Principal's Message - September 1, 2008

Congratulations to everyone for a great first week of school! The teachers have shared with me that their students are enthusiastic and eager to learn. Students I ask tell me that they are having a great start to the year and the new fifth grade students love being at Hall.   Hot Lunch We began the year with our first experience with the Good Earth lunch program. The students tell us they love the food. We are streamlining our procedures to ensure that we can get students served in a timely manner. Stay tuned for more information.   Online Grade Access All sixth, seventh and eighth grade teachers will be using PowerTeacher as their grading program this year. This means that students and parents will have online access to the grades as they are recorded in the program. The goal of providing this access is to facilitate communication between the school and home regarding student progress. It is our hope that this system will empower students to take responsibility for their own learning and provide families with more regular feedback regarding academic performance.   We believe that the focus of the grade information available online should be on individual assignments rather than focusing on overall grades so students and parents can be more aware of their progress. Student and parent access to PowerSchool is not intended to provide “real time” grades. Some lag time will exist between the collection, grading and entering of an assignment into the gradebook.   If students or parents have questions about grades and grading, they should contact the teacher directly.   If you have not already signed up for access, you will first need to complete and submit the Student/Parent Access to PowerSchool Acceptable Use Policy. It is being sent home today to sixth grade students and is available on our website and in the office. Once we receive your completed form we will issue you a login and password.   - Daniel Norbutas - Hall Principal