Core Team Policies and Information
Welcome New 7th Graders and Welcome Back Team Titanium!
Your core teachers are very excited to work with such outstanding students and parents. We look forward to yet another successful year at Billinghurst Middle School. Parents and students, please read the following information carefully, as it will directly affect student success on the core team. Sign the bottom of page 3 and return to Mrs. Rice by Thursday 8/15 (7th grade) and Friday 8/16 (8th grade). Thank you J
Core Teachers
Communicating With Core Teachers
Students are welcome to come in at lunch or after school to speak with a teacher. Parents and students are invited to contact core teachers by email; this is the quickest way to receive a response. You may also call Billinghurst at 746-5870 to speak with a teacher or to set up a team conference. Teachers will return a phone call within 24 hours. We ask that students take part in all conferences as a way to take responsibility for their own education. We ask parents to please speak with your child BEFORE contacting a teacher about an assignment as this leaves the student “out of the loop” of his/her own education and responsibilities.
Infinite Campus
With so many new classes to juggle, Infinite Campus becomes more important than ever in middle school. We ask that parents and students check assignment scores on Infinite Campus once a week. Core teachers have 200 students each! If a mistake is made on a score in Infinite Campus, it’s typically the parent or student who catches it and brings it to the teacher’s attention. Infinite Campus also allows you to see any missing assignments. If you’re keeping up with Infinite Campus weekly, you can quickly finish a missing assignment before it becomes overwhelming. If you do not have internet access at home, pop into the library before school or at lunch once a week to check your grades on Infinite Campus.
Core Teacher Websites (Blogs)
Each of your core teachers has a website (the addresses are listed above). If you sign on to “follow” each blog, you will receive an email when the websites are updated. The websites are a fantastic way to keep up with current and up-coming assignments, due dates, project instructions, field trip information and team information. Your scores on Infinite Campus are after-the-fact, meaning the assignment has already occurred. Checking the teacher websites once a week allows you to see current assignment information and due dates. Having a hard time reading the tracker, parents? Try the websites instead! Not sure if the tracker information is accurate? Check out the websites! Lost your instruction sheet for that major project? Copy it from the website!
Core Grading Policy
Assignments will be scored using a point system. Scores will be entered into Infinite Campus on a weekly basis. Points will be translated into percentages/grades.
90-100% = A
80-89% = B
70-79% = C
60-69% = D
59% and below = F
Citizenship grades = average of the Work Ethic grade and Behavior grade. The Work Ethic grade is lowered ½ grade for every late and/or missing assignment.
Late Work and Make-Up Work
As per district policy, a student has the same number of days he/she was absent from school (plus one day) to complete and turn in make-up work with no penalty. Once those days have expired, the team late-work policy will be in effect. It is the student’s responsibility to collect missing assignments and to make up missing tests due to absences. Late work is discouraged and scores will be reduced 25%, up to 50%. As mentioned, Work Ethic grades will be lowered ½ grade for every late and missing assignment per grading quarter. Class projects, group projects, and long-term assignments will not be accepted late. Extra credit is determined by the individual teacher.
Tardiness
Core teachers will follow the school-wide tardy policy. Tardies are tracked automatically through Infinite Campus. After three tardies, the student receives detention from the administration and his/her behavior grade lowered ½ grade for every tardy beyond three. Remember, the morning bell rings at 7:23 AM and students are to be seated in Advisory at 7:30 AM.
Passes
Students may use a tracker pass for the restroom, locker, drinking fountain, or office with teacher permission. The tracker must be completed with the day’s agenda before a pass will be signed. Students are allowed 3 passes per week from their tracker. In order to use a pass, students must carry their school ID.
Paper Headings
In each core class, please title papers in the upper right corner with first and last name, class period, and date. Remember, core teachers have 200 students, so this is very important!
Trackers and Advisory
The student tracker (agenda book) is a vital parent/student/teacher communication tool used by EVERY student at Billinghurst. Students are required to complete the agenda information and/or homework information listed on the board at the start of each class (core and elective classes). If a student is absent, we ask that the student NOT write “absent” in the tracker, but that he/she go to each class at lunch or after school to copy the tracker information and pick up missing assignments. Trackers will be checked in Advisory on Monday morning of each week to ensure the previous week has been filled out properly and the upcoming week is set up. Parents are required to review and sign the tracker in the parent comment section every weekend. Students will receive credit in Advisory for a completed and signed tracker.
Rewards and Parties
It is so important that students are recognized for doing their very best at Billinghurst. In addition to school-wide rewards, Bighorn Bucks, and honor cards, the core team teachers reward students on a monthly basis who are displaying components of the Bighorn Attitude with “Smartie Pants” awards! Also, students who have only one late assignment in each core class and no missing assignments at the end of each quarter are invited to a team celebration at the end of the quarter.
Core Team Identity and Team T-Shirts
As you may already know, “core” teams at Billinghurst are made up of 100 students who share the same English, History, and Science teacher for both 7th and 8th grade years. Every core team creates a team identity that includes a team name, team motto, team cheer, and team t-shirt. The team identity is celebrated at a school-wide assembly twice a year. Because we cannot predict the cost of the team t-shirt from one year to the next, we request a partial payment of the shirt beyond the core team fee. Typically, the core team t-shirt costs between $5 and $8 and is usually ordered in mid-September. Team t-shirts are purchased in 7th grade and can be worn for both 7th and 8th grade years. New 8th graders or returning 8th graders wishing to purchase another t-shirt will have the opportunity to do so during the first month of school.
Please detach and return to Mrs. Rice no later than Thursday, August 15th (7th grade) and Friday, August 16th (8th grade). Thank you J
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I have read the Core Team Policies and Information for the 2013-2014 school year.
Print Parent Name(s) _____________________________________________________________________
Signature(s) ________________________________________________________________________________
Parent email address(es) to be used for core team communication only:
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Print Student Name _______________________________________________ English Class Period ___
Student Signature _________________________________________________
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