Introduction

Parents are every bit as important as teachers in the education of their youngsters. The answer to the persistent question asked of teachers by parents - "How can I get my child to want to learn?" - can be found in the parents themselves who have perhaps the most important role in stimulating their child's thirst for knowledge. The ace in the hole for the parents is the fact that they are the most important people in the lives of their children.

In order to be most effective in stimulating as well as guiding the child's interest in school and school activities, parents must remember that the child tends to share as well as imitate his parents' views and outlook about school. An affirmative, or rather a positive reminiscence of school days on the part of parents will tend to help the youngster decide that he or she likes school too. First and foremost among a child's educational needs is family approval of learning.

The youngsters who are guided by the knowledge that their parents stand behind them in getting an education study harder and do much better than those who think their parents do not care. Many benefits that can be reaped through the efforts of a parent's guidance program in the home are often lost simply because the parents never make their children aware of the genuine concern that is held for their educational advancement.

School must be given its proper place of importance in the home. A place and a time for study must be provided in order to insure the desired atmosphere for this, a most important phase of school life. Encouragement must be offered to the children to have them make extensive use of reference material and for them to study each and every subject. Furthermore, the children must be allowed to enter family discussions about current events. Togetherness is the byword.

Mission Statement

The Morris School is committed to providing a wide continuum of opportunities which value individuals, maximize both skills and knowledge, enhance self-esteem, produce responsible and life-long learners, and are responsive to the needs of a diverse student, parent, and community population.

Goals

* To teach children that the exploration of ideas is sometimes difficult, often exciting, and occasionally fun.

* To facilitate the challenge of lifelong learning and to develop strategies for making this a rewarding journey.

* To provide the opportunity for all students to develop and communicate the skills and techniques necessary for critical
thinking, responsible problem solving, and decision-making.

* To ensure that each student will acquire multiple literacy skills including those necessary to enable them to communicate effectively through written and spoken language.

* To provide assistance for each student to acquire the essential life skills to be a responsible community member.

* To foster respect and consideration for self and others as well as a sense of pride for their school community.

* To develop a partnership with parents by initiating and maintaining an active cooperative alliance with parents on educational issues, marked by attentiveness to parents' concerns and needs, nonjudgmental support of parents' efforts to nurture their children, and inclusion of parents in the learning process of their children, viewing parents as essential partners in that process.

* To have each school be a physically and emotionally safe environment where students want to be and where they are able to develop a spirit of ownership and a sense of belonging. To develop this sense of community, we need to promote self-respect and self-discipline and respect for others in the community, and be sensitive to and tolerant of the differences in each other.

* To ensure that we are providing equal access and equality of opportunity for all students in terms of staffing, programs, and resources.