HOMEWORK 

Homework is a necessary reinforcement of concepts and skills taught in class. The student’s homework should be reflective of his/her own care, effort, time, and thought. It should be presented in a neat and orderly manner. All students are expected to complete their homework assignments on time. 

The amount of time that different students in the same grade spend doing homework will vary. Since each student has different capabilities and interests, it is difficult to denote the specific amount of time to be spent on homework assignments. However, the following table provides a guideline for the amount of time the typical elementary student should spend on homework each day.

A parent should contact the teacher if a child consistently exceeds the time guidelines or if there is a problem with understanding the assignment. 

GRADE AVERAGE NIGHTLY HOMEWORK

Kindergarten → 5-15 minutes

Grades 1 & 2 → 20-30 minutes

Grades 3 & 4 → 30-60 minutes

Grade 5 & 6 → 60-90 minutes

Grades 7 & 8 → 60-120 minutes

Parents should carefully monitor their child's extracurricular activities with regard to completing academic tasks. The school strongly recommends that every student have a daily, routine study time. Parents are encouraged to supervise the completion of homework and check homework for accuracy and quality. Parents must not do the homework for the student. Consequences result when homework is not completed by the student. 

The following requirements are designed to lay a foundation of a disciplined academic career at the school.

• Students must complete all homework assignments in a timely manner.

• Every paper and test turned in to a teacher by students in the second through eighth grades must have the following heading at the top of the work:   

  • First and Last Name

  • Instructor’s Name

  • Class

  • Date

• All headings should follow MLA format whether written or typed.

• Correct spelling and legible handwriting are the responsibility of each student when handing in written work.

MAKE-UP WORK

If you find it necessary to take your child out of school for reasons other than health, we ask you to notify your child's teacher beforehand. The student will be given make-up work upon return to school unless otherwise arranged by the teacher. This is up to the discretion of the teacher. In most circumstances, assignments will not be given to students prior to their absence, as this places an extra burden on teachers. Students have one day per day absent to complete makeup work. Weekends and holiday are included in this day count. This policy is in effect for all absences including illness. Please note— all work assigned before the absence and/or due the day of the absence is due the first day the student returns to school. This includes assessments and tests. If there has been an extended illness, please contact your child's teacher. 

EXAMS

Students in the fifth grade take end of unit exams in the major subjects at the end of the school year. 

Students in the sixth grade take end of unit exams in the major subjects at the end of the first semester. Students in the sixth grade will also take final exams at the end of the school year. 

Students in the seventh and eighth grades are required to take midterm and final exams. Exams are administered to help students recall curriculum and skills taught. Exams are also administered to prepare students for taking exams on a high school level. 

Midterm and final exams (not end of unit exams) constitute 10% of the final semester grade for students in sixth, seventh, and eighth grade. 

*Final expectations for eighth grade exams during the 2025-2026 school year will be communicated during the school year, after an on-going review of best practices. 

HONOR ROLL REQUIREMENTS 

Students in the fifth through eighth grades may be eligible for one of the school’s two honor rolls.

1. Principal’s Honor Roll—to qualify for the Principal’s Honor Roll the student must achieve an “A” in every subject and an “E” or "G” in all conduct and effort grades.

2. Honors -To qualify for Honors the student must achieve “A’s” or “B’s” in all subjects and an “E” or “G” in all conduct grades. 

STUDENT RECORDS 

Please see "Parental Access to Student Records" for the official CSO policy under Academic Reporting and Communication.

PROGRESSION THROUGH GRADES

Progress through the grades is a matter of achievement in basic skills, maturation, and social and emotional development. Most students move through the curriculum at a pace of one grade per year. However, a child may experience difficulty mastering the academic phases of the school program and will profit more from school if retained one grade. Special consultation with the parents is arranged to address any such difficulty and to propose solutions. The decision to retain a student is made following a comprehensive overview of the student’s performance. Parents must be made aware of the possibility of retention no later than March 31 of the current school year. This does not apply to middle school students whose retention or promotion would depend on passing a subject or subjects in the last quarter of the year. The final decision regarding a student’s promotion or class placement rests with the school. In accordance with diocesan policy, retention of a student for more than one year is avoided, if at all possible, especially beyond the third grade. 

SEVENTH AND EIGHTH GRADE SELF ADVOCACY

We hope to help students build self-advocacy skills in seventh and eighth grade to prepare them for high school. Therefore, in seventh and eighth grade, the first line of communication should always be between the student and the teacher. This is a great chance for students to practice respectful communication with teachers to advocate for what they need. If the student and parent are not satisfied with the results of this communication, the parent should go right to the source and contact the teacher directly. All teachers can be reached via email. 

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY AND INTEGRITY

The faculty of St. Rita Catholic School aims to foster a spirit of complete honesty and a high standard of integrity. The attempt of students to present as their own any work not honestly performed is regarded by the faculty and administration as a most serious offense and renders the offenders liable to serious consequences, possibly suspension.

Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, collusion, falsifying academic records, misrepresenting facts, and any act designed to give an unfair academic advantage to the student.

