Porter Elementary

ParentHandbook

2015/2016

Porter Elementary School

22256 Ford Rd.

Porter, Texas 77365

281-577-2920

Mission Statement:

Porter Elementary school will set high expectations to shape successful and responsible life-long learners.

Vision Statement:

Our campus will engage the students by utilizing a rigorous curriculum through differentiated student-centered activities.

Core Values:

At Porter Elementary, we will be encouraged, enriched and empowered to learn. Everyone will be respectful and responsible.

All successes will be celebrated, both great and small.

Principal: Carmen Bertrand

Assistant Principal: Mary Smith

Counselor: Michelle Witham

School Times: 7:30 am – 2:45pm

First Day/Week School Procedures

We are excited to start back another fantastic school year!

The first day/week of school it is important to get our students into routines and procedures to ensure a quality learning environment for all. We ask that our parents help with our routines as well. You can help by following the guidelines below:

When walking your child to class, we ask that you say a quick good-bye and allow your child to begin their day. An administrator will come by and ask you to leave after the tardy bell at 7:35 am.

Please understand that our car rider line is typically longer than usual the first few days of school. Be patient while waiting for your child, safety is our first concern during dismissal.

It is always best to start the year with the correct transportation. If your child is a bus rider, it is best to let them begin the first day of school.

Bus routes take longer the first couple of days of school due to the drivers learning the routes and the students learning where to get off.

  • All students will have a smart tag for riding the bus. This smart tag will be used when the students are getting on the bus and off the bus.
  • All returning students are required to have their Smart Tag from the previous year, if you have lost your Smart Tag, a parent or guardian will need to contact transportation at 281-577-8680 for a replacement tag. A replacement tag will cost $10.
  • Any new students that register will receive their Smart tags as soon as the school receives them from transportation.

An adult must be at the bus stop for any child in Pre-K or Kindergarten to get off the bus. If an adult is not at the bus stop, your child will be taken back to Porter Elementary school to wait for a ride home.

We ask that you do not eat with your child the first two weeks of school. It is important that your child adjusts to his/her own schedule and procedures and has a chance to make new friends.

Transportation Information

What do I do if my child’s bus is late getting home?

Please contact transportation at 281-577-8680. Once in contact with transportation they can get into direct contact with your child’s bus driver. Please note the first few days, it may take longer than normal for buses to drop off.

How do I make transportation changes?

Bus transfers:

Bus transfers are no longer accepted per the transportation policy, which can be found online through the Porter Elementary webpage. Bus routes for all students are determined by the students’ permanent address which is the address written on the enrollment form. Students riding a bus will be picked up and dropped off at the address that is written on their enrollment form.

Your child may not go from a car rider to a bus rider unless it is a permanent change to a parent, grandparent or licensed daycare. If you need to make a permanent bus change that meets this criteria please see the following procedures:

1.)Call the school at 281-577-2920 and ask for Dr. Smith or Mrs. Bertrand. We will approve the transfer if it meets the above criteria and create a bus pass which will then be sent over to transportation.

2.)It will take up to two days to make the change. Your child will need to be a car rider for those two days. On the third day, a bus transfer pass will be given to your child and they will begin on their new way of transportation.

Bus Incidents

Disruptive behavior on the bus could result in a transportation discipline referral. The NCISD transportation department reviews these referrals and makes every effort to contact the parent if a referral is completed. These referrals could result in your child being suspended off the bus and will then need to be a car rider. You may see the full outline of “Conduct Expectations for Bus Riders” on page 40 of the student Code of Conduct.

Car rider passes:

You may call the school at 281-577-2920 to change your child from a bus rider to a car rider if needed. Please call before 2:15 pm so that we can ensure that your child knows the correct way to go home. There will be NO transfers after 2:15 pm.

All car rider passes are for one day only. You will need to contact the school each day that the change is happening.

Where can I drop off my child for school?

The only parent drop off point is located directly in front of the school building. Students will be able to enter the building at 7:00am each morning.

There is no student drop off on the side of the school building due to a safety issue.

Afternoon PreK: Drop off is located on the side by the cafeteria doors at 11:30 am.

Where do I pick my child up at the end of the day?

