Welcome Back to School!

September 8, 2015
My name is Mr. Raiger, and I am very excited to not only welcome each and every student back for
what looks to be a great year here at Lansdowne, but also to introduce myself as the new Grade 7/8
teacher. To those returning to Lansdowne, I am very happy to be joining you; and to those, like myself,
who are here for the first time, I have no doubt that we will quickly come to love this school!
Over the past five years (one at Wyoming Public School, and the four most recent at Colonel Cameron
Public School in Corunna), I have taught all combinations of Grades 7 and 8 (separately and as a split
class). I also have experience serving as the Site Administrator (aka Computer Geek), Librarian, and a
Primary/FDK Physical Education teacher on top of my Intermediate homerooms, for the past three years.
The students will see many teachers throughout the year, and the following chart is meant to give you an idea of
who will be teaching each subject to Grade 7/8 class.
Mr. Raiger
Math
Language
Geography
Phys-Ed
Arts

Mr. Vanhaastregt
Science

Mr. Douglas
History
Arts

Ms. Richardson
French (Gr. 8)

Ms. Stewart
French (Gr. 7)
Arts

Ms. George
Ojibwe

Mrs. LeBlanc

Health

It is very important for students to take responsibility for their achievement in the classroom, by putting forth
their best effort and by advocating for their needs as difficulties arise. Students will be reminded constantly to
look for opportunities where they can support one another, in order to have as successful a year as possible.
I value communication between school and home, and I make use of several electronic means of communication
to keep you information of what is happening in our classroom and around the school. Among these methods, I
maintain a class website, Remind messages, a Google Calendar, iDoceo (an app for tracking work completion and
other items that need to be handed in), and Twitter. More information can be found on the attached pages and
on our class website. Please review both thoroughly and take a moment to sign up for these things. I promise that
they are quick and easy to sign up for, and I trust that you will find them to be valuable tools, just as I have.

Our class website is: http://www.raiger.ca.

Just a few housekeeping items that will be important during this first week:
It is important that students do not bring any peanut products to school.
There are a number of attached items that we would ask you to read over carefully:
o Supply list
o Communication tools to keep parents informed
There are two pages that we ask you to briefly fill in and return to the school
o Acknowledgement of all of the information included and attached to this newsletter
o A page to tell us a bit about your child
I am looking forward to having a wonderful year, and hope to meet all of you soon!

Mr. Raiger

PLEASE KEEP THIS FOR YOUR OWN FUTURE REFERENCE

Supply List
I do my best to keep our classroom well stocked for the students; however, we obviously cannot provide
all basic materials on a constant basis.
o
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Geometry kit (protractor and compass)

Scientific calculator (base models work fine and cost approximately $10)
Head phones/ear buds to keep at school
Pens
Pencils
Eraser
Transparent ruler
Pencil sharpener (with a trap to catch the shavings)
Pencil crayons
Pencil case
Highlighters
Scissors
Glue stick
Binders or duotangs (will vary by teacher and subject)
Dividers
Lined paper
Graph paper
Indoor shoes
Outdoor running shoes
Reusable water bottle

PLEASE KEEP THIS FOR YOUR OWN RECORDS

Communication Tools
These are the tools that we will use to keep parents informed on the things that are going on within the
classroom.
INTERNET ACCESS

CLASS WEBSITE

GOOGLE PORTFOLIOS

iDOCEO

REMIND

TWITTER

With email and web-based programs and apps being our primary mode
of communication, and the preferred platform for students to do their
work (e.g., Google Apps for Education), I need to know if regular
Internet access is an issue for your family. Please let me know if there
are any issues with regular at-home Internet access.
Our class website (www.raiger.ca) includes:
Daily homework
Class calendar and approximate weekly schedule
News and Twitter feeds
Ways for you to stay informed
Contact form
Each student will set up a portfolio on their Google Drive account,
where they will catalogue their work throughout the year. By signing
up for a free Google account and sending me your Google email
address, you will be added to this portfolio and can then view your
childs work, tests, assignments, and anything else that they wish to
document.
I use this app to send home weekly homework completion reports on
your child. Make sure that I have your email address so that you can
get these reports.
Look for updates to come on Thursdays, starting mid- to lateSeptember.
Receive text messages regarding important information. No cell phone
numbers are exchanged!
Text @raig to (226) 909-1523 to receive text messages, or
Email raig@mail.remind.com to receive email updates rather than text
messages.
I have set up a Twitter account to document our adventures through
pictures, as well as for posting quick reminders and information.
Follow along @MrRaiger and @LansdownePrinc1 (for Mr. Houghtons
tweets).

PLEASE FILL THIS OUT AND RETURN TO THE SCHOOL AS SOON AS POSSIBLE
Acknowledgement Checklist and Personal Device Permission
Please carefully read each description and check each item off as you work your way down the page. I ask that
each box item has a checkmark (as many as apply) or acknowledgement of some sort before I will accept the form
back.
INTERNET ACCESS AND
COMMUNICATION

Email, website, and web-based applications are my

primary modes of communication. Does that work for
you?

Yes, we have regular Internet access at

home, work, or an accessible public
venue (e.g., library).
Our email address is:

____________________________________

No, we do not have regular access to

the Internet.
How can I best contact you instead?

CLASS WEBSITE

iDOCEO

GOOGLE PORTFOLIOS

REMIND

BRING YOUR OWN DEVICE

Our class website (www.raiger.ca) includes:

Daily homework

Class calendar and approximate weekly schedule

News and Twitter feeds

Ways for you to stay informed

Contact form
I use this app to send home weekly homework
completion reports on your child. Make sure that I
have your email address so that you can get these
reports.

I am aware of the class website and

know that this is where I need to look
to find out about homework, tests,
assignments, upcoming events, and
other class and school information.

Yes, I wish to receive these updates.

Use my email address as written above.

Each student will set up a portfolio on their Google

Drive account, where they will catalogue their work
throughout the year. By signing up for a free Google
account and sending me your Google email address,
you will be added to this portfolio and can then view
your childs work, tests, assignments, and anything
else that they wish to document.
Receive text messages regarding important
information. No cell phone numbers are exchanged!

No, I do not wish to receive these

updates.
I am aware of the Google Drive
portfolio and will give my Google email
address to Mr. Raiger if I want to be
view my childs portfolio.

Text @raig to (226) 909-1523 to receive text

messages, or
Email raig@mail.remind.com to receive email updates
rather than text messages.
As part of the Boards Technology Enriched Learning
Plan (TELP), every Grade 7 student will be given their
own iPad Mini. For our Grade 8s, we have some
classroom iPads for use, but will also rely on students
to bring in their own device (any type) for use. When
not in use, devices will remain in a locked cupboard.

By signing here, I acknowledge that I have read the contents of

this newsletter and know that I can go to the class website for
more detailed information.

I am aware of Remind and know how to

register, if I choose. I know that I can go
to the class website for more
information on how to register.

I give permission for my son/daughter

to use his/her own device for schoolspecific tasks.
I do not give permission for my
son/daughter to use his/her own device
for school-specific tasks.

My name: ________________________
My child: _________________________
Date: ____________________________
Signature: ________________________

PLEASE FILL THIS OUT AND RETURN TO THE SCHOOL AS SOON AS POSSIBLE
Tell Me About Your Child!
Your name:

________________________________

Your child:

________________________________

In one million words or less (preferably much less), please tell me about your child (e.g., learning habits,
things that they enjoy, or do not enjoy, about school, hobbies and interests outside of school, etc.).
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