Dr. Ralph E. Hawes Elementary School Hawes Highlights April 8 ...

punctuality is important to a student’s success in school….and in life. When students are absent fromschool, they miss instruction that can’t be replicated by a worksheet, by a parent teaching the skill athome, by reading in a textbook, etc. When students are late to school, they miss out on the morningwarm-up and overview. Some kids are trying to catch up all day. Teaching our students the importanceof good attendance and punctuality is important as a life skill. As we think about our own lives and work,imagine what happens on your job when absenteeism is high or tardiness is an issue. When, we as adultsare late or absent, we play catch up for quite some time. In fact, the work that needs to be made up froman absence seems to grow exponentially and it is almost easier to not miss work. Understanding thatbalance between “I am too sick to be at work” and “I need to be there” is important for one’s success.Building that skill starts now.As the school year has unfolded, we have heard some myths about attendance and seen some things occurthat we would like to address:1. Honesty about the reason for an absence is ALWAYS best. As we all know, this is a smallcommunity. When you tell us that your child is out sick and we here from many others that youare on a trip out of town, we are placed in an awkward position. We teach our students theimportance of honesty and integrity. But we need to model that for them as well as our actionsspeak louder than words. Thank you for your honesty for all absences.2. In the eyes of school funding, an absence is an absence – regardless of the reason. Depending onthe reason, some are excused and some are not. School funding is based on our average dailyattendance – the percentage of students who are actually AT school. Funding is NOT based onexcused absences versus unexcused – only on who is actually here.3. Because of the funding formula and all of the reasons listed above, it is important that your childbe at school and on time daily (except when s/he is truly sick). We ask that you schedulevacations, doctor’s appointments and other activities during non-school time and duringvacations.4. If you are travelling and will miss 5 or more school days, it is important to request anIndependent Study Contract from Mrs. Keller. It is also vital that the work given on the contractbe completed and returned. If the contract is not completed and the work is not turned in, theschool does not get any credit from the contract; thus no partial funding for these days of absence.5. Here are the facts from our perspective: We have 180 days of school. Already this year, ourstudents have missed 428 days of school on independent study contracts and 350 days onvacation. This is a huge impact to the instructional program and the academic success of yourchild!For those who have had perfect attendance or nearly perfect attendance (yes, this has been a bad year withthe flu), we thank you for your support and partnership in ensuring that your child is in school. We thankall for your help in improving attendance and recognizing that any absence impacts our sole focus ofensuring that our students reach their full potential!Smarter Balance Pilot AssessmentsBeginning April 15, some of our 3 rd and 4 th grade students will have the opportunity to pilot the newassessment program aligned to the Common Core Standards. These assessments will take place n thecomputer lab and each student will participate in 3 – 1.5 hour testing sessions. The purpose of this testadministration is to determine how the technology works, whether the questions are formattedappropriately and to see how a large scale assessment program works. We will not receive individualstudent performance data from this pilot. Since these assessments must be completed in a two weekwindow, we do have the option of reducing the number of students who take the pilot assessments.Because of scheduling issues and time constraints, some of our students in combination classes may notparticipate. Additionally, some of our students on IEPs may not participate due to our inability to

implement accommodations and modifications outlined on IEPs during this pilot testing. Toaccommodate the testing schedule, our computer lab will be closed during the entire testing window (twoweeks).As this window approaches, we are very clear that this is a learning opportunity for us. There will bequestions on the test that we will all struggle to understand. We will have struggles with technology – notdue to our internal issues – but due to the structure and format of the pilot. We have heard many storiesfrom other schools already. We are walking into this opportunity ready to embrace the challenge of it andready to be “guinea pigs”. This experience will help us to understand what testing may look like in a fewyears and that idea is very exciting to us!Parking at Drop off and Pick UpAs a caring, concerned and thoughtful community, we ask that you be courteous to our neighbors as youpark around the school during drop-off and pick-up time. We are noticing that more and more of us areparking in the middle of our neighbors’ driveways making it impossible for them to come and go fromtheir homes. We are also noticing more double parking and parking in the white, loading zones. Pleasetake a moment and put yourself in our neighbor’s shoes. Please show them the courtesy that you wouldexpect others to show you. Thank you!Earth Day/WeekIn honor of Earth Day on April 22, we will be celebrating our earth in a variety of ways. Please look for aflyer outlining all of the fun recess or lunch activities that will be hosted by our PTA!YMCA Campaign 2013It's that time of year again. The YMCA is campaigning to help provide our services to all in ourcommunity and help continue promoting youth development, healthy living, social responsibility. TheYMCA is a non profit, charitable organization that serves the entire community. Give back to yourcommunity by joining our team of volunteers or making a donation to support the YMCA of OrangeCounty. However you choose to give, your valuable contribution helps maintain YMCA programs andsupport the families who need them the most!If you would like to donate, please stop by the Hawes YMCA to pick up a pledge card.Thank you! You are making a difference!The money will go towards:*Swim lessons*Child Care* Youth Sports*Y Memberships* Earn a Bike Program*Parent/ Child ProgramsThis Week at HawesMonday (4/8): Educational Water Assemblies for studentsTuesday (4/9): Math tutoring at lunch

Music for all students todayWednesday (4/10):Thursday (4/11): PTA Executive Board meeting at 8:45 AM Planning day – early release for all grades (kindy: 12:10; grades 1 – 3: 1:23; grades 4 – 5: 1:31)Friday (4/12): Fire Drill at some point todayImportant Dates to RememberApril 16-19: Benchmark Assessments for students in grades 2-5April 18: PTA Meeting 8:45 in room 39Skate party from 4 – 6 PmApril 19:HBCSD Art Show at the HB Art Center. Come listen to the Hawes Choir sing!April 15 – April 30: Pilot testing for new student testing system that aligns to Common CoreMay 6 – May 17: CST testing for all students in grades 2 - 5Welcome Back!Julie Jennings, Principal