Annual Performance Report
Our School
Wilkes Elementary is located in a rural/suburban setting across the Puget Sound from Seattle. Our school is set on 10 acres, including some wetlands. Our population is stable, predominantly made up of families where one or both parents possess college degrees and are employed in professional positions. Most fourth grade students have attended our school from kindergarten through fourth grade continuously.
Wilkes provides a broad-based curriculum effectively enhanced by teacher-specialists in physical education (PE), art, music, library, special education, speech and language, and Title I. We have a full-time counselor, and a psychologist is assigned to the building two days per week. A team approach supports students with special needs, balancing service between in-classroom and pullout assistance, depending on the needs of the student. Students identified as highly capable (grade 3) participate in differentiated learning activities in fourth grade.
Our school receives strong support from parents and the community. An exceptional core of volunteers donates many hours working in classrooms, supervising field trips and special activities, preparing materials, and organizing school fund-raisers. Our Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) actively enhances the overall school program through assemblies, funding for field trips, and special school events, such as the Harvest Fair, Halloween Carnival, and Spring Splash.
Our site-based council includes teachers, paraeducators, the principal, and parents. It serves as an advisory and decision-making body in determining the overall school vision and the objectives of our school improvement plan. Throughout the year the council discusses progress on the implementation of our plan and any pertinent elements of our school program, with particular emphasis on student achievement.
Increasingly, we integrate technology across the curriculum, adding to our technology equipment and software inventory on an annual basis. Teacher training in the use of computers in the classroom is ongoing.
From the time the school was built through June 1999, Wilkes served students in kindergarten through fifth grade. Beginning with the 1999-2000 school year, Wilkes Elementary serves grades K - 4, as Sakai Intermediate School serves fifth and sixth grade students.
We hope you find this special report about Wilkes Elementary School useful and interesting. All of us - home, school, and community -
engage in a partnership to educate children. Communication is one of the important ways to make connections effective. If you have questions about any of this information, please call the school office, (206) 842-4411.
The Mission of the Bainbridge Island School District is to help all students become successful
learners, caring individuals, and
responsible citizens.
The school district depends on the community to help it meet the needs of each student with a modern and effective education program. We appreciate that student needs are not only educational, but personal, economic and social as well. We will work together to develop and implement programs that ensure students’ success.
Demographics
Enrollment
Total # of students: 439 (*Apr. ‘00 enrollment data)
Average class size (based on May ‘00 enrollment data)
Kindergarten: 22
1st Grade: 25
2nd Grade: 23
3rd Grade: 27
4th Grade: 27
Student ethnicity % # of students (*)
American Indian: .7 3
Asian 2.5 11
Black .5 2
Hispanic 1.6 7
White 94.7 416
Supplementary programs # of students (*)
Highly Capable (Grades 4-5) 18
Limited English (ESL) 2
Special Education 62
Title 1/Learning Assistance Program 76
Students with 10 or more unexcused absences: 1999-00 0
Retention
1999-00 0
Suspensions/Expulsions
1999-00 2/0
Weapons Related Incidents
1999-00 0
• Students benefit from the services of a full-time school counselor. She teaches lessons at each grade level on personal safety and Second-Step Conflict Resolution and works with individual students as needed, i.e. “changing families” where students have experienced a divorce in their family.
• All grade levels receive instruction from specialists in art, music (choral), physical education (PE), and library/media programs. On a rotating schedule, every student has a specialist time each day.
• Special needs students receive a full range of support from special education staff members. A full-time special education teacher works in consultation with classroom teachers, provides direct service to students, and supervises paraeducators who serve students in grades 2-4. A part-time special education teacher works with developmentally delayed preschool and kindergarten students.
• A Title I teacher and a paraeducator serve students who qualify for additional reading support.
• A communication disorders (speech) therapist is available for grades 1-4, and a speech specialist works with preschool and kindergarten students.
• Occupational and physical therapy services are provided on an as needed basis by district staff.
• A school psychologist is assigned to the building two days per week for testing and participation on our Guidance Team.
Our Staff
Our staff is comprised of highly qualified teachers: 17 have masters degrees; 7 are working on masters; one is working on a doctorate. Paraeducators assist students in special education, Title I, the health room, and on the playground.
Numbers below reflect full and part-time staff.
Certificated: #
• Classroom teachers 23
• Other support staff 9
• Administrators 1
Classified:
• Paraeducators 18
• Support Staff 6
• Volunteers 275+
Most students entering kindergarten have had preschool experience. Our students are involved in extra-curricular activities, such as dance, sports, drama, and music. A significant number of students have traveled outside our state and country. The academic performance of Wilkes students is generally above average.
