JOHN MUIR MAGNET SCHOOL
Student and Parent Handbook
2017-2018
100 Walker Avenue
Ashland, Oregon
541-482-8577
This year the elementary principals made a decision to use a new format for handbooks. Although for many years we have included the same information in our handbooks, it was always an individual task to do the lay-out, embedding new items in the school handbooks in different places. This year we are all publishing our site specific information in the front section and the common items in the back. We have also included a table of contents so parents and students can more easily find the policies, information and announcements they are looking for. We are hopeful that this new format will streamline our yearly updates and make it easier for families to find the information they are looking for.
Welcome to John Muir Magnet School!
Endorsed by the Ashland School Board to further diversify public school offerings for families in Ashland, John Muir School was established in 2006 as an Art and Natural Science Magnet School. John Muir School was developed according to current research in educational philosophy and child psychology. It is a small community school serving 125 students in multi-age classes, kindergarten through eighth grade with a focus on Outdoor Education and the Arts.
In the tradition of its namesake, John Muir children are taught the wonder and beauty of nature, the intricacies of biologic and ecologic systems and the love of the outdoors. Learning occurs through direct experience, collaboration, discussion, reflection and inference as children hike, draw, explore and immerse themselves in the natural world. Art and music provide forms of expression and avenues of learning.
John Muir School staff support high academic achievement and individual student success. Reading, writing, math, science, social studies, physical education, music and art are addressed according to the Department of Education Standards.
John Muir Staff
John Muir staff consists of the following certified teachers, specialists, and educational assistants.
Rebecca Gyarmathy Principal
JoEllen Meyeroff Teacher K-1 Kimberly West Teacher 2-3
Nasser Rihan Teacher 4-5 James Bowers Teacher 6
Marcia Ososke Teacher 7-8 Velda Matsdorf Title I Intervention
TBD Special Education Michelle Bolinger Child Development Specialist
Sage Meadows Music Karl Carstensen Physical Education
Laura Davis Office Manager Lisa Spencer Education Assistant
Allandra Emerson Educational Assistant Mike Stiles Special Educational Assistant
Suzanne Mielke Educational Assistant TBD Educational Assistant
TBD Educational Assistant TBD Educational Assistant
Mark Tapley School Psychologist TBD Speech and Language
Belinda Brown School Nurse
Zuna Johnson E.L.D. Teacher
TRANSPORTATION TO & FROM SCHOOL
Offering parents a choice in Ashland, parents must provide transportation to and from John Muir. Safety is a top priority for us at John Muir; if you have suggestions or see potential problem areas, please let us know. Parent should drop off in the fire lane and promptly move from the Fire Ramp area. There is no parking in the Fire Ramp. If you need to park, please use the upper (closer to Walker School) or lower (closer to East Main) parking lots to park your car. Students should arrive no earlier than 7:50 AM. All students arriving before 8:15 am must enter through the main office and remain in the hallway. Students may get breakfast at 8:00 from the AMS cafeteria.
WALK, BIKE, SCOOTER TO SCHOOL
We encourage students to walk, bike, and scooter to school. Parents, please remind your children of the precautions and safety rules to follow should they walk, ride a bike, rollerblade, scooter or skateboard to school. Helmets are required for all bikes, scooters, and skateboards. Children are not allowed to ride bikes, scooters, or skateboards to John Muir without a proper helmet. We strongly urge appropriate safety equipment such as knee and elbow pads and a bike lock. Scooters, skateboards, rollerblades, bikes, and unicycles are not to be ridden on school grounds. Shoes with rollers are not allowed under any circumstances. If you are concerned about the safety for your child's scooter or skateboard please check and see if you can place the item in our office for the day.
AFTER SCHOOL
There is no supervision provided after 3:05 pm. Students are not allowed to stay after school and play in the courtyard without parent supervision. Students not picked up by 3:05 pm must wait in the hallway and wait for parents to pick them up. On Wednesday early release, students need to be picked up at 1:45.
Curriculum
John Muir is a school founded on the principles of experienced-based education and intellectual concept construction. Through integrated units of study, outdoor education, the arts, and direct academic instruction, the children have in-depth constructivist learning experiences.
