Class Composition Procedure

It is the procedure of the school to compose the classes in kindergarten for the optimum balance of students with the information available to the school before kindergarten starts.

1. At the end of kindergarten the classes are mixed.
2. ​First and second grade, class composition and teacher assignment stays the same, barring extraordinary circumstances.*
3. At the end of second grade the students will be mixed again for third grade.
4. Third and fourth grade, class composition stays the same but teachers change, again, barring extraordinary circumstances.* Note - due to COVID-19 cohorting in the 2020-2021 school year, third grade class composition will not remain the same for 2021-2022 4th grade classes.
5. At the end of 4th and each year thereafter classes are mixed (some classes are based on electives).

​In composing the class lists, teachers in collaboration with administration take the following aspects into account:

• The needs of all students (including academic, social-emotional, and behavioral)
• Based on previous year teacher recommendation including IEP Team (including the information gleaned from parents)
• Balance of academic skills in German, reading, writing, and math
• Balance of special education students needs (special education teacher input)
• Balance of gender
• Balance of diversity / ethnicity
• Balance of students’ behavior needs

* Extraordinary circumstances include issues between a student and other student(s) and/or  teacher and student that cannot be resolved after 4-6 weeks of Tier 1 or Tier 2 interventions. Evidence that issues are not resolved are based on data from Tier 1 or Tier 2 interventions. A recommendation for a change of class must be made from a team that at minimum includes parent/guardian, homeroom teacher, member of the school-wide support team, and the student when developmentally appropriate.