Grade A: No Child Left Behind In Wyoming; 101; Back to School

Part of our student expectations our positive attitude about school and learning and understanding that school should be enjoyable but not necessarily fun. Third grades here. Fifth grade this year fourth for the third sixth of that I'm not quite sure how that works. I always thought it's been third fourth fifth sixth but that's not how it is at this junior high level. Parents pull back. We want to continue to invite them. We want them here. We want them in the classrooms just say working on the tree and I want them working with their students. I'm Ben Gibbs and this is great it leave no child behind in Wyoming this time back to school. We're trying to do elementary in Riverton run with Miss millions more theaters. Are you all happy to be back in school. What happens in the first days of the school year sets the stage for everything that follows and for schools. Student

performance is more important now than ever since the federal No Child Left Behind Act contains sanctions for schools where students don't become proficient in math and reading. Will join the new students at Jessup Elementary School in Cheyanne were tours and ice cream are used as ice breakers and will visit Cheyennes Cary Junior High were seventh graders previously attended several different elementary schools. On the first day of school teachers work to mold a new school community. We'll talk to Jessops award winning Principal Sharon can Knutson about parental involvement and getting students excited about school in the first few weeks. And we'll chat with guidance counselor Sherry upward of Cary junior high about new strategies for identifying at risk students and providing assistance to that critical group. Is everybody ready for the show. Let's first go to Cheyenne and our State Superintendent of Public Instruction Trent Lankan ship. Welcome back to another school year. I'm Trent Blankenship. Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction series grade a leave no child behind in Wyoming.

We'll highlight some of the best practices going on in our schools throughout the year. I hope the series will inspire us to work together to ensure that all children in Wyoming receive the best education possible and that no child is left behind in our state. Nothing could be more important. Dr. Sharon Newton has been honored as Wyoming elementary school principal of the year. It's easy to see why just as fine tuning the strategy for getting new students comfortable and ready to learn and Jessop does more than most other schools to reach out to parents and get them actively involved. Let's find out what contributes to the success of a primary school student. Elementary students especially new students have a lot of anxiety when they come to school for the first day. What is it that you do here just to try to make them feel more comfortable.

About three years ago we developed a new student orientation program. And it was at the suggestion of parents in our community and our PTA helped us with it. We have what we call a caring community committee that's made up of parents teachers kids and support personnel. And we decided in the spring that we needed to be welcoming the new students. So the student council took it on as a project and they go ahead and plan ahead of time and they invited new students to our ice cream social ahead of time give them a tour of the school. Then as about the first month occurs they are part of a lunch bunch. They will have a buddy. The parents have someone that they can call and we continue with that throughout the year. And then at the end of the year we have the students tell us what we need to do differently the following year. Well sure a lot of it has to do with just emotional well-being of the students. But is there some educational reason for doing it as well. Terms of making them feel comfortable right off. Well part of our mission statement is being a warm caring a learning environment.

And what we know as professionals is that if we will help with child feel comfortable you know there's a lot of brain research if we want to go to that part that the chemicals released in your brain if you're fearful you can't learn. And we try to get ready so that students have their supplies they have their deaths they know exactly what's happening. So we start learning the first day of school because we don't have enough time in the school year as it is. Plus it's really important to us that these kids feel part of what we are as a community. Tell me a little bit more about the buddy system that you have. How does that work. A buddy system sometimes happens that a couple of kids will say after a news a student will say that they want to be somebody's body because they know we have that here or for example I have a couple students who volunteered last spring they know that we will have a hearing impaired student. They know sign language. They volunteered. Or like one student says my next door neighbor is new.

