Dear Families,
Students have been earning HEARTS left and right! We have had two mornings when classes added their HEARTS to the HEART Monitor. We add HEARTS on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 8:15am. If you are ever in the building during that time, please come and join us. It is a fantastic experience. Classes come out and line the hallway cheering for the students as they add their HEARTS to the monitor.
Schools that reach out to families and build strong family-school relationships have been found to have a positive impact on students. At JFK, we want to partner with our families so that our students can be successful. There are a few ways that this partnership can be strengthened:
- PTO – our PTO meets (typically) the 3rd Wednesday of every month at 5:30 in the library. Anyone who has a student in the school can, and is encouraged to attend these meetings. Our PTO is a fantastic organization that supports our students by funding dances, the fun fair, end of year field trips, scholarships for seniors, prom, yearbooks, potluck dinners, and other projects for the school and students. They are a vital organization and they are always looking for more people to attend meetings!
- Classroom Volunteers – We always welcome family members that want to volunteer in their student(s) classrooms. If you are interested, please contact your student’s teacher and let them know. Volunteering can mean during the day, but it could also mean outside of school hours volunteering to help organize things, label books, or even helping teachers prepare for a project.
- JFK Leadership Team – JFK has had a leadership team for four years. This team meets twice a month with representation from each grade cluster/department within the school. We are looking for family members to join us for one meeting a month and/or consult as needed. For more detailed information take a look at the information attached to this letter, and linked HERE. Once you read those, if you are interested in being part of the JFK Leadership team, please fill out this survey. Feel free to email me if you would like the survey link sent directly to you, or you would like a paper copy.
- Every classroom starts the day with a morning meeting, and ends the day with a closing circle. During the fall, all classrooms invite families into school to join them for a morning meeting. In the spring, every classroom invites families to join a closing circle. Attending these gives families a glimpse into their student’s day. This glimpse can help you start conversations at home about how their day was. Often families ask their students about their day, how it was and what they did, and they get simple one word responses. If you can attend a morning meeting and/or closing circle that can give you information to ask more specific questions to get more information from your student about what happened during their day at school. If you do not know when your student’s family morning meeting is, please contact your student’s teacher.
- Each week, I send home this letter. In addition, every classroom teacher communicates with families weekly through a newsletter, blog, or email. Reading these communications gives you information about what is happening during the day, and can be a great way to start a conversation with your student about school. If you do not know how your student’s teacher communicates, please contact them directly and ask.
- We have parent teacher conferences twice a year. These conferences give families 1:1 time with the classroom teacher to talk about how their student is doing. All of our UA teachers are also in the building during parent teacher conferences. Families are encouraged to go see the music, PE, Art, and Guidance teachers before or after your classroom conference so that you can get the full picture of how your student is doing. Conference this school year are November 21st and 22nd, and April 9th and 10th. More information will come home as they get closer.
- Our Winter Concert is, by far, our most well attended event during the school year. Each December, our entire JFK school comes together to perform for our families and community. This year our Winter Concert is December 12th. We highly encourage all of our families to attend.
We work hard to engage with our families. If you have an idea about to strengthen the home/school connection, please reach out to me. I am always interested in new ideas!
Monday, September 16th, is picture day. All students were given picture day packets either Thursday or today. If you did not get a packet, please search your child’s backpack. If you still cannot find it, please reach out to your student’s teacher to ask for another one.
Last week, everyone was given a 1st day packet. It is vital that we have updated information for each student, field trip forms, etc. The information asked for in that paperwork ensures that we can get in touch with you when needed, and that you get the automated calls about things going on at school, including snow days. If you have not completed and returned your student’s first day packet, please do so asap.
Have a fantastic weekend!
Sara Raabe
JFK Principal
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Upcoming Important Dates:
Monday, September 16th: Picture Day
Wednesday, September 18th: Early Dismissal at 12:15, PTO Meeting at 5:30pm
Friday, September 27th: All School Morning Meeting
Family Participation in JFK Leadership
JFK has a leadership team that meets twice a month. The Leadership Team is a group that works on the systems within our PBiS framework. It’s a decision making committee that looks at the systems within the school and making choices about what is working, what needs to change, and what needs to be added or replaced. These decisions are made through conversations around data, professional development and team discussions.
Current Representation:
- 2 teachers from each K-2 and 3-5
- 1 teacher from Special Education
- 1 teacher from ELL
- 1 UA teacher
- 1 guidance counselor
- 2 administrators
- 1 Behavior Coach
For the 2019-20 school year, we would like to get family involvement in our universal tier leadership meetings. These meetings happen one Tuesday a month, 3:15 – 4:15 pm.
Role and Expectations:
- Completion of delegated tasks outside of meeting times
- A positive and engaged attitude
- The ability to listen non-judgmentally and support the process of change
- Explain, clarify, and uphold leadership plans maintaining trust and valuing feelings
- Help create annual climate survey for families, staff, and students
- Liaison with other families to share Leadership Team work and gather input from the community.
The JFK Leadership team is interested in exploring options for family involvement including:
- Consistent family representation at each monthly meeting
- A rotating schedule of family participation in monthly meetings
- Family input through review of documents, etc outside of meeting times
The meeting dates for the 2019-20 school year are:
October 15th, November 5th, December 3rd, January 7th, February 4th, March 10th, April 7th, May 5th, and June 2nd. Please fill out this survey to let the leadership team know what your level of interest in being part of the JFK Leadership Team. Please let the office know if you need a paper copy.