• Dear parents and guardians,

    I know you are just as excited and nervous as your kids are about starting middle school! Your babies are growing up far too fast. I promise you that we will love on your kids and take care of them while they are in our care.

    We need to work together, as a team, to help your child be successful this year. Here are a few things you can do to help:

    Talking Points: This is a text messaging application that allows me to send out short texts regarding homework, school events and reminders/notices. 

    Email: my email address is kmbraswell@caldwellschools.com. You can always email me, although I may not be able to reply until my planning time.

    PowerSchool: Please, please, please, get a Parent PowerSchool account! There are directions on the GMS webpage on how to obtain one. Having a parent account allows you to log into PowerSchool, at any time, and be able to see your child's grades. If you have multiple children in the Caldwell County school system, you will be able to see all of your children's grades, with one log in. You will also be able to see if they are missing any assignments. Each student will also have a PowerSchool account and we check those at least weekly. Students should always know what assignments are missing and their current grades. Once you get your Parent PowerSchool account set up, I recommend logging in at least weekly and reviewing your child's grades/assignments with them. This way, when it comes time for Progress Reports (mid nine weeks), and report cards (every nine weeks), there will be no surprises.

    My teacher website: You will find a lot of information on my website. I post information and updates regarding school events and I will also post what we do in class on a daily basis. This way you know what's going on in math and science!

    Phone: You can always call the office at 828-754-6204 and ask to leave a message for me. Please understand that unless it is a true emergency, phone calls will not be forwarded to my classroom. I will not get these messages until my planning time, when I go down to the office. Please respect our learning time!

    Cellphones: PLEASE, do not text or call your child during school. Students will not have access to their phones during the school day. Cell phones must remain silent or OFF and will be placed in their lockers. If you need to tell your child about something, please send me a Talking Points msg, or email me and I will pass on the information. You can also call the office in emergency situations.

    Life: Sometimes, when life happens, it's not always good. We don't need to know your personal business, but if something is happening at home that might affect how your child does at school, please give us a heads up. Let us know if something is going on so we can show a little bit of extra grace in class. If a pet dies, or a relative is in the hospital, or a family member is moving out, all this can affect your child's day at school. If there is a valid reason for them not having their act together, for forgetting homework, for sleeping in class, for just being out-of-sorts, please let me know. I don't want to add any pressure to a child who is already struggling. I can also refer them to our guidance counselor, who is pretty awesome. Our Child Family Support Team (CFST) is trained to help with all kinds of life situations. Our guidance counselor, social worker and nurse make a great team that loves on our students and goes out of their way to help not just them, but their families too. We can help, if you let us.

    If you ever have any questions or concerns about your child or a situation here at school, please reach out to me. With us working together, we can help your child navigate their first year of middle school successfully.