I think I could be his buddy. But we will make sure in our counselor at school here we'll double check that every kid has a body. What are you watching for in the first couple weeks to you know make sure that there aren't any students who are you know falling through the cracks or are making friends what what what tipped you off to that kind of thing. When students register. We have a sheet that parents fill out and it says what do you want us to know about your student. And we ask a specific questions and then they we at the end we say is there anything we haven't asked about that you would like us to know. And I'm their registration I don't do any of that where the secretary and her assistant work at helping parents fill out the forms. And my secretary will let me know if a new student has is registering and she'll make sure that I get to meet them and I get to visit with them. And you know I just have some questions that I ask can i help me see if we're we've got some

special adjustments we just need to make. And is there anything that parents should be watching out for. You know if they have new students who are first graders or or just new students to your school what are signs of potential problems. I think you know what if your child is coming home it's natural for them to be anxious. And most schools try to make children feel more comfortable. But if that goes on much more than a week and a half. Then I think you need to be contacting the school and I would suggest that you let the teacher know. But then if it doesn't if it doesn't get better let the principal know because the principal will have some resources that perhaps a teacher doesn't has 25 students and may not. Know About. So it's really important and I emphasize that and I do call new parents. After three four weeks if I have any questions. If things don't appear to be if I have anything like that I call so the school doesn't call you. You call them.

What are the various ways that parents do get involved here. We try to individualize that like we do in education so we try to make clear that if they want to be involved we'll find a way. So sewing is one way. We have classes we have. We have several school improvement committees and by that I mean like five or six and we have at least two parents on each one. And those meet on a regular basis we have the PTO who does help with some of the fundraising. We have parents to go and learn how to be a substitute although they're not a certified teacher. They come in and volunteer in our classrooms one way that parents with small children. They will like when we're having science fair or we're having something in the gym. And we've got to have lunch in the classrooms. That's not a favorite thing for teachers to have to eat in the lunchroom or in the classroom simply because they need a little break too. So what we found is parents can come in and they can have young children they can

bring bring their young children with them and they can have lunch with the kids a teacher gets a break and they get to volunteer and be part of that classroom. One of our goals is getting parents involved because what we know is that student achievement rises when parents are involved. So that's a critical aspect for us all principals are necessarily as good as maybe you or if you have any advice on maybe the ways that you reach out to parents and try to get them get them involved. Well one thing I recognize is that as a principal I can't do it all. And so it's a part again of our mission. And so it's what we understand. We know that what we're about is we're community and we use the words over and over and we try to we try to invite parents. So we have part of our system is we have a Jaeger Journal that goes home every Friday. We try to invite parents every time we can.

And parents Jaguar journal would be a newsletter about the school that we put out from the office and it comes out every Friday and has all the dates on it it's also on the Internet. And that when parents call up and say well I don't know about so-and-so. We just kind of train them to get to look at the Jag journal and to know that part. And once they do what I've found is once parents understand that we're their kids advocate too. It's like it's not. Hard. And they've done well on the why CAS test scores. But that's not really your primary focus. What. So how are you doing so well. What we do now makes sense to us because what we're doing is assessing as the student goes on with their learning. And we call that formative assessment. So we do some reading and assessment of what the child is actually doing in our classroom and that's focused on standards so we feel that's

very valid assessment of a student. And then what why cast or a year in test and some of our other quick tests that we do within the school validates that day to day instruction. When do parents need to start paying attention to study skills and tracking the homework that their students are doing right about kindergarten. And by that not what you and I might necessarily think of or what a parent might think of as a study skill but it's that attitude part of our student expectations our positive attitude about school and learning and understanding that school should be enjoyable but not necessarily fun and that learning can has its own reward so that you build that accomplishment of setting a goal or finishing a task and then you go on to the next thing. And those are that study skills. That's what it's all about. And then school can pick up on the rest of it.

This is Jessop Elementary School in Cheyenne here. Parents are an essential part of the school's culture. And the day before the start of the school year parents bring new and returning students. School. Pay for the drop off classroom supplies take a tour of the school and best of all to enjoy ice cream. Let's join Zachary and Jerry again. His family recently moved to Cheyenne from Virginia and see how the just about mentoring community makes kids feel at ease in their new surroundings. As you can see we've got a.

