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I hope everyone enjoyed the four-day weekend last week. As you may have read, the days were used for professional development; specifically, all Academy faculty attended the annual Independent Schools Association of the Central States (ISACS) teacher conference that was held this year in Columbus. ISACS includes independent schools from a vast geographical area – as far west as Missouri, as far north as Michigan and Minnesota, as far east as Ohio, and as far south as Tennessee. Each year ISACS hosts an annual conference, and this year there were over 1,500 educators present to attend a wide array of sessions over two full days. It was an excellent conference for all of us to attend and learn.
Lower School Parent Coffees
Thank you to those parents who joined us Thursday for our Parent Coffee about 95 Phonics Core, a new addition to our reading program. We invite parents to join us for our next Parent Coffee on December 12 that will be about our lower school physical education and swimming programs. We will meet at 8:30 a.m. in our dining hall (fireside).
Carline…Two Tips
- As the weather gets colder, one easy way to help speed up the morning carline is to make sure your children’s coats are already on as you approach the sidewalk and that their backpacks are zipped closed and they are ready to get out of the car when the door is opened for them.
- Please always have your name placards clearly visible during the afternoon carline from start to finish. We have lots of different people supporting carline, and they do not know all 518 lower school students and cars, so it helps expedite the process when they can see the placard on the passenger front visor.
Parent Book Club
Our next book is entitled “Never Enough” by journalist Jennifer Breheny Wallace. The book was just published this fall. From the book jacket: “Today’s children and teens are under increasing pressure to excel in all areas of their young lives – academic, athletics and extracurricular activities – often at a steep cost to their mental health. In Never Enough, acclaimed journalist Jennifer Breheny Wallace takes readers on a journey into the heart of toxic achievement culture and offers practical, actionable solutions for families, schools and communities.” We will discuss the first half (chapters 1-4) on Thursday, December 14, from 8:15-9:15 a.m. in our dining hall (fireside). If interested, please use this form to help us in our planning.
Dress Code Is Changing After Thanksgiving
Please remember that when we return from our Thanksgiving break, students may no longer wear shorts through Spring Break. All students should now bring a jacket and gloves to school each day. Unless it is 15 degrees or colder (temperature or wind chill), students go outside for recess so plan accordingly. Please refer to our dress code if you have further questions.
Parenting Article
This week’s parenting article is from The New York Times and is entitled “I Was Trying to Build My Son’s Resilience, Not Scar Him For Life.” It can be found by clicking here.
Upcoming Events
- November 20-24: Thanksgiving Break (School Closed)
- November 27: School Resumes
- December 12: Parent Coffee – LS Physical Education and Swimming Programs
- December 14: Parent Book Club (see details above)
- December 14: Fourth Grade Musical
- December 19: LS Orchestra Concert
- December 22: LS Winter Closing Concert at 2:00 p.m. (dismissal for winter break is in the classrooms after the program)
- December 23-January 7: Winter Break – School Resumes on January 8
Warm Regards,
Mark L. Hansen
Head of Lower School
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