Admission to School A child must be five on or before September 1 to enroll in Kindergarten in that year. A child who is 6 years old as of September 1 is eligible to enter grade one in that year. Parents enrolling their children in school must present proof of residency, proof of current immunizations, a birth certificate and a withdrawal form from the previous school if transferring. The following forms can be used for proof of residency: copy of lease, rental contract or current utility bills.
Change of Address/Phone Number If you change your mailing address, street address or phone number, please notify the Main Office at 696-6500 as soon as possible.
Classroom/assignments Classroom assignments are the responsibility of grade level teachers, in consultation with specialists and the guidance counselor. Much time and effort goes into this process to insure that classes are heterogeneous in all respects e.g. academically, behaviorally, etc. Parental input should be given to the counselor or principal by the last school day before April vacation begins in order for their input to be considered. Classes are finalized by the counselors and the administrtion.
Announcements Anyone who wishes to make an announcement should complete an announcement form or email the announcement to Barbara Armstrong before 7:45 in the morning. All notices and announcements are subject to the principal's approval.
Dress Code Staff and student's attire must be reasonable, neat and appropriate for school. If a student's appearance or dress interferes with the educational process, the student will be sent to the nurse, who may provide the student with something more appropriate or call the parent and request a change of clothes.
Please help us by complying with the following standards
Driving & Parking InformationThere is a separate bus drive in the back of the school. Parents who drive their children to school should use the front drive for drop off and pick up only. For student safety, do not leave your car unattended in the front circular drive. In case of fire the fire trucks would use this area. There is designated visitor parking at the end of the circular drive. More parking is available in the lower parking lot on Spring Street.
Emergency Dismissals, Cancellations, Delays On days when there is no school, delayed opening, or early dismissal because of weather conditions or some other emergency, announcements will be made on WMVY (FM 92.7), WQRC (FM 99.9 ) or local television stations. Parents who are not at home on emergency dismissal days should give written notice of special childcare arrangements to the Main Office.
Extra Help The teachers at the Tisbury School are available for extra help after school. If extra help is required by the teacher, bus students will be given twenty-four hours notice, unless other arrangements are made. When absent from class, students are responsible for making up missed work. Homework Club is also available four days a week so that students in 3rd-8th grade can complete homework before going home.
Counseling Program The guidance program includes: individual and group counseling, screening evaluations, classroom guidance lessons, parent conferences and administrative tasks in student evaluation, including observations and assessments and MCAS.
Graduation Requirements The eighth graders must have met the academic, community service and behavioral standards established by the faculty and administration to receive a diploma and/or participate in the formal graduation ceremony. Students who have not cleared all debts will not receive their diploma and report card until these obligations have been met. Parents of students who are in danger of not participating in graduation ceremonies will be notified. Final determinations and notification will be made to both student and parents before the ceremony. It is possible for a student to still be placed at the high school without participating in the graduation ceremony and/or without receiving a diploma.
HomeworkTisbury School's literary goal for our students is to ensure that they become effective communicators through a consistent, sustematic, research-based teaching approach to reading, writing, speaking, and spelling. Students are expected to meet grade level and state benchmarks as a result of the partnership with school personnel and parents.
The Tisbury School staff asks that academics become a priority at home to help foster a love of learning in our children that will ultimately promote life-long learning. Homework is an integral part of every child's education. It is vital that children read (or be read to) and practice writing and spelling at home on a daily basis. Family support is crucial for student success as students are accountable for all homework assigned. Parents can check their child's assignment books to be sure that homework is up to date. Homework may be accessed on the Internet: www.tisbury.mvyps.org and click on "homework" or you can get homework by clicking here.
Homework Club is available to support and encourage those students who may be having difficulty completing their work at home. The Homework Club is for grades 3rd-8th and it is held for 45 minutes after school Monday through Thursday.
Honor Roll Students in grades 5-8 may qualify at the end of each quarter for the Tisbury School Honor Roll. To receive High Honors, a student must receive ALL A's in his or her academic subjects, including Spanish. To receive honors, a student must receive All A's and B's in his or her academic subjects, including Spanish. In addition, a student must have at least a “B” average in performance in all non-academic subjects and no subject with less than a "C". If a student has not completed work within a week after the quarter ends, he or she will not be eligible for the honor roll. Any grade change must occur within a week after the report card goes home in order to be considered for honor roll.
Lost and Found Please mark you child's outer garments. Lost articles are stored on the coat rack next to the cafeteria. Every ten weeks all clothing not claimed will be disposed of.
Make Up Work Any student absent from school will have one week from the date of return to make up work after school. Please ask the teacher for help with making up work.
Morning Line-Up Procedures Kindergarten - 4th grade students enter the building from the west playground. 5th - 8th grade students enter from the east playground. All students who are dropped off by car after 8:15 should use the front door and sign in at the Main Office before going to their class.
National Honor Society A chapter of the Junior National Honor Society, known as Tashmoo Chapter, exists at the Tisbury School. To be eligible for membership, students in grades 7 and 8 must maintain an academic average of 85. They must also receive a majority of votes from the Junior High School faculty in each of the four areas of citizenship, leadership, service and character. The 5-8 Guidance Counselor is the advisor.
Residency Tisbury School is a school of choice. If a student from another town wishes to attend the Tisbury School the legal guardian must write a letter to the principal requesting that their child be allowed to attend. The principal, with input from the teachers, will make a final determination. A letter will be sent to the guardians with the final decision.
School Hours School begins at 8:15 a.m. Supervision is provided outside between 8:00 a.m. & 8:15 a.m. All students should be in their homerooms by 8:15 a.m. for announcements. School is dismissed at 2:40 p.m. Parents are responsible for their children prior to 8:00 a.m. when supervision becomes available. Afternoon school coverage is provided until 2:50 p.m. After school dismissal, most incidents on the playground should be dealt with by the parents of the students involved.
School Property Students are responsible for books or equipment that is assigned to them and must pay for any book or equipment damaged or lost. The student's final report card or diploma until such debt are cleared.
Smoke Free School Smoking is not allowed on the school grounds and buildings at any time by anyone.
Telephones School telephones are for school business. In case of an emergency, a staff member will give the student permission to use the phone. Parents, please make after school arrangements before your children come to school in the morning. Use the phone number for your child's homeroom teacher listed in the handbook if you need to leave a voicemail message. Should you need to contact your child during school hours, please call the main office. Please, do not place calls or texts to your child's cell phone.
Valuables We caution students against bringing valuables and large amounts of money to school. If such items are brought they should be kept on the person. Do not leave money, watches, etc. in desks. Students in grades 5-8 have lockers for regular use and gym use, but no locks are placed on lockers.
Videotaping and Photographing of Students
During the school year students may be involved in school activities that are videotaped or photographed for sharing with newspapers or television. If you desire that your student not be videotaped or photographed, please send a letter to the front office saying that you do not want your child's picture used in videotaping or photographs.
Visitors For student safety, visitors must check in through the front office and receive a visitor's badge. If you would like to visit in a classroom, please arrange a time with the teacher. If custodial parent(s) would like someone other than themselves to visit their child during school, prior notification needs to be given no later than the morning of the visit.
Work Certificate Students who attain the age of fourteen and who get a job may get a work certificate from the Superintendent's Office. There is no charge for this service. The student must have a prospective employer.
In addition, counselors collaborate with outside agencies and social services regarding school, home, and/or community concerns.
Visiting children are not allowed to attend classes at the Tisbury School without prior approval from the principal. These visits are generally kept to short amounts of time during lunch or an assembly so they will not interrupt the academic day.
Reminder: For everyone's safety and security, visitors are not allowed to use the playground during school hours.