Touching Bases

As a new HMS parent, you may be a little confused as to what Touching Bases is...

Touching Bases is an opportunity for parents to “touch base” with their child’s teachers, a chance to check in on their progress. Touching Bases is NOT the teacher conference we had in elementary school.

The core teachers in your child’s team are all located in one classroom (Math, English, Social Studies and Science). Upon arriving, parents are assigned a number, and then wait their turn to visit with the teachers in rotation. Parents are allotted 3 minutes per teacher. While 3 minutes may seem an insignificant amount of time, it is time enough to get an idea of how your child is doing. Some sample questions that can be covered in this time period are:

….. “Is my child completing homework?”

….. “Is he/she participating in class?”

…. “Is he/she prepared for tests/quizzes?

…. “Are there any particular concerns?”

Should you find that there are more issues to be discussed, you are encouraged to schedule an appointment with your child’s teachers and Guidance Counselor. Counselors will be available at Touching Bases to make appointments, or you can call/email the Counselor at any time.

Elective teachers will be located in the Cafeteria, or in other designated rooms. Be sure to pick up a map/directory when you arrive.

We ask that you be considerate and keep within the 3 minute allotment when meeting with teachers. Parent volunteers will be in each team room, monitoring time. There are many, many parents who attend Touching Bases, and keeping the teacher meetings brief is essential to make it successful. Be patient, bring a newspaper or other reading material -- and don’t wait until 9:00 am to arrive!

A second Touching Bases will be held sometime in the Spring, with hours scheduled in the afternoon instead of the morning. The exact date will be announced after the first of the year.

Ann Marie Ruskin and Lesley Aschenbach

8th Grade Parent Liaisons

AMR9000@aol.com Lesleyasch@prodigy.net