With a car rider sign (provided on the first day of your child’s school year or at meet the teacher night), you may go through the car rider line on the side of the building by the cafeteria. Please keep the line moving by parking right behind the other cars and do not cut in front of another car. Remain in your car and a staff member will walk your child to you. If you lose your car rider sign, stop in the front office to pick up a new one.

If you do not have a Porter Elementary car rider sign, you will be asked to go to the front office and retrieve one before picking up your child. Be sure to have photo identification with you.

There is no car rider pick up in the front office after 2:15pm. You will be asked to go to the car rider line.

Car rider line information:

As you are exiting the car rider line, stay to the right if you are turning right, stay to the left if you are turning left. This will help with any traffic issues that may occur in the afternoons.

The car rider line is one lane and one way only.

Remember, there is no smoking on school property and cell phone use is prohibited when driving in a school zone.

Please be kind and pull up to the car in front of you. Leaving spaces between cars can result in someone else cutting in front of you.

There will be no student pick up by a parent walking up to the cafeteria. This is a safety hazard for your child. If there is a problem in which you are unable to be in the car rider line, please contact Mrs. Bertrand or Dr. Smith and we will make further arrangements as necessary. These arrangements are created on a case by case basis.

Awards Information

Award ceremonies will occur at the end of each semester according to the following guidelines set by New Caney ISD.

*Additional awards may be given at the Principal’s discretion.

Kindergarten- 5th – Awards day invitations will be sent home at the end of each semester in the Tuesday folders. We encourage you to attend the award ceremonies.

Pre-K will hold awards in their classrooms at the end of the year.

How does my child get an honor roll award?

In order to be eligible for Honor roll, a student must have a score of 80 or above in all the core academic areas (Reading, Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies) and at least one core subject grade of 90 or above. In order to be eligible for an all A Honor Roll award, a student must have a 90 or above in all core subject areas. Core subjects include Reading, Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies.

My child receives honor roll for both semesters. At the end of the year ceremony my child will only receive the End of the Year honor roll award instead of receiving both semester awards and the all year award.

One more example, my child receives perfect attendance for the first and second semester. At the end of the year awards, my child will only receive a perfect attendance award for the school year instead of receiving a semester award.

How does my child receive an “Excellence in conduct” award?

This award is given to all students that have received an “E” in conduct each week of the semester in all academic areas as well as and E or an S in all special classes including PE, music and computers.

How does my child receive the “Citizen of the Month/Year” award?

Each homeroom teacher will choose two students a month for this award. This award is given for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to the following:

  • Most helpful around the classroom or with class mates.
  • Most improved
  • Going above and beyond

Citizen of the Year is presented to a boy and a girl from each homeroom thathas shown exemplary respect, behavior and/or improvement throughout the year.

How does my child receive the perfect attendance awards?

A student that receives this award has been to school every day for that particular period of time.

Please note that our attendance is taken daily at 10:00 am. Any child that is not here at 10:00 am is considered absent.

For Afternoon Pre-K our official attendance time is 1:30 pm. Any child that is brought to school after that time will be considered absent.

Please see the NCISD student handbook for additional attendance policies and procedures.

Classroom Parties

Classroom parties will be held three times per year for the following celebrations:

  • Christmas party
  • Valentine’s Day
  • End of the Year

Teachers may ask for parent volunteers to help plan the parties or to send certain foods.

When sending food items please take into consideration any food allergies in that particular classroom or grade level.

What arethe policies in sending items for my child’s birthday?

We ask that you contact your child’s teacher to coordinate the best time for parties in that classroom. A majority of the time, parties will not happen until the end of the day (after 2:00 pm) to decrease a loss of instructional time. Cupcakes and other items may not be brought to share in the cafeteria during lunch.

You may contact child nutrition at 281-577-8690 to purchase cupcakes or you may bring cupcakes from a nearby store. Homemade food items are not allowed according to the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) nutritional guidelines and regulations. Menu and meal prices can be found online at through the departments section of the webpage. If you have a student with special dietary needs or food allergies, we ask that you contact Debbie Needham, director of child nutrition, for assistance in meal planning.

Please consider the following when celebrating your child’s birthday at school:

Presents/balloons/flowers in the classroom

  • These items will not be allowed in the classrooms or on the busses.

