Dear Crockett Parents and Students,

I want to welcome everyone back from a much needed holiday break.  I hope that you all had a safe return from you travels near or far.  We are almost half way finished with this school year already.  It is hard to believe that is has passed so quickly.  We have been very busy this fall semester getting students where they need to be in order to be most successful.

As the spring approaches, so do the state assessments that hold so much importance to the students and staff at Crockett.  We will continue our morning and afternoon tutoring in a quest to help all of our students.  On January 12th, some third, fourth, and fifth grade students will be invited to attend our TAKS Saturday School.  It focuses only on TAKS objectives on which students need more practice.  The focus is done in smaller groups of students so that they can get the most benefit out of attending on Saturday.  I want to stress the importance of attendance and punctuality.  The students will only attend from 9:00 to 11:30.  Therefore, it is imperative that your child be here on time every week and picked up on time as well.  Your child, if selected, will focus on Math, Reading, or Science TAKS objectives.  Students are welcome to bring a snack to eat during a break in the middle of lessons.

Our dedicated teachers will provide the instruction and will hold the same high expectations for student behavior and academics on Saturday as if it were during the week.  Your cooperation in this matter is appreciated as always.  As you know, third grade students must pass the reading TAKS test and all of their classes in order to be promoted to the next grade level.  At the same time, fifth grade students must pass the reading and math TAKS tests and all of their classes in order to move on to middle school.  The stakes are high, and we need everyone working toward performing their best in order to be successful in class and on TAKS.

We are going to add something new this years to help students with the TAKS test.  Selected students will receive a mentor teacher to assist them with morale, behavior, problem solving skills, revising and editing, or to be an extra friend who understands what they are preparing for, or whatever they may need.  The mentors will be a Crockett staff person other than their own homeroom teacher.  It might be the principal, the assistant principal, librarian, counselor, or a different grade level teacher.  That person will be checking up on their mentee to see how they are doing in preparation for of the TAKS test.  Mentors will check to see if students are using the strategies that help them to find answers in reading and/or math.  They may eat lunch with their mentee just to have a special friend to talk to at lunch.  Finally, the mentor may check to see that their mentee is going to the learning center if they are assigned to do so or maybe help them with homework that they didn’t know how to do.  The mentor program is to help students feel successful and good about their ability to pass the TAKS test the first administration.  The goal at Crockett is for students to be successful at school, on the TAKS test, and in life.

Thank you to all of the parents that were able to attend the first “Coffee and Communication” parent meeting this fall.  We will have another on this spring and hope that even more parents will be able to attend.  Feel free to bring any questions that you may have and join us for some coffee and doughnuts.  It will be presented in English and Spanish.

Sincerely,

Karen Tesmer, Principal