Campbell PTA Minutes September 10, 2013

Campbell PTA Minutes September 10, 2013

Treasurer’s Report:

  • Reminder: Remember to re-link your Giant, Safeway, Harris Teeter, and Target cards to Campbell.  This is free $$$ for our school.
  • For the 2013-2014 school year, we expect income to be $73,254.  Expenditures are projected to be $66,512, so we project a net gain of $6,741. These are very conservative estimates. Fundraising last year was very successful, so we have a good cushion for this year.
  • About $25K of the $73K is rollover from last year’s budget.

  • Moley Evans motioned for the budget to be accepted by PTA members, and Melody Kisor seconded.  The budget was unanimously adopted by voice vote.

Principal’s Presentation: New report card and student portfolios

  • New report card is based on what other EL schools are doing.  Ours is slightly different from other APS schools.  Students in K-3 will not have grades or number codes.  Students in grades 4-5 will be graded on a scale of 1-4 (rather than letter grades). Parents will know whether their child is on grade level, above grade level, or below grade level.

  • Report cards will include info on social and emotional development, specials, and work habits.

  • Pre-K has its own reporting systems.

  • Report cards will go home four times a year and will be aligned with the quarterly assessments.

  • Parent conferences will be to talk about your child, not about the report card.  Conferences will be discussion-oriented.  Parents and teachers will discuss goals for the student, who will have set goals for himself/herself.  There will be student-led conferences in Pre-K, K, and 1 this year.  Eventually, student-led conferences will be expanded to other grades.

  • In the student-led conference, the student will walk the parent through the portfolio. The idea behind the student-led conference is for students to have ownership over their own learning.  Children can set goals and describe how they have met those goals. The EL school designer will coach teachers on this.

  • If parents want to talk to the teacher alone, there will be time for that during the conference.

  • The new report card will allow parents to receive comments from most of the teachers who work with their children.  Parents will be receiving more info than in the past.

  • Students in all grades will have portfolios.  Portfolio formats will be consistent throughout the school.  They were developed after reviewing models from other EL schools and from those developed by some Campbell teachers.

  • Staff have been trained on how to put together the portfolios.

  • You’ll first see the portfolio at the October conference and will see them again at the March and June conferences.

  • Portfolios are not a place to store tests.

  • Children can decorate the covers of their portfolios.  In art class, they will do self-portraits that will be included in the portfolios.  Portfolios will include a “Hopes and Dreams” section that students will fill out.  This is a responsive classroom concept.  Students set goals for what they hope to achieve at Campbell.

  • Portfolios will travel with students from grade to grade.  Students take them home at the end of fifth grade.

  • Portfolios may include writing samples, students’ self-portraits from year to year, perhaps photos.  Portfolios may not necessarily reflect students’ best work; rather they are intended to show their typical work.

  • Students and teachers have input in what goes into the portfolio.

  • The intent is for students to have ownership of the portfolios and use them to express what they have learned.

Upcoming Events

  • Fall Picnic:  Friday, 10/4, 6-8 p.m. We are holding our picnic in the fall rather than the spring this year.  Intent is to be a fun, casual, get-to-know-you event. People can bring their own picnics or buy food from the food trucks that will be there.  No formal agenda or structured activities.  Kids can play together on the playground.  If it rains, we will have the event in the Multi-Purpose room and show a movie.

  • October PTA meeting: Tues, 10/8 @ 6:30 p.m.  People from American University will come and talk about a study they’ll be doing in the cafeteria aimed at getting kids to eat their vegetables.  Also Jen Sheridan and Karen Sosnoski will talk about SEPTA (Special Education PTA).

  • First Principal’s Chat: Thurs, 10/17, 8 a.m.  Will focus on the report cards and portfolios. Please let Maureen know if there are topics you’d like to have addressed in Principal’s Chats.