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Welcome Back Sixth Grade!

Welcome Back Sixth Grade!. Parent Meeting April 17, 2014 5:00. Welcome! Thanks so much for coming. . Please help yourself to cookies, juice, coffee and tea.

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Welcome Back Sixth Grade!

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  1. Welcome Back Sixth Grade! Parent Meeting April 17, 2014 5:00

  2. Welcome! Thanks so much for coming. Please help yourself to cookies, juice, coffee and tea. Help yourself to any of the research articles about grade configuration. These can be found on the back table. Around the room are posters with topics relevant to the sixth grade move. Please feel free to add additional comments or sticky sticky notes to the posters.

  3. Outcomes for tonight • During tonight’s meeting we will: • Continue the discussion regarding the move of the sixth grade to the elementary school • Share the observations from the recent Accountability Committee trip to Moab • Present progress the district has made regarding the move: • curriculum development • space configuration • Identify further questions and issues that need to be addressed over the next twelve months

  4. Questions from the February Parent Meeting

  5. Where did this idea come from? • Challenges about where the sixth grade fits in: Not quite ready for middle school yet too old for the elementary • Student readiness for middle school: challenges of the transition • Organizational skills • Multiple transitions: seven different teachers or classes • Exposure to more mature issues and social pressures • Crowding in secondary: Building project issues • Opportunity!

  6. What do the researchers say abut where sixth grade belongs? • Sixth graders in middle school have more behavioral problems than their peers in elementary. • Sixth graders in elementary school test higher than those in middle school. • Sixth graders in middle school are exposed to older teens which may have a negative influence on them. Public School Review: March 30, 2008

  7. Will the sixth grade change what is taught? If so in what ways? • Teachers teach the standards for that grade or subject area. This is not dependent on where the class is located. • We are looking towards building an upper elementary (grades 5 and 6) program that better prepares students for middle and high school. We would like to incorporate the idea of “switching” classes for a limited amount of content: perhaps only for science and one other area perhaps math. • We will do our best to schedule our support classes so the fifth and sixth graders get a high level of instructional support from special education and title one. • We will do our best to continue the traditional sixth grade activities such as Science Fair and Night of the Notables.

  8. What are the space considerations for the elementary school? • Blue Prints of new spaces for the elementary school: five classrooms and a small much needed storage room. • Options: • Upset the apple cart • 3-4 wing, K-2 wing, and 5-6 corridor • Other

  9. What will the “left over” space be used for in the middle school? • To what use would the junior high classrooms be put? 7th grade classes are huge. Would this allow for smaller class sizes? Or would classrooms be left empty? • Remodel the middle school science classroom and perhaps add an additional lab. • Return the middle school computer lab to the middle school hallways and add an additional computer lab for the middle school • Add an additional classroom for class size reduction.

  10. What will be done about bullying in the sixth graders? • The sixth grade year will be built as a transition year from the elementary school to the middle school • Although students will be in this transition year, all elementary policies and procedures will be in place, including our policy on bullying. • Because students will be participating in sports, Mr. Lankford will be assisting with athletic discipline codes.

  11. Questions from Students • Will 6th grade still have privileges such as buying food from the ala carte and candy? • Sixth graders will be able to purchase ala carte items from the cafeteria. The salad bar is considered a meal and will be available to the 6th graders as it is now. • The cafeteria no longer carries candy, ice-cream or other items not supported by our wellness policy.

  12. Accountability Trip: Destination Moab • Moab is the closest school with a K-6 configuration • Currently has 800 students • School divided in half: K-3 and 4-6 • Five sections of each grade level • Each grade level separate from the others • Self-contained classrooms: Each teacher teaches all subjects • Curriculum and scheduling changes reflect what we have currently in place. • Parent: Overwhelmingly support the K-6 model

  13. Planning for 2015-2016

  14. Curriculum and Opportunities • Curriculum • The elementary and the secondary are investigating a focus on a combined STEM and humanities approach to instruction. • STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics • Humanities: Communicating, reading, writing, and the social sciences

  15. Curriculum • Science Instruction: Fifth and sixth grade taught by a teacher focused on the sciences • Math Instruction for fifth and sixth grade: Aligned more closely with seventh and eighth grade • Humanities: • Holistic approach to social studies: taught within the context of reading • Increased emphasis on reading informational text • Continued emphasis on writing across all content areas and for all purposes • Hiring: • Currently looking for an elementary certified person with a strong background in science.

  16. Curricular Possibilities • Leadership • Leadership camp in the fall • Buddy system between 6th graders and kindergarteners • Peer mediation program • Staffing • Assistant principal/athletic director reach down and work with 6th graders • Elementary certification preference • Begin transition of teachers during the 2014-2015 school year • Curriculum and Programs • Schedule to allow departmentalization of 5th and 6th grade for math and science • Align math for 5th and 6th with middle school program • Continuation of curriculum maps already developed by 6th grade team • Increased interventions and supports for an additional year

  17. Athletics and Activities • Middle School Sports • Volleyball • Football • Track/cross country • Basketball • Wrestling • Electives during school • Technology • PE • Music • Band? • Art • Extra Curricular/After School • Drama • Knowledge Bowl • Rec. Center Sports • Volleyball • Basketball

  18. Next steps… • Continue to develop space recommendations considering class size recommendations and the best ways to utilize the new classrooms • Continue identifying staffing patterns for the reconfigured elementary and secondary schools • Begin to develop curriculum and programming for the sixth grade • Develop a strategic implementation plan for the 2014-2015 school year • Include sixth grade teachers in planning process and elementary training opportunities beginning the spring of 2014 • Next Parent Meeting: September 18 at 5:00

  19. Questions and Answers

  20. Thanks so much for coming. Next Meeting: September 18: 5:00

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