From the desk of Cherie Swader
March 3, 2008

Dear DES Family and Friends,

The school year is going by very quickly and as we enter the last nine weeks, we need to continue our focus on student achievement. The students have achieved a great deal of success this year. The faculty and staff have worked very hard to focus on the needs of all students and to recognize, plan and implement instruction based on the Georgia Performance Standards and differentiated instruction. It has been a wonderful year of learning for all of us, but we don't want it to come to a halt here or even on May 23rd. We should never reach a point that we stop learning or that we think we know everything there is to know. It is important that as educators (teachers, parents, community leaders) that we stress the importance of learning. Grades (although controversial) are a way of measuring learning, but that is not the only measurement and we need to emphasize to our children the importance of learning for the sake of knowledge, not just the apparent grade reward.

The CRCT is one measure of student learning and although again a controversial gauge, it is mandated by the state to meet the No Child Left Behind directive. The grade level benchmarks (which you can access on the county webpage by clicking on departments, curriculum, and benchmarks) are aligned with the Georgia Performance Standards and the core subject domains on the CRCT. We don't want our focus of student learning to be the CRCT, but we also want parents to understand and realize the significance of the test and engage their assistance in the overall academic success of the children. There are many things that parents can do to support their child's educational adventure: reading with or to your child daily, working on basic math skills (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division), talking about current and historical events, visiting museums and cultural exhibits (many in our own community and region that are free), volunteering at the school, attending school activities (PTO, parent workshops, conferences), making sure children are at school, on time and stay the entire day. I believe that we all want our children to be academically successful, but there is more to it than just sending them to school. The road to student success is a collaborative effort on the part of all stakeholders. There are websites and other valuable resources that are available to parents/family members to help children prepare for the CRCT. Please contact one of our counselors or your child's teacher if you have questions about your child's academic progress or the CRCT. Talk with your children about setting short term and long term goals in relationship to their education. Even kindergarten and first grade students can set goals and you might be surprised how mature and realistic they are about their own expectations. Failure is not an option for any of our students at DES.

CRCT dates: April 21-25.

We will be having an EARLY RELEASE DAY for students on Thursday, March 20th. Students will be dismissed early and parents will be invited to schedule conferences with their child's teacher. You will be receiving more information and a sign-up form from your child's teacher (please check your child's planner/bookbag) for that information). The conferences will be scheduled from 1:00-7:00 (with a 4:30-5:00 dinner break for the teachers). This is a very important conference and we want to make sure that all of our parents have an opportunity to attend. Student report cards (for the 3rd nine weeks) will also be given out at that time. PARENTS - MAKE SURE YOU MAKE ARRANGEMENTS FOR YOUR CHILD WHO WILL BE RELEASED AT 1:00 ON THAT DAY - BUSSES AND CAR PICK UP.

We will be in school on Friday, March 28th - which was originally scheduled for a weather make-up day. I have not been notified concerning the make-up day for this past weeks weather related closing, but will notify you as soon as I am told.

Spring Break will be March 31st-April 4th.

March PTO - Tuesday, March 11th - 6:00pm - Third Grade Classes will present the program.

Thanks for all you do and remember - Our children are a reflection of our expectations, modeling, and attitudes. Handle them with love, care, and thoughtful discipline.

Cherie Swader
Principal
Dade Elementary School
"Hand In Hand - We Learn Together"