EC Principal Letter

Dear ANCS elementary families,

Before I get into my regular courier, I want to acknowledge that at this time last year I was sharing my sadness and frustration about the shooting in Florida, and now here we are with another mass shooting that took place here, at a school, in Georgia. At the elementary campus we do not bring events such as this up during our school-wide morning meetings, nor do we plan lessons for the classrooms due to the young age and varied experiences of our students. However, when students bring them up (and they often do), our teachers are skilled at leading the class in age-appropriate conversations and will often encourage students to turn to their parents/guardians for further understanding. Please reach out if you have any questions about how we manage school safety.

If you haven’t already, you will soon be receiving communication from your child’s teachers regarding signing up for a conference time. Our fall conference window opens on September 16th. Make sure you sign up for a time, as this conference is a mandatory part of our reporting system, but more importantly, it is one of the best ways to support our home-school partnership. The purpose of this first conference is to mainly focus on social/emotional aspects of your child’s year so far. Additionally, MAP scores will be discussed and a conference guide will be shared with you. We look forward to seeing you all (in person or virtually) over the next several weeks. 

As you prepare for your conference, I would like to offer some suggestions for you to consider that may enhance the experience and assure you gain the information you desire.  

• Be on time for your conference. Teachers have very full conference schedules, often fitting them in during the school day. Thirty minutes is usually the time allotted for each conference. Please let teachers know as soon as possible if your schedule changes and you are unable to make your scheduled time.
• Talk with your child before the conference. You will receive a student reflection during the conference, but it can be helpful to get a sense of how your child feels about his/her own progress so far this school year. Of course, we encourage you to have conversations regularly with your child about school. You can ask questions such as, “ What has been challenging so far this school year?” or “What do you think you need to focus on more as the year continues?” Your child’s responses can add a lot to the conference dialogue.  
• Take notes during the conference. In addition to having a copy of the conference guide, taking notes will help you have a follow-up conversation with your child and/or a family member that was unable to make it to the conference.  
• Ask questions and share information. If you have specific questions regarding your child’s academic or social growth, please ask them.  It can be helpful to email questions to the teachers ahead of time to assure specific information is readily available to address them.  Similarly, because teachers need your help and input, it is helpful to hear your observations and experiences, as they will enrich the teachers’ understanding of your child and provide them with more strategies to support him/her/them at school.
• Request additional staff be present if you wish. We work hard to ensure that special education and academic assistance teachers are available to attend the conferences of the students they serve. If you would like anyone else to attend your conference, please let the teachers know that as soon as possible so schedules are more likely to be coordinated.
• Ask clarifying questions. We all have your child’s best interest at heart, but the language of education can sometimes be confusing. If you are unclear about what is being shared, ask for additional information or clarification. If you get home and realize you forgot to ask something, just contact the teachers, they will be happy to clarify any information. 

We hope that each of you will leave your conference informed and confident about your child’s classroom and school experience thus far.  As always, I am happy to answer any questions you have.

I am wishing you well,

Lara 

Lara Zelski

Lara Zelski began working at ANCS in 2007. Previously, she worked at the Howard School and taught art, Spanish, reading and math. She taught 6th, 4th, and 2nd in DeKalb County. She taught 4th and 5th grade in Decatur and then moved to Title One reading and math instruction for 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. She taught 5th grade at the ANCS elementary campus for two years.