Clara Love Parent Newsletter
August 7, 2019
Principal's Welcome
As we approach the start of school, the energy at Clara Love is through the roof. Teachers have already begun decorating the hallways, preparing their classrooms, and planning lessons and activities. In addition, teachers voluntarily spent the first week of their summer vacation training on Great Expectations, a teacher professional development model that promotes high academic and social emotional learning standards. I encourage you to ask your children about the "8 Expectations for Living" and the "Life Principles" they will be learning this year. Stay tuned for more information about Great Expectations. In the meantime, you can find more information about Great Expectations at greatexpectations.org.
As I move into my second year as principal of Clara Love, I'm looking forward to partnering with families and community to continue to build a collaborative culture. It takes the collective efforts of families, community, and school to provide the necessary supports for students to be college, career, and life ready. Please join me as we make 2019-2020 the BEST YEAR EVER at Clara Love.
Warm regards,
Lisa Crosslin
Princpal
Clara Love Welcomes New Assistant Principal, Shaunda Garrision!
Back to School Information
Meet the Teacher August 15th
Meet the teacher is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 15 from 5:30 - 7:00. As an incentive to join Clara Love PTA, we are offering 5:00 entrance for all current year PTA members. Join PTA HERE. PTA will also set up early on the 15th so you can join on site!
In addition to meeting your teacher, you can register for transportation, child nutrition services, and AlphaBest on site after care. We hope to see everyone on August 15th!
Clara Love to Become a Great Expectations School for 2019 - 2020
Kindergarten and 1st Grade Entry Assessments
Northwest ISD administers diagnostic assessments for both reading and mathematics for all students when they start the school year. The purpose of these assessments is to provide useful information which teachers use to plan the most appropriate instruction for each child. This year for kindergarten and first grade, these assessments will occur before school starts. By assessing as many students as possible before the start of school, we have more knowledge of the students and can begin instruction with them right away. Clara Love has chosen Monday, August 12th, and Friday August 16th to administer the assessments. You can sign up here : KG Assessment Sign-Up 1st Grade Assessment Sign-Up
Please plan to be at Clara Love for 30-45 minutes while we assess your child. During this time, all the teachers in the building will be assessing students in an efficient manner. If you need a time to conference with the teachers please reach out to the teachers or administration. Your child's data will be sent home the first few weeks of school. The assessments include:
Kindergarten
- Uppercase and lowercase letter identification
- Letter sound
- Independent text level
- Counting objects
- Understanding quantity
- Composing and decomposing numbers
1st grade
- Sight word identification
- Independent text level
- Estimation
- Groups of 10
- Skip counting by twos, fives, and tens
- Subitizing
If you have any questions about this information, scheduling, or for additional clarification, please contact us.
First Day of School Expectations
Back to School Fair - August 10th at 11am
NISD and United Way of Denton County will host the seventh annual Back to School Fair on Saturday, August 10 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Hatfield Elementary School. Families with children in NISD (all grade levels) can register online HERE. You can still attend, even if you don't register.
School supplies will be distributed to children in need as well as free hearing screenings, haircuts, eye exams, physicals, and more. For questions, contact Alicia McElroy at United Way of Denton County at 940-566-5851 extension 119.
Important Safety Updates to Entrances on NISD Campuses
Arrival and Dismissal Procedures
Car Riders:
- Drop off will occur in BOTH front and back of the school beginning at 7:20.
- Cars in the back will unload with valet assistance from duty teachers.
- Special notes about dropping in front of the school: There will be no car valet in the front and BUSES will also be dropping in the front, so please be aware of their presence. For added safety in the front, stay in the lane along the curb and allow parked vehicles to back out and leave.
- Parents are still welcome to park in the front of the school and walk their students to the front entry prior to 7:20.
- There will be 12 cars loaded at one time during dismissal.
- You will be given a car tag to put in your car stating your child's name. Please have these filled out for the first day of school. If you lose your car tag, you can use your ID to get another one in the front office.
Bus Riders:
- Buses will drop in the front of the school.
- Children riding the bus home will be identified with a lanyard that corresponds with the bus the child will be riding. Bus riders will receive the lanyard from their teacher and return it daily when loading the bus.
- During bus loading from 3:00-3:10, cars will be restricted from leaving the front parking lot.
- No food or drinks are allowed on the bus at anytime.
Walkers:
- Walkers are allowed from Harriet Creek Ranch. Walkers will be admitted from the front entry at 7:20 am.
- Walkers will be dismissed first.
- Walkers who have siblings will meet at the flag pole.
- Kindergarten parents are welcome park and walk up to meet children at the west door in the front of the building once school is dismissed.
- Other than kindergarten, parents will not be allowed in the dismissal area with students.
* MORNING SUPERVISION BEGINS AT 7:20 AM. STUDENTS ARRIVING BEFORE 7:20 WILL BE UNSUPERVISED.
Notification for Changes in Child's Normal Transportation Procedures
If there is a change in the normal procedure for your child to be picked-up, please notify the school by sending a note to loveelem@nisdtx.org and to your child's teacher and by calling the school before 2:00 p.m. A person picking up your child must be listed on your child's enrollment information as a person your child can be released to. Identification will be required.
Convocation at NISD Stadium
The district is celebrating the start of the school year at the annual staff Convocation. This is an event for staff only at the NISD stadium as part of professional development. The event will begin at 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, August 13 and will use music, videos and microphones. The event is expected to end by lunch time. We apologize in advance for any inconvenience this may cause. We are excited about the use of our stadium for this one-time event, and we’re looking forward to the excitement our staff brings to prepare for working with your children beginning August 20. Thanks for your partnership.
Class Assignments
All teachers at Clara Love Elementary understand the meeting the social emotional needs of students is as important at meeting their academic needs. Using morning meetings, Great Expectations, and a variety of tools, teachers understand the importance of building nurturing relationships with students.
Understandably, student placement can cause some anxiety for parents. I can assure you that careful consideration is given to each child as we place them in a homeroom. There are several factors that are considered as we create a dynamic learning environment for each classroom. We do not honor parent requests for specific teachers. Please know that we have not finalized class lists, and will not have this completed until Aug. 14th. Any information that you see in the Home Access Center is inaccurate. Once assignments are made, you will receive notification from your child's teacher welcoming them to their class. As a reminder, meet the teacher is on Aug. 15th from 5:30-7:00, except for PTA members who can come at 5:00.
Upcoming Events
August 10th @ 11:00 - Back to School Fair at Hatfield Elementary School
August 15th @ 5:00/5:30 - 7:00 - Meet the Teacher
August 20th - First Day of School!