Good evening STEM family!

First thing - no school for students on Monday! (If you haven't already gotten that message)

We have been working hard getting our fall diagnostic testing completed to see where kids are this fall. We use this information to individualize instruction for students at all grade levels and provide support where needed. Our goal is that all students are on grade level for math & reading by the end of the school year! This will take a great deal of hard work at school, but it will also take a commitment from parents. We have seen students move from 2 grade levels below to on track by providing just a few extra minutes of reading practice every day. (More info to come about how you can help your students at home.)

Our first parent teacher conference is coming up on Oct. 3. This year, teachers only have one evening to fit in parent teacher conferences. Teachers will be contacting parents to schedule their conferences this week. They will not be able to meet parents for all students in one night, unfortunately. If you have any questions about your child's progress at any time, please contact the teacher via REMIND, Dojo, or email.

Sincerely,

Cara Will

Springmill STEM Elementary

Contact the teacher directly. It is best to do this in written form so that the teacher can have the time to respond effectively.

Contact the classroom teacher or the bus garage where the bullying is happening. Remember, bullying is when a person is being made fun of, called a derogatory name, hit, tripped, poked etc. more than once. When a child gets called a mean name once, that is not bullying (but still wrong). Parents & students can report bullying, but please start with the teacher or driver first. Many times this can be taken care of by moving seats, spots in line, closer supervision, etc.

Please talk to the teacher first. If you have a live phone call or face to face conference with the teacher and you are not satisfied, then please call the school secretary to schedule an appointment with the principal & the teacher.

To access the district Code of Conduct, please go to www.mansfieldschools.org and scroll down to find the "Code of Conduct" link. This outlines student behavior expectations and what happens if they choose not to follow them. Please make sure you review this with your child. It is important that they are clear about the consequences for inappropriate behavior.

Many fights & discipline referrals are due to student retaliation. For example, if a student feels that someone did something to hurt them or a friend, and they respond with "I'm going to beat them up" or "I'm going to punch them in the face" - they have just made the situation much worse for themselves. I often talk with students and ask them why they say that, or why they hit the student, and they say "May parents tell me to stick up for myself." I completely agree - however, we are never going to find peace in our building if our students' first instincts when wronged (or a perceived wrong) is physical violence. I always tell them they have a choice in that moment - they can go find and tell an adult or they are choosing to accept the consequences. If we keep pushing physical violence as a form of "sticking up for myself", then that is all we are going to get, more violence. Our school is focused on PROBLEM SOLVING - that includes with issues of misbehavior. Please help your child understand that if they have a situation in which they need to stick up for themselves or someone else, they should find and tell an adult, not take things in their own hands.

Unfortunately, there has been an increase in unsafe behavior on our buses. This includes students standing on their seats, moving around, yelling, fighting, bullying, cussing, etc. Our buses have a driver and an aide to help keep an eye on kids, but when some are told to stop, they refuse & continue to act unsafe. It is critical that students know that riding on the school bus is the same as riding in the car. They would not stand on their seats screaming in your car - because it is unsafe. This is the same on the bus. Please support the bus drivers by speaking to your child about safe behavior on the bus.

Bus drivers have the ability to make office referrals for student behavior on the bus. Just to make sure everyone understands, there is a clear progression of discipline for bus referrals:

1st Referral - Warning, Reteaching of Expected Behaviors & Parent Notification

2nd Referral - 1 Day bus suspension & parent phone call

3rd Referral - 3 Day bus suspension & parent, bus driver & principal conference

4th Referral - 5 Day bus suspension

5th Referral - long term bus suspension

This progressive intervention and discipline process is meant to correct unsafe bus behavior. Please make sure the office has an updated phone number & email address for you so that you can be notified.

i-Ready is an online program for reading and/or mathematics that will help your student’s teacher(s) determine your student’s opportunities for growth, personalize their learning, and monitor progress throughout the school year. i-Ready allows your teacher(s) to meet your student exactly where they are and provides data to increase your student’s learning gains.

Below are some resources for you to help support your child's i-Ready progress.

No School for Students

Midterms/Interims sent home with students

Senior High's Homecoming Game - We are asking all students to wear an orange shirt for a picture to send to the football team before the game!

1 Hour Early Release (students released at 2:25 for pickup and buses)

Parent/Teacher Conferences (teachers will be sending invites this week)

2 Hour Delay for Springmill STEM Only!

No School for Students - Teacher In-Service