School Improvement Planning
2000-2001
A Mid-Year Summary

School Climate Goal:By the end of the 2000-2001 school year, all students will demonstrate increased respect for themselves, others and property, and will take personal responsibility for their actions.

This is a multi-year goal, and Wright has made a significant change in focus this year related to school climate. In addition to the traditions already established, we are working diligently on building curriculum in the classroom that offers skills and knowledge related to life skills.

In the first year of this climate goal, we established a number of school-wide programs that have been very successful and have become part of our school culture. The following include a comprehensive list of programs and events that continue to have significant on the positive school climate at Wright Middle School:

• Panther Pride Assemblies (held monthly since the beginning of the school year, emphasizing academic success and positive leadership in our school)
• Quarterly Panther Pride Parties (first party was held in November, 2000 as a surprise for those students who have not received disciplinary action. Over 100 students were in attendance.)
  
• Acts of Kindness and Justice (school wide program encouraging positive acts at home, in school and in the community in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King and Black History Month-scheduled for February 5-16, 2001)
  
• Panther Pride Parent Postcards (available to teachers year-round to write a note to parents about the positive qualities of their children)
  
• Support Groups (Three support groups targeting social skills have been convened in the first semester. Several other support groups will be held second semester based on students' needs.)
  
• Leadership Activities (Student council, participation in the Martin Luther King Service day on January 15)
  
• School-wide use of Assignment Notebooks
  
• The Minority Youth Career Awareness Project (MYCAP) (a community partnership with MATC that offers homework/tutorial support, field trips, college campus visits, job shadowing, goal setting, study skills, and career exploration. This program is in its third year and serves over 75 students on a weekly basis.)
  
• Multicultural Events celebrating Cultural Differences (Hmong Luncheon, Australian Luncheon)
  
• Annual presentations about harassment and how to handle it at each grade level (Occurred in classrooms in October, 2000)
  
• A comprehensive Harassment/Mediation Model available to students to work through differences. (Provided year round by student services staff)
  
• Ongoing discussion of all-school rules and consistent enforcement at staff meetings. The Skill-Based Curriculum Component:Research has shown repeatedly in working with youth that talking is not enough. It is essential that children are taught practical skills that they can use in making good choices in their lives. These skills for success must then be practiced and reinforced in their environment to further the learning and give students tools for the future. To that end, Wright Middle School has made a commitment to utilizing curriculum and teaching strategies that encourage students to develop life skills. The following are a summary of efforts made to teach respect and responsibility through curriculum development and creative teaching strategies:· The Life Skills Curriculum (This is an Alcohol and Drug Prevention program that has received national attention and has documented positive outcomes. The sixth grade at Wright is in the second year of offering fifteen lessons that cover topics such as communication, decision-making, drug and alcohol effects, assertiveness, refusal skills, and peer pressure. The seventh grade will receive ten lessons that reinforce these topics, and next year, the eighth grade will receive five lessons. Several staff members have been trained and this is a joint effort between the student services and teaching staff.)
  
• The Healthy Lifestyles Seminar (This is a project initiated by the climate committee that joins the eighth grade team and student services in collaboration with a district consultant to develop an in-depth approach to teaching eighth grade students about current trends and issues that affect their lives. Topics include understanding ourselves, communication, teen pregnancy, birth control, abusive relationships, legal issues that affect youth, AODA, and developing strategies for a healthy, successful future. This group has met monthly, consulted with other district staff members with expertise in this area, and is planning this seminar for several weeks in March and April, 2001.)
  
• Utilizing Creative Teaching Strategies that Engage Students (Discussions are ongoing about how to make our instruction at Wright culturally relevant, personally engaging for students, thoughtful, and practical for all students in the life skills arena. Role playing, personal reflection, cooperative learning, speakers, and student projects encourage students to learn new skills and have the opportunity to rehearse and generalize these new strategies in their lives outside of the school building. Each staff member sees themselves as responsible for utilizing the "teachable moments" that students offer every day to build life skills for their future success.