Alston Ridge Families:

May is among our busiest times in a year-round school—classroom communities humming along with well-earned efficiency and purpose, tours showcasing our school for new families, and the start of preparations for end of year celebrations and culminating assessments and activities. This year will inevitably be different; however, May is still shaping up to be a month of significant accomplishment and big plans.

Please Share your Plans with Us

Teaching positions in our district’s schools are adjusted annually based on each school’s student enrollment on the 10^th day of the new school year. So that we may accurately hire faculty members for the upcoming school year, please share your family’s plans with us for the 2020-2021 school year using the ARES Family Intent Form (https://forms.gle/jpGxqNQry8kWRepGA). Our classroom teachers will follow up with reminders so that we can gain an accurate picture of our enrollment, and so that we can prepare a great start for your student when we return to school.

Teacher Appreciation Week

Next week I hope that you will take time with your student to share appreciation for their teachers and the other faculty members who make our wonderful school possible. Annually, May 4-8 is the national Teacher Appreciation Week and as a school we will be celebrating our teachers in very different ways this year. We all miss your students so much! A gesture as simple as a short smartphone video thanking them for their care and sharing a favorite memory of the year, an e-mail or a picture of a card from your student telling their teacher—Thank You!—is precious. Our terrific PTA will also be helping pair all of our classes with the incredible support personnel and specialists who help to make our school great. Thank you for helping to make them feel appreciated.

And, ahead of next week’s celebration of our faculty, I want to say how very grateful I am for each of you who is teaching at home with your student. Thank you for helping us continue learning together. Thank you for the ways you are providing tech support to your young learner, the time you are taking to read with them, for your patience as you help them with a math problem, the encouragement to explore arts activities and deepen their confidence with your family’s home language, for making them pen a letter to a grandparent to practice writing, and the discipline to take responsibility and adopt new independence with chores and duties around the household. Thank you for teaching at home, while you are working, and while we are all focused on staying safe. Thank you for your time and support. What you are able to do to help is enough, is important, and is appreciated. Thank you for co-teaching alongside our faculty.

Remote Learning Reminders

Thank you to all of our families who have provided feedback through our ARES Remote Learning Feedback form (https://forms.gle/UUSXvxE4bCKrBTaM7). It has been wonderful to hear positive experiences with the content our teams of teachers are creating, as well as to identify ways that we can continue to improve support to students and families during the school closure. We value your feedback! Please know that our teachers are eager to teach in real-time with your students; however, state guidance and district learning plans prioritize asynchronous learning that can ensure every student has equal access to learning. As our families continue to maintain their work schedules, balance family time and learning time, share technology resources, and stay healthy in the current crisis, we know that families need the flexibility to access content on their schedules, and we will continue to plan for learning that can be available when you are ready. If you are looking for ways to extend learning for your students, please encourage them to continue exploring the Specialists Google Classroom, utilize the digital resources provided at the start of Remote Learning, or reach out to your student’s teacher for guidance on other great online resources that can provide enrichment and review.

Federal Free & Reduced Lunch Applications

We realize that many families’ economic and employment situations have changed during this pandemic. Families can apply at any time for free or reduced price lunch, which may also qualify them for other state and federal benefits. More information is available at www.wcpss.net/meals, and sites throughout Wake County continue to support families who may need assistance during difficult times: WCPSS Food Distribution Sites.

We miss you, we love you, and we want to help. Please do not hesitate to reach out to your student’s teacher, or to our school’s administration and front office faculty with questions and to share your need for assistance.

Take good care,

Niko

• Don’t forget to tune in to the Alston Ridge ES YouTube Channel for daily Morning Announcements and nightly picture-book read-alouds from our teachers too! The channel: _AlstonRidgeES_Staff-AlstonRidgeES 
  Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvcQ2RAB5UbVj9DlbQZNymg
  Families can “Subscribe” to receive alerts about new video content. And, if you can’t join for our regular 9:10 am announcements, or 7:30 pm Read-Aloud, you can watch the videos later on the Channel page
• Bypass the hassle of store visits and the precautions of social-distancing--you can order all of your student’s school supplies for 2020-2021 through our PTA supported partnership with First Day School Supplies. Supplies will be prepared based on teacher supply lists and will be waiting in the classroom for the 1^st day of school. We are grateful to our PTA for their forethought in continuing this partnership for the safety and convenience of our families