LTES Families:
 
I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving break.  It was absolutely great to see so many families and teachers at our LT Community Thanksgiving.  Also, thanks to the PTO and parent volunteers that helped put the event together.  I feel it was a special night for all in attendance and a tradition we will now need to continue! 

LT Book Wonderland:
On Dec 20-21, Ludlow-Taylor's library will be hosting a Book Wonderland--a celebration and opportunity for each child to take home a book of their own, at no cost. Ms. Burton, our librarian, is already collecting books, but we could use family help.  If you are able, please drop off new (or like-new) books at L-T between now and December 9.  Books will be sorted so that children can take home a book suited to their own level.  Thank you! Questions? Please contact Ms. Burton at rebecca.burton2@dc.gov.
 
Playground Update:
At this point, we are waiting for the final design after we submitted community feedback from the initial design and for funds to clear though City Council for construction to begin on the new playground.  We have yet to hear of a concrete a start date, but hopefully this warmer weather will allow for construction prior to 2017.
 
Outdoor Recess in the Cold:
As a general DCPS policy, students are not sent outside for recess if the temperature is below freezing.  With that being said, we will send students out above 32 degrees, so please be sure to pack your kiddos with hats, gloves and coats.  If any extra winter apparel is needed, please let me know personally or contact our social worker, Mrs. Frazier, at Nicole.Frazier@dc.gov.
 
Food Allergies:
We have a few students with severe peanut allergies around school.  This has been communicated in classrooms that might have these concerns, but as the holiday season approaches and snacks are shared, please be sure to include any notes regarding ingredients that could cause reactions.
 
Community of Giving Campaign:
We have kicked off our Community of Giving Campaign.  As a little more background, the DCPS budget alone is not enough to achieve the world-class education we seek for our students. There is much more we could be offering our children and their teachers with your support—improved technology, more field trips, exciting relevant books in all classrooms, a wider variety of learning materials and adequate supplies.  To donate, please visit our website at ludlowtaylor.org or contact a member of the PTO.
 
Please reach out with any questions and/or feedback.

Sincerely,
 
A. Smith

​LTES Families:
 
I want to extend a thank you to all families that were able to make it out to a Parent Teacher Conferences it looks like we had over 95% attendance!  It was great to see so many people in the building discussing next academic steps for our students.  I hope that everyone is looking for to our festivities at the end of this week -  please see the updates below:

PTO Meeting Cancelled:
Due to the LTES Thanksgiving on Friday, we are cancelling the PTO meeting scheduled for Thursday.  Please be on the lookout for PTO announcements at the Friday event.
 
LTES Community Thanksgiving:
This Friday, from 5:30 – 7:15, we will be hosting our first LTES Community Thanksgiving.  Turkey will be provided by the PTO and it sounds like we will have a whole host of side dishes to share, as well.  So far, we have over 250 students/family members signed up to attend and we have put together activities including a community art project and group karaoke for all to enjoy.  We are looking forward to getting everyone together!
 
Blue Ribbon Celebration:
This Friday, from 2:00 – 3:15, our students in K-5 will be celebrating our National Blue Ribbon Award.  We are working with the Eastern High School Marching Band to hopefully have a performance along with some special gifts for our students and teachers.  Special thanks to Mrs. Francis for putting the event together and especially to those that put in so much work over the years to earn this prestigious award for our school.  This event was initially planned as part of the Thanksgiving Celebration, but due to a time crunch, we decided to make two separate events.  Families are still welcome to join!
 
Community of Giving Campaign:
We have kicked off our Community of Giving Campaign.  As a little more background, the DCPS budget alone is not enough to achieve the world-class education we seek for our students. There is much more we could be offering our children and their teachers with your support—improved technology, more field trips, exciting relevant books in all classrooms, a wider variety of learning materials and adequate supplies.  To donate, please visit our website at ludlowtaylor.org or contact a member of the PTO.
 
Please reach out with any questions and/or feedback – looking forward to seeing everyone this Friday!

Sincerely,
 
A. Smith

LTES Families:

I cannot believe that this week marks the end of the first advisory! I want to thank all families for helping to start this year out in the right direction. Yesterday, I met with our Instructional Superintendent, Mr. Hughes and the Chief of Schools, Dr. Alexander, both of whom mentioned the positive trajectory of LTES and the excitement continuing to build across DCPS for our school, particularly with the Blue Ribbon status. This is all due to our great staff and community support.

PlayGround Update:
We submitted all feedback to DGS regarding improvements to the initial playground design. At this point, we are just waiting on a start date - hopefully soon!

LTES Community Thanksgiving and Blue Ribbon Celebration:
On Friday, November 18th from 5:30–7:15 pm, we will be hosting our first LTES Community Thanksgiving. Dinner will be provided by the PTO for all in attendance! To kick-start this event, we will first recognize the staff and families that have put in incredible amounts of hard work over the past years to make us a Blue Ribbon School. The PTO and teachers will be reaching out with more specifics as we get closer to the date, but please mark your calendar.
 
Parent Teacher Conferences:
It has been great to see so many families around the school over the past few weeks completing parent-teacher conferences. We firmly believe that a child can only reach his or her full potential when the family and school are collaborating at high levels. As we have somewhat changed the schedule for these conferences, please let your homeroom teacher know whether you prefer the increased time slots spread out as opposed to the traditional one-day conference day. We can always modify for the next advisory. If a conference has not been scheduled, please reach out to your teacher as soon as possible.
 
Impact Aide Forms:
Your child was sent home with an impact aide form last week. These forms finalize enrollment numbers for us and determine funding for the rest of the school year.  It is critical that all families complete the forms and get them back to us as soon as possible. 

After-School Update:
We are working to now improve some logistics with After-School, particularly with increasing the coverage outdoors and decreasing the wait time for parents during pick-up. We appreciate your patience as we continue to refine.
 
Upcoming Events:

• 11/4 – Parent Teacher Conference Day – No School for Students
• 11/11 – Veteran’s Day – No School for Students
• 11/17 – PTO Meeting
•  11/18 – PTO-Community Thanksgiving (more info to follow!)

Also, thanks to all that made it to our costume parade last week; it is always great to see our community come together.

Please reach out with any questions and/or feedback.

Sincerely,
A. Smith