Policies and Procedures

Absences

Regular school attendance is critical to the learning process. When a student is absent, they miss valuable instruction time.  Some activities will be difficult or impossible for students to make up (such as science experiments or hands-on math activities).  Therefore, your child may be given an alternative assignment.  

In order to prevent illness, please be sure your child gets enough sleep every night, eats healthy foods, drinks plenty of water, gets plenty of physical exercise, and washes their hands frequently. If your child is sick (vomiting, diarrhea, fever over 100.4°F) please keep them home to heal until they are well. Illness spreads quickly in a school and it is hard for students to do their very best work when they do not feel well.

Often, families like to take vacations during the school year. The school district encourages the scheduling of family vacations during school breaks, but sometimes this is beyond your control. It is very difficult for a student to catch up on the missed instruction, even if they work hard to complete all of the missing work.

When your child is out, if you would like me to send home any papers or packets, please let me know by email or by contacting the main office by 11:30am. Keep in mind that students are expected to make up all assignments when they are out. Students are allowed one day for each day of absence to make up the class work.

Birthdays

Birthdays are a special occasion to celebrate in the class. I will present the birthday child with a small gift and the class will sing, if they would like.  Birthday food treats are no longer part of the celebration. For summer birthdays, we will celebrate on the child’s half-birthday.

Communication

Open communication between teachers and parents is very important to your child’s education. I prefer to be reached with any concerns at kmazza@nottingham.k12.nh.us or via a note. I check my email every day and will usually get back to you the within 24 hours, unless it is over the weekend.  I do occasionally check my emails over the weekend, but sometimes do not have a chance due to family obligations.  

Grading

In fourth grade, students will be getting letter grades on their report cards for the first time. I try to emphasize effort and growth over grades. Nottingham School uses a 7-point grading scale, which may be different than other scales you’ve experienced:

I try to do my grading by the end of the week and update Alma over the weekend. I may not get to it every week, but most assignments will be updated within two weeks. I recommend that you check Alma frequently, especially during the first half of the year as students are figuring out how work relates to grades.

Method for Deriving Honor Roll