First Day of School –Wed, August 21st
Welcome to our new ABS Families
Yesterday we hosted our New Parent Orientation and Middle School Orientation. It was great to meet everyone and share about our school. Special thanks to Parent Council for their support with childcare and snacks. If you were unable to make it to orientation, we have additional opportunities for ABS families to get ready for school including Special Visits with your teachers and Back to School night. See you all soon!
ABS Student Handbook
The updated Parent/Student Handbook is now available on our website. If you would prefer a printed paper copy, you can pick one up at the front desk.
The Parent Council Board Needs You!
Looking for a way to get more involved at school? Serving on the Parent Council board is a great way to earn your volunteer hours and get involved on a broader level. Although we had elections last spring we are in need of a Secretary. If you are interested in serving as Secretary of the Parent Council Board, please contact Becky Dickson at [email protected]
Class Representatives Needed
We are currently recruiting class representatives for all classrooms at ABS for the upcoming school year. It’s a great way to get your volunteer hours for the year and to be more involved with our amazing school. If you’re interested, please contact Jennifer Bender at [email protected]. Thank you so much for your willingness to volunteer!
Class Representative Training and Childcare Volunteers needed
Please make plans for attending the Teacher and Staff Breakfast on August 19th 8:30-9:30. We will also have a short training session afterward. We are in need of a few volunteers to help with supervising children on the playground during the meeting. Email me at [email protected] if you’re interested in volunteering.
Afterschool Care at ABS
ABS Before and Afterschool Care Program was created out of a need for high-quality care with a flexible, convenient schedule for working parents. We look forward to providing a safe and fun-filled environment where we focus our efforts on the social, emotional and physical development of your child. We’ll do this by nurturing strong relationships and offering your child choices that reflect his/her individual needs, interests and abilities. The onsite child care will be staffed by ABS teachers and staff with Stephanie Lefever as the Afterschool Program director. Registration is now open on the ABS website.
Activity Fee
Each family is asked to pay $30.00 per year per child to help cover the costs of our extensive curriculum enhancement activities, including field trips and art trips. Fees are payable at the start of the year and may be paid for the full year or in smaller increments, if needed. Financial assistance is available to those families with demonstrated need per the approval of the principal. Checks should be made out to The Arts Based School and turned into your classroom teacher or front office.
Volunteers Needed
Volunteers needed to help move items to the basement and bring some items to classrooms for teachers. If you are available, please call Mrs. Brown at 336-748-4116 ext 2000 to coordinate a time between 8-3pm Monday through Friday. Some will require heavy lifting so strong backs and lots of friends are needed.
ABS Family/Student Directory
To be sure we have accurate contact information for the ABS family/student directory, each family received a confirmation email to verify the information that will be printed in the directory. This confirmation will also list your child’s teacher. Families that do not want to be published in the ABS directory should email Principal Hollis at [email protected] before August 9.
Back to School Night-Save the Date!
ABS Back to School Night is scheduled for Monday, August 19. To ease parking, we have scheduled three sessions-
- Grades K,3,and 5 will attend 5-6pm.
- Grades 1,2,and 6 will attend 6-7pm.
- Grades 4,7,and 8 will attend 7-8pm.
All sessions will occur in your child’s classroom.
Parking Lot Safety
- Please drive slowly and cautiously through school parking lot at all times.
- Do not use cell phones while in our parking lot.
- Watch for children and adults in parking lot, especially the first few days when many parents will be parking and walking their child into the school.
- Please allow extra time the first week as parents and children become accustomed to the routine.
- Please be kind and courteous to parking lot helpers.
- Please cross on crosswalks when walking children into the building.
- Please be responsible for explaining the drop off/pick up procedures to your afterschool daycare vans or anyone else who may be picking up your children.
Remember to enter only on Chestnut St. (by white church) during pick-up and drop-off.
Special Visits
Educational research shows that the relationship between the student and his or her teacher is one of the most important factors in a student’s academic success. This critical relationship is enhanced by our small class size and our educators’ commitment to children. In support of the teacher/student relationship, our teachers will be offering a Special Visit before school begins. A Special Visit is simply an opportunity for your child to meet his or her teacher in a familiar setting, a chance to learn a bit about the class and what to expect in the coming school year. The Special Visit can be set up to occur in your home, here at the school, or on the phone. This year’s scheduled days for Special Visits are August 15 and 16, 2019. Your child’s teacher will be contacting you to schedule a 15-20 minute appointment.
Beginning of Grade Test
The State Board of Education requires a standardized reading test for all third graders in North Carolina. Third-grade students will take the Beginning of Grade (BOG) test in reading. A student’s BOG score will be used as baseline data to measure growth as well as a screening tool to identify those students who will need remediation to pass the End of Grade test. The NC Read to Achieve initiative which requires retention for students who do not pass the Reading EOG in third grade. The test has 42 questions and takes approximately 90 minutes to complete. It will be administered on September 10. Testing accommodations will be provided for students with Individualized Education Plans (IEP). Make-up tests will be required for any student that is absent from the regular administration of the test.
Around Town…
Winston-Salem Theater Alliance is presenting the Tony-award winning musical Billy Elliott from August 9-18. The musical is about an 11-year old boy from a Northern England coal-mining village who discovers ballet, and faces many obstacles of family and community as he strives to find his identity and fulfill his dream. ABS student Julian Pecoraro will perform the lead role of Billy Elliott, and student Sam Clary will play Tall Boy/Posh Boy. This show includes some swear words. You can get more info and tickets at: https://www.wstheatrealliance.org/event/billy-elliot/