Letter from the MC Principal

Hello MC families,

The pep rally was a great way to end the week this past Friday. Our Assistant Principal Dr. Woody-Wideman arranged for a portion of the Maynard Jackson Marching Band and the dance team to perform as a part of the pep rally. We were able to recognize our five fall sports and our various student clubs and organizations (We have FIFTEEN!). There were lots of children within our school community that got a chance to stand up, be recognized, and receive a round of applause and that doesn’t happen everywhere. It was great to see the smiling faces of the children and the smiling faces of the adults last week. I am grateful for the extracurricular opportunities that our club sponsors and coaches lead for our kids. This work truly enriches our school.

The book fair is back for the first time in a long time. We are working with Little Shop of Stories once again to provide an opportunity for students to purchase some of their favorite titles. There are books for a wide range of readers and reading levels, even adults. Students can go to the book fair before school or during recess this week. It will also be available during Grandparents and Special Friends Day on Friday.

Speaking of Grandparents and Special Friends day, as a reminder, on Grandparents and Special Friends Day students are able to invite grandparents or special friends (aunts, uncles, family friends, etc. but not parents – this event is for those other family members and special friends) to come to the school to spend some time in their Advisory and tour the building (including visiting the farm and the Media Center for the book fair). RSVP’s are now closed. For those that have RSVP’d, if you have visitors that are coming on Friday and they are planning to take your student with them early when our Grandparents and Special Friends Day activities are over – you must email your student’s Advisor so that we know that they have your permission to check your student out early.

Finally, next week Halloween falls on a Tuesday. As a school K-8, in an effort to keep the week calm and focused on learning we do not have Halloween parties and we do not pass out candy. We also ask that our students do NOT bring in candy from their trick-or-treating. While we want to manage student’s energy, we also acknowledge that not all of our students enjoy and/or participate in Halloween festivities. The one place where we differ across campuses is that at the Middle Campus we allow students to wear costumes. Costumes must meet the school dress code, must be school appropriate, and students can’t wear masks or have make-up with fake blood. We need to be able to see students’ faces throughout the day, and we also need to make sure that we know if students are ACTUALLY hurt, so no fake blood. This has been our approach to Halloween over the years and students still have plenty of fun enjoying time with their peers and planning their trick-or-treating plans if they have them.

As always if you have any questions please feel free to reach out.

Regards,

Mark

Mark Sanders

Mark Sanders began teaching at ANCS in 2011. Before coming to the school, Mr. Sanders worked in New York City. He spent three years teaching 7th and 8th grade mathematics at Middle School 50 in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and two years at Harlem Village Academies teaching Geometry and Algebra 2/Trigonometry. He taught 8th grade Math/Science/Technology at ANCS for five years.