Children at John Muir learn by experiencing the world physically. The John Muir School, unlike other Ashland Schools, requires children to participate in extensive hiking activities. These activities, along with classroom learning, are carefully designed to provoke thought and reflection while addressing state standards. Follow-up response and discussion allow children to collaborate, construct their own meaning of the world, and to develop skills to integrate experience, knowledge and concepts. Children learn to formulate and articulate generalizations, which they can test and apply to new situations.
John Muir integrated units of study are set up on a cyclical calendar. The integrated units last five or six weeks. These are built around a theme such as geology, simple machines or life cycles. It takes the skills, experience and art of professional teachers to organize classroom lessons around a theme while addressing the curriculum standards of state and federal education mandates. Each integrated unit will encompass essential learning objectives in a variety of subjects including social studies, reading, writing, math, science and art. In this way, children learn skills in the context of applied study.
Direct instruction of academic skills occurs on a daily basis, as well as through the integrated units of study. The objective of direct instruction of academic skills is the learning of a specific skill. These may include writing form, math computation, reading text analysis, and understanding historical events. During direct academic skill instruction, children are guided skillfully by the teacher to construct their own meaning from the content.
One morning each week is dedicated to the arts for the 4th-8th grade students. During this Art Focus time, children learn art and music skills, while participating in extended projects. The students choose from a variety of options including drumming, violin, rock band, guitar, watercolor painting, ceramics, choir, origami, and other art and music classes. The younger students participate in art and music classes throughout the week with their classroom teacher and specialists.
Daily Schedule
7:50-8:10 Children Arrive at School
8:00 Breakfast Served in AMS Cafeteria
8:20 School Begins
2:50 Dismissal (Early Release on Wednesdays at 1:30pm)
Please Note: John Muir will have an early release for staff professional collaboration time.
Parent Teacher Relationships
Fundamental to a successful school are the relationships between parents and teachers. These adults hold significant and separate roles in the lives of children. The job of the staff at John Muir is to develop the academic skills of each child, yet we recognize that learning occurs within relationships, and teachers must be more than curriculum guides. Collaboration with parents is needed for areas like behavior expectations, homework and field trips.
In all conversations, the John Muir staff is committed to supporting parents and families. The same is asked from you. We believe in direct communication. When it becomes important to clarify concerns about academics or behavior, we want to meet with you to discuss these issues while always keeping the best interest of the child at the core of our conversation. Sometimes it is important to have another staff member involved in these conversations to add clarity and insight. Besides the scheduled Parent/Student/Teacher conferences, we will arrange a conference with you when we see a need arise or at your request. Please respect the work time of staff members by scheduling an appointment for these conferences. To respect the private lives of staff members, please use the school phone number and staff emails to make contact.
If at some point, you have a complaint about staff members, school organization or decisions made at school, we ask you to address the complaint directly to the individual staff member involved. You are welcome to invite another staff member to these meetings. It is our goal to keep our communication with you direct, open and clear.
Outdoor Education
Each Friday and many other times throughout the year, our classrooms move outside. Rain, snow or sunshine, the children hike, observe, study and learn in the outdoors. These experiences are essential to building concepts about science. We expect children to attend these trips, including overnights, the same way they attend indoor classes. JMMS values safety above all else. Therefore, students must demonstrate personal responsibility at all times. In the event a student shows a pattern of unsafe behavior, a Child Study Team (CST) referral will be initiated, at which time the child’s placement at JMMS will be evaluated.
Outdoor Fee: John Muir requests an outdoor fee at the time of registration, which varies by grade. The fee helps cover the cost of transportation to and from off-campus sites, equipment maintenance, equipment rental (when applicable), guide services (when applicable), and food on overnights. No student will be denied an education because of his/her inability to pay supplementary fees.
Personal Equipment Note: The John Muir School is not responsible for any personal equipment or property that is lost or damaged on any off campus activity, including overnights. JMMS will not assume responsibility for or ‘borrow’ any personal items for off-campus activities, including overnight trips. If a student brings a personal item and loans it to another student and there is subsequent loss of damage, parents and students will arrive at reparations without involvement of JMMS.
