College Heights Connection

Dear Families,

I hope you are having a wonderful week. We had a great turn out for last week's Coffee Chat on assessment and instruction. A big thank you to our instructional coach, Ms. Davis, for presenting such helpful information. Ms. Davis has shared her slide deck (link below) for those families who were unable to attend the session. School is closed for Fall Break next week for our students enrolled in the Pre-K and preschool special education programs. I hope you enjoy your week!

Finally, please be sure to save October 31 at 9:00 a.m. for our annual Book Parade. The Book Parade caps off Literacy Week (October 27-31) and is truly one of the cutest traditions in the district. Details coming soon.

Have a great weekend,

Principal Garland

September 22-26 - Fall Break (no school for Pre-K and Preschool Special Education students)

October 1 - Fall School Tour (prospective families only)

October 6-10 - School Pictures (individual)

October 22-29 - Adventure Awaits With Reading Read-To-Me-A-Thon sponsored by PTO

October 24 - PTO Trunk or Treat and Movie Night

October 27-31 - College Heights Literacy Week

October 31 - Book Parade

We would like to thank these families and their kiddos:

Jones Family

Hatch Family

Almond Family

Reese Family

Saethang Family

Dean Family

Woods Family

Rosenberg Family

Estrada Family

Manjar Family

Dory Cooper (From the Ground Up)

It was a great and fun event! Seeing the kids help and be involved was amazing. Having Ms. Dory there was super helpful and educating not only for kids but for adults as well. See the before and after photos below.

We will notify families when the next Garden Cleanup play date happens (maybe later in the fall and during the spring). Families were eager to know when we were meeting again, which was super exciting.

Special thanks to the Almond family for providing coffee and snacks to participants.

Thank you for attending our Coffee Chat last Friday on curriculum, instruction, and assessment here at College Heights. If you were unable to attend, here is the slide deck that was shown, and here is the information on developmental milestones that Ms. Davis referenced. Special thanks to the Almond family for providing coffee and pastries for attendees.

Do you have some spare time to help with school photographs? Our new photographer, Melle Houston, is looking for a few parents to assist her on photo days. If you can help during this week - even for just a couple of hours - please reach out to her by email.

Thank you!

In the week leading up to Decatur High School's Homecoming game, all CSD schools celebrate with a fun spirit week, even the district's youngest students. Each day has a theme (see below) and students, families, and teachers are all invited to join in the fun. Let's show our College Heights spirit!

Angela Gabriel (pictured right) is our MTSS teacher. MTSS stands for Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, a framework of progressive interventions for students to support their social, emotional, academic, and behavioral needs. Angela hails from Chicago. When she's not at College Heights, you can find her at Charis Books and More by Agnes Scott because she's one of the owners! She loves photography and travel, and a fun fact about Angela is that she has been on Good Morning America.

Ava Devereaux (pictured left) is the Speech-Language Pathologist at College Heights. She provides assessment and intervention to improve students' speech, language, and communication skills. She is from Clermont, Georgia, and in her spare time she likes to travel and binge watch nerdy TV shows, though she says her children (ages one and five) are too young for her to have hobbies! Ava's fun fact is that she was a very athletic child, which she says might surprise people who know her now.

Stop by and say hello to these wonderful teachers the next time you're at College Heights.

Pre-K was introduced to Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from September 15 through October 15, with the book Mañana, Iguana, a charming riff on the Little Red Hen folk tale by Ann Whitford Paul, illustrated by Ethan Long. Students also practiced how to handle library books gently and safely (see photo below). Ask your student what it means to handle a book with "kitten hands."

Fall Break - the library is OPEN!

Hey 0-3 families, please feel free to browse and select books for your students while I am gone next week. Use the clipboard across from the circulation desk to write down your name, the date, and the titles and barcodes for the books you select (limit five, please). Don't miss our display of wonderful Hispanic Heritage Month books on display to the left of the library window.

This week's 0-3 books:

Carina Felina by Carmen Agra Deedy and Henry Cole

Pete the Cat's Groovy Imagination by Kimberly and James Dean

Good Night, Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle, illustrated by Jill McElmurry

Towed by Toad by Jashar Awan

Lola at the Library by Anna McQuinn, illustrated by Rosalind Beardshaw

Author visit reminder

Book orders for Dan Gemeinhart's newest book are due TODAY! Don't miss out on your chance to receive a signed copy of The Gingerbread Monster. Dan will sign books after he talks to Pre-K students on October 10, and books will be sent home the same day. Click here to download the order form, or you can email me to let me know that you want a copy and pay after the break. A portion of book sales will benefit College Heights. All students are welcome to order a copy of the book, not just Pre-K!

Read the September 18, 2025, issue of CSD Weekly, the district-wide newsletter.

Spirit Week is just around the corner, and now’s the perfect time to grab your College Heights spirit wear! Whether you or your little one is rocking it at school events or out in the community, you'll be ready to shine in style.

🧢 Bonus Perk: $5 from every purchase goes directly to support our amazing PTO — so you’re not just showing school spirit, you’re giving back too! 👕

👉Don’t wait — snag your gear now and let’s make this year the most spirited one yet!

Link: https://checlc.ptboard.com/school/cm?mid=6422

All recent issues of the College Heights Connection are available here.

Older issues of CSD Weekly may be found on CSD's district newsletter webpage.

College Heights Early Childhood Learning Center cultivates an atmosphere where children take their first steps in building an authentic love of learning through developmentally appropriate practices in an environment that fosters family and community involvement.