Cheating includes, but is not limited to:

1. Copying from another student’s test paper, homework, or classwork;

2. Using, during a test, material not authorized by the person giving the test;

3. Failing to comply with instructions given by the person administering the test;

4. Possession during a test of materials that are not authorized by the person giving the test, such as class notes or specifically designed “crib notes.” The presence of textbooks constitutes a violation only if they have been specifically prohibited by the person administering the test;

5. Using, buying, stealing, transporting, or soliciting in whole or in part the contents of an unadministered test, test key, homework solution, or computer program;

6. Collaborating with or seeking aid or receiving assistance from another student or individual during a test or in conjunction with other assignments without authority;

7. Discussing the contents of an examination with another student who will take the examination;

8. Divulging the contents of an examination, for the purpose of preserving questions for use by another, when the instructor has designated that the examination is not to be removed from the examination room or not to be returned to or kept by the student;

9. Substituting for another person, or permitting another person to substitute for oneself to take a test, or any course-related assignment;

10. Paying or offering money or other valuable thing to, or coercing another person to obtain an unadministered test, test key, homework solution, or computer program, or information about an unadministered test, test key, homework solution, or computer program;

11. Falsifying research data, laboratory reports, and/or other academic work offered for credit; and

12. Taking, keeping, misplacing, or damaging the property of St. Rita Catholic School, or of another, if the student knows or reasonably should know that an unfair academic advantage would be gained by such conduct.

Plagiarism includes but is not limited to, the appropriation of, buying, receiving as a gift, or obtaining by any means material that is attributable in whole or in part to another source, including words, ideas, illustrations, structure, computer code, other expression and media, and presenting that material as one’s own academic work being offered for credit.

Collusion includes but is not limited to the unauthorized collaboration with another person in preparing academic assignments offered for credit or collaboration with another person to commit a violation of any section of the rules on scholastic dishonesty.

Consequences may include: 

First Offense: 

• For a summative assignment, the student is given an alternative assessment/different test, but the score will be capped at 60%. 

• On formative assessments, students receive a zero (0%). A disciplinary referral is written, and parents will be contacted in all cases of academic dishonesty. 

Second Offense: Procedures for a first offense are followed. For both formative and summative assignments, the student will receive a zero (0%). 

Third Offense: A student will face additional consequences up to and including dismissal.

ACADEMIC PROBATION AND RETENTION

Any student in grades 4-8 who receives an “F” in any of the six major subjects for any two quarters during a school year is placed on academic probation and must attend summer school or summer tutoring. The student is conditionally promoted pending successful completion of summer school or tutoring. Any student in grades 4-8 who receives an “F” in three or more of the six major subjects for two quarters during a school year or has an “F” average in three or more of the six major subjects at the end of the school year will be automatically retained and not allowed to return to St. Rita School the following year. It is not in the best interest of middle school students to remain at the same school where they have been retained. A student failing three quarters of a core subject or ending the year with an “F” in a core subject will not be allowed to return to St. Rita Catholic School the following year. This does not mean that the student is necessarily retained. 

A student in grades 4-8 that is on academic probation must do one of the following to be removed from probation: 

1. The student must complete a summer school program in the failed subject(s) and achieve the grade of 70 or above in such subject(s). A report documenting the achievement must be sent to the school.

2. The student must satisfactorily complete a tutoring program in the failed subject(s). Written confirmation of the objectives covered and results must be sent to the school. 

All summer school and tutoring programs referred to above must be approved in advance by the school administration. 

A student in grades PreK-3 may be placed on academic probation based upon teacher recommendation, test scores and/or observation by the school counselor or other professionals. A student in grades PreK-3 who is on academic probation must comply with the school’s recommendations to be removed from academic probation. 

If the student in grades 4-8 or K-3 does not satisfy the above requirements, the student is not promoted to the next grade. In addition, the student may be refused readmission to the school. 

REGULAR SCHOOL DAY HOURS

Classes are in session according to the following schedule: 

PK4-3rd Grade (without siblings in 4th-8th grade)                                           7:45 AM - 3:00 PM

PK4-3rd Grade (with siblings in 4th-8th grade) and ALL 4th-8th Grade (Core Classes end at 3:15) 7:45 AM - 3:20 PM

EARLY RELEASE DAY HOURS

There are days throughout the school year when school is dismissed early. Please refer to the school’s monthly calendar to determine the exact dates of early release days. On early release days, PreK-3rd grade students (without siblings) will be dismissed at 12:00 PM. PreK-3rd grade students with siblings AND all 4th-8th grade students will be dismissed at 12:20 PM. 

Please be advised that there is no lunch period on early release days.  

SCHOOL OFFICE HOURS

The school office is open from 7:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. on every school day. The office may close earlier on an early release day. School business should be transacted between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 3:45 p.m. Students and parents are not allowed entry to the classrooms or lockers after 3:30 p.m. or on weekends, unless they have a scheduled appointment.

TEACHER REQUESTS

Parent requests for particular teachers for the next school year are not taken by teachers or administrators. Parent requests to separate children because of issues such as personality conflicts should be directed to the Academic Placement Committee at apc@strita.net.