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Table of Contents
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Verification of Residency……………………………………………...... 10
Assignment of Students to Classes Including Retention & Acceleration...... 11
Attendance and Tardies...... 13
School Closure Due to Severe Weather/Emergencies & Emergency Drills...... 13
Volunteers...... 14
Telephones and Cell Phone Use...... 14
Electronic Devices/Toys...... 14
Parents Visiting School ...... 14
School Aged Children Visiting School...... 15
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Animals on Campus...... 15
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Classroom Parties...... 15
School Insurance…………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………….15
Field Trips and Chaperone Guidelines...... 15
Student Dress Code...... 16
Student Fees, Fines, and Charges...... 16
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School Discipline...... 16
Bus Information...... 17
First Aid...... 18
Medications Administered at School...... 18
Self-Medication...... 19
When is my child sick enough to stay home?………...... 19
Communicable Diseases...... 20
Immunization...... 20
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Returning to School After a Significant Injury or Illness...... 22
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Food Allergies...... 23
Cafeteria Lunch and Breakfast Program...... 23
Procedure for Paying for Lunch...... 24
Site Council...... 24
Parent Teacher Association (PTA)...... 24
Child Development Specialist...... 24
Curriculum...... 25
English Language Learners...... 26
Assessment Programs...... 27
Where do I go if my child needs help at school?...... 26
Students with Disabilities...... 27
Discipline of Students with Disabilities...... 27
Seclusion & Restraint...... 28
Homeless Students...... 28
Talented and Gifted...... 29
Reporting Pupil Progress: Grading & Conferencing...... 29
Student Education Records...... 29
Two-Household Families………………………………………………………………………………………………………..30
Parent Email and Internet Permission...... 30
District Internet and Email Rules...... 31
Annual Notification of Rights Under FERPA...... 32
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Verification Of Residency
Under Oregon law, students may attend the school district where their parents reside. To comply with state law regarding school attendance boundaries and to assure better emergency contact information for students, all students new to a school are asked to provide appropriate documentation of parental residency or, in the case of an emancipated minor, their own residency.
This includes:
§ Students new to Ashland Schools
§ Students in grades K, 6 and 9
§ Students transferring from one school to another
Appropriate Documentation:
Two original documents from separate categories are required as proof of residency for registration. These documents must be dated within the last 30 days and reflect the home address of the parent/guardian and student:
- Real Estate Documents [Current mortgage statement, escrow papers that show close of sale, grant deed, property tax bill, or rental agreement signed by both parties, with your name and address listed along with two consecutive rental payment receipts (within 60 days for new rentals)]
- Other Official Documents:
Ø Financial Documents (bank statement, credit card bill, pay stub)
Ø Government Documents (Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, WIC, Oregon Health Plan)
Insurance (home, rental, health or car)
Ø Current Utility: electric, gas, cable or water bill with your name and address listed
Please Note: Telephone bills and driver licenses are not accepted for proof of residency.
What If I Don’t Have Needed Documents?
In some cases, you may not have the documentation you need to register. Our office manager will work with you to help you. You may be referred to the District Student Services Department for support in addressing your child’s school needs.
If you are an unaccompanied youth, reside in a substandard residence or do not have a permanent residence, you can register for school and may be eligible for additional supports to enroll in and attend. Additional information is available through the school.
Assignment of Students to Classes, Retention & Acceleration
The decision to place students is a task we take very seriously. It is the result of extensive discussion among teachers at your child’s current grade (last grade completed), the principal and specialists. It is a professional responsibility that is important, time consuming, and requires much thought and planning by the school team.
Placement decisions are made in the best interests of all children and ultimately in the best interest of each individual child. The highest priority in making decisions is creating balanced classes, while meeting the needs of your child. Many factors influence these decisions including aptitude, achievement levels, behavior, social/emotional needs, health, interaction with peers and adults, leadership, learning style and motivation. All of these factors are taken into consideration when determining classroom configuration.