To our Wonderful Parents/Guardians of O.L. Slaton Middle School,

Greetings from our O.L. Slaton staff and faculty. I would like to personally extend a warm “Knights” welcome to all of you. Whether you are a new or returning family, we look forward to having you as part of O.L. Slaton for the 2007-2008 academic year.   

We welcome over 200 students to our sixth grade class, in addition to several new families in both our seventh and eighth grade classes.   We are excited about these new students and look forward to teaching them our guidelines for success by showing them how to Put On Their ARMOR.

This is our second year as a Positive Behavior Support School.  Faculty received training in CHAMPS, the next level of implementation of PBS, this summer.  CHAMPS will enable us to continue moving from good to great! Students will be taught guidelines they need to be successful in classroom activities.  I encourage you to ask your child what CHAMPS means and how it is being used in each class.

We are committed to providing an excellent education at O.L. Slaton. Our teachers are student-centered, caring instructors who make the school an enjoyable place for students to learn and grow.  The staff sets high expectations for all students and provides dynamic lessons to help students reach their highest potential.  These highly trained professionals work collaboratively to provide an exceedingly productive learning environment.   We offer advanced curriculum and enrichment for qualifying students and intensive intervention for students who struggle.  

Each student’s level of success will be determined by the partnership of ALL of us working together as a team (student, staff and parents). Our number one priority is the academic success of your student.  We will keep you informed about your student’s progress through his/her agenda for daily/weekly assignments, which includes an area for  teacher/parent comments.  Each grade level utilizes this agenda somewhat differently  with the overall philosophy that we all, even adults, value the importance of a calendar to help maintain our daily schedules.

As middle level educators we know that the middle school years can be challenging. Therefore, we hope to provide you with the information needed to work with your middle level adolescent.  Attached to our website and provided in parent mail-outs you will find a section called the Middle Years.  This newsletter will focus on topics specific to middle school students and help parents learn how to support this age group.  In addition, links to the Texas Middle School Association and the National Middle School Association are available for those of you who wish to learn more.

Thank you for entrusting your child to us.  We are looking forward to a wonderful school year together! If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me or stop by the office.

With Respect and Appreciation,

Shelly Bratcher

Every Child. Every Chance. Every Day!