This week will see our first Open House of the year (Wednesday from 9 until 12). While almost all of you receiving this bulletin know what Deal offers, if you have friends with younger children or who are interested in checking out Deal, Wednesday is a great day to do so! I will also have my first Principal's Coffee in the Multipurpose Room on Thursday. This is a smaller setting for parents with questions about certain activities, parents who want to share ideas, or parents who just want to meet other parents while we are discussing school. The coffee will be at 10am. 

As we near the end of the 1st advisory, it may be useful to review some of the opportunities teachers have in place to support your child's success. First, note that there are only five days left until the end of the advisory; the general practice is that students should have their work in on time as specified by the assignment. In those cases where a student is still working to complete something (within the time frame of the late work rules), there are a few things to keep in mind.

Teams provide tutoring at least once a week. A couple of those teams have indicated there times here in the bulletin, but please check your team newsletters for your specific team's schedule. On occasion, teachers make themselves available after school, but this is at teacher's discretion. Lunchtime is another time when teachers may make themselves available; your child will know if this is the case. For the last few weekends we have also run a 7th and 8th grade Saturday Academy to provide additional support to students and some reteaching opportunities as well. Starting it this early in the school year is a new initiative for Deal; we want to make sure that students have the time they need - especially if they need additional support - as much as possible. Our teachers have reported great success for these first few Academies; they will start up again once we are into the 2nd advisory.

Note that we will be updating Edline more frequently around the end of the advisory (the schedule is posted below). This will allow you and your child to see the results of assignments on grade reports to get a better gauge of whether everything is on track. There are many more assignments on Edline as we are ending the advisory then there were at the mid-point; the grades you see now should be very reflective of your child's progress to date.

Finally, please use the Edline reports to check in with your child about their grades. Students should be able to tell you what their grades are in any course; if not, review Edline together and have them explain what they believe to be their progress. Note where work is not submitted and discuss a plan for its completion (if possible). If there are low marks on a summative assessment, see whether your child took advantage of the opportunity to relearn and be reassessed for the work. This is part of the work we are doing together to get them ready to be their own best advocates.