How You Can Help
Parent and community involvement is encouraged and valued at Wilkes. Parents and community members assist students and staff in classrooms, the computer lab, and health room, and with special events, projects and enrichment, such as the Harvest Fair and Art Docent Program. They also are members of the site council. Please call our school office to inquire about opportunities, 842-4411.
Wilkes Elementary was built in 1958 and has had three significant remodels/additions since the late 1980s. All classrooms are well-furnished and have excellent storage space. Seismic work was done to bring our school within code for earthquake safety. We have two main wings, a kindergarten complex, a library, five portable classrooms, a covered play area, and office, gym, and kitchen areas. Our building is used regularly by outside groups.
District Per Pupil Expenditures, 1998-99
Expenditure per student - $5,897
Expenditures span the following categories: employee salaries and benefits; supplies and materials; instructional materials; contractual services (such as utilities, service contracts, etc.); travel; and capital outlay.
Wilkes Sources of Discretionary
Funds, 1999-00, were used for staff development, supplies, instructional materials, and equipment.
District Allocation $54,340
Eisenhower Professional Development $ 1,706
Year 4 Allocation
Gifted and Highly Capable $ 3,400
Multicultural $ 2,300
Title VI $ 1,730
Our Vision
♦ Provide an educational pathway for every child. A pathway where each child feels accepted and valued; where every child experiences high expectations and has the opportunity to achieve his or her potential.
♦ Foster classrooms where excellent teaching is continually supported and empowered, targeted to the variable learning needs of diverse students. We structure the school around the best that we know about learning.
♦ Provide leadership in support of ongoing training and integration of technology.
Wilkes’ improvement goals relate to each of the four state learning improvement goals.
State Goal #1: Read with comprehension, write with skill, and communicate effectively and responsibly in a variety of ways and settings.
Wilkes will increase the number of fourth grade students performing at level three and four of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) Reading Assessment by 25%, based on the 1996-97 scores.
State Goal #2: Know and apply the core concepts and principles of mathematics; social, physical, and life sciences; civics and history; geography; arts; and health and fitness.
We will improve student performance in the area of mathematical content and processes (i.e. measurement, geometric and algebraic sense, solving problems, and communicating understanding) as measured on the WASL.
State Goal #3: Think analytically, logically, and creatively, and integrate experience and knowledge to form reasoned judgments and solve problems.
We will improve student performance in the areas of reasoning mathematically, solving problems, and analyzing/interpreting text as measured on the WASL (Reading and Mathematics).
State Goal #4: Understand the importance of work and how performance, effort, and decisions directly affect career and educational opportunities.
We will continue to incorporate discussions of career-related topics and educational opportunities across the curriculum.
Other Funding Sources
Bainbridge Education Support Team (B.E.S.T.) is an active, organized group of citizens supporting our schools. They allocated over $10,000 for building focus grants and individual teacher projects, allowing us to promote student achievement through teacher training, instructional materials and equipment.
Learning Improvement Days
Learning Improvement Day activities included analyzing data from the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) tests and making curriculum decisions; technology training; training in Second Step, fostering friendships and curbing bullying; school climate assessments; and participation in the district’s Vision 2010 process.
Test Scores
The school district administered a variety of assessments at the elementary level, including the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS), Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT), and the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL). The Washington State Assessment Program requires the ITBS and WASL Students take the ITBS in third grade and the WASL in fourth grade. The Iowa tests were given for the first time by the state in the spring of 1999 at grades three, eight and eleven. The state schedule now calls for these tests at grades three, six and nine.
Washington Assessment of Student Learning is a state assessment tool developed under the 1993 school improvement act. All schools and students are now required to meet clear and challenging academic standards. The WASL is a performance-based test in which student scores are compared to a performance standard set by the state. At the elementary level 4th grade students are assessed. The first required results were from the test administered in the spring of 1997. Scores indicate the percent of students meeting the standard.
% of 4th grade students meeting the standard.
Subject Wilkes State Wilkes State Wilkes State Wilkes State
Math 43 21 45 31 77 37 75 42
Reading 63 48 82 56 90 59 95 66
Writing 56 43 63 37 56 33 68 39
Listening 68 62 85 71 95 71 85 65
The Iowa Tests of Basic Skills were given to 3rd grade students in the spring. Scores are in National Percentile Rank (NPR). These tell the percent of students in the norm group who obtain lower scores. For example, if a student earns a percentile rank of 70 on a particular test, it means the student scored better than 70% of students in the norm group.
ITBS/3 Wilkes District State Wilkes District State
Reading 83 79 55 78 77 56
Language 66 69 * 71 69 *
Math 77 80 60 79 79 60
Core Total 76 77 77 76
*Not required by the state.
