Welcome to the 2013/2014 East Side Elementary school year! Room Representative Training Agenda

1. Welcome to the 2013/2014 East Side Elementary school year! Room Representative Training Agenda Welcome & Introductions PTA Volunteer Guidelines Room Rep Responsibilities Plan of Work & Calendar Highlights Online Resources & Forms Additional Presentations Questions?

2. PTA Room Rep Volunteer Guidelines Our East Side family is talented, skilled, knowledgeable, creative, energetic and connected. Our parents belong to a variety of organizations, perform a diversity of jobs and have a wide range of interests and hobbies. Some are right-brained creative geniuses; others are left-brained organizational wizards. But most of all our East Side parents have heart! As a Room Representative, your responsibility is to organize and facilitate opportunities for all parents to participate in their children’s classroom, as well as PTA events that require participation of all classrooms. Because working parents usually have the least flexibility when they are able to volunteer, every effort should be made to give interested parents the opportunity to participate when they are able to volunteer, every effort should be made to give interested parents the opportunity to participate when possible. Please try to give all interested parents at least one opportunity to chaperone a field trip. A Room Representative will need to be sensitive to the requests of each parent. Parents who may not be available during the school day may be a great resource for sending in needed items or for volunteering during weekend/ evening activities. Please do not let a “language barrier” keep you from calling the parents of your class. Many of the limited-English speaking parents are very willing to help in any way possible. Every child loves to see Mom and Dad helping out at school. Volunteer Guidelines. It is great to have parents involved at East Side Elementary, but certain rules must be followed to ensure the safety of the children and to prevent disruption of valuable class time. All volunteers must sign-in when entering the school. Enter at the front entrance of the school; sign-in at the table at the front office and take a visitor sticker. Please remember to sign-out when you leave. Do no interrupt a teacher during class hours without prior office approval. If you cannot reach your teacher prior to 7:50am or after 2:20pm, please leave a note in the teacher’s mailbox. Please leave younger children at home with a baby sitter during class volunteer time. Younger children in the classroom may distract your attention from the class activity at hand. No strollers are allowed in the school at any time. This a fire code regulation. When working in the classroom remember to… issue directive (only do’s and don’ts) discipline is the responsibility of the teacher … leave promptly once your classroom duties are complete so that the teacher may continue with the lesson plan. Mandatory Reporting Act. As of July 1, 2012, Georgia law requires school volunteers to report any suspected child abuse or neglect to the Department of Family and Children Services. A report is to be made immediately and in no case, later than 24 hrs. from the time of suspicion. If the child is in imminent danger call 911. DFCS contact number: 770-319-3700 or after hours/ wknds/ holidays 770-319-4453. After report is made, notify the principal or staff member in charge of the program that a report was made. Remember … Suspicion of abuse is all that is necessary to file a report. The law protects you if you make a report in good faith. Not making a report is a criminal offense. Your information can be given anonymously and will be kept confidential. Be a volunteer with character. Demonstrate loyalty, trustworthiness and fairness in all school-related matters. Loyal volunteers abide by the rules of the school and work cooperatively with the staff. School employees are responsible for adhering to school policies. Any criticism of the school, staff or procedures should be brought up with the PTA Co-Presidents, not friends or persons outside the school. The same goes true when working with other PTA volunteers. Trustworthy volunteers keep all classroom work and information confidential. Your knowledge gained through classroom participation is privileged and must only be shared with responsible faculty members. Fair volunteers advocate equally for all children. Treat all children with the same respect and care. Each teacher deserves our respect and support regardless of teaching style and methods. Other PTA volunteers should be treated with respect as well. Thank you for volunteering as a Room Representative. It is an important role in our school and our children benefit greatly from your time and efforts!

