Dear Gilbert Heights Parents, Students, and Families,

Welcome back from Winter Break! I hope that you had a chance to enjoy your family time and come back to us refreshed and ready for 2013! As we start the new year, I hope that you will join me in being a partner to support your students in their personal and academic development. A major indicator of student success is student attendance. This continues to be a priority here at Gilbert Heights. Please limit student appointments during the school day and try to schedule family vacations during natural school breaks. This practice will instill great habits in your students and allow your chid to be present for important instruction.

ATTENDANCE & TARDY SUPPORT
We plan to continue the renewed emphasis we placed on tracking students who had significant absence and tardy rates. We will continue to send letters and make phone calls to follow up on attendance issues. We realize many absences cannot be avoided. However, we continue to have students miss school for a variety of reasons we believe we can solve if we work together. Almost all students with poor attendance are also well behind their grade level peers in academic performance. We know we can help reverse this trend. This year, students will not be released from school early unless it is an emergency. This is hard on the child and disruptive to the class. Thanks!

There are many changes here at Gilbert Heights, but I know that for many of us the biggest change is in our main office. Please join me in welcoming Julie Keim as our new head secretary. Kathy Ayers has retired and is looking forward to beginning her new adventure as a grandmother! We will miss Kathy, but look forward to getting to know Julie!

Another change is in our library. Mrs. Darla Black has taken the job vacated by Mrs. Keim at Gilbert Park. She started her new job today and we will miss her very much. Mrs. Black has been a fixture at Gilbert Heights for many years and we will miss her smile in the library and out front after school. Good luck Darla!

Please remember that we at Gilbert Heights count it a privilege to educate and care for your children. We believe each child will find success as we work together with you.

Looking forward with you to the spring,

Cherie-Anne May – Principal

“I want a Facebook!” If you have not heard these words from your child yet, get ready because chances are that you will. However, no matter how ready you are the real question is, “Is my child ready for Facebook, Instagram or other social media?” Instant communication, written words and opinions that can’t be taken back, pictures that, once posted, are in cyberspace for all of eternity, “friends” who they may have never met in real life and who may or may not be who they really claim to be. All of this, on their phones or computers, happening at Internet speed that is hard for us, as parents, to monitor.

There is a one-time $20 supply fee per child. This fee is for consumable supplies that will be used throughout the year. It replaces the usual supply list.

Please DO NOT purchase any supplies or send any supplies from home. Your child’s teacher will purchase supplies over the summer. This fee is NOT optional.

A community supply method will be used. There are many benefits to this method for the parent, child, and classroom teacher. It will save parents money because we are able to buy in bulk, allowing us to purchase a larger variety and better quality of supplies. Students feel more equality because all supplies are the same color, style, size, etc. Students also learn many social skills from sharing supplies. By purchasing supplies over the summer, our classrooms are set up and ready for the first day of school with the supplies that are needed.

Please send the supply fee with your child on the first day of school. It is helpful to put it in an envelope with your child’s first and last name on the front.

If there are circumstances that create a hardship in paying the fee, please see your child's counselor or principal.