Brown Middle School

STUDENT HANDBOOK

SCHOOL HOURS
School hours are 8:45 am - 3:45 pm. Students may arrive at school at 8:15 a.m. They must leave within fifteen (15) minutes after dismissal at the end of the school day, unless they are involved in a supervised after school activity. SCHOOL DOORS WILL NOT OPEN UNTIL 8:30 a.m. EACH SCHOOL DAY. Supervision WILL NOT be provided for students who arrive before 8:15 a.m. or remain later than fifteen (15) minutes after dismissal, unless they are enrolled in the Afterschool program.

BOOK BAGS
No bookbags will be carried while in the building. Please leave bookbags in the lockers.

UNIFORMS
We encourage students to wear uniforms on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. 6th and 7th graders wear royal blue tops and khaki bottoms. 8th graders wear teal and khaki. In addition, Brown Middle School t-shirts and sweatshirts may be purchased from the PTSA.

On Tuesdays & Thursdays students may wear regular attire as long as it fits the school/ system dress code policy for students.

STUDENT PERFORMANCE & EVALUATION
At Brown Middle School, all students are expected to master the academic standards set by the state of Georgia. The Quality Core Curriculum is delivered in every subject area through the utilization of a scope and sequence. These standards are enhanced by the emphasis of an interdisciplinary focus through a series of concept-based units implemented throughout the school year. This allows students to see the connection across various disciplines through a common theme versus teaching skills and concepts in isolation. In addition, concept-based curriculum and instruction includes performance-based activities and assessments that allow students to gain a deeper understanding and knowledge of the subject area. Concept-based curriculum and instruction involve eight key parts:

the unit theme

the concept

webbing the topics for study

generalizations (essential understandings)

essential questions

processes and skills

instructional activities

a culminating performance

To further ensure that cutting-edge instructional strategies and best practices are being utilized at Brown, for the 2005-2006 school year, every team will have a concentration. The team teachers will become experts in this concentration through action research and implementation of teaching strategies related to the concentration. The concentrations include: multiple intelligences, performance-based assessments, project-based learning, cooperative learning, differentiated instruction, and others. Technology, fine arts, physical education, and other connections subjects will be integrated into core subject areas through concept-based units and team concentrations.

All students are expected to submit a project to one of the Academic Fairs (Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Language Arts or Media Festival).

Report Cards will be mailed to the home at the end of each nine weeks (mid-semester & end-of-semester). This is a means of informing parents/guardians of the student?s progress, or lack of progress, in each subject.

GRADING SCALE
A = 90-100
B = 80-89
C = 74-79
D = 70-73
F = 69 or below

The student must pass eight (8) semester courses for promotion to the next grade level. Language Arts and Mathematics must be two of the eight courses passed. Two nine-week exploratory classes are equivalent to a one-semester course.

Deficiency Notices
Deficiency Notices are a means of communicating to parents/guardians that their child is not progressing satisfactorily, either academically or behaviorally. We will inform parents/guardians during the 4th week of every 9 weeks if a student is in danger of failure or is not working at his/her full potential.

ATTENDANCE
Regular attendance is essential for promotion and success in your schoolwork. While a student is enrolled in school, his/her number one job is attending classes regularly. The school and students lose when absences occur. In case of extended illness (three days or more), your parents should notify the school of the reason for the absence and the date of your expected return. Students are responsible for all assignments when absences occur. Excessive absences, even though excused, are bound to affect one?s grades.

A student who has been absent for any reason, upon returning to school, should present to the homeroom teacher a note or an excuse signed by the parent or guardian stating dates and reason for the absence.

All students are expected to attend school daily, except when legally excused. Excusable reasons for absences are as follows: illness, medical (dental, legal appointments), religious absences, death in family, natural disaster.

Tardiness To School
Students reporting to school after the beginning of homeroom, but before the end of homeroom, should report to the homeroom teacher who will code their attendance card ?tardy?.

Students arriving after homeroom should report immediately to the attendance office, located in the counselors? suite across from the main office, for a tardy slip.

Unexcused Absence
When a student misses school without parent permission or without an appropriate excuse, it is considered truancy. Unexcused absences (unlawful absences) are defined as the student?s willful absences from school without the knowledge of parents or guardians, or the student?s absences from school without justifiable causes with the knowledge of parents or guardians. Teachers will not provide make-up work for unexcused absences unless circumstances warrant the granting of such make-up work.

Attendance in Extra-Curricular Activity
Students must be present in school on the day of an activity in order to be able to participate in that activity. If the activity is in the evening they must attend school that day. If the activity occurs on the weekend then the student must be present in school on the regular school day prior to the weekend activity. This policy includes performance groups.

Class Cutting
Any time a student is out of his/her assigned class and does not have a pass from that teacher, he/she is considered cutting. Action taken because of class cutting may include:
a) Conference with parent/legal guardian
b) A student-parent plan developed to prevent such infractions from continuing
c) Detention
d) In-School Suspension
e) System Alternative Intervention Program
f) Other as specified by the principal/designee
g) Referral to Student Disciplinary Tribunal

Early Dismissals
Request for early dismissal must be in the attendance office no later than 9:00 a.m. each morning. The following procedures must be followed.

