Introduction

Congratulations on your new position! I believe without a doubt that you will find teaching at Zionsville Middle School to be the most rewarding professional opportunity you will ever have. I also believe that this position will be the most challenging you will ever experience. The text on the following pages is intended to help you navigate this new challenge, acclimate you to this new environment, familiarize you with the expectations of a teacher at ZMS, and assist you in providing the best experience possible for the children whom you are charged to educate. Each section of this text is intended to serve as a topic for discussion at one of our meetings. More importantly, this information is intended to assist you in formulating your philosophies and practices in your craft. I ask you to read it prior to the school year, and re-read it throughout the year as your experience at ZMS provides new context. I would also like to stress that, although these topics are basic and fundamental, we do not feel that our new teachers at ZMS come to us unprepared. You were hired because we believe that you are excellent, you are a leader, and we trust you with this community’s most precious commodity: its children. I do not expect new teachers to attempt to assimilate – ZMS teachers all have individual talents and practices which make the whole stronger and more unique. Share your thoughts with us. Create new activities, the likes of which we have never seen. Dream. Push us to become better. Be dynamic. And while you are being and doing all of these things, make sure you are pointed in the same direction as the rest of us. I encourage you to use these pages, ZCS curriculum, the Indiana State Standards, and the ZMS mission (printed below) as your compass. = ZMS: Continuing the Tradition of Excellence = Each day students and staff unite with the common objective to achieve higher levels of personal growth through dynamic learning experiences. Live together, learn together, ZMS!
 * Introduction: **