This information all went home with all science students in Mr. Dunn's classes on Monday 3/9 and in Mrs. Hall's & Mrs. Potysman's classes on Tuesday, 3/10.
NASA Field Trip Updates from
Parent Meeting On Feb. 2/23/09
Greetings Parents!
For those of you unable to make our NASA Field Trip Meeting on Monday, February 23, 2009 held in the CTMS Lecture Hall, we have compiled the following breakdown of information passed on to those in attendance at the meeting that night concerning details and updates concerning our fast approaching trip to the NASA Houston Space Center on May 27th & 28th. Information specifically tailored to Chaperones for our trip is still being finalized and worked on and will hopefully be sent home later this week (3/9-3/13/09). Please feel free to contact your child’s science teacher (Mr. Dunn, Mrs. Hall, or Mrs. Potysman) if you have additional questions.
* For the benefit of additional questions and to quickly disseminate information, updates, and reminders specifically about the trip a NASA Field Trip Newsflash page has been created on Mr. Dunn’s website:
http://teacherweb.com/TX/CrossTimbersMiddleSchool/MrDunn/NewsFlash3.stm
Parents are encouraged to register their email addresses and/or text message enabled cell phone numbers on the NASA Field Trip NewsFlash page in order to receive these updates.
* All parent chaperones are required to ride the charter buses to the NASA Houston Space Center in order to monitor bus behavior of their students, better facilitate bus stops for food/restrooms and head counts, and loading and unloading of buses at each stop (hotel, restaurants, NASA).
* Forms for chaperones, including information specific to their expected duties on the trip, the Volunteer release for GCISD, and other chaperone specific information should go home with students later this week (3/9-3/13/09).
* Parent chaperones need to pay the same amount for the trip as students $250 and can follow the same payment schedule as the students ($100 by 2/27, $100 by 3/27, and $50 by 4/17) or pay in full anytime before 4/17.
* Itinerary outline (Final times and schedule will be sent home later in April):
Buses will depart CTMS early morning on 5/27 for the Houston area, stopping about halfway for food and a restroom break with arrival at our hotel set for between 2-3 p.m.
Buses will unload students and chaperones will check in to hotel rooms on 5/27.
Students will be reloaded onto buses at 4 p.m. to go to the NASA Houston Space Center Overnight Program starting at 4:30 p.m. 5/27.
Students will watch a special video presentation in the NASA Theatre and then be fed a chicken dinner by NASA staff in their cafeteria on 5/27- this meal is included in the price of the trip.
Students will then participate in 3 hour long experiment/hands on learning sessions back to back with NASA staff.
Students will load buses and return to the hotel for the night around 9 p.m. on 5/27.
Buses will be loaded up and check out of the hotel on the morning of 5/28 to return to the NASA Space Center for general tours of the facility, grounds, exhibits and gift shops.
Chaperones will be responsible for watching and keeping track of their group of students during this general tour and lunch is at the Space Center in the cafeteria and on your own.
Buses will be loaded up around 2-3 p.m. on 5/28 to drive back to CTMS.
Buses will stop again halfway on the way back for dinner/restrooms and return to CTMS late evening on 5/28.
(One of the parents has a contact at the Houston Space Center and Mr. Dunn is currently in talks with this individual about possibly setting up a special behind the scenes tour for CTMS only on 5/28 during out general tour of the facilities. Details will be available as soon as they become available).
* Members of the Future Problem Solving group may be in conflict with the NASA Field Trip due to their own International Competition set for the same time frame. If the CTMS group is selected as finalists, Mrs. Wied will let those students going to represent the Future Problem Solvers know as soon as possible and if they have paid for the NASA Field Trip as long as notice can be provided before 4/27, the cost of the NASA Field Trip can be refunded to those students and parents in full in order to attend the future Problem Solvers Competition instead. Mr. Dunn will be in contact with Mrs. Wied to work through this potential conflict.
* Parent chaperones will need to fill out Volunteer Forms for GCISD which requires a criminal background check and submit it prior to 3/27 in order to serve as a chaperone. If parents already have filled one out and have it on file with GCISD for this year, they do not need to fill out another one. Parents who have filled one out in previous years, should fill out this year’s form and submit it prior to 3/27.
* As much as possible, chaperone and students of chaperone requests for students in their hotel rooms and a part of their group will try to be honored. These forms will be sent home to be completed by students and chaperones in April.
* Each hotel room will have four residents, one chaperone and three students, ideally father chaperones will be roomed with their sons and two other boys, while mother chaperones will be roomed with their daughters and two other girls. If numbers of dads do not match up with boys, it is possible some mothers will be asked to room with their sons and two other boys. In this instance preference will be given to these groups about selecting students in their group due to the obvious compromises in privacy this will create for the mothers for an evening. All rooms are booked and billed for four occupants and have two double beds.
