Dear Parents and Students,

Welcome to our newly established Folsom Chinese School (FCS)!  In this first edition of our FCS Newsletter, we’ll answer your most frequently asked questions. We will also list our PTO volunteer tasks for you to sign up. This edition also introduces our campus rules to protect your safety and keeping FCS a clean study environment.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q.  How much are the tuitions?

The tuition fee for each semester is $150 for 15 weeks (FCS follows the Folsom Cordova School District school calendar). Additional children from the same family registered for the same semester will receive a $10 discount. FCS does not charge a registration fee.

Q. Why adopt Ni Hao? The textbook and workbook cost money.

Ni Hao is designed in two writing versions - Traditional and Simplified, which meets all students’ and parents’ need. The content includes both areas of the Chinese Language and Culture. The contents and themes in the books are more applicable to our daily life in the United States. Plus, many schools in the U.S. have adopted Ni Hao. One of FCS goals is to help academic oriented students prepare to continue their learning Chinese in the high schools/colleges, and possibly take the SAT II Chinese and AP Chinese tests into their consideration.

Our teachers not only use Ni Hao, but will also include other supplements in their teaching in order to meet the requirements of the four areas (listening, speaking, reading and writing). Therefore, currently we plan to use one book for each of three semesters. In other words, you only have to purchase one textbook and one workbook for the use of three semesters. We will take care of the rest of the supplies.

Q. How much are the books?

Please refer to Textbook page for detail.

Q. How does the tuition fee work for the first FCS semester starting on April 14th, 2005?

Full tuition is required upon registration. The remaining tuition fee will be credited toward their August 2005 semester registration.

Q. Can I get a refund if my child no longer wants to attend FCS?

A student is allowed a 2-week grace period for class trial. Within the grace period and a written notice, refunds are provided deducting a $20 processing fee. No fees will be refunded after the third week of attending FCS.

Q. Can I register my child in the middle of the semester?

Only transfer students are accepted during the middle of the school semesters. A placement test will be given to the student for the appropriated class level enrollment.

Q. If my child is enrolled in Kindergarten or First Grade on April 15th, 2005, will he be attending the same grade level when he comes back the next semester in August 2005?

Due to the school rental agreement with Folsom Middle School, FCS will follow Folsom Cordova Unified School District (FCUSD) instructional calendar. The school year starts in August and ends in June. Therefore, the curriculum of each grade level is designed for 30 weeks. This exploration session from 4/15/05 to 5/27/05 has only seven weeks.  In the seven weeks, students and parents will have the opportunity to get to know our school, staff, and teachers.

Teachers obviously won’t be able to finish their one-year curriculum in seven weeks. On the contrary, teachers will have the opportunity to incorporate more supplements and help students to build up their foundation and get ready for the coming school year. Therefore, students will continue the same grade level next school year. However, after this exploration session, some students may be replaced to a different class based on the teacher’s recommendation, or the parent can request a placement test.

Q. Will FCS has classes on June 3^rd?  Folsom Cordova School District finishes school on June 2^nd.

Our last class will be on May 27^th. No class on June 23^rd.

Q. Who should I contact for additional questions?

You may call or e-mail our FCS board members as listed below.

We need volunteers!!!

You have taken the first step in signing up your children for attending FCS.  To enrich our school programs and provide some help to our teachers, we need your volunteer work and support. We have identified the following volunteer tasks, and our goal is to have one parent from each family participate in one of these chores to help our children and our school succeed.

Classroom:

·        Room parent – 1 per classroom

·        Classroom setup/cleanup – 2 per classroom, rotate weekly

·        Copier - 2 per classroom

Campus

·        School Monitor – 4 per week

Office:

·        Advertisements for annual FCS Student Directory – All

·        Proofreaders / Editor for annual FCS directory – 2

·        Student columns – 2 per semester

·        News letter and announcements – 2, whenever needed

·        FCS project/activity helper – 6

 

Please sign up at the FCS PTO at the registration desk!  Your participation will make a BIG difference!

FCS Campus Rules

·        For insurance liability reasons, only registered students can sit in for the classes

·        For safety reasons, parents are responsible for their unregistered children

·        No food or drinks are allowed inside the classrooms

·        Do not litter on campus

·        Do not turn on or use the classroom computer equipment

·        Return chairs and desks to their original positions after use

·        No balls, roller-skate, roller blade, or skateboard allowed on campus

 

Next issue of FCS newsletter

·        Additional classes offered

·        Up coming social activities and more…