Insider s GUIDE to WMMHS

Transcription

1 Insider s GUIDE to WMMHS For Parents, Courtesy of the PTO Communications: School Phone: FAX: The School website, The Daily Bulletin link is always helpful. These are announcements read over the school loudspeaker every morning. Sometimes the kids are distracted and don t hear or forget to tell you, so it is helpful to check this daily. You will also find a link to the Staff Directory, where you will find the teacher s addresses and telephone ext. Some have web pages with their syllabus and other important information. Most teachers are easily reached by and quickly respond to your concerns, questions about progress etc. They always appreciate positive feedback too! You can also find The Activities Calendar will keep you informed about school events, student and parents meetings etc. The Athletic Calendar will keep you up to date on all sporting events. There is also a Guidance Calendar that provides SAT testing dates and application deadlines etc. The Rotation Calendar is a good reference to help your students keep their schedule straight. Honeywell Instant Alert System: In the event of an actual emergency, school closing, delay or early dismissal due to inclement weather, this system will deliver a message to each student s parents or guardians specified telephone numbers. You must register and create an account to receive these notifications. The link for registering can be found on the school website. Directory: (phone and address book) In order to be listed in the directory you must fill out the Directory form found in the back to school mailing you will receive in late August. The contents of this mailing can also be found online. This must be turned in to the office by Friday, Sept. 18th. The Directory is sold by the Service club on Back to School Night. They will have a table set up in the front hall and will take cash or a check for $7. They only print a limited amount and are sold on first come first serve. Many families buy 2 (One for the student and one for the parents) It is very useful when the students need to call each other for assignments etc. or if you should need to contact another parent. Safe Homes: This PTO program, is a pledge that will be sent out to you and available online. All participating families agree to follow the guidelines for supervising social gatherings at their home in an alcohol free setting. All participating families will be noted in the directory. Those that choose to participate after the directory has been printed will be posted with the PTO newsletter. PTO Newsletter: the PTO publishes a newsletter throughout the year; it will be posted online at the school website. It is a great resource for news about the school, articles pertaining to the kids and a calendar of upcoming events. As a PTO member you will also receive occasional blast of important events and information.

2 Coming and Going: Parking, There are only a few visitor parking spots in front of the school. If they are all taken, you can often find Mr. Szoke driving around in a golf cart. He will direct you to an open spot. All other parking is assigned to staff and seniors. DO NOT park along the curbs on the circle with yellow striping. The police enforce the no parking rule and will ticket your car if you leave it there unattended. The rule is relaxed during pick-up from after school activities if you are just sitting in your car waiting for your child. After School Pick Up, You will not be allowed to pull up to the circle due to the busses. Pick up is by the side entry next to the music wing. Cars form two lines. Traffic can be busy so we recommend getting there early. Getting to School Late, All students arriving at school late must sign in at the attendance office which can be found at the window across the hall from the main office.lori Welles runs that office. Juniors and Seniors are permitted to come in late and/or leave early if they have a study hall first or last period. They need to sign in by 8:25 at the attendance office. If they leave school early, they can sign out in study hall. Leaving School Early, If your child will be leaving school early, a note stating the reason and desired time for dismissal must be presented to the attendance office by 7:30am. The student signs himself out and can meet you out front. It takes time for them to go to their locker and sign out so make sure you leave them enough time to make your appointment. They must also sign themselves back in if they return to school. Phone calls asking to dismiss a student early cannot be accepted by the attendance office. For unplanned dismissal, a parent can fax a note ( ) or come into school in person. Sick during the Day, The student should go to the school nurse (front hall opposite the guidance office) who will call you if they need to go home. If you have filled out the medication in school form, they may take Advil or Tylenol and perhaps after a bit go back to class. Attendance, If your child is going to be absent you must call the attendance office that morning. Call the main line ( ) and press 1 to report an absence. If you know ahead of time you may call the evening before and be sure to leave the correct date of absence on your message. If a student does not show up to their first class and are not on the absentee list, you will receive a call at home. If you know your child is going to be late, it is a good idea to report that to attendance as well. A doctor s note is required for an illness to be considered an excused absence. Missed School work, If they re absent for more than 3 days you should call their guidance counselor and they will have a packet put together. Prior to that, the student needs to get notes and assignments from other classmates and teachers. Some classes put information on the website. It is always good to check with a classmate because sometimes things can change! Encourage your child to speak directly to the teacher. Most are more than willing to work with the student and this helps build a good relationship.

