Roosevelt Middle School 2005-2006 First Quarter Newsletter

Flu Shots

Flu shots will be offered by the Public Health Department to any parent and/or student for $20.00 each in RMS office on November 10^th from 5:30-7:00 p.m. Please feel free to stop and take advantage of this opportunity if you still need to get the flu shot.

Wal-Mart Grant

Roosevelt Middle School has received a grant from Wal-Mart for $1000 to buy reading materials for all students to use. The grant was applied for last spring and we were notified last week that our check was here. We are very grateful to have received this grant and extend our thanks to Wal-Mart Stores. If students have ideas of books to purchase, please see Mrs. Rogne in the next couple weeks.

Parent Group Meetings

The parent group meets the fourth Tuesday of each month from 7:00 P.M. until 8:00 P.M. in the IC. All parents are welcome. Our next meeting is October 25^th and then November 22^nd. Your officers for the year are Karla Bennett, President; Lea Baker, Vice President; Lisa Ebel, Secretary; and Karen Campbell, Treasurer.

Attendance Policy Changes

The attendance policy has changed slightly. If a student misses more than seven days (56 periods) in any quarter, they are in violation of the attendance policy. This year we are still counting the attendance by period with eight periods counting as one day. It is even more important to obtain a doctor or dentist note if your child has missed school for an appointment.

** 8 periods = 1 day**

We will do our best to notify you as the quarter progresses. You will receive letters after 24 periods and after 40 periods are unexcused. Please keep in contact with the school office so we can work with families on getting the documentation needed.

Tardy Policy

The tardy policy is the same as last year with tardies counted by the quarter instead of the semester. Each student is allowed two tardies to school that are “free”. Starting with the third tardy, the student will be required to stay after school for 30 minutes. Again this is important to obtain notes from the doctor or dentist to excuse coming late.

Grading Scales

This year all students will receive grades of A, B, C, D, or F. Each of the final subject grades will be determined by a combination of 80% academic and 20% productivity.

Honor Roll

The honor roll is determined by a combination of grades in all subjects. Those students receiving a 3.0 or higher will have their names published in the newspaper, receive a letter of recognition, and receive a sticker for the family vehicle or window.

Retention

Students who receive a grade point average of lower than 2.0 will be receiving possible retention letters. These students need to be seeking help from the teacher during eighth period, before school, or after school to bring their grade up to an acceptable level.

Fundraiser Project

Our fundraising project for the year has concluded and a special thank you to all the students who helped raise money for our school. The staff and students have submitted ideas of things that would help students with their learning. Once the expenses are paid, the list will be revisited and items will be purchased.

Power School Training

Power school is a program that is available to parents to have access to their child’s grades, attendance records, lunch balance, and other school functions by means of the internet. Each student can be assigned a user name and password that can be used until they graduate from high school. To obtain the user name and password, parents must attend a short training session – 15 to 20 minutes. Please call the office (421-4423) to set up a time for the training if you are interested.

Parent & Teacher Conferences

Student led conferences will be held on November 3^rd from 1:00-7:30 p.m. and November 10^th from 5:00-8:30 p.m. Students should have brought home a letter for parents to indicate their choices of times. Confirmations will be sent home once the conferences are scheduled by the teacher. This is an ideal time for students to share with parents how they have been doing the first quarter and for the parents to ask questions. All teachers in our building will be conferencing with some students so we will be able to build in about 15 minutes between conferences for parents to visit with a particular teacher if they so choose. Please plan to attend to see how your child is doing.

Report Cards

Report cards for the first quarter will be distributed at the parent teacher conferences on November 3^rd and 10^th.

Appearance

The school expects students to dress in good taste and present a general appearance, which is commendable. Students are encouraged to use good judgment in cleanliness, length of hair, and appropriateness of dress. Clothing which constitutes a possible safety or health hazard or which causes distraction will not be permitted. Clothing or other apparel promoting products that are illegal for use by minors such as alcohol, tobacco, or drugs are not appropriate. Students who wear attire advertising products which are hazardous to one’s health or which

transmit messages containing sexual innuendoes or create a hostile learning environment are not appropriate. Clothing displaying obscene material, profanity or reference to subversion is not appropriate. Students may not wear midriffs, see-through shirts, or shirts showing bare backs or show cleavage. Tube tops must have shoulder straps. Halter-tops will not be permitted. Skirts need to be an appropriate length. Students will be required to change clothing if a blouse, shirt, or other item of apparel has inappropriate pictures, designs, or language embossed on them. Shoes must be worn at all times. Caps, hats, bandanas, and scarves are not to be worn in the building. Pants must be fashioned at the waistline at all times.

Students will be asked to leave all outer attire (coats and jackets) in their lockers during the school day. Such articles of clothing should not be brought into the classroom, offices, or other areas of the building. Students may wear hooded sweatshirts as long as the hood is not worn over the head.

Physical education clothing is for those classes only, and is not to be worn to other classrooms or in the hall before, during, or after school.

While the primary responsibility for appearance rests with students and parents, the administration reserves the right to judge what is proper and what is not. Staff members who observe students wearing clothing that violates this guideline are directed to send the student to the office for administrator decision.

Iowa Tests of Basic Skills

The ITBS will be given starting November 7^th through November 11^th. Subtest will be given each day in the academic classroom. For example, the math subtests will be given in math classes, etc. The results for these tests are reported to the community and state in our annual report so students need to do the best job they can. A good night’s sleep and a good breakfast each day will enhance the student’s ability to do well on these tests.

Winter Athletics

Practice will start November 7^th for 8^th grade boys basketball, 8^th grade girls basketball, and 7^th and 8^th grade wrestling. A current physical and medical card must be on file in the office before a student may attend any practice.

The wrestling program will be the same as last year. There will be one middle school wrestling team with three coaches. The team will be composed of students from Roosevelt and students from John Adams. The team will practice from 3:15 until 5:00 at the high school. Students will be transported to the high school from Roosevelt. Students will need to be picked up at the high school at 5:00. If transportation is a problem to pick your child up at the high school, the coach can bring some students back to Roosevelt. The coach contact for our building is Coach Jim Cornick.

Students must maintain passing grades to be allowed to attend practices and games or meets. Grades are checked each Friday to see if all subjects for a student are in the passing range. If they are not, the student is notified. Students may return to practices once the grade is back in the passing category.

Tuesday Morning In-Service

Professional development for the staff on Tuesday mornings from 7:30-8:30 is focused on

implementing instructional strategies as well as examining student work to help improve student achievement.

It is helpful if students do not arrive at school before 8:15 as supervision is more limited on Tuesday mornings. Teachers are not available for any extra help at this time.