Welcome to Diamond Middle School 2009-2010!
by Danny DeWitt
August 10, 2009
Welcome back! I would like to welcome back all of the 6th, 7th, & 8th grade students to the middle school for the 2011-2012 school year. I would also like to extend a warm greeting to all 5th grade students and parents as well. We are excited now that the school year is underway and look forward to a fun-filled, productive year! Now on to a few items of interest......
As educators, we attempt to stay abreast of the new trends in education and use them to better our district. Last year, after many meetings and discussions with the teachers in the middle school, we decided to incorporate a new grading philosophy. Ultimately, our goal as educators is to ensure that our students are comprehending the curriculum being taught in the classroom. After a full year of this policy being in place, we have decided to change our approach slightly. We quickly realized that trying to "force" every student to stay for after-school tutoring or Wildcat Time was very difficult. We ultimately decided that every student still has the opportunity to turn in late work until the end of the current quarter without penalty provided that the work is completed at school with a teacher. The part of the approach that has changed is making this mandatory. We will continue to make every effort to contact parents to make these arrangements and to do anything we can as educators to ensure your child's educational success. These guidelines will be explained to the students at the beginning of the school year but if you have any questions, I would be happy to take your call at the MS office.
After school tutoring will continue to be available for students as needed. If you feel like your child would benefit from tutoring, please contact your child's teacher to set up a time. Tutoring runs from 3:20 until 4:20 every evening for any student who needs assistance or additional time to complete an assignment. Parents must give written approval for a student to stay in tutoring and all students must be picked up by 4:30! No transportation will be provided!!
I will try to keep the site updated more often in order to get out as much information as possible. If you have questions however, feel free to call the middle school office at 417.325.5336.
Danny DeWitt
Diamond Middle School Principal
