Effingham County Middle School Panthers 1659 Highway 119 South Guyton, GA 31312 (912)772-7001 The vision of Effingham County Middle School is to Educate, Challenge, Motivate, and Succeed August 5, 2014

Dear Parents and Students, We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you and your child to a new year at Effingham County Middle School. We have planned a school year that will be academically and socially rewarding. The Teal Team teachers will have their planning period from 11:26-1:07. To arrange a meeting or conference during this time, you may call the school at 772-7001 or email one of your student’s teachers. In order to make this school year beneficial and productive, we would also like to provide you with the following information. Teal Team Teachers Email Subject ______Room #_ Mrs. King [email protected] Language Arts/ Social Studies 716 Mrs. Wilson [email protected] Mathematics/ Social Studies 714 Ms. Wiederhold [email protected] Mathematics/ Science 713

Testing Information Students will be tested upon completion of specific content. All tests are announced in advance. There will be at least four tests each nine weeks per subject. Also, this year we will no longer have the CRCT. Instead, we will have the Georgia Milestones tests. More information about this test will be sent home at a later date. Another change this year is students in various Connection classes will be taking Pre-tests and Post-tests for the Student Learning Objectives (SLO) to be covered in those classes. More information about these tests will be sent home at a later date.

Homework and Daily Planners Homework is an extension of classroom activities and serves as a means for independent practice. Homework will be assigned regularly and should be completed as directed. The amount of time spent on homework will depend on individual study habits and wise management of classroom time. Failure to do homework not only affects grades, but additional consequences may be enforced. Parent contacts, detentions, and office referrals will be made for students who fail to do homework and class work on a regular basis. Students will also not attend Panther Palace for missing or incomplete work. Panther Palace will be held every Friday at the end of the day. A Daily Planner will be issued to every child. It is extremely important for each student to write down his/her homework each day. In the event no homework is assigned, it is recommended that the student record what was covered in class that day so that the material may be reviewed that night. Teachers will not be responsible for writing down the assignments in the planner. In addition to writing down assignments, students should also record any upcoming tests and/or quizzes in their calendar so that this information may be shared with parents. Parents are strongly encouraged to ask to see their child’s calendar on a regular, if not daily, basis. You can also check Parent Portal for students’ grades.

Makeup Work Guidelines: We believe that it is crucial for all students to be at school and maintain appropriate attendance and discipline. However, should a student have an unexcused absence or suspension, it is important that the student not miss out of the learning that took place while they were gone. For this reason, students will be encouraged to complete all missed work but will not be able to receive full credit. Students must make up the work and/or tests and will receive 70% of the accuracy grade. For example, a student who completes the work with 90% accuracy will receive 90 x .70 or a grade of 63 and a student who completes the work with 60% accuracy will receive a 60 x .70 or a grade of 42. Students will be given 3 days to complete and submit assignments when absent. If it is an excused absences student will receive full credit for the assignments turned in within those 3 days, but if it is an unexcused, suspension, or after the 3 days of an excused absence the assignment will receive 70% of the actual grade. ***Grades will be updated every Wednesday***

Grading Scale: Tests/ Projects/ Papers: 50% of final grade Classwork/ Quizzes/ Other assignments: 45% of final grade Homework: 5% of final grade Progress Reports and Report Cards Teachers will no longer send home Progress Reports or Report Cards home with each student. Instead, they will be available through Parent Portal. The teachers will not be able to print them to send home with each student. Please contact the school at 772-7001 if you are needing a copy printed and are not able to print one yourself. Below are the dates they will be available on Parent Portal.

Marking Period Progress Reports Report Cards 1st Nine Weeks September 8, 2014 October 15, 2014 2nd Nine Weeks November 13, 2014 January 9, 2015 3rd Nine Weeks February 5, 2015 March 19, 2015 4th Nine Weeks April 22, 2015 May 29, 2015 available on Parent Portal only

Field Trips and Team T-Shirts The 7th Grade field trip(s) and destination(s) will be announced at a later date. The Teal Team also sells team t- shirts (usually in the fall). More information will be available at a later date.

Benchmarks and other Assessments Towards the end of each nine weeks, your child will be taking a Benchmark test to assess his/her progress and content knowledge gained in Science and Social Studies. The first nine week’s test will include new material and some review from the previous year's content. The second and third nine week’s test will include new material learned that nine weeks and review of the previous nine week’s content. The Benchmark is not a grade entered in the grade book nor does it academically place them in any other classes. The purpose of the Benchmark is to help teachers assess your child’s progress and determine what needs to be remediated or enhanced. During the month of April, all students will be taking the Georgia Milestones. More information about these assessments will be sent home at a later date. At different times during the year, students will be taking a Cold Read in ELA. Dates will be announced at a later date. Also, students will be taking a Unit Math Assessment and completing a performance task. Information and dates will be given at a later time.

