Important things to know about White Station Middle School

2013-14 Accomplishments Straight A’s on the TN Department of Education State Report Card Named a 2014 Magnet School of Distinction by Magnet Schools of America for three consecutive years Ranked 5th in the nation and 1st in Tennessee in the National Science and Math League competitions for the 2013-14 school year Ranked 5th in nation and 1st in Tennessee in the national American Mathematics Competition for the 2013-14 school year #1 in state for the science, math, and technology eCYBERMISSION competition sponsored by US ARMY. 8th grade team was multistate regional winner. Students were recipients of various local, state and national awards (MATHCOUNTS, Word Smith, chess, essay contents, speech competitions, etc…)

Traffic/Morning Intake Our traffic and morning intake is monitored and directed by school staff and our parent volunteers. Please see traffic directions attachment on website and/or handout.

Dress Code TOPS must be solid WHITE, DARK NAVY BLUE, GRAY or BLACK with collars and sleeves (Polo or golf shirts, Oxford or button down dress shirt, turtlenecks, and white blouses with Peter Pan collars. Sleeveless tops are not acceptable). Official WSMS t-shirts can be worn on Friday in place of the collared shirt. GREEN shirts are acceptable ONLY if they have a WSMS logo available through MidSouth Solutions. Only solid WHITE, NAVY BLUE, BLACK, GRAY, and GREEN t-shirts may be worn underneath the shirts. BOTTOMS (pants, walking shorts, skirts and jumpers) must be BLACK, TAN or NAVY BLUE. Skirts, shorts or jumpers must be knee length or longer. All uniform clothing must be plain without any manufacturer’s logos, brand names, pictures, or insignias visible on the clothing. No jeans, denim or stretchy materials may be worn as uniform clothing. Leggings or tights in the appropriate school colors can only be worn as an undergarment. The skirt or shorts over them must still be knee length and in the appropriate color and material. Students are required to wear a SCS ID badge at all times in the building or at school events.

Requested Fees The requested Student Pack fee of $20.00 includes an agenda book, mesh bag, locker and lab fee. The first name badge is FREE for all students. If the name badge is lost, a fee of $5.00 is charged for a replacement badge. Breakfast is free for all students. Lunch is now free for students for the 2014-15 school year . A 2014-15 supply list and reading list are posted on the school’s website.

Entrance, Exit, and Hallway Procedures Students eating breakfast are allowed in the building at 6:45 am and remain in the cafeteria until 7:15 am. Students must be in homeroom and seated by 7:15 am. Students who enter after that time will be marked tardy. 8th grade students enter through the front door. 7th grade students enter through the West stairwell door. 6th grade students enter the East stairwell door. During inclement weather students can report to the auditorium. Students exit in the afternoon at 2:15 pm through their grade level assigned stairwell doors. Bus riders are dismissed at 2:10 pm to the cafeteria. Once students are dismissed they are not allowed to reenter the building. Students will walk to the right in an orderly manner during transitions in the hallway. Students are required to wear a hall pass if they leave the room during class time. Students have 5 minutes to transition between classes. Students are not supervised before 7:15 am. If they eat breakfast they are monitored beginning at 7 am in the cafeteria. All students must be off campus by 3:00 pm unless they are involved in an after school activity monitored by school staff.

Classes In 6th grade students are teamed and platooned while in 7th and 8th grade students are placed on teams. WSMS offers a wide array of exploratory classes (PE, Health, Art, Band, Orchestra, Choir, Drama etc…). Our school offers more World Language classes (Latin, French, Japanese, Spanish and German) than any other public, private or parochial school in the area Exploratory classes are scheduled by schedule/grade availability, course requirements, and student requests. WSMS also offers classes for high school credit in 7th and 8th grades based on student eligibility and space.

Grading Policies 10% Homework 25-40% Class Participation/Class Work For students in grades 6-8, scores on the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) shall comprise 15% of the student’s final spring (second) semester grade in mathematics, reading/language arts, science and social studies. For classes that have an EOC exam (Algebra I), second semester grades are determined by counting the two quarter grades as 65%, the semester examination, or comparable evaluation, as 10%, and the state-mandated EOC exam as 25%. The assessment of a student’s academic achievement is used to determine a grade for the student. The grading criteria shall include some combination of the following as determined by the teams/teachers: 10% Homework 25-40% Class Participation/Class Work 50-65% Assessments (Tests, quizzes, and projects)

Tardy to School/Tardy to Class/Dress Code Violation/Temporary ID First Offense = Warning Second Offense = Warning Third Offense = Detention Fourth Offense = Detention (Purchase a new ID) Fifth Offense = Parent Conference Sixth Offense = In-School Suspension Seventh Offense = Parent Conference (Purchase a new ID) Home Suspension

WSMS Policies Backpacks may be brought to school; however, they should be kept in the locker during the school day. Rolling backpacks are not allowed for safety concerns. Young ladies are allowed to carry purses. We ask that young ladies refrain from carrying any backpack purses to school. Students are allowed to carry P.E. clothes, books, and folders in their WSMS mesh bag only. When the student purchases their agenda, a mesh bag will be given to them. If a student loses his/hers, a replacement will be sold in the bookstore for $5.00. Students who are scheduled for P.E. will be required to wear both a green or white plain t-shirt and black or gray athletic shorts. Parents can also purchase P.E. uniforms with the WSMS logo from Midsouth Solutions. Electronic devices (MP3 players, tablets, video game devices, etc…) are not permitted at school. Cell phones can be brought to school but must be placed in the locker during school hours. The school will not be held responsible for these items when either brought to school or confiscated by school staff (Board Policy 6.313).

Parent Communication Teacher Ease website for email and weekly syllabus Parent Connect website for grades, attendance, etc.. Progress Reports (every four and a half weeks) Report Cards (each nine weeks) Parent Link call out system School website and calendar (updated regularly) We request that all teacher conferences be scheduled during a teacher’s planning time or before/after school to protect instructional time during the day. Students will also not be called out of class or asked to come to the phone except in the case of an emergency. We will not call students out of class to pick up forgotten items during class time. Items dropped off by parents will be distributed by administrative staff during lunch periods only.

Extracurricular Activities Athletics- Football, basketball, volleyball, baseball, soccer, golf, track, tennis, swimming and cheer team. Academics- National Junior Honor Society, Beta Club, Bridge Builders, Math Counts, Wordsmith, Science Olympiad Social- Chess Club, Green Team, Step Team, Dance Team, Student Leadership Team

Parental Involvement School Leadership Council- Decision-making body of the school comprised of parent representatives from each grade level WatchDOGS- Fathers, grandfathers, and male relatives who assist with traffic duty, monitoring, and school programs PIE (Partners in Education)- Our school’s parent organization that assists with fundraisers, school programs and events, teacher and student appreciation, and outreach activities

IMPORTANT UPCOMING DATES AND EVENTS REGISTRATION: July 29th from 8am to 3pm and 5 to 8pm/ Need to bring 2 proofs of residence unless you are have already been accepted through Optional Program/Complete Registration Packet at home and return to school TEXTBOOKS AND LOCKERS: Begin distributing the 2nd week of school TEACHER EASE AND PARENT CONNECT SYSTEMS: Will begin after Labor Day OPEN HOUSE: September 4th at 6pm

COMMON CORE FOCUS Visit website at www.tncore.org Intensive new curriculum and assessment to be implemented across the nation More rigor in all disciplines Focus on application, analysis, critical thinking and problem solving Open-ended tests (no longer multiple choice) Students will be tested with new Common Core assessments for the 2015-16 school year

OUR GOAL: For You and Your Child to Have A Great School Year!