Principal says students will benefit from spending another year in elementary environment
A reorganization approved by the Northern Ozaukee School Board last week will put fifth-graders in Ozaukee Elementary School next fall, rather than the middle school.
The move will somewhat ease the burden of Jeff Sauer — who serves as principal of the middle school and high school, but school officials said it also has an educational benefit.
Ozaukee Elementary Principal Cindy Dallman said fifth-graders will benefit from remaining in the elementary school environment for another year.
“In my estimation, fifth-graders are more like fourth-graders than they are like sixth-graders, as far as the way learning is accomplished,” Dallman said.
“I think this will be a good situation for our kids and alleviate some of the concerns of many parents.”
Under the new alignment, the elementary school will include kindergarten through fifth grade, and the middle school will be sixth through eighth grades.
The fourth and fifth grades will be treated as multi-grade classrooms, with students from both grade levels in the same classes based on their abilities.
The third and fourth grades are in the multi-grade classroom environment this year.
“It should be a very smooth transition. No one has said it is not a good idea,” Dallman said.
“It is probably going to look pretty much the same as this year, with three teachers coming over from the middle school.”
Elementary students have fewer lunch options, which has been mentioned by students who will be heading into fifth grade next year.
“The biggest concern the students have is that they won’t be able to get slushies at lunch,” Dallman said.
The School Board unanimously approved the reorganization.
Board members also gave their blessing to the summer school program, which Dallman also oversees.
A teacher in-service day will be held Friday, June 22.
The 19-day session will be held Mondays through Thursdays, from June 25 to July 25. There will be no classes on Wednesday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day.
Mail registration will be held from Thursday, April 5, to Monday, April 30.
Enrichment courses at the elementary level will be offered under the theme “Learning Adventures.” Instructional support in reading and math will also be offered.
Middle-school classes will offer remediation in language arts and math, along with a variety of enrichment classes.
High-school classes will be limited to making up for lost credits, along with agility and weight training for athletes.
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