Handbook Only - Frederick County Public Schools

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Character Counts! Character Counts! is a character-education program and ethical decision-making model incorporated into the FCPS curriculum at all grade levels. It promotes six “pillars of character”: caring, citizenship, fairness, respect, responsi bility and trustworthiness. Students who demonstrate these character strengths in daily living take a giant step toward being upstanding school and community citizens. Staff and parents are encouraged to model these character traits at school, home and in the community. ★ Charter Schools A charter school functions as a semi-independent school, with its own governance and instructional design. However, education achievement is measured against the same performance standards used by the local and state boards of education. Staff members are FCPS employees, and the school’s management reports to the Superintendent. For more information, read the Board of Education of Frederick County Public Charter Schools Policy (Section 440) online at www. fcps.org or get a copy by calling the FCPS Legal Services Office. FCPS opened Maryland’s first charter school in September 2002. To learn more about FCPS charter schools, please use the directory listings on page 57. ★ Earth and Space Science Laboratory/Ausherman Planetarium The Earth and Space Science Laboratory/Ausherman Planetarium (ESSL) is next to Lincoln Elementary in a stateof-the-art facility. Grades 1–5 visit the lab to experience unique, innovative programs that extend learning, encouraging students to think, question, wonder and dream. Plane tarium programs are open to the public; calendar pages and the Web list details. ★ childhood education and interactive literacy activities. Located at Rock Creek School, the program offers classes 4 days per week for qualifying families served primarily by Hillcrest and Waverley elementary schools. For details: 240-236-8780. ★ Fast Forward Through agreements with various post-secondary institutions, the FCPS Fast Forward program is an oppor tunity for students to earn college credit for certain high school classes in which they achieve a grade of “B” or better. See the High School Course Guide for a list of qualifying courses. ★ Health Education The health curriculum provides factual, sequential, ageappropriate information to assist students in gaining knowledge and skills that will lead to lifelong healthy attitudes and behaviors. It includes family life and human development, HIV/AIDS and substance abuse prevention, mental health, nutrition, fitness/ exercise and wellness/safety concepts, all with an emphasis on healthy decision-making. Family life program topics include physical and emotional maturation, reproduction, physical and sexual abuse, sexually transmitted diseases and information on pregnancy prevention with emphasis on abstinence. A Family Life Advisory Committee, composed of parents and health education professionals, reviews and approves all curricular and instructional materials related to family life and HIV/AIDS education. Parental permission is required before a student takes the family life and HIV/AIDS prevention units. Substance Abuse Prevention education is provided to students from kindergarten through 12th grade. Age-appropriate, research-based curriculum is used. ★ Heather Ridge School This school provides an alternative educational program for middle and high school students in grades 6-12 who require a highly structured setting. Students may be referred to Heather Ridge through an IEP team decision or extended suspension. Heather Ridge emphasizes family involvement, problem solving, behavior management, social skills development and counseling to equip students to transition successfully back to their local schools. The setting provides students access to the FCPS curriculum and prepares them for graduation, post-secondary education and careers. ★ Online Resources School library media specialists provide students with login and password information for home access to resources that have focused, reliable, age-appropriate and up-to-date information. Access to these resources and the school library catalog is provided on every school’s media center Web page. Look for the Families & Students shortcut at www.fcps.org. Under Online Resources, select Research Library, where you’ll find links to: World Book, SIRS, Student Resource Center, Issues and Controversies, CultureGrams, World Almanac and more. Click on the YouSeeMore icon to search for resources in your school’s library media center. ★ Outdoor School Outdoor School is a part of the FCPS grades 5 and 6 science curriculum. At each of these grade levels, students participate in a 2-day, out-of-school study at points of interest in Frederick County. Geology is the focus for 5th grade, with water resources and interdependence of organisms in the environment for grade 6. For more information, call the Outdoor School facilitator. ★ Summer Programs High and middle schools offer summer remedial and credit courses for FCPS students. Regular summer school is offered to middle school students who need to repeat or review a core course taken during the school year. High school students can make up a failing grade, have an opportunity to improve a previously earned grade or take an additional course for credit. Information about courses, locations and fees is available in the spring from school principals. ★ FINDOUTFIRST E-MAIL – SIGN UP AT WWW.FCPS.ORG 31
