3/8/2017 Parent Advisory Council Meeting Compliments, Comments, and Concerns
Special Education Questions - Mrs. Lisa McNey
No Compliments, Comments, and Concerns
Kindergarten Questions - Mr. Chris McCombs
No Compliments, Comments, and Concerns
1st Grade Questions - Mrs. Charlotte Vigeant
No Compliments, Comments, and Concerns
2nd Grade Questions - Mrs. Colleen Harris
Parents are curious why the GAGA pit hasn't been used at recess in the new playground area or in gym? When it was first introduced the children loved it and it hasn't been seen again. If we have this piece of equipment that was donated by the PTO why is it not being utilized? While the new playground area is a great alternative to the track there are only two basketball hoops. Why not utilize this piece of equipment if we have it?
Regarding PE, the PE teachers have a curriculum they follow which does not include the Gaga pit in every lesson. Like any other resource teachers have, some get used more than others.
Regarding recess, I just got the side lot opened a couple of weeks ago. I want to introduce new items one at a time. The Gaga pit needs to be assembled and removed each time it is used. My intention is to have it out regularly as we get into the spring.
3rd Grade Questions - Mrs. Colleen Heinemann
No Compliments, Comments, and Concerns
4th Grade Questions - Mrs. Joanna Bartlett
I have received 2 concerns that we have already discussed but the people would like them raised again.
1. The speed at which people drive through the school area. While it improved briefly, it has slipped again.
I have contacted the police. They are periodically patrolling at arrival and dismissal.
Suggestion to place patrol car at 3 PM to catch parents going to wrong way up Peachtree Rd. Contact Mr. Howlett about reminding RH parents. I will continue to remind parents in the Friday Folder. The police were patrolling this morning. Regarding the lower lot from the February meeting, I am not closing it for now, I am patrolling it for now from 8:30 to 8:45 AM and that seems to be cutting down on the number of parents speeding through the lot and not parking to drop off their kids. In the future, I intend to place a teacher on duty to curtail these practices.
2. Not enough time to eat lunch.
We have continued to monitor the lunch periods to ensure that students have enough time to eat. Yesterday, we had 60 fourth graders purchase lunch within 11 minutes, which averages to about 10 seconds per child. All students were seated by 12:53 PM, and they were allowed to clean up straight through 1:15 PM. Our cafeteria server has started to scoop lunches ahead of time to maximize time to eat. Steve Tardibuono is observing this lunch period today to give advice on how we can improve. We have adopted a rotating schedule where certain classes get in line to purchase lunch first. With five classes, we can designate specific days so that students are aware of the day that they will be served first or last. This can help them plan which days to bring lunch. I’ll put this in the Friday Folder this week.
Suggestion to place on FF for all grades order in which classes come in.
5th Grade Questions - Mrs. Stacy Mahdavian
Can you suggest that the mini unit/drama/after school activity pick up be run like the car line pick up? 40-50 people parking and kids walking through the lot with moving cars isn't safe nor is it efficient for the pick-up process. Not all parents who park actually get out, collect the kids and walk them to the car. A lot of parents just wave from the parking spot and the kids are walking across unaccompanied and cars are moving and if his big thing is safety, this isn't safe. Much safer/smarter to pull up like the car line, have the kids recognize the car and the teacher releases the student - no one walks through the lot and the pick up flows.
We cannot always do this as aftercare utilizes the side parking lot for play during inclement weather. One suggestion is to have students line up on the sidewalk in the front of the building and treat this area as our car-line pick up.
Regarding students in mini units, a few weeks ago, I instructed mini-unit parents to follow the established procedure of parking their cars and walking up and gathering their children because many mini-unit instructors are not familiar with the students or their parents.
I have reached out to the directors of mini units, drama club, and intramurals so we can meet to create a plan.