Nutrition Advisory Council

These students were selected to serve on the NUTRITION ADVISORY COUNCIL. This important council will provide ideas and bring concerns to R. L. Young manager Sheryl Gaither this year. Who better to ask than the students our lunchroom employees serve every day? 

Thanks, Lebronski, John, Jordan, Brittany, Autumn, and Montasia for agreeing to serve! 

109 TOP DOGS !

Even in the midst of Swine flu and regular flu circulating in our area, R.L. Young students broke the record high number (83 students) qualifying for the title of TOP DOG from last year.  

When wrapping up the first six weeks, we discovered  that 109 students had no tardies, check outs, or absences. AMAZING!!  We are proud of our TOP DOGs and their parents who made every effort and took attendance seriously. 

HONOR ROLL ASSEMBLY OCT 1

We are looking forward to our first six weeks HONOR ROLL ASSEMBLY on Oct. 1 beginning at 12:45 pm for K-2 AND 1:30 pm for grades 3-6. 

Come grab a seat and watch student recognition at its finest! 

3rd Graders Perform

Thanks, Mrs. Nunn!

Working and waiting for their turn with Mrs. Nunn

"We're next; we are so excited!"

Mrs. Nunn with her first small group. We are 

having so much fun!

The students in Mrs. Armstrong's second grade class are receiving small group instruction from our reading coach, Mrs. Nunn. She is target teaching the skills in the leveled readers and the focus skill in Lesson 6 for Storytown. The students are learning more than skills; they are learning the importance of working with a group. They are also learning how important it is for teachers to work together, too. R. L. Young truly is "a good place to learn and grow."

REPORT CARDS TOMORROW

      Be sure and ask your child for his/her report card. Please note the important announcements on the bottom. Congratulations on all students who made Honor Roll, and A in conduct, and earned the title of TOP DOG!!

BREAKFAST AND LUNCH PROGRAM

The breakfast program has made it possible for all students to have a good breakfast before going to class. When buses arrive each morning, students eating breakfast at school go directly to the lunchroom. NO STUDENT SHOULD ARRIVE BEFORE 7:10 AM. If a student does not ride a bus, he/she must be at school by 7:30 in order to eat and be in class before the tardy bell rings.

Prices are as follows:
Lunch $17.50 for 10 meals
Reduced Lunch $4 for 10 meals
Breakfast $7.50 for 10 meals
Reduced Breakfast $3.00 for 10 meals

Visitor’s Lunch $3.00
Extra Milk $0.25
Juice $0.25
Please keep extra milk and juice money separate from breakfast and lunch money. Please help us by paying for these separately.

A student may deposit money in his/her account any day by bringing cash or check to the lunchroom. Checks should be made payable to the school. The lunchroom is not allowed to charge meals. When a student’s account runs low, the student is given a reminder note to take home.

We welcome parents to come and have lunch with their children. It does help the lunchroom staff in knowing how much food to prepare if you call in advance. If you have questions concerning the breakfast or lunch program, or have a question regarding your child’s account, please feel free to call the lunchroom.

More on ATTENDANCE

According to the district student handbook, there are 2 types of absences.

1. Excused absence–An absence is excused when the school receives a documented written doctor’s excuse, legal excuse, or prior permission of the principal. The school will also accept a written note from the parent which documents one of the following:
· Illness of the student.
· Death in the immediate family of the student.
· Inclement weather which would be dangerous to the life and health of the student as determined by the principal.
· Legal quarantine.

2. Unexcused absence – An absence is unexcused when the parent/legal guardian does not send a written note explaining the absence within three (3) days following the absence or when the nature of the absence is not for legitimate reasons as defined by Alabama law.

Make-up Work Information
Make-up Work – Excused Absences
If a student is absent for any excused reason as previously defined, the student shall be allowed to make up all major assignments and other work missed during said absence or absences at a time agreeable to the teacher(s). Teachers shall not be required to re-teach lessons, but students shall be given a reasonable opportunity to learn the lessons missed due to excused absences.

Make-up Work – Unexcused Absences
Teachers shall not provide make-up work or examinations for students absent for unexcused reasons. Teachers at their discretion may require students absent for unexcused reasons to make-up homework, class work, etc. on a non-credit basis in order to help such students maintain academic pace. Teachers shall not assign zeros to students absent for unexcused reasons on an automatic basis. Zeros may be assigned to such students only when other students in general receive grades for homework, class work, examinations, recitation, etc.

Attendance is a serious issue at R.L.Young...time spent with a good teacher cannot be replaced by completing make up work. Make attendance a priority!

Important ATTENDANCE INFORMATION

Regular attendance is a vital part of a child’s success in school. According to the Alabama State Department of Education, a child should not miss more than 20 days of a school year and expect to be promoted. If a child is sick; however, he or she should be kept at home. When a student returns to school after an absence, a note of explanation from the parent, guardian, physician, or other health provider must be submitted within three (3) school days. Failure to submit notes for absences within this time period will result in the absence being marked unexcused.

Time Limit: Written excuses for absences must be turned in within three (3) school days of the student’s initial return to school from an absence. Arrangements for make-up work must be made within three (3) school days after returning to school from an excused absence.

If a parent knows ahead of time that a child must be absent, a note should be sent to the teacher before the absence occurs. The teacher will then be able to assign work that would be missed during the absence.

Student attendance will be recorded on a daily basis. To be counted present for the day, a student must attend at least half of the school day (11:25). A student must attend a minimum of 155 days to be considered for promotion unless the principal approves excessive absences.

Definitions:
1. Tardy to school is defined as not being in attendance in home room by the tardy bell.

