Students are allowed to retake 2 assessments per subject per semester.  Please see the documents below for a more detailed explanation of our Assessment Retake policy and procedure, as well as the Retake ticket that students are to use.  

1. Doctor or hospital note.
2. Court or government mandated papers.
3. Funeral brochures or programs.
   
   Excused documentation should be submitted to the attendance office within two (2) days of return to school. Failure to do so may result in the absence or tardy being considered unexcused.

The state of Georgia will accept 9 reasons for a student to be considered excused from a school absence or tardy.

1. Personal illness jeopardizes personal health or health of others
2. Doctor/Dentist/other healthcare professional
3. Serious illness or death in immediate family.
4. Religious holiday.
5. Student under orders from a government agency.
6. Voter registration (18 years or older) or voting.
7. Conditions rendering school attendance impossible or hazardous to student’s health or safety.
8. Tests and physical exams for military service including National Guard.
9. A student misses school days to spend time with active duty combat-zoned parent(s) who are about to leave for overseas deployment or who are between military deployments.
   
   Whenever possible, attach a copy of the formal documentation such as a doctor’s note.

Students have two days after returning to school to provide an excuse note.

Please click on this link for Cooper Elementary's Attendance Note that parents may use to document absences.

We're so excited to celebrate birthdays at Cooper!  You may send in or drop off at the front office individually wrapped treats or cupcakes to help celebrate your child's birthday.  Ice cream treats bought for the class in the cafeteria is a great idea as well!  It's at teacher discretion when birthday treats are shared with the class, but most treats are shared at lunch time.  Feel free to eat lunch with your child on their special day to help pass out treats as well.  Please do not bring or send flower or balloon bouquets as we are unable to deliver those to students.  If your child has a birthday on a non-school day (or over a long break), feel free to reach out to your child's teacher to celebrate on a different day.  

School Hours

8:20 a.m.: The bell rings to begin the arrival process.  

8:50 a.m.: The bell rings to signal the start of the school day, and students who arrive after this bell are considered tardy and need to be checked into the Front Office.  

3:20 p.m.: The bell rings to signal the end of the school day and the start of our dismissal procedures. 

We understand that it may be necessary during the school year to check in or check out your child during the normal school hours.  If your child arrives to school after the tardy bell at 8:50, you will need to park and walk your child into the Front Office to check your child in.  

If a child is out of school for more than half a day (Cooper's half day starts at 11:45 a.m.), the child will be counted as absent for the day.  

If it becomes necessary to pick up students before the end of the school day, please go to the Front Office to check your chid out.  The child will be paged to come to the office while the parent signs the child out on the computer in the office. Be prepared to show picture identification such as a driver’s license. Children cannot be released to adults other than parents without permission of the parents. Parents should not make it a daily occurrence to come into the school to check out their child at the end of the day to avoid the car rider pick-up lane. No child will be checked out in the front office between 3:00 and 3:30 P.M. due to the staff’s involvement in afternoon bus call and other office responsibilities.

If a parent wishes to observe in a classroom, the first step is to contact the principal, Mr. Willis.  He will coordinate the visit with the classroom teacher to find a time when a lesson is typically being taught, avoiding tests and non-academic activities.    Typically the observation lasts for half an hour and ends with a VERY brief converation with the teacher to see if what was observed was typical or not.  

Please see the file below to learn more about Cooper Elementary's school-wide grade policy.  

Cooper Elementary happily provides duty free lunch for our teachers.  We have several lunchroom monitors who supervise the students during our lunch times.  We fund our lunch monitors through ice cream sales.  Ice cream is sold daily for $1.00 each, and students may purchase an ice cream treat ten minutes before their lunch time is over.  You may wish to buy ice cream for the whole class as a special birthday celebration!  

We would love to have you come in and enjoy lunch with your child!  Please read the school policy for lunch visits below.  

School Policy for Lunch Room Visits

Many parents value the opportunity to have lunch with their child during the school day. A parent, guardian, or grandparent may visit their child in the cafeteria during the lunch period provided the following procedure is followed. These guidelines are intended to provide a safe and positive lunch experience for all children in the school. Parents/guardians are required to report to the main office to sign-in. State issued photo identification is required.