Test Subjects Dates Benchmark Testing Life Science October 1 December 11 March 10 Social Studies October 2 December 10 March 11 Unit Assessments Math TBA English/Language Arts TBA Georgia Milestones All Academic Subjects April 20 – 30

Parent/Teacher Conferences First semester conferences will be held October 16, 2014. Second semester conferences will be held February 12, 2015. Because of the short amount of time for conferences, we will send out conference request forms to students whom we need to discuss academics or behavior. If you do not receive a conference request form but would still like to meet with the Teal Team teachers, please contact your student's homeroom teacher times you are available to meet. If there are no times available at that requested time, we will schedule another day to meet.

Textbooks and Book bags Students will not receive a textbook to take home. There is a classroom set available to use in each classroom. Book bags should be see-through or mesh with see-through compartments. Extra items not necessary for school should be left at home so that excess weight is not added to the book bag. Large purses are not to be used as book bags. Also, the draw-stringed bags (example: GP Day bags, Nike Bags, etc.) are not allowed unless they are mess or see-through.

Breakfast and Lunch Prices Breakfast prices will be $1.50 for students and $0.40 for reduced price. Lunch prices will be $2.20 for students and $4.25 for visitors. Reduced lunch prices will be $0.40. A la carte items may be purchased in addition to the regular lunch.

Student Handbook Students will be expected to follow all rules and procedures in the Student Handbook. The Dress Code Policy will be strictly enforced. Please read Dress Code policy due to new changes for 2014-2015 school year. Medical Information If your child has any medical problems or is on medication, please let us know by completing the medical form in the Student Handbook. We would like to help your child stay healthy. No medications will be administered to a student unless it is in the original container and a medical form is on file with the school nurse (this includes Tylenol, Benadryl, etc.). If your student uses/needs an Epi Pen for their allergies, please inform the nurse as well as your student’s teachers.

Absences, Tardies, and Leaving School Early Send doctor’s excuses and parental notes immediately when your child returns from an absence. Students are responsible for getting any make-up work from the teachers. If your child is late, he/she must be signed in by a parent or guardian. A note from the parent/guardian with a phone number where you may be reached may be presented if someone else will be bringing your child to school. Disciplinary action will be taken for those students who have three or more tardies to school for the nine weeks. Be advised that excessive tardies/ early checkouts will affect perfect attendance. If you will be picking up your child early from school, please send a note in the morning to your child’s homeroom teacher. It will save you time when you arrive to get your child from the student office. Just as a reminder, a student must be present for 165 minutes of the school day to be counted present. Please refer to the student handbook for a more detailed explanation of these policies. Students who have more than seven (7) unexcused absences from school will not be promoted to the next higher grade. Students in grades K-8 who for any reason have more than fourteen (14) absences from school shall not be promoted to the next higher grade.

Teacher Websites Each teacher on the Teal Team has a website. Please check each of your student’s teachers’ websites often as possible. On their websites will be homework for the week, as well as other important information. You can access their websites by going to http://www.effinghamschools.com/ecms and clicking on the Teacher tab located at the top of the page. From there you can find each teacher’s website by clicking on their name.

Team and Behavior Expectations The Teal Team expects all students to adhere to the rules and guidelines set forth in the Student Handbook, as well as rules and procedures set forth by the team. Failure to follow these rules will result in discipline action. Within each student’s planner, there will be a copy of a discipline action form. Also, any discipline issues that occur for your student in one of the Teal Team Teacher’s classes will be recorded in their planner on the day it happens.

Supplies Students will need basic school supplies. Suggested supplies below. Team Supplies Needed: 3” Binder, 5 tab dividers, paper, highlighters, colored pencils and/or markers, pencils, cap erasers/large pink erasers, blue or black pen, Glue Sticks, Personal Pencil Sharpener.

Team Wish List: Germ-X, Kleenex, White or Colored copy paper, Lysol wipes or spray, zip-loc bags.

Supplies for Mrs. King: Language Arts- composition book Social Studies- composition book

Supplies for Ms. Wiederhold: Mathematics- Section in 3” binder, one regular (non-plastic) 3 pronged folder with pockets, composition notebook, 1” binder ring Science- Section in 3” Binder, composition book, one 3 pronged folder or folder with pockets (paper not needed for this folder), (Ms. Wiederhold will also have an addition “Wish List” for Science to assist with labs and experiments for class)

Supplies for Mrs. Wilson: Social Studies- Section in 3” binder, composition book Mathematics- Section in 3” binder, one regular (non-plastic) 3 pronged folder with pockets, composition notebook, 1” binder

This year many new procedures will be implemented to provide an educational environment that will enhance your child’s learning experiences. We look forward to working with you in preparing your child for the future.

Sincerely, Teal Team Teachers