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Curriculum
Course
of Studies
Religion, Reading,
Language Arts, Math, Science, Computer Literacy/Integration, Social Studies,
Music, Physical Education, Health and Art. ^
Religious
Curriculum
The school religion program follows the liturgical year and has
significant emphasis on Advent and Lent.
The children focus on values and morality, on the scriptural sources of those
values, on application to life and on the Church’s structure and
interpretation of God’s word.
Community service projects are a component of each grade’s
religion curriculum. Through
service, students learn to understand first-hand what it means to live the
Gospel. Our religion program
includes discussion of current Catholic social teaching, as well as drug and
alcohol education through focus on improving each child’s self-esteem. A comprehensive Family Life program is a
part of the religion curriculum in grades 1-8.^
Sacramental
Preparation
First Eucharist is traditionally received in second grade and
First Reconciliation in fourth grade.
Direct preparation for receiving the Sacraments is made through the
parish program, which relies on the parent as the primary educator of their
child. Instruction is made to the
parent who has the charge of transmitting his or her understanding to the
child. The children attend classes
in the evenings, as do their parents; family activities are assigned between
sessions. We believe it is an
enriching experience for families to share in sacramental preparation in a
direct way and by interacting with members of the parish community who are not
school parents. Questions about the
program are properly directed to our parish Director of Religion Education,
Jean Delaney, at the rectory (244-1037, ex. 104).^
Background Checks
Anyone (parent, relative, friend, etc.)
dealing with children through St.
Clare School
must submit to a background check.
This is now a policy of the Archdiocese of Portland. For example, before taking children on a
field trip, a background check must be processed. Forms will be sent home from the
classroom and can be downloaded from the web. When they are completed and
returned to the office, they will be sent to the Archdiocese for
clearance. Background checks need
only be processed once every three years.
The cost is $10.00 which will be charged to the parent before a check is
run. Volunteering in the classroom
or chaperoning is legally not permitted until we have confirmation that your
background check has been cleared. Background checks usually take three weeks
to complete. Parents are now
required to view a safety video in addition to passing a background check. You may view this video on our
website. For more information on
how to access this video please contact the office. ^
Field Trips
Field trips are taken
periodically throughout the year to enhance learning. A permission form will be sent home each
time explaining the destination, purpose and cost of the trip, and asking for
your signed permission to allow your child to travel. A phone call to give permission is not
legally acceptable; however, faxing a written permission with parent signature
is an alternative.
Admission fees and transportation are paid by
parents, and are collected prior to the trip. When parent drivers are used, all
drivers must be insured, and all children seat-belted. We must have an insurance information
form filled out regarding coverage prior to all field trips you may be
driving. Coverage must be current
at the time you are driving. If
time has lapsed between coverage dates, a new form must be filled out. In the case of an accident, parent
driver’s insurance will be used as the primary insurance. School or diocesan insurance can be
utilized only after the driver’s insurance and assets are exhausted. Field trip driving is not considered a
part of our PIP program.
St. Clare siblings, other than those required
to go on the field trip, are not allowed to go with parents if the parent is
planning on chaperoning. We must
have full supervision of school students going on the field trip.
If a parent is not background checked, we
cannot allow them to meet up with their student when other school students are
present on a field trip.
^
C.Y.O. Youth Sports Program ^
CYO
is the Catholic Youth Organization inter-school sports league. The youth of St. Clare School and parish participate in swimming,
football, volleyball, basketball, and track and field beginning with third
grade. CYO emphasizes teamwork,
sportsmanship, and the love of the game.
All children who belong to our parish or attend our school are eligible
to play!
It is our hope that students will participate
in athletics, but this is contingent on the number of moms and dads who are
willing to coach. Please give this
consideration. Phone Steve Seguin,
Athletic Director, at 503.675.3510 for more information about athletics, and to
offer your services as “Coach”! While CYO is not affiliated with our
school, we do encourage our children’s participation in athletic interests.
School Library
We have
an excellent collection of books, periodicals and resource material in a fully
automated library, which grows annually.
Books given to the library contain bookplates noting the donor for
posterity. We have a Book Fair
where families are encouraged to buy books for the library as well as for their
own recreational reading.