Lunch Guest Procedures:

1. Only your child will be allowed to eat lunch with you. Adults visiting for lunch must be listed on the student emergency card and it must be indicated that contact is allowed at school.
2. You may purchase the school lunch or bring one from home. Children may not share food or purchase food for another child. Bringing in restaurant food is discouraged.
3. The visitor’s badge given to you by the office staff when you check-in must be worn on your shirt and must be clearly visible by lunch monitors.
4. The lunchroom visit must take place during the child’s regularly scheduled lunch time.
5. The lunchroom visitor needs to sit at the designated parent tables inside the lunchroom.
6. The student is required to follow all cafeteria procedures including sitting in their own seat, not on a parent’s lap, and remaining seated during the visit.
7. Visitors will not be allowed to remain in the cafeteria for extended lunch time. Children being visited need to return to the classroom when the teacher picks up the class.
8. The visitor is not allowed to take pictures, video, or make audio recordings during the visit that include children other than their own.
9. Any questions or concerns must be directed to the principal or assistant principal. The visitor must not direct concerns to the staff or monitors as these employees are focused on student safety and monitoring.
10. Lunchroom visitors may not visit other areas of the campus without prior approval.

There are several things that parents may want to send money in for field trips, yearbooks, and many other things.  Unless otherwise noted, Cooper Elementary accepts most payments through My Payments Plus.  

Click here for the link to My Payments Plus

Gwinnett County Public Schools has student requirements that must be at met at each grade level for the student to be promoted to the next grade.  

Click here for Gwinnett County Public Schools' K-5 Promotion Requirements.

We are excited to have you as a Tiger at Cooper Elementary!  Please click on the link below to be taken to Cooper Elementary's Registration page, which will have all the information you need to register at Cooper Elementary.  If you have any questions about registration, please contact Michele Bearden or Rene Palenzuela, at 770-554-7050.  

Click here to open Cooper Elementary's Registration page

The link below will take you to Gwinnett County Public Schools' school calendar for the current school year.  

Click here to view Gwinnett County Public Schools calendar.

For important dates specific to Cooper Elementary, please check out the "Upcoming Events" section and "Calendar" link on our homepage.  

Sometimes unusual weather may cause the school to be closed. School closings are determined by the Gwinnett County School Administrative Offices and not by Cooper Elementary. Announcements of closings will be broadcast via local news media and Gwinnett County Public Schools' website. The basic premise to observe is that the school IS open unless it is specifically announced otherwise. The official radio station for the school closing announcements is WSB AM 750. Please do not call Cooper Elementary as the school needs to be in touch with the Administrative Offices regarding emergency announcements.

Specials Schedule

Please contact your child's teacher for the most current specials schedule.  

Please click here to view the Cooper Elementary Student Handbook.

Transportation Information

Any transportation changes need to be communicated by the parent or guardian to the teacher as soon as possible.  Students will dismiss from school in their normal way UNLESS a change has been communicated to the teacher in writing.  Teachers are often unable to check email or Dojo messages during the school day, so please take that into account when communicating transportation changes.  

Transportation tags are provided for students at the start of the school year.  The tag should be the main way the child dismisses in the afternoon.  If a child rides the bus 4 days and is car rider for 1 day, the student will have a bus tag and will need a note for the car rider day.  If a child's main way of dismissing changes during the school year, please let the Front Office know, and they will get the appropriate tag to the child.  

Car Rider Information

Our staff does a fantastic job of getting many vehicles through the Car Rider line as quickly as possible.  For the safety of our staff and students, please refrain from being on your cell phones and follow the directions of our staff. 

The Car Rider line closes at 8:47 a.m. This allows students to be in their classrooms before the tardy bell rings at 8:50 am.  If you arrive after the Car Rider line has closed, please continue on to the Front Office and check your child in.  

If you are going to pick your child up through the Car Rider line in the afternoon, please make sure you have a Car Rider tag to hang from your rearview mirror and that your child knows his/her car rider number. 

Bus Rider Information

Many of our students ride the bus to and from school on a daily basis.  Our bus drivers do an amazing job of ensuring student safety during those transportation times.  Students are expected to follow all bus rules.  If a student misbehaves on the bus, the driver will contact the parents and fill out a bus discipline referral form.  The bus driver will turn in the referral form to the school, and a Cooper administrator will contact the parents about the consequence.   

Click here for more information about Gwinnett County Public Schools' Bus Transportation program

Click here for Frequently Asked Questions about Bus Transportation