Good afternoon IA families,
Today was a great day for our ninth graders who engaged in some very cool IT activities. My personal favorite was the flamethrowing drone, but I think that’s just the little kid in me.
I’d also like to thank our PTSO, Lockheed Martin, Mr. Reid, our Engineering Lead, and all our engineering teachers for putting on a fantastic October Sky event. Atlanta News First came to see the rockets fly!
I’m looking forward to the other big pathway days.
We are getting close to the end of the semester. It’s important to remember Fulton County has modified the grading policy. I fully support this policy as it will help our students be more proactive in working with teachers to ensure they are staying current and doing well in their classes. Unfortunately, many students are used to waiting until the very end of the semester to turn in missing work. With the new policy, our students won’t be able to do recover at the last minute, so it is very important to reinforce this at home. Make sure your students are working with their teachers now to recover any work they can, and most importantly, make sure they are staying on top of their current work.
It’s easy for students to get discouraged if they have to catch up on work, so please help guide them to proper channels of support and develop good time-management skills. They should be active in emailing or reaching out to their teachers for support. At home, I have my students blind copy me, so I can see they are actually sending the emails. They can be unsure of what to say, and then procrastinate sending important emails. We’ve had many parents express frustration that students have been sent in to work with teachers, only to find out later that they haven’t shown up to help sessions. This isn’t because they want to be deceitful. After talking to many of these students, they just get overwhelmed when they get in the building. Walking them through the conversation, giving them tips on how to ask for help is invaluable. Following up with them also helps ensure they have done their part.
I also want to thank the parents who came out to our round table hosted by the PTSO. I always value honest and constructive feedback. We always take your suggestions to heart and will continue to work on improving our processes at IA.
The PTSO asked us to reflect on what we are thankful for during this season of thanks. I am thankful for your kids. Every day I walk into this building excited to see them. They are vibrant, intelligent, and so supportive of one another. I am thankful for all you have done as parents to raise such amazing young people.
With heartfelt gratitude,
Scott Kent