(Late after 8:00 am.)
2. Check-out is defined as leaving school prior to the end of respective school’s regular day.
3. Absent from school is defined as not being present in class at least half of the day (11:30).

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

In the spring of 2009, R. L. Young kicked off "Celebration 212 degrees". The students were "pumped" to do their best on the ARMT and SAT state testing.

This is exactly what happened at our school. See for yourself by checking here.

It is crucial for children to have closure on the testing process and understand its relativity. They need to understand why we do things and how it all relates to them. We wanted to show our students how all of their efforts (and their teacher's efforts) paid off.

Ms. Deese (School Counselor) and principal Pattie Thomas teamed up to deliver the news. Students were given their actual test results and through a PowerPoint presentation, were "walked through" their individual test outcomes.
Of course there was time to praise, reflect, and examine personal strengths and weaknesses in these small group settings. Students were free to ask questions or just share revelations about how they performed. Some students realized how close they were to scoring proficient (a 3 or 4) and others were amazed at their high scores. The children received "Wall of Success" sheets with their scores marked. Hopefully they used these sheets to explain the results to their parents. Each grade level that tested last spring received this up close and personal opportunity.

Thanks Ms. Deese for being available to help and getting test results organized for this activity.

Win a Scooter at R. L. Young

Although the students have seen Coach Stephens enjoying this scooter, someone at R.L. Young will be the owner on September 15th. By completing the bright yellow booklets, your child will be participating in the "Computers for Education" fundraiser. All participants have a chance to win the scooter...sorry, Coach Stephens!!

This project is unique in that all the parent does is provide addresses of those family members or friends that might be willing to purchase a magazine subscription. There are 11 blank address forms in each booklet. If any one of the eleven people order a magazine, your child will receive a free Looney Tunes t-shirt.

All participants will also be entered in a free Florida vacation. Thank you in advance for the support of our computer lab.

Twin Day

Upon the completion of our "All About Me" unit, we decided to have a kindergarten twin day in honor of the set of twins we have in our classrooms. Check out these cute faces:

The MORE you read, the BETTER you read!

We believe that the MORE our students read, the BETTER they read. To encourage this, our school participates in the Accelerated Reader Program. This web based program allows students to find tests on thousands of books.

We ask each student to stay within their most comfortable reading range, which is determined by taking the STAR test. The STAR test is administered in the fall, winter, and spring to measure progress over the school year.

As students progress in the Accelerated Reading program, they are rewarded at specific milestones if the comprehension level is 85% or higher. This bulletin board, so carefully and cleverly decorated by Ms. Porter, an instructional assistant at Young, and student teacher, Tanesha Braxton-Collins, illustrates the various prize levels.

10 points....tigerpaw tattoo

25 points... treat bag

40 points...1st grade earns AR Field Trip

50 points...coupon booklet

75 points....Party with the Principal/2nd grade earns AR Field Trip

100 points..3rd-6th grade earns AR Field Trip/AR KEY and LANYARD

150 points..AR Bookbag

200 points..AR T-Shirt

300 points..Gift Card

400 points...2 free movie passes + snack $

500 points...Lunch with the Superintendent and Principal (OFF CAMPUS!)

BIGGEST REWARD....Being a GREAT reader!!

You can keep a close watch on the progress of your child by visiting the AR HOME CONNECT site (click here)and logging in using your child's AR login and password. You can even register to receive an email each time your child takes a test.

Teaching Secrets from R. L. Young

The most successful teachers know and understand the importance of getting to know their students. In fact the saying, "Kids don't know how much you know until they know how much you care" is especially true in elementary school. This bonding period, although it takes supposely valuable teaching time away, is extremely important and makes for a better school year. Here are just a few ways Young teachers have accomplished this...

Urgent Message!

All across the state of Alabama schools are gearing up for the 20 attendance count, which determines if the Adequate Yearly Progress additional indicator of attendance has been met for the new school year. This yearly AYP goal is one that clearly rests on the shoulders of our parents because you determine whether to bring your child or check him/her out. A school must have at least 95% attendance rate for 20 continuous days beginning of Sept. 8th-Oct. 5th to meet the goal.

Raymond L. Young is asking for your support and cooperation during this crucial period. Of course, we do not want students who have fever or are throwing up to come to school. We do request that if possible, please make doctor and dentist appointments after school is out or at least after 11:30 am.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation and support!

21st Century Skills in the Classroom

Our kindergarteners are already learning about technology. We teach many lessons using our projectors and Elmos. The children are actively engaged in learning. The use of the Elmos and projectors allow the children to easily view the lesson and to be an active participant in the lesson.

Music for All

We are fortunate to have Mrs. Barrow here at R.L Young teaching our students all about music. The kindergarten classes are enjoying learning about rhythm and rhyme.
Thanks Mrs. Barrow for all your hard work.

Who will be R. L. Young's First TOP DOGS??

ONLY TWO WEEKS left in this first six weeks grading period. Who will be a TOP DOG?

First 2009-10 PTO Meeting Sept. 15

It's a fact....children whose parents are involved in their education are more successful and perform better academically. A opportunity to do just that is available on September 15th beginning at 6:00 pm.

A brief meeting will take place and the audience will then be entertained by our 3rd grade students. We hope you will make plans to attend!

PICTURE DAY-SEPTEMBER 8th

Get ready because picture day is just around the corner (September 8th) and you are going to be so pleased! R. L. Young is using a new company this year. You and your family should see clearer shots of our beautiful students. There will be many different choices for packages varying in price.

If you have younger non-school age children, you may bring them to the school to be photographed by our new photographers.