* Final hotel accommodations will not be set until our deposit is submitted to NASA during the week on 3/9-3/13/09. They determine the hotel arrangements and make those reservations for CTMS. According to their preliminary estimates, the best hotel to accommodate such a large group as ours will most likely be the Hilton down near the Space Center.
* Families who have individual financial concerns about the NASA Field Trip should contact their student’s science teacher directly.
* All checks should be made out to: CTMS
* The timing of the NASA Field Trip is not ideal for many teachers or students given the time frame of other events at CTMS in and around the same week:
Monday, May 25- Memorial Day Holiday- No School
Wednesday, May 27- 1st Day NASA Field Trip
Thursday, May 28- 2nd Day NASA Field Trip (return to CTMS)
Friday, May 29- Wolf Fest at CTMS (day long Celebration of the Child)
Tuesday, June 2- 1st day of 2nd Semester Exams (1 exam, regular schedule
the rest of the day)
Wednesday, June 3- 2nd day of 2nd Semester Exams (3 exams, early dismissal at 11:55 a.m.)
Thursday, June 4- 3rd day of 2nd Semester Exams (3 exams, early dismissal at 11:55 a.m.)- Last Day of School!
In the future the NASA Field Trip will be schedule at the beginning of the year, payments will be spread out even more throughout the entire school year, and better dates will be selected at the beginning of the year. Given the late nature of the planning of the trip (January), the only dates left available were the 27 & 28th of May. Parents concerned about Exam Reviews and Review Packets that accompany these should know all 6th grade teachers were consulted about the timing of the trip and the overwhelming majority felt the experience far outweighed the inconvenience. All 6th grade teachers will adjust and move up their exam reviews and review packets accordingly for the benefit of those going on the trip and those students who choose to stay behind will review for exams as normal.
* Meals- The cost of the trip for all students and chaperones, $250, will include the cost of two meals (chicken dinner at NASA on 5/27 and breakfast at the hotel the morning of 5/28). All students and chaperones should plan on paying for four additional meals out of pocket- breakfast and lunch on 5/27 on the way down to Houston and lunch at NASA and dinner on the way home on 5/28.
* A finalized more detailed itinerary, listing of rules and expectations for students and chaperones, room assignments, allowable trip items, lists of recommended packing and luggage parameters, and even more details about the trip will be made available as they are known and closer to the departure date.
* Another general NASA Field Trip Parent Meeting will be scheduled most likely at the end of May/beginning of April to go over new information and details.
* A chaperone only meeting for NASA Field Trip Parent Chaperones will be held in May closer to the actual day of the trip and be required attendance for all parent chaperones to review expectations, trip procedures and the finalized itinerary. Parent chaperones unable to make the meeting will need to make arrangements to get the information at an alternative meeting date.
These were the most pressing issues covered at our first NASA Field Trip Parent Meeting on Mon. 2/23/09. We’re sure that many other questions will arise as the dates of the Field Trip draw near, and we encourage you to contact us as those concerns and questions arise. We hope to be able to address and answer all of them in a timely manner! In hopes of answering these often overlapping concerns and questions in a more efficient and timely manner, please consult our new NASA Field Trip Blog on Mr. Dunn’s website:
http://teacherweb.com/TX/CrossTimbersMiddleSchool/MrDunn/
This blog is an excellent place to post questions and have those questions answered by the 6th grade science teachers in a forum in which everyone can benefit from your inquiries and our answers to those inquires. If questions are of a personal and sensitive nature, we certainly encourage you to voice them in private with your student’s 6th grade science teacher, but we felt many issues could be talked through in a more efficient manner through the NASA Blog. We hope this reference will prove useful.
Please if you have not done so already, go to Mr. Dunn’s website and register your email addresses and/or text message enabled cell phone numbers to the NASA Field Trip NewsFlash so you can get alerts about deadline reminders, new details, and information about the Field Trip in a timely and efficient manner:
http://teacherweb.com/TX/CrossTimbersMiddleSchool/MrDunn/NewsFlash3.stm
We hope this information about our 1st NASA Field Trip Parent Meeting on Mon. 2/23/09 provides some clarity and addresses some of your questions and give you all a better idea about out Field Trip! New information will be coming home soon! Thanks for your support and participation in our inaugural and soon to be new annual Field Trip for CTMS 6th graders, the NASA Houston Space Center! Have an exceptional day!
Sincerely,
Your CTMS Science Educators:
Mr. Dunn, 6th Grade Pre-AP (817) 456-7775 (cell) nate.dunn@gcsid.net
Mrs. Hall, 6th Grade Regular (817) 251-5320 ext. 3230 jennifer.hall@gcisd.net
Mrs. Potysman, 6th Grade Accelerated (817) 251-5320 ext. 3242 mary.potysman@gcisd.net