The Bulldog, October 2, 2025

Note from Mrs. Lockwood:

Welcome back! I hope everyone had a wonderful Fall Break. The weather is cooler and the leaves are changing; fall is finally here!

Parent-teacher conferences began this week. This is a great opportunity to meet with your child's teacher to understand their strengths and areas for growth. If you need to schedule a conference, please reach out to your homeroom teacher as soon as possible.

October marks the official start of fall and one of our longest stretches of school days. We know this season can bring challenges to keeping up strong attendance, but every day matters for our students' growth and success. That's why I’m excited to launch a school-wide attendance recognition campaign! Throughout the month, you'll see opportunities to celebrate students and classes who are showing up every day ready to learn. With your partnership, we can reach our goal of 100% daily attendance—because when students are here, they thrive!

Tomorrow is our first Walk & Roll of the school year! Also, we kick off School Crew with our Clairemont students and staff only. Please join us for Community Crew on Friday, October 10. We will announce the Walk & Roll class winner!

I want to share an update regarding the background check payment. Rather than making checks payable to Clairemont Elementary School, please make checks payable to City Schools of Decatur.

Events at a glance:

• Friday, October 3: Walk and Roll and School Crew
• Friday, October 3: DHS Homecoming parade and game
• Friday, October 10: Community Crew
• Saturday, October 11: Read-a-thon starts
• Monday, October 13 - Friday, October 17: Book Fair
• Tuesday, October 14: Family Literacy Night and Book Fair; 5:30-7:00
• Wednesday, October 15: PTA Meeting; 5:30
• Thursday, October 16: Picture Make-Ups
• Thursday, October 16: Family Fall Fun Night; 4:00-6:00
• Friday, October 17: Community Crew
• Saturday, October 18: CSD Diwali Celebration; 5:00-7:00 @ BHMS

Dear Families,

You are invited to our upcoming Fall Family-Teacher Conferences! This is a valuable opportunity for us to connect, discuss your child's progress, celebrate their strengths, and set goals for the rest of the school year.

During the conference, we will:

• Hear your child's interests in and out of the classroom

• Review your child's academic efforts and social interactions in the classroom

• Share literacy and math work samples and assessment results

• Plan for any areas of growth for your child this year

Conference Window: Monday, September 29th - Friday, October 10th

Time: Various appointment options are available before, during, or after school hours.
Location: In person at Clairemont or virtually via Google Meet

Conference Length: Typically 20-25 minutes; plan extra time for an in-person conference
Scheduling: The last day to sign up for a conference appointment is Sunday, September 28th.

Choose your child's teacher below to schedule an appointment via Sign-Up Genius:

K - Bermudez

K - Gilbert

1 - Bigham

1 - Fowler

2 - Schmidt

2 - Smiley

We look forward to partnering with you to support your child's success. Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions.

Walk, ride your bike, scoot, or join the walking school bus to get to school this Friday. As students arrive to school tomorrow, they will get to put a marble in a cup representing their class. The classes with the highest percentages walking and rolling will be celebrated at Community Circle next week!

We are all getting excited for our upcoming book fair and read-a-thon! The Read-a-Thon kickoff will be next Friday during Community Circle. Then students can start reading and counting their minutes on Saturday, October 11th. You will receive a packet with more information in next week's Thursday folder!

We are still looking for a few more parent volunteers to help us count minutes and assist students with book fair shopping. Please CLICK HERE if you are able to volunteer!

This week was Georgia Reads and Dyslexia Awareness week. To help us kick off the week, CSD Board Member Dr. Jana Johnson-Davis visited our first grade students to read the book Your Name is a Song. Students loved her engaging read aloud about how all names are important and special. Thank you to CSD board member Dr. Johnson-Davis for giving our students this opportunity!

We also had a fun filled spirit week as we get fired up for the DHS Homecoming game tomorrow night! Students and teachers showed off their favorite superheroes and sports teams. Tomorrow is Clairemont spirit day!

When the Snow Queen visited Community Circle:

1st grader: Where did she come from?? Iceland!?

Teacher: Yeah, maybe.

1st grader: With a baby!?

Hey Clairemont Crew!

We invite you and your family to join us here at the school for this wonderful community tradition. All proceeds from the event support learning initiatives for Clairemont students & teachers. Follow us on Facebook or Instagram for the latest updates. This year's Marketplace will be held at Clairemont Elementary School on Friday, December 12th from 5:30pm-9pm and Saturday, December 13th, from 10am-5pm.

VOLUNTEER HERE

Want to help with the Marketplace? We rely on all of our Clairemont parent volunteers and our Clairemont Bulldogs to put this fundraiser on its feet. It takes the whole CREW to pull off this wonderful tradition! Please email Marketplace Chairperson Melissa Godbee at decaturholidaymarketplace@gmail.com for more information or if you would like to be more involved with any of the preparations such as; DECORATING TRANSFORMATION SOUP SERVICE BOOKING LIVE MUSIC SOCIAL MEDIA SPONSORSHIPS

Read the October 2, 2025, issue of CSD Weekly, the district-wide newsletter.

Signing up as a member allows you to fully access our website and add your bulldog to the directory along with classes and groups/clubs. This membership supports our school and the National and State PTA by paying annual dues that help us operate. We use PTA funds to support teacher grants and school events. A portion of the $10 serves as dues paid to the National and State Parent Teacher Association which is our governing organization.

The 20th Anniversary Decatur Book Festival will take place October 3–4, 2025 in the heart of Decatur!

This year’s festival is packed with children’s author programs, family-friendly fun, and educational activities designed to inspire young readers. Highlights include our Children’s Parade, Storyland Fun Zone, Tales for Tots, and an unforgettable Kidnote event with bestselling author Angie Thomas. The Kidnote is free and open to the public, but advance registration is recommended.

You can explore the full schedule on our website: decaturbookfestival.com or check out our latest newsletter for program highlights.

Click on the image below to RSVP!

We would like to invite y'all to our 2nd Annual Communities in Schools of Atlanta Reading Is Lit event. This event is in partnership with Talley's PTO and the Diversity Activities Committee.

Last year's event was so much fun! We enjoyed having families from the Clairemont, Glennwood and Winnona Park community. We would like to extend an invitation again for this year's event.

The theme for this year is: Snuggle with a Book. Kids and families are welcome to wear their best book character, literacy or superheroes costumes (scary masks are not allowed). Entrance is free but you must register HERE in advance. Please bring a new or gently used book (lower elementary reading level) to donate. We’ll have music and concessions for sale.