Principal's Post: Parent Edition
Vanderlyn Elementary 2022-23: Vol.14
From The Principal's Desk
Dear Parents,
The peak of the cold and flu season is upon us. To prevent widespread flu in our school, we recommend that your child stay home from school if experiencing flu or cold symptoms. To decide whether or not to send your child to school, please consider the following guidelines:
Consider keeping your child at home for an extra day of rest and observation if he or she has any of the following symptoms:
- Very stuffy or runny nose and/or cough
- Mild sore throat (no fever, no known exposure to strep)
- Headache
- Stomach ache
Definitely keep your child at home for treatment and observation if he or she has any of these symptoms:
- Fever (greater than 100 degrees and your child may return to school only after his or her temperature has been consistently below 100 degrees, by mouth, for a minimum of 24 hours)
- Vomiting (even once)
- Diarrhea
- Chills
- General malaise or feelings of fatigue, discomfort, weakness or muscle aches
- Frequent congested (wet) or croupy cough
To help prevent the flu and other colds, teach your children good hygiene habits:
- Wash hands frequently
- Do not touch eyes, nose or mouth
- Cover mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing, use a paper tissue, throw it away and then wash hands
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
Colds are the most contagious during the first 48 hours. A child who has a fever should remain at home until "fever free" for a minimum of 24 hours. Often when a child awakens with vague complaints (the way colds and flu begin), it is wise to observe your child at home for an hour or two before deciding whether or not to bring them to school. Your child should be physically able to participate in all school activities upon their return to school. Keeping a sick child at home will minimize the spread of infections and viruses in the classroom.
As a school, we have our custodians disinfect surfaces, door knobs, and other high touch areas on a daily basis. We are also ensuring that there is soap and hand sanitizer in all dispensers and encouraging our staff to remind students about the importance of hand washing. Please also take the time to click on the links below for flu guides for parents from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Thank you in advance for helping make this year at school as healthy as possible.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Crenshaw
Nov. 8 Independent Learning Day: No School For Students
Nov. 8 is an Independent Learning Day for students. Teachers will communicate clear learning expectations for students. This will be an asynchronous learning day for students, which means that they will be working independently on assignments. Please reach out to your child's teacher if you need a Chromebook (A User Agreement must be on file).
Vanderlyn SGA is GROWING Gratitude
SGA is growing GRATITUDE! We are promoting the spirit of gratitude by partnering with Backpack Buddies of Atlanta. We are extending our support to a neighboring school in the Dunwoody cluster. Our goal is to collect enough items to fill at least 50 backpacks. I am attaching a list of items for each grade to collect. The SGA collection will begin on November 7th and conclude on November 30th.
SGA Sponsors
Dr. Norris- Brown & Ms. Jessica Lee
Vanderlyn 3rd Graders welcome Dunwoody Police Dog Hank!
This past week, Officer Eric Drum of the Dunwoody Police, introduced our third grade students to his K9 dog, Hank. He explained to the students that Hank was a member of the police department and explained his duties. He allowed students to ask questions as well as pet the dog! They loved it!
A few weeks ago, the students studied a story entitled Aero about Officer Mike. This was a nonfiction text about a police dog's duties. It went over a lot of the same things that the police officer spoke about with our students, including how the police dog(s) are able to help the police department find criminals and lost children. Our Dunwoody Police force, along with Hank, did a great job making this real-world connection for our students.
Safe Schools Audit - Score of 100!!
Vocabulary Hat Parade A HUGE Success!!!
I am beyond grateful for the wonderful Vocabulary Hat Parade which would not have been possible without our wonderful students, parents and staff members! The turnout was spectacular! Student and staff costumes were astounding, and the creativity never ceases to amaze me! We are also proud to include our community partners, Dunwoody Police Department. What a school! What a community! Job well done!
Other Upcoming Events/Dates
November: American Indian Heritage & Family Engagement Month
- 6th Daylight Savings End
- 8th School Closed; Teacher Workday – Independent Learning Day for Students
- 9: Visiting Author: Carmen Deedy comes to Vanderlyn!
- 11th Veterans Day
- 13th World Kindness Day
- 15th America Recycles Day
- 18th: Vanderlyn PBL Showcase Day
- 18th 13.5 wk. Progress Reports Sent Home
- 21st – 25th Thanksgiving Break
Principal's Books of the Month (PBOM)
- The Thank You Book by Mo Willems
- Thank you, Mr. Falker by Patricia Pollacco
- We are grateful : by Sorell, Traci;
The Thank You Book
Thank you, Mr. Falker
We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga
THE CURRICULUM FOR ALL DEKALB SCHOOLS
DeKalb’s curriculum for grades K-12 is aligned to the state-adopted Georgia standards of excellence in Reading/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. In addition to core studies, students in DeKalb County Schools are offered a variety of coursework to develop the whole child.
In our implementation of the curriculum, we use various resources to guide our work in each content area. The different resources allow us to meet and individualize student's learning needs. We invite parents to partner with us to reinforce skills and concepts while at home.
2022-2023 STUDENT/PARENT HANDBOOK
A comprehensive student/parent handbook is attached below that outlines our school policies procedures, and other helpful information.
Please download the handbook using the attachment below and save it for reference throughout the school year.
Updated COVID Guidelines
Please review and save the list below so you are aware who to contact when questions arise.
- PTO Membership Toolkit - PTO Co-Presidents: Sara Graviss or Whitney Gaines: vanderlynelemPTO@gmail.com
- Family ID Hang tags (carpool or walkers) - Andrea Gillett: andrea_gillett@dekalbschoolsga.org
- Reporting your child's absence from school - Email your child's homeroom teacher AND our school registrar, Ms. Andrea Gillett: andrea_gillett@dekalbschoolsga.org
- Student illness, medicine requests, medical forms: Ms. Sumi: sumati_jayaraman@dekalbschoolsga.org
- Changes in transportation/dismissal - email your child's homeroom teacher AND our front office secretary, Andrea Gillett:andrea_gillett@dekalbschoolsga.org. This must be done by 12pm!
- Bus Transportation Concerns: Vernell Jackson at vernell_jackson@dekalbschoolsga.org
- Questions about school breakfast/lunch: Cafeteria Assistant Manager, Juliana Phipps: juliana_m_phipps@dekalbschoolsga.org
- School library resources, Chrome Book Requests: Gail Pansini: gail_pansini@dekalbschoolsga.org
- General questions pertaining to your child's class - email your child's homeroom teacher
- Questions regarding gifted eligibility - Gifted Liaison, Julia Weiss: julia_weiss@dekalbschoolsga.org
- Questions pertaining to ASEPD (After School Extended Day Program) - Co-directors Julia Weiss or Demetreia Adderley: julia_weiss@dekalbschoolsga.org and demetreia_head@dekalbschoolsga.org
- Questions pertaining to class schedules, progress reports, grades, and report cards - Assistant Principal, Griffin Nichols: griffin_nichols@dekalbschoolsga.org
- Questions pertaining to districtwide assessments (MAP, CogAT, GA Milestones, ACCESS) - School Test Coordinator/Assistant Principal, Griffin Nichols: griffin_nichols@dekalbschoolsga.org.
- Questions regarding counseling, social, emotional/behavioral concerns, bullying: Counselors: Grades 3rd-5th Jessica Lee: Jessica_lee@dekalbschoolsga.org or Grades Pre-K-2nd: Dr. Candice Norris-Brown: candice_norris-brown@dekalbschoolsga.org
- Questions pertaining to schoolwide operations - email Principal Tracey Crenshaw: tracey_crenshaw@dekalbschoolsga.org