3. Room Representative Responsibilities Meet with your teacher to determine his/her expectations regarding your role as their Room Representative. PTA Membership is required. If you are not yet a member and need to join or verify your status, please contact membership@eastsideelementary.com. Volunteer Staffing. The Room Rep is responsible for circulating the Class List sign-up sheet. This class list will allow parents to volunteer in a capacity in which they are comfortable. Volunteer opportunities include: Classroom Volunteers (Adv. In Art, Fit Program, Collaboration Dates/ Training), Field Trip Volunteers, Sock Hop Volunteers, Field Day Volunteers, Volunteers for the Holiday Party, Teacher Appreciation Week and end of the year. The number and frequency of classroom volunteers is dependent upon your teacher’s needs. Volunteers are subject to school/PTA Volunteer Guidelines and should only be in the classroom at scheduled times. Once this list is complete, one copy should be given to your teacher and one copy should be kept for your records. Class Funds. Collecting classroom funds and overseeing expenses is the responsibility of the Room Rep. Every family grade K-5 is asked for a minimum donation of $10.00 to help with classroom incidentals and special projects. 5th grade families will be asked for an additional donation to help offset the end of the year picnic. You should begin collecting these funds at Open House (as soon as possible). If a parent does not donate money during open house, a letter or email can be sent as a reminder. Under no circumstances is the room rep allowed to request additional money during the year. ****it is acceptable for another parent that is not the room rep to volunteer to request funds for anything else (additional gifts, classroom purchases, incidentals not budgeted) Once collected. 20% of the total funds go to the teacher for use in the classroom. This is the PTA’s policy to set aside this amount in lieu of a birthday gift for the teacher. Other funds will be used for the holiday party, field day, class activities and teacher appreciation week. Every room rep should have a reasonable determination of how all funds will be spent by March. This is so current funds collected go to this years’ school activities as opposed to leaving funds for the next years’ class. It will be important to review your expense plan with your teacher to ensure agreement on funds disbursement. Contact your Room Rep Coordinator/ PTA Co-Presidents if you are having difficulty coming to a consensus regarding your class funds plan and expenditure prior to March. The Class Funds Status form should be maintained to track classroom expenses. Submission of a balance sheet is required twice during the school year. Once in January and once in May. Copies are to go to the PTA Co-Presidents, Room Rep Coordinator, Teacher, and one to the classroom parents. It is essential that you keep accurate records and retain all receipts. Class Directory. Information for each class will be provided by the parents on Open House night (or as soon as possible). This information can be pulled from the Class Directory Sheet provided. Please check with your teacher as to how he/she would like for the Class Directory information to be compiled and distributed. Memory Book. As Room Rep you are to assist with the collection of photos for the yearbook. Photos will be digitally compiled on a CD and provided to the year book company. Teacher Appreciation Week. Management of Teacher Appreciation Week is a Room Rep responsibility. Expectations and ideas will be discussed as we draw closer to this event which occurs late winter/early spring.

4. 2013/ 2014 Room Representatives Plan of Work Fall (To Date thru September): Welcome and Introductions Who are you? You are the liaison between your teacher/ classroom & PTA. Be sure to introduce yourself to your classroom peers and meet with your teacher as soon as possible to gain an insight to his/her expectations. Encourage everyone to join the PTA. Sign up to receive “e-news” Classroom lists Class Directory … email will be your main line of communication with your parents Volunteer Opportunities … work with your teacher to determine needs and best way for parents to be involved. Who will be responsible for coordinating & communicating to parents? Memory Book … Is there a parent that is great with taking pictures and can work with our Memory Book volunteer to include them in our yearbook? Teacher Appreciation Week … begin to discuss plans/ who will be responsible Class Finances Who will be responsible? Begin collecting funds as soon as possible (set a completion date) Create your plan for funds (use class funds sheet) Calendar Highlights Fall (August – October) -9/ 5 Adv. In Art Training -9/6 Fit Program Training -9/9 Picture Day -9/11 Custodian Appreciation Day -9/21 East Cobber Parade -10/3-10/8 No School -10/10 Science Fair -10/15 Bus Driver Appreciation Day -10/18 Fall Festival/ Teacher Auction -10/21-10/25 Conference & Early Release Week -10/28-10/31 Red Ribbon Week Winter (November – February) -11/1 Halloween Candy Collection begins -11/18-11/22 Book Fair -11/25-11/29 Thanksgiving Holiday -12/2 Toy/ Game Drive for Fair Oaks Begins -12/7 Jingle Jog -12/16 Holiday Basket Assembly -12/18 Holiday Party (k-2) -12/19 Holiday Party (3-5) -12/23-1/6 Winter Break -1/16 Cafeteria Staff Appreciation Day -1/20 Martin Luther King Day – No School -2/4 School Pictures -2/13-2/18 February Break – No School -2/22 International Festival -2/24-2/28 Teacher Appreciation Week Spring (March – May) -3/31-4/4 Spring Break -5/7 Nurse Appreciation Day -5/13-5/15 Field Days, Marathon, Kickball Game -5/21 Last Day of School

5. Online Resources and Forms Online Resources Volunteer Spot – www.volunteerspot.com Shutterfly – www.shutterfly.com/connections East Side Elementary – eastsideelementary.com Online Forms – eastsideelementary.com (go to resources tab; forms under Room Rep) • Class Funds Letter • Class Funds Status Form • Classroom Directory Form • Class Funds Collection Form • RR Class Volunteer List • My Favorites and More Fun Information Room Rep Coordinator Marlynne Robertson RoomReps@eastsideelementary.com (678)403-2599 home