From The Principal
Dear Flickinger Families,
It is hard to believe a quarter of the school year has been completed. Thank you to all of the families that came to our Fall Festival. It was a wonderful opportunity to get so many of our school community members together. The Parent Group did another outstanding job organizing it for our school.
The month of November will be busy with Staff Professional Development, Parent-Teacher Conferences and our charitable giving campaigns. Tuesday, November 6th is Election Day. There is no school for students. As you are aware, Utica Community Schools adopted the Houghton Mifflin Math Expression series program, teachers are working on exploring the various resources within the program to personalize the learning for their class. Flickinger teachers will also be deepening their understanding of research-based approaches to reading. All of these topics help us provide your child with a rigorous curriculum that helps prepare students to be college and career ready.
The staff and I look forward to meeting with you for Parent-Teacher Conferences scheduled for November 14th and 15th. We strive to continue our strong collaboration with 100% attendance rate. Parents will receive their child’s report card electronically on November 16th as long as they are signed up for PowerSchool Parent Portal. If you need this information, please contact the office staff for assistance.
Harvard Family Research Project recently published some tips for parents to help prepare for conferences. Here are a few things they suggested.
What to expect?
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A two-way conversation- Conferences are most productive when both people talk and listen. Your child’s teacher will share their academic progress and attendance. Parents are encouraged to share what their child is like at home and ask questions to clarify grade level expectations.
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Emphasis on learning- To get ready for your child’s conference, look at the assignments and tests they bring home. It is also helpful to talk to them about how they think they are doing and what areas they feel they need to improve on.
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Opportunities and challenges- Parents, teachers and students are all working towards the same goal which is academic success for your child. Be prepared to hear positive feedback and areas of improvement for your child. This meeting is a great opportunity to develop a plan on how to help your child with some of his or her challenges.
Thank you for your continued support of our school. I wish all of your families well during the November holidays.
Sincerely,
Nancy Brunetz, Proud Flickinger Principal