There are many ways you as a parent can get involved at Columbia.  We hope that you are able to take part in as many of these as your schedule allows.

• Your child's teacher will have plenty of opportunities for you to help him or her in the classroom.  These duties may range from coming in to read to the classroom, helping put up displays of artwork, cutting out materials for the class, being a chaperone for field trips, helping to plan parties etc.  You will need to make it clear to your child's teacher that you are willing and available to help. 


• The Media Center has a rotating schedule for volunteers to come in and help to re-shelve books and other tasks.  There are three shifts each day: morning, midday, and afternoon.  Volunteers will normally be scheduled every other week, but if you can help out weekly, or only once a month that is fine.  Slots will be filled on a first come, first serve basis.


• A Duty Free Planning Period is when a parent volunteers to supervise the children on the playground and in the cafeteria. This is a one-hour commitment once a week per classroom (Check with your teacher for exact day of the week). For most grades you will meet the teacher at the cafeteria and at that time take over the supervision of the class. At the allotted time you will then escort the children to the playground and continue to supervise there until the teacher arrives to take his/her class back to the classroom. For some classrooms this schedule will be reversed, with the classroom starting on the playground and finishing in the cafeteria. The teacher will meet you at the end of their planning period to escort the children back to class. Grades 5 and 6 only require cafeteria supervision as they have P.E. before or after their lunch period. In the event of inclement weather the Duty Free Planning Period will be shortened to the half hour that the children need supervision in the cafeteria.
  
  Duty Free Planning Periods are not difficult. An administrator or certified employee will be present both in the cafeteria and playground at all times. It is a wonderful opportunity to get to know the children in your child’s class and allows teachers time to sit together, plan teaching strategies, discuss ways to help students, and receive some professional training. 
   
  It is imperative that the volunteers understand that supervision is the primary goal during Duty Free Planning Periods, if a parent is interested in having lunch with their individual child that should be scheduled separately and when the teacher can be there to supervise the class.

Please contact your VP of Volunteers, Kim Baird kimbbaird@bellsouth.net if there is a scheduling conflict for any weeks Duty Free Planning Period. It is very important that each teacher be able to attend these grade-level planning periods.


• Volunteer to Chair or Co-Chair a Program or Fundraiser.  There are many programs, fundraisers and other needs that the PTA puts on and we still need volunteers to help out with these.  You can read more about these opportunities here.

As a volunteer at Columbia Elementary you will have various responsibilities, depending on the wishes of your teacher and the support needs of the PTA at our school.  It is also very important that you adhere to a few policies.

• Please always check in and out at the front desk so that the Administration knows who is in the building at all times.
• Please remember that school is in session during the day and that low voices and consideration must be used throughout the building.
• Before hanging anything on doors or walls you should always check with your teacher about placement. Low heat glue guns seem to work best and leave the least amount of residue on the walls.
• Volunteers should always be role models for children at Columbia Elementary in and out of our child’s classroom.
• Your help in the classroom is very much appreciated by our teachers. However, even a small interruption can be disruptive to the teacher’s tight schedule. Please contact your teacher to discuss a scheduled time that works best for your visits to the classroom. The best way to communicate with your teacher in between classroom visits is via e-mail. Note that occasionally the school systems spam filter will kick in and an email will not get through. You will also want to find out when their planning time is as that is likely the time that they will use to reply to your emails.
• Please check with your child’s teacher for any additional guidelines he or she might have for you.

As always, THANK YOU for volunteering at Columbia Elementary School!