Eastside Elementary School Parental Involvement Policy and Plan for Shared Student Success

1. School Plan for Shared Student Achievement What is it? This is a plan that describes how Eastside Elementary will provide opportunities to improve parent engagement to support student learning. Eastside Elementary values the contributions and involvement of parents in order to establish an equal partnership for the common goal of improving student achievement. This plan describes the different ways that Eastside Elementary will support parent engagement and how parents can help plan and participate in activities and events to promote student learning at school and at home. How is it revised? Eastside Elementary School welcomes parent input and comments at any time regarding the plan. During the spring, parents are invited to a review/revision meeting to participate in updating the policy. Parents are notified of all meetings through phone messages, social media, newsletters, and flyers. The plan is posted on our school website, as well as hard copies available in the Parent Resource Center, for parents to view and post feedback throughout the year. Parents can also give feedback during our annual Title I meeting, parent conferences, family nights, and annual surveys. All parent feedback received during the year will be used to revise the plan for the next school year. Who is it for? All students and their families are encouraged and invited to fully participate in the opportunities described in this plan. Eastside Elementary will provide full opportunity for the participation of parents with limited English, parents with disabilities, and parents of migratory children. Where is it available? At the beginning of the year, the plan is included with the student handbook that is given to all students. As a reminder, a copy of the plan is sent home with students the first week of school. Parents can also retrieve a copy of the plan in the office or on our school website. Eastside Elementary School Parental Involvement Policy and Plan for Shared Student Success 2014-2015 School Year Eastside Elementary School Shelia Cain, Principal 1202 20th St. NE (229) 377-8441 http://eastside.gce.schoolinsites.com Plan Revised May 5, 2014 What is Title I? Eastside Elementary is identified as a Title I school as part of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). Title I is designed to support State and local school reform efforts tied to challenging state academic standards in reinforce and enhance efforts to improve teaching and learning for students. Title I programs must be based on effective means of improving student achievement and include strategies to support parental involvement. All Title I schools must jointly develop with all parents a written parental involvement policy.

2. 2014-15 District Goals All schools in the district will improve the number of exceeds in reading (3rd-5th). The district will also focus on increasing the number of meets and exceeds in 3rd and 4th grade math, as measured by the state-mandated assessments. 2014-2015 School Goals K-2 Reading – Increase reading fluency and lexile levels. 3-5 Reading – Increase achievement in Reading for Information K-2 Math – Increase number sense and math fact fluency 3-5 Math – Increase the number of students meeting and exceeding in all math domains. • Let’s Get Together! • Eastside Elementary will host the following events to build the capacity for strong parental involvement to support a partnership among the school, parents, and the community to improve student academic achievement. • Pre-K Parent Meeting – August 5, 2014 @ 4:00pm • Learn helpful information to prepare for the school year. • ALPHA Team Parent Meeting – August 6, 2014 @ 6:00pm • Learn helpful information to prepare for the school year. • Volunteer/Child Abuse Training – August 26, September 23, September 25 • Be trained so you can volunteer at school and/or attend field trips. • Grade Level Super Parent Lunch & Learn • Learn helpful information for your child to have a successful year. • Kindergarten – August 21, 2014 @ 10:45-11:45 • 1st Grade – August 22, 2014 @ 9:45-10:45 • 2nd Grade – August 25, 2014 @ 11:15-12:15 • 3rd Grade – August 26, 2014 @ 10:15-11:15 • 4th Grade – August 28, 2014 @ 11:25-12:25 • 5th Grade – August 29, 2014 @ 12:00-1:00 • PTO & Open House – September 11, 2014 • Meet your child’s teacher and our friendly and helpful school staff for the year. • Annual Title I Meeting – September 11, 2014 • Learn about our Title I program including the required plans. • 1st 9 weeks Parent-Teacher Conferences – October 23-31, 2014 • Scheduled conferences for parents of students to discuss progress. • Family Math & Science Night – November 18, 2014 • Learn about what your child is doing in math and science. Get tips to use at home. • Owl Standing Leaders Programs – October 31, January 30, March 27, & May 15 • Celebrate excellence in attendance, academics, & citizenship. • 2nd 9 weeks Parent-Teacher Conferences – January 26-30, 2015 • Scheduled conferences for parents of students to discuss progress. • Family Reading & Social Studies Night, Book Fair – March 9, 2015 • Learn about what your child is doing in math and science. Get tips to use at home. • 3rd 9 weeks Parent-Teacher Conferences – March 23-27, 2015 • Scheduled conferences for parents of students to discuss progress. • Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast – May 19, 2015 • A celebration and recognition of the parental involvement impact. • Teacher-Parent-Student Review of Title I Plans – May 4, 2015 • Join us to give your input on the schoolwide plan, parent involvement policy, and school-parent compacts. • Parent-Teacher Conferences – May 4-7, 2015 & May 11-14, 2015 • Scheduled conferences for parents of Grade K-5 students. School-Parent Compacts As part of this plan, Eastside Elementary and our families will develop a school-parent compact, which is an agreement that parents, teachers, and students will develop that explains how parents and teachers will work together to make sure all our students reach grade-level standards. The compacts will be reviewed and updated annually based on feedback from parents, students and teachers. The school-parent compacts are kept with each child’s teacher if parents need a copy.

