August 29, 2005

Dear Parent/Guardian,

We all want our students to be mentally tough and ready to work at the peak of performance.

Peter J. McLaughlin, author of Mentally Tough, and trainer for many well-known athletes, states that to reach the peak of performance -- mentally, physically, and emotionally -- exercise and good nutrition are necessary. Some students often skip breakfast or may eat non-nutritional food more often than we may like to admit. Adolescents, because of body changes and growth spurts at the age, profit from eating often.

The Ravens 6B Team will be allowing students to bring a special mid-morning snack and have this snack while working in class. The snacks must be of a nutritional value such as: a type of fruit, vegetable, or grain product. Some examples might be a granola bar, cheese and cracker item, etc... High fat and sugar content items will not be permitted. Students may also choose to bring a water bottle (no glass, please!) for more frequent drinks during the hotter seasons.

Students are not required to bring a snack or water bottle. They may bring a snack if they choose to do so, either on a regular basis or just when they desire to do so. If your child does choose to bring a snack or water bottle, it is for their consumption only, no passing food around to others. Health classes will discuss the values and habits of eating nutritiously, and how it affects performance.

Ravens 6B Team Oops! Information

We would like to inform students and parents about the Oops! tickets used by the Ravens 6B Team. Ravens Team teachers ask that you read through this information with your son/daughter prior to returning the cover signature sheet to school.

Moving to middle school requires some changes for students coming from elementary school. One major change is the increased amount of responsibility the student now has in school. As teachers, we expect students to make good choices. To assist with this transition to middle school, the Ravens 6B Team will be using Oops! tickets.

Each student will be given 5 Oops! tickets for the first two weeks of school, and a new set of 10 tickets the third week of school (unused tickets will be cashed in on Sept. 9, and the new set given out). The next 10 tickets will be a different color for each subsequent quarter. The student will write their first and last name on the back side of each pass in ink. When a ticket is used, the student will write the date, class, and purpose of use on it, and turn it in to his or her teacher. Tickets not used will qualify students for intermittent rewards, as well as an end of quarter reward (the goal is to not use the tickets!). There is incentive to use the tickets wisely and only when necessary.

Here are some of the various ways these tickets are used by students: returning to their locker after class has begun, arriving tardy to class after passing time is over, not turning in an assignment when it is due in class, being sent to Think Time for not following classroom guidelines. There may also be other incidental reasons that may occur that would require the use of a ticket.

If a student has used all of the issued Oops! tickets given to them for that quarter, an individual behavior plan will be developed and a parent/ student/ teacher conference will be held. There are some instances where tickets are not necessary: if a student feels ill and must leave the room immediately or if a student needs to go to the health office for medication or feels ill. We do understand and will work with these situations. Teachers want to promote good decision making and responsibility with students. This Oops! ticket system has proven highly effective in the past. The special team activities at the end of each quarter for those students who have enough tickets left, have been quite popular!

It is our hope that this will help promote responsibility on the part of the student as they make the transition to middle school.

Thanks!
Ravens 6B Teachers
Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Appleget, Mr. Knight, Mr. Clough, and Mrs. Hirschfeld

Raven's Team 6B Schedule 2006-2007
8:00 - 9:00 Math
9:04 - 9:44 Social Studies/ Science
9:46 - 10:26 Social Studies/ Science
10:30 - 1:08 Language Arts
(Lunch = 11:20 - 11:50)
1:12 - 2:03 Academic Connections 1
2:07 - 2:58 Academic Connections 2