Pretty good playground the fun the play on lots of stuff to do and our tour starts here at the white building we call the camper as you can see we've got on the Hangs like non-sanctioned over here. I thought it was great to have student council members take us out on a tour of the school it was kind of entertaining and very informative. This is a computer lab it's pretty big got lots of computers. They're all numbered and you'll usually have your assigned computer so when you walk in you'll sit down at your computer typing a number and you can start doing whatever you're doing. We have plenty of games but Mrs. avail can always find ways to get girls into so. Definitely nothing in Fairfax County can hold in candle to 28 or more computers and that means that every kid in the classroom has a computer when the class goes to the computer room. And that certainly wasn't true back in Fairfax County so I'm very impressed.

I really like and I was very impressed with was that Adam. The one taking us around the school. Yes I think you made the kids really easy we get lots and lots of birds like I said third grade you get to be in charge of this you can see feeders and birdhouses all the while trees smell good in here just pretty much everything. And you're just going to your class. At the very beginning of the day to say what are you having for lunch. I like it a lot it seems very friendly the teachers seem really nice. It really seems family oriented and it's easy for a school with smaller classroom sizes to be that way I think. Now. Dr. canary said when we came to register the first day he was very helpful and she paid a lot of attention to our kids. Being now. So was very nice very receptive people everywhere we've been dealing with them for a

year. And on the phone and for a fax and they've been extremely helpful here. At Curie junior high students from several elementary schools have been blended together into a new and unfamiliar community. During the first class sessions teachers do their best to make the kids feel at ease and ready to learn to do is a I want I think it's you know you get. Four hundred twenty seven seventh graders I. If I don't know something about you something this makes you different like you like football or or you like to play clarinet or some like that. That's where I remember things. Nervous today. But apprehensive. So I'm a little bit nervous if you are. That's OK. You know that's that's perfectly natural. In another classroom. A word association game. Help students learn each other's names and challenges their memory. OK Steve you're like.

You're. Just it right just. You. Know. Right. Thornberry right. Down the hall. Students in one classroom send diagrams. Diagrams help students discover their differences as well as what they have in common with each other. Schools really shine when they ease the critical transitions into school as new students and the move from self-contained classrooms in elementary school to multiple classrooms and multiple teachers in junior high. With these transitions comes a degree of stress

which some students handle better than others. It's important remember that stress can be a catalyst for failure. Carey junior high and other schools in Cheyenne were awarded a grant to identify students who are at risk and provide them with assistance to become successful. Once again Sherry upward is a seventh grade guidance counselor at Carey. The seventh grade students are in their first day here. Carey junior high and walking around you can really see the anxiety in their faces. One of the teachers trying to do on the first day to make the students feel comfortable yet feel comfortable that's that's exactly it. That is the goal today and in the next few days as the kids get used to their schedules and changing classrooms it within the classrooms teachers are working on projects that help them understand each other better and learn more about them as as children as kids as friends and then in the future in the near future. Well the work on student

issues and academic issues but it's really hard to move into academics the first day without the kids feeling welcome and feeling safe and secure and happy and. And that is the goal comfort. Well it seems like the teachers are having students introduce themselves. You know the teachers are trying to work some humor into it. Anything they can do to kind of break the ice a little bit. They are and we work one program in particular that we work we work on here. Kerry is called tribes tribes incorporates a lot of activities that. Are very helpful in getting to know kids individually and getting to know their hobbies their and their joys in life and that's really important. And the teachers have had training in that and are comfortable in working with those tribes activities to help the kids understand each other better. One aspect of the No Child Left Behind legislation is going to require all students

and you know seventh and eighth grade to test well for the you know school to stay in good graces. And one key is going to be to get the students who are most at risk to the point where they can achieve proficiency on these tests. I understand you have a new grant. Working with those at risk students yes we're very excited about our grants. It is to help those kids as they transition when they leave the sixth grade teachers they've had one teacher throughout the year probably have been in the same elementary school for several years and these teachers know these students very well. We'd like an opportunity to pass on that information and the seventh grade. And so we meet with teachers and parents and students in the spring get to know those kids who are already identified as being at risk for struggling with this transition. There are so many different transitions in seventh grade and

