This Thursday we invite you back to Deal once again for our annual Back to School Night. The evening starts at 6:30 in your child's first period class and continues through their whole schedule. This is always a well-attended event, as parents are eager to sample what life is like at Deal (in an abbreviated fashion). There will be five minutes of passing time rather than the four that our students have in order to accommodate the extra time we need to climb the stairs or head out to the Reno building. There is more information below. But know that we truly want you here to meet our great staff and to hear about what is happening in each of the classes. This in not your only chance to hear from the teachers, but it is a wonderful place to start.

When new teachers arrive at Deal they often ask, how involved is the parent community? I find it easy to answer this question. Without question, we have an active and thoughtful Alice Deal Community Association (ADCA) and strong Local School Advisory Team (LSAT). Besides these formal bodies, we love having parents interacting with our teachers throughout the year. Starting last week and continuing forward, there are numerous pancake breakfasts, where families are invited to visit their child's homeroom and eat as much as they can. There will be an 8th grade BBQ on the 26th so that our families can play outside while eating that other famous middle school food, the hot dog. A 7th grade parents night on October 1 brings everyone up to date on that floor. Our 6th graders are not far behind with their October-festival on the 3rd of October. These family-focused events are matched up with requests for parents as judges for contests, to serve on occasion as chaperones, and to participate in curricular activities in many of our classes. We have a lot of parents at Deal and we like to see them here in the building!

There is a method to this madness, of course. Having a strong connection between parents and students and teachers is essential. This is true regardless of whether it is elementary, middle, or high school. While the nature of that interaction will differ by child and by age, parenting calls for involved families at each stage of the child's education. Whereas in elementary school there was more need for room parents, at the middle school the parent is still present but focused on building an academically independent child. As I have stressed at other times, parents must know where their children are and what they are doing. That is more important in my book then designing what they are doing. At the high school level (not that far for some of you) involvement differs but shouldn't be avoided. This might take the shape of longer conversations, a keener focus on student responsibilities, but it should always include a thoughtful message about expectations and responsibilities delivered consistently and with love. 

Finally, a most Deal solution to a regular middle school problem. The lost and found of any school is a sad place. We try to find ways to reconnect your child with that jacket, lanyard, lunchbox, or even shoe, but they still pile up with regularity. Now we have a lost-found photo display on our school website! (Check out the box on this email at the lower left for the actual address.) We will try and display what we have found in our common areas and, if you are wondering where that extra t-shirt did go, perhaps you can find it in this special place. After some reasonable amount of time, we will liberate all lost and found items and give them to someone who might also need them. So, check out the camera and let us know if you find the missing something!