Welcome!

In an effort to provide more direct and ongoing communication with Sibley's school families and the larger community, I have created this page. It's content will be developed to provide small bits of information whenever there is a need. I encourage you to subscribe to this blog so that you will know whenever new content is available.

District Aims:

Safe, healthy, welcoming schools;
Increase student opportunity and achievement;
Operate in the most effective and efficient manner.

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Thanks for Coming to Sibley's Open House


PTO picnic

Presentations in media center
Last night, Elementary schools in the district provided an "open house" for parents and children.  It was a time for families to reconnect, meet their teachers for the year, fill lockers and desks with supplies, and hear 15 minute grade level presentations in the media center.  With all things new, there will be room for improvement.  Our goal was to provide parents with multiple options to feel comfortable and excited about the start of the year.  In the past, scheduled interviews have taken place.  This year, we wanted to create a family fun atmosphere and a more efficient way for parents to learn about the upcoming year.  We also still encouraged families to schedule shorter interviews for the following day if they felt they needed to.  We hope to continue this format, but are always open to hearing about items that worked, or did not.  One area that will need another look will be the open houses scheduled with the secondary buildings in our district.  For those that came, we hope this change was meaningful for you. 
   

Sunday, August 5, 2012

School Activities . . . . Around The Corner!


Dear Sibley Families,

As we get ready to welcome you to Sibley for this school year, mark your calendars for August 29th and 30th for our back to school activities! This year, we will be providing multiple opportunities for families to visit our school and begin building strong connections within the building.

To get things started, Sibley will be hosting an open house on Wednesday, August 29th from 3:00-7:00. This will be an opportunity for students and their families to visit their classroom, meet their teachers and ask questions, and take care of other items such as depositing lunch money and learning about our parent group, SHARE.

Each grade level will also be giving a short presentation during the open house in our media center, highlighting some of the important things to know for that grade. The open house will be followed by our annual back to school picnic, which will be from 5:00-7:00 that evening. More details will come in your back to school letter.  We look forward to seeing you at the open house and picnic.

In addition, students and their families will be invited to sign up for an individual parent teacher interview on Thursday, August 30th if desired. These optional 15 minute meetings will give families another opportunity to discuss more specific thoughts regarding their child. Opportunities to schedule these appointments will be available during the open house on the 29th. 

Finally, a note for kindergarten parents. We know how exciting and important the first year of school is for students. For that reason, kindergarten students will have their interviews pre-scheduled for Thursday the 30th.  Your scheduled time will be included in the letter you will receive in mid-August along with your child's teacher information.

Sibley, as well as all of Albert Lea Schools, understands the importance of a strong home-school connection, and we hope that you will take advantage of these opportunities to visit our school, and help kick-start your child’s year. We look forward to seeing you in a few weeks and beginning a great school year together.

We are looking forward to seeing you.