Family Involvement

Parent Involvement

We welcome and encourage parent involvement at Odyssey Middle School. In order to establish an effective parent/community involvement plan it is essential that communication between parents, schools, educators, and community members be frequent and clear. When we work as a team, we help to strengthen schools, families, communities, and learning. There are many ways to be involved in your student’s school life and this can range from helping them set up a homework routine to picking them up after school hours if they stay for tutoring. All parents have special talents. We look to you as we partner in guiding your student through his or her years at Odyssey Middle School, so please consider becoming involved. Do not be put off when your child says she will just faint if you show up at school; it is quite the contrary! Students really DO appreciate (and need) your presence.Family involvement results in:

Higher level of student achievement
Improved student achievement
Improved student behavior
Improve student attendance
Greater overall support for school

Parent night will be the 1^st Tuesday of each month, 6:30 pm, in the cafeteria. The PTO meeting will be conducted at that time.

Odyssey Middle School Parent/Involvement Kit

Parent Guardian Information: Tell us how we can get in contact with you

Student name
Grade level
Guardian first and last name
Relationship to student
E-mail address
Cell phone
Work number

Communication: Odyssey Middle School will strive to strengthen communication through various methods as listed:

Maintain school website
School handbook
Odyssey Middle School Partners in Education
New Student Orientation
Parent Open House, September 16, 2011
Email
Phone Calls
Newsletter “Give a Hoot”
Parent Night
PTO Involvement

The school will continue to communicate with parents through notices sent home, newsletters and parent/teacher conferences. Odyssey offers a morning and after-school Homework Club on Mondays, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Please sign up with your teacher.

Morning: 7:40 AM

After-school 3:10-5:00 PM

Parenting: Counselors are available at Odyssey Middle School to aid parents and guardians with essential resources that will help them understand the unique developmental changes in young adolescents as they mature. Furthermore, we at Odyssey Middle School are here to assist in supporting families in creating a home environment that supports student learning.

Online Parenting Resources / Web Sites:

Arkansas Department of Education http://arkansased.org/

Listening Library http://www.randomhouse.com/audio/listeninglibrary/

Project Appleseed http://www.projectappleseed.org

Scholastic News: http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/scholasticNews.jsp?FromBrowseMod=true&Ns=Pub_Date_Sort|1&CurrPage=scholasticNews.jsp&TopicValue=Scholastic%20News http://teenreads.com/

Parent and student safety: Top Ten Ways Parent Can Protect Kids From Cyberbullying http://scitech.foxnews.mobi/quickPage.html?page=23952&external=517679.proteus.fma&pageNum=-1

Tips for Developing Organization Skills in Children http://www.ldail.org/organiz.cfm

Student Learning: We invite you to become a partner in our student’s learning activities, co-curricular and extra-curricular activities.

Guest Readers
Career Day programs
Field trips
Special class projects
Tutoring for Benchmark
Guest speakers to share areas of expertise
Fall Carnival
Quiz Bowl and Speech Contest Judging

Volunteering: Parents and community leaders are needed and encouraged to volunteer in school activities. Odyssey feels that this involvement is fundamental to the growth of the students and the school. Listed below are a few ways that you can volunteer:

Guest Speakers
Guest Readers
Chaperone Field trips
Engage in special class projects
Shelve books in Media Center
Help during Book Fair
Help with club and team fundraisers
Science Fair
Open House preparations
New Student Orientation
Registration
Club programs
Attend special class presentations and view student projects
Assist with teacher copy needs
Contribute articles on parenting to the school newsletter.
Recipe book fundraiser showcasing parent and student recipes
Lunchroom monitors.
Have a workshop on parent involvement.
Student volunteers to assist on parent’s night.
Suggestion box available at the school or via the internet, open to suggestions to increase parent involvement.
Parents, teacher and student will create a meaningful agreement with the expectations of student, parent, and teacher clearly defined.

Volunteer Application.docx

All volunteers are required to sign in at the front office and receive a “Volunteer/Visitor” Pass. By doing this we will have a record of who volunteered, for whom, when and what was the purpose. We need to keep a record of this information because all volunteers will be recognized at the end of the school year. Moreover, this is used as a precautionary measure to protect our student and staff. A volunteer’s time and efforts are important to our students and appreciated by all stakeholders involved in the learning process of our children, therefore, we want to recognize those who take time out of their busy lives to make a difference in the lives of our future leaders.

Roles for Stakeholders in Education: Education is a commitment to all members of the learning community at Odyssey Middle School. We offer these suggested goals to work towards in the education process.

Parents / Guardians:

Believe that my child can learn
Help my child get to school on time and attend regularly
Volunteer at school and/or provide other support to teachers
Encourage my child to participate in at least one extracurricular activity
Keep track of my child’s progress through communication with teachers
Attend conferences, visit my child’s classroom, and attend Open House and Family nights
Take time each day to talk to my child about his/her school day
Try to do something special when my child achieves in school
Provide a quiet place and set aside a specific time for homework
Be available to assist with school work
Sign and return all papers that require a parent’s or guardian’s signature
Help my child resolve conflicts in positive, nonviolent ways
Respect cultural, racial, ethnic and individual differences

School Personnel:

Believe that each child can learn
Provide quality teaching and leadership
Inform all parents and students about class activities, assignments, events, and achievement levels of students, in a timely, efficient manner
Make my classroom welcoming to parents
Check that homework has been completed
Respect cultural, racial, ethnic, and individual differences
Hold at least two parent-teacher conferences and offer flexible scheduling
Provide activities that account for different learning styles
Have high expectations for myself, my students, and other staff
Seek ways to involve parents in the school program
Maintain open lines of communication with students and parents

Students:

Believe that I can learn and do my best
Ask the teacher relevant questions
Take home materials and information needed to complete homework in a thorough, legible, and timely manner
Obey classroom rules
Discuss with my parents what I am learning in school and ask for assistance
Respect the cultural, racial, ethnic, and individual differences of other students, their families, and staff
Resolve conflicts peacefully
Arrive to class on time and attend regularly
Respect all school property and other individual’s personal property

Community Leaders:

Support the philosophy that all children can learn
Provide opportunities for employees to share their areas of expertise with local schools
Seek ways to become involved in special school projects
Maintain open lines of communication with local schools and community members concerning the education process and how area businesses and community leaders can become directly involved

Adapted from: http://www.ramsey.spps.org/calendar.html and http://www.mabelvale.org/