1. Parents must request a student?s early dismissal in writing. The note is to be given to the homeroom teacher who will refer the request to the office for approval.

2. All requests must have date, destination, time to be dismissed, telephone number where parent can be reached and signature of parent.

3. The secretary, nurse or counselor will call parent to verify early dismissal and inform appropriate teachers of results. WITHOUT TELEPHONE VERIFICATION THE STUDENT CANNOT BE EXCUSED.

4. Upon approval, the student must sign the early dismissal book in main office at time of leaving.

5. Only student parent/legal guardian may sign the student out of school. All other family members must have written permission from the parent/legal guardian and a working telephone number before the student is dismissed.

STUDENT DISCIPLINE
Good behavior is essential in maintaining a positive learning environment and in developing responsible citizenship. Self-control is closely linked to academic success. A school where-in students are achieving is a school where students are well disciplined. It is the intent of the administration and staff at Brown Middle School to have a school where productive learning and responsible citizenship is the norm. We will minimize disruptive misconduct and increase learning time. We need the support of both parents and students to accomplish these objectives.

In-School Suspension (ISS)
This program allows a student, in some cases, an alternate to being suspended from school. Under this program a student is suspended from classes to the ISS room, which is under the supervision of an ISS teacher. While in ISS, a student will be allowed to remain current with class assignments and receive a grade for work completed.

The environment is intended to be strict. Before a student is allowed to return to a regular class schedule, he/she must complete the assigned days in ISS unless the administrator allows an exception.

There will be a maximum of three (3) referrals to ISS per child throughout the school year. Further disciplinary referrals will result in OSS (out-of-school suspension).

Seriously disruptive, rebellious, illegal behavior and fighting will result in OSS. Students are required to complete five (5) daily progress reports successfully after they exit the ISS program. Failure to comply will result in a referral to return to ISS.

Students in ISS or OSS cannot attend or participate in any after-school or extra curricular activities during the days they are suspended. This includes practices, rehearsals, games, dances, school clubs, tutoring, etc. They must leave the campus at 3:45 p.m., otherwise the student will be considered trespassing.

Assemblies
Assemblies are a regularly scheduled part of the curriculum and as such are designed to be educational as well as entertaining. They provide one of the few opportunities in school to learn formal audience behavior. Regardless of the type of program, courtesy demands that the student body be respectful and appreciative. In live entertainment, unlike radio, television, or movies, the performers are very conscious of their audience. Talking, whispering, whistling, stamping of feet, and booing are discourteous and will not be permitted. Yelling is appropriate only at pep assemblies. Students are not to bring books, notebooks, or belongings to assembly programs.

At all formal assemblies, all students are to sit with their homeroom teachers in assigned sections. Students are expected to behave as they would in class. Attendance at all assemblies is required and skipping will be handled as though it were a class.

Beepers. Radios, Cameras, Tape/CD Players, Electronic Games
These items can be distracting to learning and should not be brought to school, according to Board Policy. If brought to school, they will be taken and held in the school office pending conference with parents.

CANCELLATION OF SCHOOL
WSB Radio and Television will report all official announcements concerning the cancellation of school. Extracurricular and other school-related activities will be canceled at all locations closed because of an emergency.

COUNSELORS
The services of the counselors fall into six categories: personal, academic, career/vocational, testing, information dissemination and referral. If you need to see a counselor you must first secure a hall pass from your teacher to go to the counseling office. Once in the center you must complete a request form in order to see the counselor. Once you have completed the form you must return to class. Your counselor will send for you. There is to be no waiting in the counseling office.

LOCKERS
Lockers are available for students? use. Each locker is equipped with a combination lock whose combination is issued at the time of rental. Lockers are rented for one academic year for a minimal fee. They are designed for a single student use and should not be shared by other students. Lockers are to be used only at designated times. Students should not leave money or other valuables in the lockers at any time. Information regarding locker rental may be obtained from homeroom teacher.

Brown Middle School cannot be responsible for any items kept in students? locker; should something become missing, however, we will make every attempt to recover such items. Lockers will be searched by the administration when there is reasonable suspicion that either something dangerous or contraband and such as obscene material, alcoholic beverages, drugs, etc are in the locker.

EDUCATIONAL FIELD TRIPS
Properly supervised and planned educational field trips are an important part of the instructional program. A signed permission slip from a parent or guardian is required for all field trips.

TEXTBOOKS & LIBRARY MATERIALS
Textbooks and library books are furnished to your child by the school system on a loan basis and should be treated as borrowed property. Students must pay for the loss or abuse of all textbooks and library materials.

HOMEWORK
Homework will be assigned to all students. Students should record their daily, weekly, or long-term assignments in their Student Planner. This book will help students manage their time and homework assignments.