Children are allowed to check books out for
two weeks (one week in Kindergarten and first grade). If a student fails to return a book by
the due date, they have, at the librarian’s discretion, the option to
check out one more book. After
that, the computer system will not allow the student to check out any more
books until the overdue books are returned. Overdue notices will be posted in the
homeroom class and sent home for individual students. If a book is three weeks overdue, the
book will be assumed lost and the student will be billed for its replacement
cost.
If parents have an objection to a certain
library book there is an appeal form to request exclusion of the book from the
library. This form will then be
reviewed by the Portland
Archdiocese School
Library Association for possible removal from the library. The form will look like this:
PORTLAND ARCHDIOCESE
SCHOOL LIBRARY ASSOCIATION
REQUEST FOR RECONSIDERATION OF MATERIAL
Author, Editor, or Compiler ________________________________________________________________
Illustrator ________________________________________________________________
Type of Material ________________________________________________________________
Title
________________________________________________________________
Publisher ________________________________________________________________
Request initiated by ________________________________________________________________
Telephone _______________ Address
______________________________________________________
Child’s Name
____________________________________________________ Grade_____
Complainant represents: him/herself Name of Organization
To what material do you object? (Please be
specific) ___________________________________
Did you read the entire book? (or examine all
of the audio-visual material? _______________ if not, what sections?
______________________________________________________________________
For what age group would you recommend this
material? ____________________________________
What do you feel might be the result of a
student becoming involved with this material in a learning situation?
_________________________________________________________________________
Is there anything good about this
material?________________________________________________
Are you aware of the judgment of this material
by literary critics?
What do you believe is the theme of this
material? __________________________________________
What would you like the school to do about
this material? ____________________________________
In place of this book (or audio-visual
material) would you recommend other material which you consider to be of
superior quality? _______________________________________________________
Date: _____________________ Signature
of Complainant: __________________________ ^
Homework
A St. Clare School homework assignment notebook is required of all students
beginning in first grade, and must be purchased from the school at the start of
the year. The teachers will
instruct the children in the use of the notebook, but it is intrinsically a
child’s responsibility to use it.
For the sake of parents, homework assignments can be found on our
website every night. www.stclarepdx.org.
under the “homework tab”.
While we expect that every parent designate a homework time and
place to study in the home, the teacher will contact parents when homework is
not completed; overdue work is made up during recess, study hall or after
school. We do not want children to
miss recess, but on the other hand, we cannot let them fall behind in their
work. Quiet time in daycare is
always scheduled for grades 1-5, with a longer period of study time provided
for older students. Daycare
teachers will provide a quiet atmosphere that is conducive to study; it is the
child’s responsibility to make productive use of this time.
With few exceptions, students in grades 1 through 8 will be
assigned homework every night. The
length of time devoted to homework depends on age; attention span, motivation,
ability, and how much one used well the study time give to them during the
school day. At least 20 minutes
each night should be devoted to recreational reading.
Give kids a break after school by having them do something other
than homework. When it is time to
do homework, a regular quiet place and time is most conducive to concentrating
on and completing work. Parents can
help students by letting them become independent learners. Helping with spelling words and math
facts is fine, but helping kids actually do their work is not fulfilling the
purpose of homework.^
Promotion and Retention
Elementary school students
satisfactorily completing the course of studies will be promoted to the next
grade.
The teacher in consultation with the principal and other
advisory staff will make recommendation for retention of a student. Such a decision will be based on the
total evaluation of a student’s growth in all areas of development. In all cases, the decision for retention
rests with the principal.^
STANDARDIZED TESTING (April 7 - 18)
Students throughout the Archdiocese take the
Stanford Achievement Test in the spring.
Each student’s scores will be sent home. Upon request, the public school
district, at a cost, may provide other types of tests, such as academic or
psychological testing. Test results
will be sent home in a sealed envelope addressed to the parent.^
Progress Reports, Report
Cards and Conferences
We provide trimester reporting which means that every twelve weeks students
will receive a report card. Every
six weeks parents will receive a progress report. At the end of the first six weeks, we
will schedule 20-minute conferences for all parents. The second conference period in April
will be by request only. The point of conferencing is to update parents on
their child(ren)’s progress, and to strategize together how best to serve
that child so that he/she has the best advantage to improve over the next
grading period. To prepare for the
conference, we suggest you make a list of questions about how your child is
doing academically and/or socially.
If you feel that you require a longer conference than 20 minutes, you
may wish to set up a separate appointment with the teacher to accommodate you.^