disagree! Remember, this is where respect comes into play.

Not only are you collaborating and communicating with your classmates, but with me too! I not only love sharing my ideas with my students, but I love receiving ideas from you even more! We are going to be giving each other feedback, where we will engage in a dialogue about our work and how we can continue to learn and grow! Remember, I'm rooting for you to become the best possible person you can be!

There are a lot of other things that are important to me: family, time, fearlessness, taking risks, reading, discovering things, continuous learning, working hard, friendships, and knowing when to say sorry. I'm sure my list could be longer, but this is what I know to be true of me thus far.

I know that was quite long, but I hope that you are as excited as I am to be learners in Room 204 this year!

So what now? Well, I'd like you to do a couple of things for me:

1. Ask yourself, "What is important to me?" You can make a list or write about each listed item or maybe this list is already deeply rooted in your mind. Either way, I'm hoping that each one of you will take the risk to share with our class so that we can strengthen or even tweak our own lists!

2. Ah, here's that homework part I'm sure you were gawking at in my letter to your parents. Drum roll, please!

I would love to add the finishing touches to our classroom with a framed 3x5 or 4x6 picture of you and your family! If you don't have a frame, that's ok! But I'd still love for you to bring in a picture; it's a great way to remember the ones cheering for us even when they are not in our presence.

Well, that's it . . . for now. :) If you have any questions or comments about this post, feel free to leave me comments here or email me at: genie.hong@kirkwoodschools.org.

I can't wait to meet every single one of you!

Mrs. Hong