Notes from the Principal
Narragansett School
The school year is off to a great start. Thanks to the staff for their preparation of rooms and programs in anticipation of a new school year. We had our Open House on September 9th. Thanks to all who were able to attend.
The kids did a great job during the first days of school and the unseasonably hot weather! We are glad things have cooled off, and we did take additional steps during the heat to keep our students safe. Before you know it, we will be talking about winter weather, so please be certain you have returned all the student information including the Plan for an Unscheduled Early Dismissal that tells us what to do in such an emergency.
During the early days of the school year, teachers create a classroom "community" that includes expectations, responsibilities and helping students to feel a sense of belonging. Of course we use the Code of Conduct (Courage, Compassion, Respect, Responsibility and Honesty) as a basis for this work. We encourage you to promote these concepts at home as well.
During the weeks of September 12 ñ 24, students will take their fall assessments in K-2. We assess both reading and math skills. In kindergarten, they are referred to as DIBELS and CBM in first and second grades. These are fairly short assessments that give us ìone more pieceî of information about studentsà abilities. They will be assessed again in winter and at the end of the year. Results are shared with parents, and need to be considered along with other important indicators including daily work, teacher observations, and assessments that are a part of the reading and math programs. If you have questions about them, please contact your childÃs teacher. The results give us information about each student and about the classroom and grade level progress as well. We also look at patterns that
develop over time. Children at this age seldom need encouragement to ìdo their bestî, but at times may need to be reassured that these are opportunities to show us what they know and have not yet learned.
This year at Narragansett, we hope to try some new ideas with our parent group: Partners in Education (PIE). The first meeting will be Tuesday, Sept. 14 at 6:00 p.m. We encourage all parents to attend this meeting. We are not set up to provide child care, but that is something we could discuss as a future option. Hope to see you there.
HereÃs a quote to ponder, provided by Angela Schwindt (home school parent in Oregon) and is worth pondering. Hope you never lose the ability to see life their way!
"While we try to teach our children all about life,
Our children teach us what life is all about."
Brad Smith
Principal
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