Important Aspects of the Marlboro School
Community Involvement
In many ways it can be said that the Marlboro Elementary School is as good as the community makes it. The school not only welcomes parents and community volunteers, it depends on them to lead many extra-curricular and curricular activities and to help in many special events. For example, parent volunteers have organized and run after-school sports programs and have worked with children on cooking and woodworking projects. They have worked with groups of advanced students and have helped in classrooms in the areas of reading and math. Parents serve on the school Action Plan committee. Volunteers designed and built the primary playground. They have raised money for the school in a variety of ways. Activities change as the talents and energy of volunteers change. Without the volunteers, the school could not provide the rich program that has existed for many years. During the 2006-2007 year a community liaison/volunteer coordinator will continue to support this work.
Parents and Friends (P&F)
This organization includes parents, teachers, and other friends of the school. Its main purpose is to provide a means by which parents can meet other parents and teachers to deal with issues of mutual concern. P&F sponsors fundraisers whose proceeds benefit the school in a variety of ways. Often there are family social events and community education opportunities put on by P&F. This year’s officers are Kathy Cunliffe (258-9016) and Susanne Shapiro (254-2570). They welcome your participation!
The Marlboro School Association
The Marlboro School Association was formed in 1995 with the purpose of enriching the education of our town’s current and future elementary students by establishing a permanent source of additional funding for Marlboro Elementary School equipment, projects, and programs. Normally, only the Association’s income is distributed, though we also consider donations for specific projects. The Marlboro School Association is a nonprofit 501 (c-3) corporation, and gifts to the Association are tax deductible, as allowed by law.
To date, the Marlboro School Association has provided funds for the climbing wall, the John Esau covered bridge, internet access, computers and software, library books, artist-in-residence programs, playground renovation, and for the development of the tech-ed center.
For further information on the Marlboro School Association, please contact Adrian Segar at 254-3566.
Field Research
An important educational component of the intermediate grades and the Junior High programs is field research. Preparations, both scholarly and practical, are thoroughly planned in the classroom prior to departure. Depending upon the focus of the fieldwork, students may conduct interviews, gather information for research papers and projects, or experience places they have studied in the classroom, thus integrating the theoretical with the experiential.
In recent years three to seven day field work excursions have taken students, teachers and chaperones to Washington, D.C., Boston, New York City, Cape Cod, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, and all around the State of Vermont. Such trips afford students the opportunity to broaden their experience of the world and its people, while engaged in academic training.
Field and research trips are integral parts of the Marlboro Elementary School curriculum and students are expected to participate.
Portfolios
As part of our school assessment plan, portfolios of student work are kept. Students are involved in the collection and selection of portfolio pieces. Older students organize their work by Learning Realm. Students use the portfolios to share their learning with parents during conferences. As part of our MES graduation requirements, eighth graders must present a completed portfolio to a panel consisting of their teachers, the principal, and another teacher.
Progress Reports and Conferences
The teachers at MES believe that conferences provide the best vehicle for sharing student progress and that students benefit from taking the responsibility of describing and demonstrating their learning. They may set goals for themselves and/or choose pieces of work to show their parents. Parents are encouraged to take advantage of the time set aside for regularly scheduled conferences in November and March and to request conferences any time during the year if desired. Conferences may be arranged directly with your child’s teacher or through the office.
Report cards are sent home to parents three times per year. In all classrooms students are graded on an individual basis rather than on how their work compares with other students’. Students receive “letter grades” beginning in 5th grade. Receiving an A indicates that the student is considered to be working to his/her full potential, a B indicates that the student is doing very well, but could do better; a C indicates mediocre work and a D is regarded as unacceptable work. An incomplete in lieu of a grade indicates that work has not been completed in a given area. The teaching staff will be revising our report cards in the coming year.
School Hours and Attendance
School begins each day at 8:30 am and is dismissed at 3:00pm. Children who do not ride the school bus should arrive at MES no earlier than 8:15 am. Those who do not ride the school bus home should be picked up no later that 3:15pm. Kindergarten students may ride the bus to school each morning but transportation is not provided for them at their dismissal time of 1 p.m.
Good attendance and on-time arrival is essential to success in school. We monitor attendance and tardies carefully and work with students and parents when there appear to be excessive absence or lateness. Of course, parents are encouraged to keep children home if they are sick. The school will make every effort to send work home, but often it’s impossible to make up for the missed instruction. Our School Attendance Protocol is included in the Additional Information section at the back of this handbook.