3 Athletics Participation, An annual physical is required for participation in school sports. School physicals are done in the summer for fall sports. You can go to Mendham or Central, whichever suits your schedule. You may also go to your own doctor. The forms you need to complete to go along with this can be printed out from the website or picked up at the school lobby during the summer. All the paperwork must be turned into the school nurse before you can begin practice. Once a physical is on file, only a short health update and permission slip is required for each additional season. The physical must have been done in less than a year ago. Exemption, If your child has been excused from sports and/or PE for medical reasons, you need a note from your doctor explaining the reason and length of time they will be out. If the original note does not state when they can resume another note must be submitted. Always make a copy of the doctor s note for your own records in case the original is lost. Spectating, You may purchase a Family Pass for $50 for admission to all school athletic events for the entire year. This includes football, wrestling and boys and girls basketball. The pass will be for sale in the office and at the football games. Did You Know? Student Handbook, Every student receives an academic planner in the beginning of the year. You can find the school rules and regulations regarding attendance policy, dress code etc. in the front of that book. The handbook will be available online in the near future. Back To School Night Back to school night is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 8th (Please check website to confirm that date). Parking is always an issue. We recommend getting there early. If the lot is full you can park on the street in the adjacent neighborhood off of Tempe Wick Rd. There is usually a shuttle bus that goes back and forth to the school. It is beneficial to get to school early to visit the tables in the lobby. Bring a check book! You can buy attire from the school store, the school directory and meet representatives from various organizations such as the Minuteman Club and the Music Boosters. The format of the evening is run like the school day. You will get the opportunity to attend each of your child s classes. There will be students in the lobby distributing the student s schedules and a map of the school. There won t be much time to have personal conversations with teachers so you ll have to contact them at another time if you have an issue to discuss. Rotating Schedule: The school operates on a rotating schedule. The students do not have every class every day. Each period is not held the same time every day. This allows for longer periods for each class. The Rotation Calendar and Bell Schedule can be found online.

4 Lunch, A sample menu for September can be found on the website. Lunchtime at Mendham HS can be busy! Some days your child may have a lab that overlaps with part of the lunch period. They may be running errands or meeting a teacher for extra help. They may want to bring a lunch from home if they know they have something to do during that period. Many clubs and activities will hold meetings during a portion of the lunch period. The daily bulletin on the website will announce these. It provides a time for all students to be available at the same time. It is a great way for students that have a job or are involved with after school activities, such as sports, to try something different. Encourage your child to attend the activities fair in September and explore the many activities that may interest them. Jane Brooks, the librarian runs a Book Club during occasional lunch periods. This is a low-key group. The books are selected by the students and there is always a delicious assortment of homemade goodies and fruit to accompany the conversation. After school: Late Bus, This year there will be a late bus On Tuesdays, leaving school at 4:05 PM. It has an abbreviated route covering all areas with stops at central locations. Extra Help, All the teachers are obligated to spend time one day a week afterschool to be available for extra help. Many of the teachers have stayed on Tuesdays in the past. Check with the individual teacher for their schedule. They may also be able to get help during lunch or a study hall. Peer tutoring is also available. Your child s guidance counselor should be able to assist them in setting that up. Extended Library Hours, Monday and Thursday to 4:45 and Tuesday to 3:45 College Guidance, Jobs and Internships, Pat Ercolano runs the College & Career Resource Center. Her office can be found around the corner from the guidance office to the left. There is a Bulletin board on the wall just outside her office with jobs and other information posted. Her website is another great resource for information and a schedule of events. College admissions representatives will be visiting Mendham from September to November. They will set up tables in the lobby. The schedule of visitors will be posted on the website as well. County College of Morris holds a large college fair in the fall. It is a good way for your student to get some material about schools they may be interested in and perhaps meet with an admissions representative. There are often other college nights that will be posted on the website.

5 Getting Involved and Staying informed Join the PTO! Membership costs $20 per family. The PTO s mission is to promote communication between the school and its families. It sponsors programs of interest to the students and parents and raises funds to support the school and its students. All members will receive communications related to the school community. Senior s families must be members to be eligible for the PTO scholarships. The PTO will hold 7 open meetings. Four Brown Bag Lunches are held during the day. These are less formal and always have at least one member of the administration reporting and often a speaker on a special topic. 3 will be held in the evening for those of you that are not available during the day. The PTO also sponsors wonderful evening speaker events on parenting issues related to teenagers. The PTO publishes a newsletter throughout the year; It will be posted online at the school website. It is a great resource for news about the school, articles pertaining to the kids and a calendar of events. As a member of the PTO you will also receive occasional blasts of important events and information. The PTO also hosts Parent Teacher Coffees several mornings during the year for parents and teachers to meet informally. Booster Clubs Many sport teams and music department need help with various activities. It is a great way to meet parents and keep up with what is going on with your child s activities. Board of Education, Attend a meeting or read the minutes online. This is one of the best ways to get reliable information about what is going on at the schools. They often have various students or clubs make presentations such as, award winning art students and the Robotics or the Mock Trial teams. It is very impressive. Vote! The school budget comes up for a vote each April. Support your school and the kids. Events, Attend one of the many events offered at the school - fun things like Senior Night Club, Fall drama and Spring musical, Talent show, Mr. Mendham, Evening of the Arts and Battle of the Bands to name a few. The Messiah will be held in December and many other musical events and shows are held during the year. Our Athletic teams have great potential this year. Take a look at all the banners in the gym for all the championships they have won throughout the years. Come to a football game on our new turf field or a tennis match on the new tennis courts. Many other teams have games or matches every day of the week. View the impressive student art hanging in the lobby and halls. Class fundraisers Watch online and in the mail for activities/fundraisers related to your child s class. Each class has two faculty advisors who work with the students to raise funds for their prom and Project Graduation. They often need parental help.