EC Principal Letter
Dear ANCS Elementary Families,
I want to acknowledge and honor the victims of the Florida shooting that took place over the weekend. I am deeply saddened and angry that events like this and such deep hatred continue to take place in our country at what seems like an almost daily rate. Here 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.
Interestingly, we are discussing our fourth guiding principle this week: We work to resolve conflict in a thoughtful, peaceful, meaningful way. We explain that conflict is normal and that we all experience it at some point. It is how we handle conflict that makes the difference. This week I highlighted the word work in this guiding principle. Resolving conflict takes work on all parties involved. We must be willing to take responsibility for our part, be willing to engage in dialogue and see other’s perspectives. What would happen if we could all commit to resolving conflict in a peaceful, thoughtful, meaningful way?
On a different note, we are looking forward to our curriculum night this evening. Please remember that our after school program closes at 4:00 and the first curriculum night session begins at 4:15. It will be held in the auditorium. This first session provides all families the ability to meet the related arts teachers, support teachers, instructional technology teacher, our DE&I coordinators and school counselor. You will learn more about the important role they play here at school and how they support the growth and development of all of our students. The first classroom session begins at 5:00 and runs through 5:40. The next and last session of the evening is from 5:45 to 6:30. You only need to attend one classroom session for your child. We look forward to seeing you this evening.
Monday is Labor Day and the school will be closed on this day. On Tuesday, September 5th students will have an asynchronous day of school, in which they will stay home while they do school work (the building will be closed to students). This will be a teacher work day during which employees will be spending time in the morning meeting as a full K-8 faculty and staff and focusing on how we are moving our DE&I goals forward. The remainder of the day is reserved for planning, grading, meeting with teaching partners, and preparing for our upcoming parent teacher conference window, which begins on September 13th. Teachers will be providing work for students to do that is meaningful, but also work that students can do mostly independently. Look for a work plan to come home before the Labor Day weekend. Please reach out to your child’s teachers if you have any questions.
As always, I am happy to answer any questions you may have. I hope you have a peaceful remainder of your week.
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.
