W.E.stchester Weekly
News from the Principal
Greetings WE Families,
September is a wonderful time of year. The weather starts to cool. Students have truly settled into their learning routines. Fall Break is just around the corner.
The Infinite Campus Annual Update is an important step to ensuring that we have the most accurate and updated student information in Infinite Campus. Westchester is in the lead with parents who have completed this step. We need to wrap this up. If you have not completed the Annual Update, please do so before Fall Break. Infinite Campus will not be available during Fall Break due to maintenance services. Click on the Link above to follow the directions to complete this important parent responsibility.
A parent-teacher conference should be scheduled with your child's teacher. The purpose of the parent conference is to have a conversation regarding your student's growth. At the conference, teachers will discuss with parents scholarship-promoting behaviors and their child's social interactions with peers. In addition, they will discuss performance from universal screeners and other classroom assessments that have been administered. Research indicates that while report cards are designed to define the student's progress and provide information about the skills that the student has or has not acquired, grades, especially at the beginning of the school year, are often not detailed enough to give parents or the student a thorough understanding of what they have actually learned or how to improve specific academic skills or social areas. Parent-teacher conferences in the initial reporting window are a central component of our report card reform and our ongoing commitment to school-home partnerships and communication of student progress.
Mark your calendars for these upcoming events.
September 18th: Dine-out Community Que
September 17th: 4:30 SLT meeting
September 19th: Community Circle - All invited
September 22nd - 26th FALL BREAK
September 29th - October 10th: Parent-Teacher Conferences
From your very grateful principal,
Christine Knox
Important Information about Gifted Review
Each fall semester the gifted review team looks at existing student data to discuss students’ needs and determine if further evaluation for gifted identification is needed. If you are interested in having the team discuss your child’s needs, you may complete a Recommendation for Review Form (found at the website below) and turn it in to the Gifted & Talented Specialist at your child’s school before Wednesday, October 1. No additional information is needed. The Gifted & Talented Specialist for Westchester Elementary is Jennifer Querubin. For more detailed information about the review process and to obtain a copy of the Recommendation for Review Form, please contact the Gifted & Talented Specialist for your school at jquerubin@csdecatur.net or visit the following website: https://www.csdecatur.net/our-district-5f/departments/teaching-and-learning/gifted-and-talented-services
K-8 Students: Apply Today to Perform with Color Guard
Calling all K-8th graders: Come spin with the Bulldogs in a special pregame performance before a DHS home varsity football game on September 19. Register here.
Practice: Thursday, September 18, 6-7:30 p.m.
Practice and performance: Friday, September 19, 4:30-7:30 p.m.
Reminders
School Lunch Policy: Please be sure to maintain a positive lunch balance for your child. This will help us avoid any unexpected lunch changes for students. Check your Parent Portal frequently to make sure your child has adequate funds for the cafeteria. You may also find the Parent Portal app (for Apple or Android) to be more convenient.