3. Eastside Elementary Supports OwlStanding Parents! • Eastside Elementary will take the following measures to promote and support parents as an important foundation of the school in order to strengthen the school and reach our school goals. We will – • Ensure that all information related to school and parent programs, meetings, and other activities is published in both English and Spanish, posted on the school website, and included in the monthly school newsletter for all parents. • Provide monthly staff development on parent involvement practices and effective strategies for staff to communicate and build partnerships with parents. Staff will share best practices during regular faculty meetings. • Partner with Head Start programs to share school information about parent engagement activities that will help prepare parents and their child for kindergarten and improve school transition. • Share information in English and Spanish in the school newsletter for parents to understand the school’s academic standards and assessments as well as the ways parents can monitor their child’s progress and work with educators. • Communicate with all families and the community on a regular basis regarding school wide events and activities, through phone messages, social media, newsletters, and flyers. • Work with our parents to develop relevant trainings and helpful presentations to educate our staff on the importance of parental involvement. • Provide necessary materials for parents at conferences, meetings, and activities to help parents work with their child to improve their child’s achievement. • Collaborate with community leaders and business groups to increase participation and awareness of the school parental involvement plan and activities. • Collect feedback from parents at all events, place input cards in the Parent Resource Center, and conduct annual surveys in order to respond to parents’ requests for additional support for parental involvement activities. Eastside Parent Resource Center Come visit the Parent Resource Center to check out videos, study materials, and activities to use at home with your child. Computers are available for parents to explore the Parent Involvement website, educational resources, and student progress through Power School. Monday-Friday, 7:30-4:00 pm. Primary Lab. • Parental Involvement • Eastside Elementary believes that parent involvement means the participation of parents in regular two-way, and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring – • That parents play an integral role in assisting their child’s learning; • That parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s education at school; • That parents are full partners in their child’s education and are included, as appropriate, in decision-making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their child; • The carrying out of other activities as described in this plan. • Eastside Elementary School is committed to helping our parents attend the parental activities listed in this plan. Please call or email us if you need assistance in order to participate in our programs. • (229) 377-8441 • s.cain@grady.k12.ga.us

4. Get Involved! • School Parent Involvement • Yes, I am excited about joining other parents, the Eastside Faculty/Staff, and community members helping to improve student academic achievement. • Yes, please contact me so I can learn more about how I can be involved. • Please keep me posted about future meetings • Name: _____________________________________________________ • Child’s Name: ______________________________________________ • Child’s Grade: _____________________________________________ • Phone Number: ____________________________________________ • Email address: ______________________________________________ • Share Your Thoughts! • We want to hear from you! If you have any suggestions or if there is any part of this plan that you feel is not satisfactory with the students’ and the school’s goals for academic achievement, please provide us with your comments in the space provided and leave this form in the Main Office. • Name (optional): ____________________________________________________ • Telephone Number (optional): _________________________________________ • ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ • Parent Involvement Standards • Eastside Elementary and our parents have adopted the National PTA Standards for Family-School Partnerships as the school’s model in engaging parents, students, and the community. These standards are – • Welcoming All Families • Communicating Effectively • Supporting Student Success • Speaking Up for Every Child • Sharing Power • Collaborating with Community • School Parent Involvement • Eastside Elementary invites all parents to join the faculty/staff, students, and community members to share ideas and ways to involve other parents to build partnerships with school, families, and the community. We will meet three times during the school year, but parents can also submit their ideas or suggestions during all activities and meetings • as well as through our parent • surveys and website. If you • would like to learn more • about the School Parent • Involvement, contact Mrs. • Shelia Cain, Principal, at • (229) 377-8441 or complete • the interest form and leave • it in the Main Office.