Carpenter Year Round Elementary Annual Education Report (AER)

August 4, 2011

Dear Parents and Community Members:

We are pleased to present you with the Annual Education Report (AER) which provides key information on the 2010-2011 educational progress for Carpenter Year Round Elementary School. The AER addresses the complex reporting information required by federal and state laws. This report contains information about student assessment, Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and teacher quality, as well as PA 25 state law reporting requirements. If you have any questions about the AER or PA25 information, please contact Mrs. Kerri Anderson for assistance.

The AER is available for you to review electronically by visiting the following web site http://www.lakeorion.k12.mi.us/carpenter or you may review a copy from the main office at the school.

AYP
For 2010-2011, Carpenter Year Round Elementary made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in English language arts and mathematics. While we are pleased to have reached this important goal, we are continuously working to improve. We appreciate the continued support of parents, staff and our community in this effort.

State law requires that we also report additional information.

Carpenter Year Round Elementary and Student Enrollment
Carpenter Year Round Elementary is one of three "Focus Schools" within Lake Orion Community Schools. Its enrollment is open to every student living within the school district's boundary. Focus School enrollment is subject to availability and students are selected through a lottery process. Students at Carpenter Year Round enjoy a challenging and nurturing "year round" educational program within a friendly, family atmosphere. This "balancing of the school calendar" provides for more continuous learning by shortening the typical long summer vacation to six weeks, then distributing breaks throughout the school year. In addition to the district's regular holiday vacations, Carpenter students also enjoy breaks in November, February and May. During these breaks, they may attend "Intersessions", which are optional, theme-based, hands-on-learning experiences.

School Improvement
Carpenter has a School Improvement Committee that is comprised of teachers from each grade level, the principal, and parent representatives. The purpose of this committee is to establish a mission statement and building goals and to oversee the programs and activities leading toward the attainment of those goals. Building-level decisions are made regarding curriculum, school improvement, staff development and evaluation are determined by this committee. Building School Improvement Plans are reviewed annually and submitted to the State.

• Mathematics: All Carpenter Year Round Elementary students will fluently answer math problems.
• Reading: All Carpenter Year Round Elementary students will make one years growth in reading.
• Writing: All students will be proficient in writing.

The Carpenter Year Round Elementary School Improvement Plan may be viewed at the Carpenter website.

Specialized Schools
Our school district provides educational programs, services and support to certified special education students throughout the District. During the 2010-11 school year, there were 944 students who were in need of special education support services. From this group, 25 students required specialized services outside of the Lake Orion school district. Those students attended Waterford and Bloomfield Hills School Districts.

Curriculum
Lake Orion Community Schools continues to implement a comprehensive curriculum for all students. The curriculum is based on and aligns with the Michigan Department of Education's Michigan Curriculum Framework and the Grade Level Content Expectations (GLCE's) in grades K-8 and Course Content Expectations in grades 9-12. The curriculum at Carpenter Year-Round Elementary is synonymous with the district's curriculum. Additional information on the curriculum can be found at http://www.lakeorion.k12.mi.us/Distcurriculum.htm

Local Assessments
At Carpenter Year-Round Elementary, we use a variety of qualitative and quantitative methods (in addition to MEAP) to assess the whole child. In kindergarten through grade five, MLPP, DRA, and AimsWeb assessments are used to monitor students' growth in language arts and mathematics. All students in grades kindergarten through grade five are assessed with the District's mathematics common assessments.

Parent Participation
Parents/guardians have given a great deal of their time to support students and staff by volunteering in classrooms, on field trips, in the media center, on the PTO, and by raising funds to support school projects. Individual school-wide parent-teacher conferences are held each year and we are very pleased with the attendance of parents and guardians.

Points of Pride
The 2010-2011 school year brought many exciting events and opportunities to the Carpenter Community and we are very proud of all of them. For a complete listing of the Carpenter Year-Round Points of Pride please visit our website at http://www.lakeorion.k12.mi.us/carpenter/pointsofpride.htm

Sincerely,

Mrs. Kerri Anderson
Principal

• Annual Education Report
• School Improvement Plan
• Points of Pride