THE CALENDAR HANDBOOK FOR 2012–2013 32 Community Agency School Services (CASS) CASS is an FCPS service that connects at-risk middle school students and their families with community resources to promote student success. All services are free. Participation is confidential and voluntary. ★ Counseling School counselors monitor and promote student potential, kindergarten through 12th grade. They assist with crises and problem situations, and conduct classroom sessions to provide instruction in educational and career decision- making, interpersonal skills, and personal and academic growth. Counselors help students and their families with a broad range of needs related to education: emotions, interpersonal relations, social and learning skills, post- secondary education planning and scholarships, graduation information, testing information and class schedules. Counselors coordinate with community services agencies, address developmental needs, help with the orientation of new students and provide information about school system programs. ★ Health Services School Health Staff Through a cooperative arrangement with the Frederick County Health Department and FCPS, health services are offered in all schools. The health room technician provides first aid treatment of accidents and illnesses, administers medications and performs selected treatments under the supervision of a school nurse (a licensed Registered Nurse). In addition to supervising health room technicians at multiple schools, these nurses perform in-depth health assessments, make referrals for medical or other services, and serve as a resource to school personnel regarding health concerns. They are part of a multi-disciplinary school team whose purpose is to maximize the health and learning of each student. There is no charge for school health services. Schools invite parents and staff to contact the school nurse or the Frederick County Health Department’s School Health Program regarding health questions or concerns. STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES Health Screening Services Schools conduct vision and hearing screening for students in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten (if not previously screened in pre-k), 1st and 8th grades. School nurses and vision or hearing technicians follow up when problems are detected. Schools also provide language, speech and psychological screening when problems are noted. ★ Home/Hospital Teaching Services FCPS high school students who cannot attend school for a minimum of 10 consecutive days, and elementary and middle school students who cannot attend school for a minimum of 20 consecutive days, due to a verified physical or emotional condition, may apply for short-term Home/Hospital Teaching Services. If approved, a certified home teacher is assigned. A licensed physician, certified school or licensed psychologist, or licensed psychiatrist must sign the application, which is available from the Student Services Office. ★ Psychological Services FCPS assigns school psychologists to every school. They consult with school staff and parents on student mental health and instructional needs. School psychologists observe and assess students, and participate on Individualized Education Program (IEP), Student Services and Behavior Intervention teams. They evaluate and address students’ special education needs and collaborate with school staff and parents to address all students’ needs regarding developmental, social and emotional issues as well as academic and behavioral concerns. School psychologists may offer short-term individual and/or group counseling. They respond to crises and use data-based decision making to create and support Behavior Intervention Plans. They also provide training for schools, parent groups and community organizations on a variety of mental health, learning and behavioral topics. ★ Student Support Programs Student Support Programs are designed to help students in grades 6 through 12 learn in regular schools rather than in a more restrictive school environment, and to adapt and cope when they return from a restrictive setting to their regular school. Programs focus on family involvement and utilize crisis intervention, social skills training and academic/behavioral intervention. For details, contact the Office of Counseling and Student Support. ★ Title I Program The Title I Program provides supplemental instructional services to meet student needs in some schools with a high concentration of low-income families. Emphasis is on additional assistance in reading and mathematics. For further information, contact Dr. Keith Harris, Elementary Instructional/Title I director. ★ Tutoring FCPS maintains lists of current and retired employees with appropriate credentials who offer tutoring services on a fee basis outside the regular school day. Most individual tutors specialize in certain subject areas, such as math or English/ language arts, and may also prefer to work with a specific age level. For more information, call the numbers shown under “Tutors” in the directory on page 58. ★
Page 1 and 2: FREDERICK COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS, MA
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Page 9 and 10: Learn More on FCPS TV The FCPS TV c
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Handbook Only - Frederick County Public Schools

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