Wednesday, September
8 - 6th grade orientation - 7:45
AM - 11:35 AM
Students will report to
the Cafeteria upon arriving at school to be greeted
by the administrative team, and will then report to
homerooms to be guided through an orientation
session with their teachers.
Buses will be running to
pick students up and bring them home. Check
the school calendar for approximate bus pick-up
times or ask neighbors who ride the bus.
All 6th grade students will need to have
documentation of having received the Tdap
vaccination on file with the school nurse in order
to attend. More
information on 6th grade vaccination
requirements
Thursday, September 9 -
No school for students.
Friday, September 10 - First Day of school for
grades 6, 7, 8
New Student
Registration
To register
new students, please contact the Superintendent's
office (518 399-9141, ext. 5002) to begin
the process. Once new students are registered
through the Superintendent's office, appointments for
orientation at the Middle School can be made.
Orientation for students and
families will be held on Tuesday, August 31. Contact the Middle School Counseling
Center (518 399-9141, ext. 4040) for an appointment.
They're
Here!!!! Supply Lists for
2010-2011
Click below for:
6th Grade
News....
Incoming 6th
Graders.. Spirit Day is a quarterly reward
for students who are keeping up with their
assignments, following school rules, and doing their
best to be all around good citizens. Eligible
student sign up to participate in all kinds of fun
and exciting activities like cooking, t-shirt
designs, beading, Kung Fu, Salsa Dancing, Kites,
clay, homemade ice cream just to name a few!
Dates for
2010-2011 Spirit Days: September 24th General Spirit Day for All!!
Spirit Day #1 Friday, November 12th
Spirit Day #2 Friday, January 28th
Spirit Day #3 Friday, April 1st
Spirit Day #4 Friday, June 10th
Parents, the sixth grade teachers are inviting
parents to participate in our Spirit Days and share
some of their creative flare and talents by
volunteering to share some of these talents in
workshops on the afternoons of our Spirit Days.
You can run one long session or two shorter sessions
You determine the number of students that you feel
most comfortable working with. You purchase the
necessary materials and the school will reimburse
you for your cost of materials.
If you are interested
in organizing an activity for one or all of the
Spirit Days. please email Marie DiCristofaro at
mdicristofaro@bhbl.org
Make Waves at Your “Community”
Library
Our
Middle School students are too young to hold jobs.
We don’t want them sitting in front of computer
games for two months. What could be better than
sitting under a tree or by a pool with a good book?
How great to nurture this habit that your child can
enjoy into adulthood. Moreover, professional
literature has documented the value of reading
throughout the year as a way for students to
maintain their reading skills. For these reasons,
the Middle School Library has traditionally
conducted a summer reading program; last year we
developed a blog through which students posted
reviews of the books they had read, and the blog was
linked to the Speck Media Center home page.
Unfortunately, a
reduction in our library staff makes the blog
impossible to maintain. Instead, we are
encouraging our students—incoming 6th graders, 7th
graders, and 8th graders, to participate in the Town
of Ballston Community Library program, Make Waves at
Your Library. This partnership with the
Community Library will give students the opportunity
to receive credit for their reading from both
libraries.
For the Middle School
library, students should simply complete a book
review form for every book read. These are available
both from the Speck Media Center before the close of
school or the Community Library during the summer,
and they can be downloaded from the Speck Media
Center website. The completed forms should be handed
in to the school library in the fall or to the
Community Library any time during the summer. In
September, we will be acknowledging the reading our
students have completed.
Since a summer
reading initiative has traditionally been part of
our program, we are disappointed that it has to be
cancelled. However, we are happy that our students
have an opportunity to be part of the Community
Library program.
School
Regulations regarding the attendance of Middle
School Students at Sporting Events
Along
with the privilege of participating in an athletic
contest, either as a spectator or player, comes the
responsibility to exhibit exemplary conduct, spirit
and sportsmanship. Please review these
specific policies regarding the attendance of Middle
School students at sporting events.
Link
Homework Request Policy
A reminder to parents of the
policy for requesting homework that is found on page
7 of the O'Rourke Middle School Student Agenda and
Handbook:
Homework can be requested when a
student is absent 3 consecutive days by calling the
main office where work will be collected and can be
picked up. If you need texts or supplies from
your child's locker, please come to the school at
the end of the day as lockers are inside classrooms
(please be sure to have your child's locker number
and combination with you).
In the meantime... please
check teacher websites, or call a study buddy to
find out what assignments have been given.
Revised Summer
School Grading Policy Effective
immediately, the O'Rourke Middle School Building Council
and Cabinet have enacted a new summer school grading
policy with the intent of aligning our practices with
those of the High School, while applying more academic
rigor and relevance for our students.
_________________________________________________ Students who are required to attend summer school
based on our summer school placement criteria (see
"Promotion Policy" on page 23 of the
Student Handbook)
enacted in September 2005 will be evaluated for progress
during summer school utilizing the following grading
calculation:
Final Grade Calculation for Summer School Students:
2/5 = Summer School Average
2/5 = Two Highest Quarterly Averages from the School
Year
1/5 = Summer School Final Assessment Please note: Advancement is contingent on
compliance with summer school attendance and behavioral
requirements and is at the discretion of the building
principal.
All student drop-offs must occur at the music entrance no earlier than 7:15 AM
and up until 7:45 AM* Student drop-off must be from the right lane only and in front of the music
door. Please do not drop students off in any other place in the parking lot and not from the left
lane. The left lane is for through traffic and parking access only. No drop-offs
should occur from the left lane. As always, your patience and courtesy is appreciated.
* After 7:45 AM students are considered tardy
and need to enter through the main entrance and
report to the attendance office to sign in.
A Health
Clearance Form
(yellow sheet)
is required for students to tryout for any sport.
The Health Clearance form needs to be obtained from
the school nurse within 30 days prior to the
start of the sports season once all needed paperwork
is on file in the nurse's office. Complete
information can be found on the Middle School
Nurse's page.
Procedures for getting out of
school early: If it becomes necessary
for a student to leave school early
> Bring a signed note from your
parent/guardian to the attendance office before
morning homeroom period. If you are walking to
a local doctor's office the note must state that you
are walking.
> Leave class at the excused
time and wait in the Main Office. A
parent/guardian must come into the Main Office to
meet and sign out the student. If the student
is not being picked up by a parent/guardian the
signed note from the parent/guardian must state who
is picking up the student or the person must be
designated as an emergency contact on the emergency
information sheet handed in at the beginning of the
school year.
Make Waves at Your “Community”
Library
High School Orientation Resources
Parents
are reminded to follow the morning drop-off
procedures
All student drop-offs must occur at the music entrance no earlier than 7:15 AM
and up until 7:45 AM* 
