Algebra I

Mr. Amaral & Ms. Stephenson

Classroom Management Plan

Spring 2019 Semester

[email protected]

[email protected]

Room 503

Remind Code: @g8d4ke

Dear Parents and Guardians,

          I sincerely welcome both you and your child to my Algebra I class!  I look forward to a prosperous new semester at Yorba Linda High School as we learn together and develop our math reasoning and communication skills.  My name is Mr. Amaral, and I earned my Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Mathematics from Cal State University San Bernardino, and I am currently finishing my single subject teaching credential at Cal State University Fullerton.  I have worked for several years as a fine arts coach and an after-school program leader, and I am thrilled to continue my year here at Yorba Linda High School as a teacher candidate under the guidance of Ms. Stephenson.

          Your child was taught by my wonderful colleague Mr. Bejarano for Fall semester.  Due to schedule balancing needs in the math department, I will be taking over the instruction of your child’s class period.  I have taken great care to coordinate with Mr. Bejarano and make the transition as smooth as possible.  We will be adhering to the instructional material as well as the same syllabus, including grading policy and classroom management.

          I believe that every student deserves a safe, positive, and welcoming environment in my classroom.  My goal is for each and every student in my class to succeed in developing their mathematical reasoning, critical thinking, and language skills.

          In alignment with my goal, you can expect several things from me.  I will scaffold my lessons to build on your child’s previous language and content learning.  I will guide your students to develop their critical thinking and language skills through class discussions and regular pair-work and group-work opportunities.  And, since it is so important to have your support through the year, I will regularly keep you updated with your child’s academic progress through the Aeries platform.  You can also expect to hear from me if I have concerns about your child’s academic progress.

          I expect attendance to be as high as possible, except when illness or emergencies prevent your child’s participation in class.  There is no “padding” built into this class; every day your child misses school is a day where your child misses learning.

          The Spring semester of this Algebra I course will explore exponential functions and sequences, polynomial equations and factoring, graphing quadratic functions, solving quadratic functions, radical functions and equations, and data analysis and displays.  We will utilize the Big Ideas Algebra textbook which is provided to your child by the school.  Homework will be assigned regularly online using the Big Ideas platform, accessible on any internet-enabled device.  Each unit of the course will include homework, a quiz, and a test.  The course will be interspersed review to keep your child’s algebra skills fresh as they advance to higher level mathematics next year.

          Should you or your child have any questions or concerns, please contact me directly.  I am available during school lunch as well as most days after school until 3:30.  I am also available for conferences by appointment.  I very much look forward to working with you to promote your child’s success!

Warm regards,

Mr. Amaral