Open Circle Letter 2

Room 8's Nonnegotiable Rules are: 
Be Nice, Work Hard, Stay Safe, Play Fair, & Reach Out


Dear Family:

During our first Open Circle meetings, the class practiced taking their chairs and getting
into a circle quietly, safely, and cooperatively. We form a circle so that everyone can see
everyone else and be heard. We always leave one space open in case another person
would like to join the circle.  Everyone is welcome, and no one is ever left out. The Open
Circle symbolizes the idea of an inclusive classroom community. Ask your child to tell
you how the class gets into a circle.
Students worked on getting to know each other’s names in one Open Circle. In order
to be able to work well together, they need to know each other’s names and how to
pronounce them correctly. Ask your child to say the names of as many people in the
class as he/she can remember.
In another Open Circle, we discussed and developed some classroom rules that will help
to keep our classroom safe, make it a place where students feel cared about, and make
it a place where we can do our best learning. Students also learned that some rules are
nonnegotiable. This means “no choice.” They may ask to have these rules explained,
and they may ask questions about them, but they cannot be changed. Ask your child to
share with you some of the classroom rules that we developed. Ask for an example of a
nonnegotiable rule in our classroom. Talk to your child about the rules in your home for
mealtimes, bedtimes, and chores.

Yours truly,
  Nicole & Lynne

Literature Connections:
Here are some books that relate to the topics we discussed in Open Circle. You might
want to check out one or two at the library and read with your child:

*Henkes, Kevin. Chrysanthemum. Greenwillow Books, 1991.
Chrysanthemum loves her name until she starts going to school and the other
children make fun of it.  A teacher’s gentle intervention sheds light on the
importance of respecting people and their names.

*Henkes, Kevin. Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse. Greenwillow Books, 1996.
Lilly learns the hard way that she has to follow the classroom rules and wait for
“sharing time” to talk about her new purse.


*Shannon, David. David Goes to School. Blue Sky Press, 1999.
It takes david a while to adjust to the rules at school.

*Orgwanson, Susan Marie. The First Thing My Mama Told Me. Harcourt, inc., 2002.
A young girl learns to recognize her name when she sees it on
labels, cakes, signs, cards, and school cubbies.

*Yolen, Jane. How Do Dinosaurs Go to School. Blue Sky Press, 2007.
A very unusual student has to learn some basic classroom rules.