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Celebrating our students’ progress in the English Language Arts is on the calendar for April. They have made measurable growth in ELA, with many students making great progress in comprehension and fluency. The report cards distributed a few weeks ago reflected wonderful success for most students, and the scores on the NYS-ELA that we expect to receive this month will give us further indication of student progress. The classroom teachers and our outstanding Academic Services Team led by Dr. Joan Kissinger have promoted student growth with their creativity and hard work.

Highlighting the month will be our Literacy Festival scheduled for April 14 to 18. Mrs. Hilary Surfer, PTO Chair of the event has announced the theme “Writing on the Wild Side”. Todd Strasser, an author of popular fiction for children will be a special guest. He will meet with all grades and has planned a special writers’ workshop for some Grade 5 authors. A sign up sheet has been sent home to give parents a schedule of events and opportunities to participate in the activities. To encourage reading for all, the GIS-PTO has generously arranged for each student to receive a free book of their choice written by Mr. Strasser.

Please plan to participate as a parent/guest reader, or help at the book fair or book swap events. Everybody gains when our students and their families work on the vital skill of reading.

Looking forward to seeing you at GIS during the Literacy Festival!

Sincerely,
Mary Ann Knight, principal