Volume 12-13
Final Issue! #37
Dear Calais Families,
What a year it’s been! From recess to special events to reading with students I’ve greatly enjoyed my first year here at CES. Thank you, once again, for the warm welcome and support you’ve provided throughout the year. We have a true learning community here and that wouldn’t be possible without our great parents and families.
While many great events – Bring a Neighbor to Lunch, Gifts for Giving, and Pi Night, to name a few – are behind us, we have a few more big ones next week. On Monday, unless it is thundering or there is lightning, we will at last have Mr. Fish’s Famous Field Day! Please remember to bring your bathing suits or a change of clothes to be ready for the slip and slide. On Wednesday morning, we will have our Step-Up Day. Students will spend about 45 minutes in their new classrooms. The 2013-2014 5/6-ers will stick together as class placements will not be announced until report cards are sent home at the very end of the year. Finally, on Thursday morning, we will hand out yearbooks, enjoy the annual slideshow at 11:30, and, of course, handout birthday pencils to all our students and staff members born in June, July, and August.
Before everyone disperses for restful, rejuvenating, and family-filled summers, I’d like to make one last pitch for summer reading. All students have worked very hard this year in reading – 100% of students met the end-of-year grade level expectation or grew by 1.5 or more grade levels! This is amazing progress and the students’ and staff members’ hard work should be commended. We want to be sure that all students return to school with the very same reading skills and ready to have another great year. I can’t wait to hear what students have learned from cereal boxes, newspapers, road signs, and regular old books when they return in August!
I’d like to flag a few things that will be new or a bit different in 2013-2014. First, federal regulations and increasing costs in food mean that we will need to increase lunch and breakfast prices for next year. Beginning in August 2013, student lunches will cost $2.75 and student breakfasts will cost $1.75. We will continue to operate on a debit system – meals are to be prepaid. The Free and Reduced Price Meals program will continue.
Also new in 2013-2014 is a behavior support system called PBIS (Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports). This program provides a general framework for school teams to design a system that focuses on teaching expected behavior, reinforcing positive behavior, and using data to make decisions about how to meet the behavioral needs of all students. For students, the truly noticeable change will be working together to earn a school-wide celebration every few months.
Thank you again for an amazing year! I hope everyone has a wonderful summer full of exciting adventures and peaceful moments.
Take care and we’ll see you in August!
Marissa