we can anticipate a lot of struggles. And and so we work with the sixth grade teachers to help us identify who are they most concerned about. It really helps you know they've invested a lot of time in these kids and they want to see them succeed as they move on. And that's the kind of thing that you really didn't do much. With that large group of kids in the past we haven't had those conversations we haven't had we haven't made the time to have those conversations. And now it's a real priority with us here Kerry and all of our feeder schools have been very supportive. The future schools will be the elementary schools that come to carry. And they've been very supportive and I understand as part of that federal grant you know to track the students and see how they do. Absolutely see how they do. If you would like for this at risk grant to help us to get these kids further than they would normally go a sixth grade teacher really has a good indication if each If a child will struggle for the remaining years and knowing them and knowing

how we can help now is going to really really increase their chances of graduation. Even outside of this particular program. Parent involvement is something that you really encourage here I understand but it is not something that you always get. It's not in for whatever reason at this junior high level parents pull back. We want to continue to invite them. We want them here. We want them in the classrooms just as they were in elementary. We want them working with their students. This morning it was exciting to see parents walking around with kids. Some kids are very comforted by that some are ready to go without him. It's very individual but it was exciting to see the parents feel welcome enough to come. Parents are always invited to our orientations in the spring. We did an orientation last week where the kids got a chance to walk through and find all their classes after they have their schedules. And it was nice to see the parent involvement. We want to we want to encourage

as much as we can do the teachers try to encourage that they do and some activities. We have found work better. We have a biology teacher that actually spends several evenings of his time training parents to come in. So they feel capable of helping in a frog dissection lab. You might think from dissection that I can do that. I would be of no value. But with the peace of coming in and being trained in that area that is really helpful they feel welcome to do that. Those are the parents the parents that come to frog dissection lab. I'm more likely to see in the classrooms because they've been here they've been welcomed and they're comfortable. Student making the transition to junior high you're going from being with one teacher all day to the block plan and moving every 90 minutes to a new class. That's a big change what. What do students they must need help with organizational skills they do.

Organization is a developmental skill. And in seventh grade it is a challenge. It is a challenge and we give students planners every student is assigned a planner at the beginning of the year. The teachers encourage them to write assignments down to check the planners and the teachers help them work through that throughout the year. That's a lifelong skill to use a planner and to be organized and a student the struggles with organization will struggle in the seventh grade. We find that that is one of the biggest challenges. Is there anything that parents can do to help students stay organized. Absolutely. If the parents are helpful with checking that plan or if they want to be interested in that. What are your assignments. Show me. Where's the due date. Show me in your planner that that kind of support helps support the school and what we're trying to get them to do here too. It's also a great way for the parents to stay in communication

with the school. Then there's no question of you haven't had math homework for three months why not. Well open up the planner and they probably had it all along should there be a structured place do you homework should you have any advice on that. Yeah we noticed that a student that does not have structured time and structured place for homework. Rarely rarely completes homework on a regular brace basis. This again is not self sufficient. Not able to create that space by themselves. And so you're exactly right. A specific spot. A lot of times the kitchen table is a great place. Sometimes the center of what else is going on and in that household. And it's a nice way to for parents to do what they need to do in the house but still keep an eye on the homework that's going on in an hour a day if. If you don't have homework or reading for an hour day is

wonderful and that is an assignment that a lot of our English teachers have anyway an hour a day of reading so we just do the television stuff. Absolutely make it make it a spot where they can still concentrate and you could see that individually a student might need some kids work better with music on. Some kids work best in that you know room by themselves with their quiet. Back to school period of time work transitions stress and or work habits. So the stage for potential failure or when establishing good work habits and this isn't for learning sets the stage for future success. Success is the goal of No Child Left Behind. I hope everyone school year is off to a good start. The great day. When I was when I started I would tell the reader I can hardly be anything but now I can read advance but last week I had a special tutoring. You're making. A doctor can you.

Help me. That. Really is kind of red. But. Yeah.