Hello!  My name is John White and it is my pleasure to welcome you to a new and fantastic school year here at Calera Intermediate School!  I am so excited about teaching your child during their fourth grade school year.  I know that I will be spending a tremendous amount of time with your child over the next school year, so it is my hope to get to know each and every one of my students’ parents / guardians really soon. Last year was an excellent year, so I am looking forward to another outstanding and fun school year.

First of all, I would just like to share a bit about myself.  I am married and I have two amazing children – twins (one boy and one girl and they just turned fourteen).  God has truly blessed me with two of the most wonderful children in the world. This is will be my 15th year of teaching fourth grade at Calera and I have loved every year. I have my Master’s degree in Education from the University of Montevallo and my undergraduate degrees from the University of Alabama (Roll Tide!!).

Fourth grade is a very important grade for your child.  I believe that every aspect is important, however, I will be putting extra emphasis in a few certain areas.  First of all, there will be a big concentration on multiplication facts.  This will be something that we will practice weekly, but please take every opportunity at home to work with them as well.  Reading fluently and comprehending on a fourth grade level and beyond will be a focus.  In order to do so, your child will be receiving instruction in small reading groups. Reading at home on a daily basis will help tremendously.  Also, math is going to be a huge focus this year.  Your child will receive a wide variety of instruction in several different styles on a daily basis.  Some children are visual learners while others need the hands-on approach.  There will be a balance of this in 4th grade to compliment all learning styles.  Something else that I consider very important this year is “responsibility”.  I want every student in my class to practice responsibility on a daily basis.  A minimal amount of homework will be given each week.  This will be partly to reinforce reading and math skills, but also, it will give your child practice on being responsible. Please read the weekly newsletter and review it with your child each week.  This is the key to knowing what goes on daily in the classroom. I am always here to help you and your child in any way that I can.

All teachers are asking for a $25.00 classroom donation from each student.  This will be very important for our classroom.  This will be used for all center materials, Science projects, materials we may need for any Alabama History projects, extra reading materials (such as scholastic magazines, Alabama Studies Weekly, and National Geographic Explorer), and any other materials that will enhance your child’s learning.  The more we receive, the more we can do!  It will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks for all that you do as parents / guardians and I sincerely believe that a partnership between the parent / guardian, the child, and the teacher makes the winning combination when it comes to education. I look forward to an exciting year !!!

Sincerely,

John White