Classroom Invitations

  • Birthday invitations may be passed out in class as long as every student receives one. Please refrain from sending invitations for just a few students.
  • Teachers will not pass out birthday invitations.

Volunteer (Parental Involvement policy)

What is the process for me to become a volunteer at Porter Elementary?

Any parent that would like to volunteer must go to a district volunteer training to complete all the necessary steps in becoming a NCISD volunteer annually.

Dates and times of these trainings are located on the New Caney ISD web page ( and the Porter Elementary web page. They will also be noted in the weekly newsletter from Porter Elementary.

The forms that will need to be completed are located on the NCISD website.

Why do I need to become an approved volunteer?(a few examples including but not limited to)

Chaperone a group on a field trip

Ride a bus on a field trip

Help at Field Day

Volunteering in your child’s classroom

Volunteering in the front office

Making copies for the front office or teachers

Reading to other students

Helping with family events

Is there something I can do without being an approved volunteer?

Attend class parties

Have lunch with your child

Attend award ceremonies

Attend afterschool events

You must always have a government issued ID in order to visit Porter Elementary school. All visitors need to check in at the office to receive a visitor’ssticker. A visitor’s sticker or volunteer badge must be worn while on school property. If a visitor’s sticker or volunteer badge is not visibleto faculty members, you will be escorted to the front office to receive one.

We encourage our parents to volunteer on campus for different activities. Please read through the following guidelines to make your experience on campus as purposeful and fun as it can be.

Our volunteer room is located across from the school nurse. Please feel free to take a look in there for upcoming volunteer needs or events. Please keep the door closed as it will be a distraction to the nurse’s office.

We utilize a parent volunteer email to get information out as to when volunteers are needed on campus or other projects that can be completed at home. Please be sure to leave your email address with our counselor, Michelle Witham if you would like to be a part of the email list.

Please refrain from standing behind the front desk. It causes a distraction to our ladies that are working and creates confusion with other parents/students.

When on campus, it is always best to refrain from interrupting your child’s classroom. If you need to conference with a teacher, stop by the front desk to leave a message.

When on campus you should be under the supervision/direction of a faculty/staff member, otherwise you will be asked to leave campus.

When arriving on campus, all visitors and volunteers must check in with the front desk to receive a sticker, please have your driver’s license ready to be scanned.

Volunteer hours are tracked through our Raptor security system, so you will need to check in and check out when volunteering.

Be sure that Porter Elementary has your correct email address so that we may contact you for upcoming events and/or volunteer needs.

All volunteers are expected to abide by the dress code written for our students. A copy of the dress code can be found on page ___ of the student Code of Conduct. It is also available on the PES website.

School Schedules

School schedule is located on the Porter Elementary website. Each teacher has their particular schedule posted on their website. Our school day begins at 7:30 am. Teachers at Porter Elementary teach bell to bell instruction, it is important for your child to be at school every day for the whole day. Please refrain from dropping your child off late or picking your child up early. It is best to make all attempts to schedule doctor’s appointment after the regular school day.

Please note that changes do occur (i.e. early release, assemblies, testing, etc.) on occasion to our schedule. We will keep you informed through the weekly newsletter and our website as events arise.

Our early release lunch schedule will be moved up 30 minutes earlier from the regularly scheduled lunches.

Teacher Professional Development

Porter Elementary school is a part of the Teacher Advancement Program otherwise known as TAP. This program provides teachers with weekly professional development completed on campus once a week during their conference times. Our professional development time is every Wednesday. All teachers will be unable to return phone calls or have parent meetings during their conference time on Wednesdays.

Websites/Technology

Porter Elementary has a website with a variety of information on it. Our website is updated weekly as needed and can be found through the New Caney ISD website after clicking on schools then Porter Elementary.

Each teacher has a website of their own which can be found by clicking on the “Teachers” tab on the Porter Elementary web site.

Teachers will update their websites as needed.

What technology is my child using at Porter Elementary?

New Caney ISD introduced close to 10,000 Dell Chromebooks to students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade as part of an on-going 1-to-1 initiative, known as 1:Vision, to prepare students for a technology-driven world. So, what is a Chromebook?