Saint Mary's School, Ukiah

Textbooks are the property of the school. They must be covered by the end of the first week of school and remain covered the entire year. There will be a charge for excessively damaged or lost books.

1. Assignment Format (for grades 3-8)
Teachers have agreed that the accepted assignment format is as follows:
     Name
     Date
     Subject-page#

On the top of the first line in the upper right section of the assignment page write first name and last initial.

Directly below the name write the complete date. e.g. September 1, 2001 or 9-1-01.

Directly below the date write the subject, the page number (or if no page number - the assignment , name e.g. board work, drill) and the number of problems or the exercises you are attempting. e.g. p.24 (1-24), p. 26 (Ex. A-B).

All work must begin just inside the left margin and extend to at least 1/2" from the right edge of the page.

All work must be NEAT, COMPLETE AND ORDERLY.

An earnest attempt must be made at correct spelling and proper handwriting (preferably D'Nealian Style).

Pages removed from spiral bound notebooks must have rough edge neatly trimmed.

When using binder or spiral bound paper, the holes or spiral edge of the assignment page should be to the left unless otherwise directed.

All student corrected work must indicate by initial who corrected the work (e.g. C/B CM)

All student corrections must be in red pen or pencil unless otherwise specified by the teacher.

2. Academic Probation
The purpose of academic probation is to give a child and parents positive directions as well as realistic goals to help improve academic performance and help student /parent take responsibility for improved study habits. Children may be placed on academic probation for one or more of the following reasons:

Unsatisfactory effort (i.e. a 4 in effort on report card)

Repeated failure to meet the requirements of present grade level.

Two or more failing marks in the same academic subject in the same year.

Two or more failing marks in the same quarter.

New students to Junior High.

Plagiarism

The specific terms of each academic probation will be discussed and written by the teacher and principal in consultation with parent and student. All new junior high students are placed on academic probation and social probation for one (1) trimester.

Students must maintain a high level of personal academic integrity. Students may be disciplined only for "good cause". This includes, but is not limited to the following: cheating and plagiarism. Plagiarism is the act of stealing or passing of the ideas or words of another as one's own: committing literary theft; using anothers words or ideas without giving credit to the source. (Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, 1977).

Discipline may include, but is not limited to the following:

Reassignment of the research paper, exam or project

Assignment of a failing grade for the paper, exam, or poject.

3. Awards
PRINCIPAL AND EFFORT AWARDS The Principal's award is presented monthly to a student in each class for having exemplified a high standard of Christian behavior and attitude. The effort award is presented to students who have invested their energy into consistent effort toward self-improvement which is the key to success.

STUDENT OF THE MONTH Once each month a student in each grade is chosen for Student of the Month. The students in grades 4-8 are photographed for the newspaper. Students are chosen by their teachers based on the following criteria: Classroom success, leadership, participation in school activities, special contribution to school and/or community and citizenship.

4. Computer Curriculum
Students in Grades K-8 use the computer lab for formal instruction at least once weekly. In all grades there will be an attempt to integrate computer instruction with the academic areas, especially Math, Language, Science and Social Studies. Computer lab time will be increased according to the number of parent volunteers available to assist the students.

5. Eia Title 1
Each year St. Mary's is budgeted money for students who are struggling with reading and math.
Students qualify based on need determined by the staff and parents. Students who qualify for Title 1 are eligible to use certain materials purchased by Ukiah Unified. Teachers are also eligible to take
workshops to meet the needs of these students.

6. Family Life Program
The Family Life Program is incorporated into the religion program in all grades as appropriate to the children's age. Some of the basic goals are: respect for self and others, self esteem, family, marriage, human reproduction, sexuality, and the physiological and emotional changes in preadolescents and adolescents. These topics are presented from a Christian viewpoint, based on the teachings of the Catholic Church. AIDS education will be incorporated at appropriate grade levels.

7. Field Trips
The ultimate responsibility for any school-sponsored field trip rests with the school and the local administration. Each field trip will be carefully planned and signed and dated parental permission forms sent home which include:

place of field trip & map / means of transportation

date, time and place of departure and arrival

appropriate dress / amount of $ needed (if any)

phone number where students may be reached in case of emergency

If drivers are needed, parents must indicate the number of students they are able to take. Each
student must use a seat belt. Each driver must complete the Drivers Insurance Verification form. It is also suggested that each driver has a first aid kit available.

Faculty and other adults serving as chaperones are responsible for supervision of participants at all
time during the trip. To assure safety of all, on the day of the field trip the teacher will give a list of
guidelines to each of the chaperones including a list of students and their authorization forms. Each
driver will be assigned another driver as a partner so that at least two cars are traveling together
whenever possible. The teacher in charge of a field trip will have a first aid kit in his/her possession or immediately available. If there are any problems or delays on a field trip, the school will be notified immediately: parents of children involved will be notified as soon as possible.

8. Grading System

A 100-97	B- 87-85	D 69-65
A- 96-94	C+ 84-82	F 64 and below
B+ 93-91	C 81-75
B 90-88	C- 74-70

9. Homework Policy
Why do we Assign Homework?
Reinforces skills and information learned in class.
Prepares students for upcoming class topics.
Teaches students to work independently.
Helps students develop self-discipline and responsibility.
Assists in evaluating student progress.

Expectations
All assignments will be completed.
Students will do homework at their highest effort.
Students will turn in work neatly done and on time.
Students will make up homework assignments due to absence.

Consequences for Missing or Incomplete Homework
Parents will be asked to sign completed homework every night.
Students may miss recess to complete homework.
Students may complete homework after school during homework club.
Students may not participate in sports teams until homework is done.

HOMEWORK MISSED FOR A GOOD REASON MAY BE VERIFIED IN A SIGNED NOTE FROM PARENTS.

Each child will be assigned homework at the discretion of the teacher. This may be an oral or written assignment. Homework may also be assigned for the weekend. Regular home assignments are not ordinarily given over holidays; however, students who were absent, careless or who have long-term assignments will need the holidays to accomplish their work in a scholarly manner.

In case of an emergency, a parent may write a note indicating it was impossible to complete the assignment(s) due. However, repeated excuses will require a consultation with the homeroom teacher to determine the reason for continued incomplete home study and a solution worked out.

WE TAKE PRIDE IN OUR SCHOOL WORK. HOMEWORK SHOULD BE CAREFULLY AND NEATLY WRITTEN ON GOOD PAPER. WRINKLED, RIPPED PAPERS OR PAPERS WITH ILLEGIBLE WRITING ARE UNACCEPTABLE.