FAQ

What should I do when my child is absent from school?

With the exception of being ill or excused, all students are expected to attend all of their classes each day. In the event of an absence, please be sure to call the attendance secretary at 240-740-6350 on the morning of the absence and also have your child bring a note signed by his/her parent to the attendance secretary upon his/her return to school. The note must include the following:

• Student’s full name
• Date(s) of absence
• Reason for absence
• Parent’s signature
• Parent's phone number
• Doctor’s note if absence exceeded three school days

How can my child receive missed work in his or her absence?

In the event of an absence, it is imperative that students follow up with teachers regarding missed assignments in order to prevent them from falling behind in their classes. Please follow the steps below to make up or receive missed assignments.

• If the absence is known ahead of time, please call or email the attendance secretary at 240-740-6350 or contact her via email. You may also email your child’s counselor and teachers to make them aware of your child’s absence and to collect school work that may be able to be completed in your child’s absence.
• In the event of an unplanned absence, you may call the counseling office to request school work be gathered for your child that you may be able to have picked up or emailed to you. Depending on each individual class, students may also be able to access the information that was learned for the day or homework assignments via Google Classroom or myMCPS classroom.
• Once your child returns to school, he or she should check with each individual teacher regarding work that was missed. Some teachers may have a “missed work” station in their classroom that your child can check for missed work. Students may speak to their teachers during homeroom, lunch, or during their class period.
• Students may also set up a time to meet with their teachers during “extra help” hours. Teachers have their extra help hours posted outside of their classroom to show their availability during homeroom, lunch, or after school for each day of the week. Remind your child to check each teacher’s extra help hours and coordinate a time to see teachers in which extra support may be needed for missed classes.

How do I know what my child’s homework is?

Every student is given an agenda book at the beginning of the school year. Encouraging your child to write his or her assignments in the agenda book, including writing “none” if there is not any homework for the day, and having it checked by a parent daily will help to instill positive work habits in your child as well as keep you informed. Homework assignments may also be posted on myMCPS Portal or Google Classroom. If your child is having difficulty writing down certain assignments or maintaining an organizational system, please contact specific teachers or your grade level counselor for additional support.

What can my child do if he/she needs additional support in a class?

Students should begin by communicating their needs to their specific teacher. Teachers have extra help hours available to students. Students may check with their teachers to confirm their availability and get a pass to see the teacher during homeroom, lunch, or after school. Setting up a time with the teachers is one of the best ways for students to get extra support in their classes! If your child needs support in ways to communicate with their teacher or with coordinating a time for extra help support, he or she may seek support from the grade level counselor.

If I have a question about a grade my child received or a concern from a particular class, whom do I contact?

It is strongly recommended to first contact your child’s teacher if you have a concern in a specific class to give the teacher an opportunity to communicate with you and address your concern. If you continue to have questions or concerns after speaking to your child’s teacher, you may contact your child’s grade level counselor or administrator.

How may I set up a meeting with one of my child’s teachers?

If you have concerns in one particular class or a question for a teacher, you may contact your child’s teacher directly by sending him or her an email, which are located on the school’s website, or by contacting the main office at 240-740-6350 to leave a message for the teacher. If you would like to have a counselor present at the meeting or would like to set up a meeting with multiple teachers, please contact your grade level counselor via email or by calling the Counseling Office at 240-740-6360,so the counselor may coordinate the conference.

How am I able to access the myMCPS Parent Portal?

A letter regarding instruction to access the portal should have been received by all parents via mail prior to the start of the school year. Additional information regarding access can be found at the link below.

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/mymcps-classroom/

Why may the school request a parent conference for my child?

A parent conference may be requested to address academic, behavioral, and/or attendance concerns for your child. At the conference, your child's grade level counselor and one or more of your child's teachers may be in attendance. A grade level administrator may also be in attendance. Your grade level counselor will discuss with you what the purpose is of the conference and if you would like your child to attend as well. Typically at the conference, grades will be reviewed and a discussion will be had regarding what is going well for your child, areas of current concern, ways to support your child, and goals for your child to work toward.

Counselor Based Questions

How may a student see the school counselor?

• Parent referral
  • May email, call, or set up an appointment with your grade level counselor
• Self referral
  • Referral forms are located in the counseling office
• Teacher/staff referral
• Peer referral
• Request by Counselor

What are some reasons a student may need to see the School Counselor?

• Academic Concerns
  • Goal setting, organization, study skills, etc.
• Emotional Concerns
  • Stress, worry, anger, self-esteem, etc.
• Peer Concerns
  • Peer pressure, friendship concerns, bullying, etc.

What should I do if I have a concern regarding my child’s class schedule?

If you have a concern regarding your child’s class schedule, you may contact your child’s grade level counselor via phone or email. Please keep in mind that class changes are typically made during the school year for academic purposes only. Due to enrollment restrictions and impact on student schedules, elective changes are very limited.

Do counselors provide long term therapy?

Due to a counselor’s job role in the school system and caseload, traditional long term therapy is not provided for students. In support of meeting all students’ academic, career, and social-emotional growth, counselors provide brief-solution focused counseling, responsive counseling, group counseling, and individual needs based counseling and are available to support student needs as they arise throughout the school day. If students require a long term therapeutic intervention, a referral may be made to an outside agency. Depending on insurance types, some agencies will provide therapy within the school or home setting.

How may a counselor see my child throughout the school day?

School counselors are committed to supporting students throughout the school day. In addition to facilitating student meetings and conferences to meet student needs, counselors may see students directly through some of the following ways:

• Classroom lessons
• Individual or classroom sessions regarding registration or scheduling
• Group sessions during lunch covering a variety of academic or social emotional topics
• Individual counseling sessions based on student academic or social emotional needs
• Mediations in support of resolving conflicts or building relationships,
• Grade reviews and discussion of academic, personal, or career goals
• Student check-ins
• Classroom observations

How do I set up an appointment with my child’s counselor?

In order to set up an appointment with your child’s counselor, please contact the counselor via email or call the counseling office at 240-740-6360,. A response should be received within 24 hours.

Other Questions

Who is the contact person regarding questions about Outdoor Education?

The contact person for Outdoor Education for the 2019-2020 school school year is Ms. Emily Brett (Emily_Brett@mcpsmd.org) and Ms. Katie Hylla (Kathryn_E_Hylla@mcpsmd.org). Either teacher may be contacted via email or by contacting the main office at 240-740-6350, and leaving a message for your call to be returned.