If your child is going to be absent or tardy, we ask that you notify us by 8:45am. If we do not hear from you by then, we will try to get in touch with you. We also ask that you stop in the office to sign your child out if you need to pick them up before dismissal time. If your child is not going home the way s/he usually does, please send in a note for the bus drivers and the office.
Student Behavior Plan
All children have the right to learn and grow in a safe and supportive environment and the responsibility to help provide this for others. The goal of this plan is to involve the entire school community in supporting the development of each student’s sense of responsibility for her/his actions.
At school we pursue a variety of strategies to develop students’ abilities to demonstrate responsibility, self-discipline, and the skills needed to live harmoniously within a community. As adults, we recognize the importance of our role as models for these behaviors. Morning Meeting is often a time to discuss and practice these skills and abilities. Students learn problem-solving and conflict resolution skills and are encouraged to use them in the classroom and on the playground. We believe that children need to learn to care for themselves and for each other. They must learn to identify the needs underlying their behaviors and to communicate with each other with compassion.
It is important for children to be part of the process of defining the school environment in which we all want to live. Our behavior expectations were developed with input from all the classes. They will be reviewed every year. Our guiding principles come from the Junior High students.
Respect, help, and listen to others
Respect your surroundings
The detailed list of behaviors expected in our shared spaces is posted throughout the school. Individual classes and teachers will determine other expectations in support of mutual respect, safety, and learning in their classes.
Consequences for Behavior Contrary to our Expectations
We assume that most students will comply with all of the expectations most of the time. When a student does not follow the expectations there will be consequences designed to help that student to learn and practice appropriate behavior. We view consequences, not as punishment, but as an opportunity to learn. School staff will employ a range of consequences appropriate to individual needs and situations. The following may be used for infractions which do not involve serious verbal or physical aggression:
• Reminder to the student that s/he has not observed a specific expectation.
• Guided self-correction: identify the inappropriate behavior and why it was inappropriate, think of another way to get a desired result, make an informal plan as to how to behave in the future, etc.,.
• Time away or Time out: leave the activity and return with a plan for changing the behavior
• Restitution based on the offense: cleaning desks during recess, writing a letter of apology, etc.,.
• Make up lost academic time during recess, lunch, or after school.
• Referral to the principal for development of a plan of action and/or parental contact and involvement in developing a plan.
Consequences for Major Offenses
Certain offenses require immediate intervention above and beyond the plan outlined above. Such offenses include:
• Physical aggression
• Verbal assault or threat
• Major destruction of property
• Other behavior which indicates that a student is not able to control his/her behavior.
The consequences for such major offenses are immediate removal from the learning environment. The student may spend the rest of the day in in-school suspension or may receive other consequences determined to be appropriate by the principal. The parent/guardian will be contacted. The parents, student, and school staff will cooperate in developing a plan for the child to learn to take responsibility for safe and respectful behavior in the future.
Students in possession of drugs, alcohol, or weapons in school will be referred immediately to the principal for appropriate action in accordance with the law.
After Marlboro Elementary School
There is no public high school in Marlboro. We have, in effect, a voucher system, whereby the town pays the tuition for students attending high schools in other towns. The town will also pay a comparable amount towards an approved private secondary school.
Most students choose to attend Brattleboro Union High School; at this time that is the only high school to which transportation is provided.
Students begin to consider seriously where they will go to high school when they enter Junior High. To help students and their families decide, guidance counselors and principals from the area high schools come to talk with students and their parents. School visitations are arranged and information on a variety of private schools is also available.
Dress Standard
It is the responsibility of parents to regulate their sons’ / daughters’ personal appearance during school time. However, when the style of dress and appearance disrupts the educational program or constitutes a threat to the health or safety of students, appropriate action will be taken by the principal. Students are reminded that they should use common sense and good taste in dressing for school. Bare feet will not be permitted.
Students are outside in all kinds of weather - before and after school, as well as during recess. Please be sure to send appropriate outerwear such as rain gear, boots, coats, hats, mittens. Our gym floor is beautiful and we want to keep it that way. Your child should have a clean pair of non-marking shoes at school at all times.
Marlboro After School Program
The Marlboro After School Program (MASP) provides after school care and enrichment activities for students in grades one through six. MASP operates every school day from 3-6 p.m. as well as during some in-service days and vacations.