Lea Express for Friday, January 25

Posted on January 25, 2019
Categories: Lea Express

IMPORTANT DATES

Tuesday, January 22 – ACCESS Testing for English Learner students begins

Wednesday, January 30 – Academic Parent Teacher Teams Family Meeting #2 (Grades K, 1, 3), 4:00-5:15 pm

Wednesday, January 30 – Friday, February 1 – Early Dismissal Days, Students will dismiss at 12:09 PM Report Card Conferences

EVENTS & ACTIVITIES

Report Card Conferences
Report card conferences will be held on the following days and times NEXT WEEK:

  • Wednesday, January 30th: 1:00-3:00 pm and 4:00 – 6:00 pm
    • The after-school program will operate from 12:09 to 3:00 pm on 1/30.
  • Thursday, January 31st:  1:00 – 3:00 pm
    • The after-school program is CANCELLED for parent-teacher conferences and staff professional development on 1/31.
  • Friday, February 1st:  1:00 – 3:00 pm
    • The after-school program is CANCELLED for parent-teacher conferences and staff professional development on 2/1.

Academic Parent Teacher Teams (APTT)
This school year, Lea is implementing the Academic Parent Teacher Team (APTT) model for family and community engagement in Grades K, 1, and 3. APTT is a classroom-based, teacher-led, data-driven family engagement model focused on supporting children’s academic goals by linking home and school learning through teachers and parents working together. Classroom teachers in grades K, 1, and 3 invite families to participate in three 75-minute group meetings and one 30-minute individual, family-child session over the course of the year.
The second APTT group meeting for Grades K, 1, and 3 will occur next Wednesday, January 30th from 4:00 – 5:15 pm in your child’s homeroom. Childcare will be provided, and we will serve light snacks and refreshments after the APTT session. We hope to see all of our K, 1st, and 3rd grade families next Wednesday, January 30th!

Canned Food Drive
Last Thursday, January 17th was Lea’s Days of Service (in honor of MLK Day)!  Thank you to all of the students and families that donated a can of food. Canned food donated by students and staff will be combined with donated cans from this month’s Dress Down Day and distributed to families in need in our community. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Rich (rjliuzzi@gse.upenn.edu, Room 125).

PBIS Assemblies & Field Trip
This Friday, we held our second field trip reward for positive behavior. 100 students bowled at Playhouse Lanes, and everyone had a great time! The next PBIS trip will be a movie field trip during the school day on Friday, March 22nd.

AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAM INFORMATION

Lea After-School Program
Below is some information regarding the after-school program:

  • The Lea After-School Program dismisses at 5:00 pm on Wednesdays for staff professional development. All after-school students must be picked up by no later than 5:00 pm on Wednesdays.
  • During the report card conference half-day on January 30th, the after-school program will operate from 12:09 to 3:00 pm.
  • During report card conference half-days on January 31st and February 1st, the after-school program is CANCELLED for parent-teacher conferences and staff professional development.
  • The Lea Bulldogs basketball team’s game against the Comegys team has been rescheduled for February 6th.
  • The after-school program waiting list for Grades K-3 closed, and we will not be accepting any new application for the waiting list. Families on the waiting list will be contacted when space is available.
  • Revised lateness policy:
    • Daily lateness will result in a late fee charge of $1 per minute 5 minutes after the designated pick-up time.
    • Continued excessive late pick-up on a daily basis will result in the student being discharged from the program.
    • Late pick-up for early dismissal every Wednesday at 5:00 pm will result in a 1 day after-school suspension for students.
    • Late pick-up on days when the after-school program is canceled (e.g., due to inclement weather) will result in automatic discharge for students who are not picked up at dismissal.

FAMI-LEA INFORMATION

School Advisory Council (SAC)
Thank you to the families that attended our Winter Title 1/SAC Meeting on Wednesday, January 9th.  A summary is below:
SAC met on January 9th for our Title 1 parent meeting with Principal Savage.  We reviewed the school’s goals in literacy, math, climate, and enrollment. This was followed by a review of the 2018-2019 budget and a discussion of the enrollment dynamics that led to our current budget structure.  We had an extended discussion of climate this year and the changes to the academic departmentalization. There is an ongoing concern that as our academics improve at Lea, we will no longer qualify for the student intervention fund (part of the school budget) and possibly see a reduction in our Title 1 funds.  We discussed the factors that make up our overall budget and how we might address either the data that led to a possible reduction or how we might ask for additional funding from our partners to keep the resources to which we currently have access. Principal Savage led a brainstorming session around what we might need for students, families, and the school as a whole for next year.  The Student Council updated us on their recent work, we agreed to support a Walnut Hill request for a Neighborhood Slow Zone (to post speed limits and speed cushions in the neighborhood) as well as the Safe Schools petition (to demand that the District address mold, lead, and asbestos in all school buildings).

Finally, the SAC will be hosting elections this year! Nominations will be open until February 4th, we’ll have a candidate forum on March 1st, and voting can occur until April 5th. Please consider joining the SAC!  Our next meeting will be February 6, 2019.

SAC meeting dates for 2018-2019: 2/6/19, 3/6/19, 4/3/19, 5/8/19

Home and School Association (HSA)
An HSA meeting was held on Wednesday, January 23rd  at 3:30 pm in Room 106. HSA meetings will be held on the third Wednesday of each month during the rest of the school year. The next HSA meeting is on Wednesday, February 20th at 3:30 pm in Room 106.

The HSA is selling Lea swag as a fundraiser! We have “be-LEA-ve” t-shirts as well as Lea pop sockets and stickers! Ask an HSA officer or email us at leahomeandschool@gmail.com. Baseball T’s are $15, regular T’s are $10, and pop sockets are $3.

HSA meeting dates for 2018-2019: 2/20/19, 3/20/19, 4/10/19, 5/15/19

Pre-K Enrollment for 2019-2020
Don’t wait until August to enroll your child in pre-kindergarten (Pre-K) as spots are limited! The School District of Philadelphia accepts Pre-K applications year-round at The School District Education Center (440 N. Broad Street, First Floor, Suite 170), Monday through Friday from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm. However, if you want to be in the first placement of children for the 2019-2020 school year, you will need to submit your application before February 28th!

Download an application at www.philasd.org/prek or pick one up at The School District Education Center (440 N. Broad Street, First Floor, Suite 170). And if you have any questions, please call 215-400-4270 (and press 1).

Lea Family Survey
Our Family Survey is designed to help us learn more about families’ perspectives on our school and its programming. A link to the online survey is available both in the “Spotlight” section and the “Parents” section of the Lea school website (https://lea.philasd.org/), and paper copies are available on the Partnerships Office bulletin board (Room 125 next to the Visitors Entrance stairway), which should be returned to Mr. Rich’s mailbox. It takes about 10-15 minutes to complete the survey. Please consider taking a few minutes to share your thoughts with us!