James Madison ElementarySeptember 2019

Important UpdateHello parents! Welcome to the new school year. We are excited to announce that our schedule has changed to allow more teacher preparation time and accommodate three parent-teacher conferences this year! Regular day 7:55 am - 2:45 pm and early release days on Tuesdays and Thursdays 7:55 am - 1:30 pm.

Upcoming Events

Event Highlight/Evento Destacado

9/1 - Parent Club (PTO) Meeting @ 5:00 pm in room 24 Junta de club de padres

9/11 - Picture Day/Dia de fotografía

9/25 - SSC Meeting @ 3:00 pm in room 24Junta de Consilio Escolar

Fall Picture Day Is Coming Soon!On Wednesday 9/11 we will have our fall picture day. All students will take pictures on this day. If you would like to purchase pictures, information should have gone home already with your child with available packages and pricing information. Extra information packets and purchase envelopes are available in the office. We are excited to see everyone looking their best on Wednesday!

Student or Staff Highlight-Welcome, Mr. Gonzalez! Hello! I am Mr. Gonzalez and this is my first year in the teaching profession and I am so excited for what this school year has in store for the music program here at Madison Elementary. A little bit about myself:

I am a Fresno State graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Music Education with and emphasis in Instrumental Music Education. During that time at Fresno State I was also part of the Fresno State Symphonic Band for 5 years, the Fresno State Bulldog Marching Band for 4 years, the Uptown Bulldog Beat for 1 year, and the Fresno State Symphony Orchestra. Outside of my education at Fresno State, I also participated in other groups such as the Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps based out of Concord, CA and also the Youth Philharmonic Orchestra of Fresno. I am very passionate about music and it makes me even more excited to share this passion with our students here at Madison Elementary. We currently offer Band and Choir at our site; however, we are looking towards expanding into Mariachi in the years to come, starting off with 3rd grade this school year. This is an amazing opportunity for our students to have so that they

James Madison Elementary109 Stadium Road Madera, CA 93637

559.675.4630

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have other forms to explore with in music. For some, it will also be a great way to learn more about their culture, or maybe even a culture that they did not know much about. I am very excited for this year’s Band and Choir programs and to see the growth that our students will demonstrate. Our goal is to have each student be able to play at the best of their capabilities and push their boundaries in order to become amazing and passionate musicians. I look forward to working with each student and sharing my passion of music with each one of them.

Sports Schedules9/6- Basketball mini-tournament @ Alpha Elementary beginning at 12:30 pm9/20- Basketball District Championship Tournament-9/23 - Soccer Season Begins!9/27 - Soccer mini-tournament - location TBD

Attendance PoliciesParents or guardians must call or send a written note, or a Dr. note, to the office to clear an absence within 3 days of the absence in order for the absence to be excused. Tardies are coded when a student is more than 30 minutes late or is picked up more that 30 minutes before school is out. If a student comes in less than 30 minutes late or leaves less than 30 minutes early, the student will be marked as late. Tardies and lates can be excused and justified if the student brings in a Dr. note to justify the reason student left early, or came in late.

School Climate and CultureWhat is bullying? The word bully at times is loosely used, but what is bullying? According to stopbullying.gov, the definition of bullying is "unwanted, aggressive behavior among school-aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time.” Staff and administration take the situations below seriously, When we know it is occuring, we investigate, and discuss possible solutions/consequences with appropriate people.

If it is not bullying, then what is it?Teasing - Everyone is having fun, no one is getting hurt and everyone is participating.Conflict - No one is having fun, there is a possible solution to the disagreement and there is an equal balance of power.Bullying- Someone is being hurt on purpose, it’s repetitive, Imbalance of power.

What can parents do? Parents play an important role in working with the school to ensure the safety of our students. Talk to your children regularly about what is going on both inside and outside of the classroom. Monitor use of social media and encourage students not to engage in conflict online. When students are experiencing problems encourage them to talk about it with an adult on campus to get help rather than trying to handle it on their own. Parents can talk to the teacher to find out what is going on and if the problem persists to administration.