SMS 6th Grade Parent Orientation - Sunnyvale School District

SMS 6th Grade Parent Orientation
Sunnyvale Middle School is a dynamic community with
diverse cultural and socio-economic backgrounds
located in the heart of Silicon Valley. Our mission is to
engage students and empower them to reach their
highest academic potential and social emotional
growth. Critical and creative problem
solving, effective communication, and
community involvement are cornerstones of
our supportive and challenging learning environment.

Are your kids ready for the first day?

Are you ready for summer to end?

We are growth focused

Psychology of Middle School
¤ Anxiety about their social status as perceived by peers.

¤ Anxiety about their social status as perceived by themselves.

¤ Struggling with body image insecurities (fear of not looking good enough or
  an aspect of their physical self detracting from their overall looks).

¤ Concerns that “Nobody really understands me.”

¤ Fear of not pleasing their parents (for obvious reasons, this one is seldom
  admitted, yet it is highly common.)

¤ Fear of not measuring up to their own expectations.

¤ Fear that their parents may find about negative behaviors they may have
  engaged in or are tempted to engage in
                                                                  Jeffrey Bernstein Ph.D.
                                                                  Liking the Child You Love
                                                                  Psychology Today, February 2014

Acronyms

¤ WEB – Where Everybody Belongs

¤ PBIS – Positive Behavior Intervention and Support

¤ ELA – English Language Arts

¤ ELD – English Language Development

¤ EL – English Learner

¤ SST – Student Success Team

¤ RtI - Response to Intervention

Acronyms

¤ CAASPP – California Assessment of Student Performance
  and Progress (State Testing)

¤ ELAC – English Learner Advisory Committee

¤ PTSA – Parent Teacher Student Association

¤ RSP – Resource Specialist Program

¤ SDC – Special Day Class

¤ SAI – Specialized Academic Instruction

¤ TSDC – Therapeutic Special Day Class

What to expect in the first few days
•   PBIS Rotations
•   Expectation Assemblies
•   Getting to know each other activities
•   Cyber Safety lesson
•   Learning Routines
•   Green Sheets (Syllabi)
•   Student Agendas

Student Schedules
• A/ B Day Schedule
• Core Classes
• PE/Electives

Student Schedules
    Monday           Tuesday          Wednesday        Thursday         Friday
    A Day            B Day            A Day            B Day            A Day
1   Social Studies   Social Studies   Social Studies   Social Studies   Social Studies
2   ELA              ELA              ELA              ELA              ELA
3   ELA              Math             ELA              Math             ELA
4   Math             Math             Math             Math             Math
5   Woodworking      PE               Woodworking      PE               Woodworking
6   Science          Science          Science          Science          Science

Student Schedules
What is this class I didn’t request doing on my
schedule?

• EL Support
• RSP
• Elective I didn’t choose
                                         ?

Homework Policy
SMS considers homework to be an important part of the
learning process. The amount of homework a student will
have each night varies but in general will not exceed 1-2
hours. Each teacher has varying homework expectations.
Please refer to the course syllabus for specific homework
policies for each class.

Personal Electronics
¤ Cell phones off and put away during the
  school day including passing periods,
  lunch periods, after school detention or
  tutorials, emergency drills, and field trips.

¤ Placing a cell phone on vibrate or texting
  is not considered off and is prohibited.

¤ Using a cell phone to audio or video
  record is prohibited.

¤ This applies to cell phones and all other
  personal electronic devices

Personal Electronics

Why the Change in policy?

¤ Campus Safety

¤ Self-Harm Contagion

¤ In-line with upcoming district policy

What if I need to contact my child
¤ Students may come to the office to call
  you.

¤ Students may check messages before
  school and after the end of day bell
  rings.

¤ You may contact the school and they
  will get a message to your child.

Supplies

You will receive a list of needed supplies from each teacher.
You will not need excessive supplies for the first days of
school. Pencils, pens and some paper to write on are
enough to get started.

Communication

¤ Powerschool Parent Portal
  https://sesd.powerschool.com

¤ School Website
  https://www.sesd.org/sunnyvale

¤ Teacher Websites, blogs, and google docs

¤ Subscribe to the School Calendar
  sesd.org_lfq36rp679egjenlgeugml96mg@group.calendar.google.com

¤ Email – All email addresses are first.last@sesd.org

¤ Student Agenda

Society-Culture-Politics and Us
¤ Over 50 languages and dialectics are spoken by our
  families.

¤ We represent a vast number of
  ¤ Races
  ¤ Cultures
  ¤ Gender Identities
  ¤ Political Beliefs

       We will not always agree, but we all
                need to get along.

How do I get help for my student?

Supports

¤ Afterschool tutorials for Math, Reading, and Writing

¤ Individual and Group Counseling

¤ Mentorship Programs

¤ Social Skills Classes and Lunch Group

¤ RtI – Response to Intervention

¤ Special Education

How do I get help for my students?

People

¤ Grade Level Administrator (Mr. Shahin – nabil.shahin@sesd.org)

¤ Counseling (Cynthia Patterson – cynthia.patteson@sesd.org)

¤ Parent Outreach Coordinator (Sarah Castro – Sarah.Castro@sesd.org)

¤ Attendance (Julie Melville – Julie.Melville@sesd.org)

¤ Psychologist (Charlene Lee - Charlene.Lee@sesd.org)

¤ Language Support – Members of our staff speak Spanish,
  Mandarin, Vietnamese, Hindi, and Farsi.