From the Principal

The view from here…..

October 2008

Dear Sonoran Sky Parents and Community Members:

I thank you all for the enthusiasm, support, and cooperation you've demonstrated through this first month of the 2008-2009 school year. From Meet the Teacher Night to the first day of school to the Parent Orientation Nights through the daily routines of dropping off and picking up your children, these qualities have been routinely displayed and are very much appreciated by the entire Sonoran Sky staff.

I described the work ethic of our teachers in last year's first Navigator and I believe it is important to mention it again. This year, teachers officially returned to their jobs on August 4th, with the first week devoted to professional development, planning, and physically preparing their rooms for the start of the year. By the official start date, most of our teachers had put in many days, and in some cases weeks, of planning and preparation. This prior planning and preparation manifested itself when our students returned on August 11th.

As has been past practice, PVUSD Superintendent Dr. John Kriekard and the district's five assistant superintendents visit every school in the district on the first day to be a part of that important event and to assist if needed. Assistant Superintendent Dr. Karen Gasket visited Sonoran Sky from approximately 10:30 - 11:00AM. As we walked through the school and visited classrooms, she commented several times, "It looks like they've been here for a couple of weeks," and indeed it did. Everywhere we went, students were engaged in purposeful learning activities and teachers were engaged in leading them. As principal, I have the pleasure of seeing this on a daily basis and I was thrilled that Dr. Gasket was able to see this for herself.

Most parents attended our Parent Orientation Nights and all receive the information coming home weekly from your students' teachers concerning classroom activities, homework, and enrichment. As our teachers strive to provide rigorous and relevant learning opportunities, there are always roles for parents to assist in these efforts. The most important thing you can do is to support the continuous development of literacy skills by encouraging your student, regardless of their age or grade level, to read, read, read……..and then read some more. Also encourage them to write often, not just to complete homework assignments, but also to write letters, "How to….." instructions, journals, and creative works in the form of short stories or poems. Take every opportunity to discuss real world applications of math, from counting tiles on the floor to determining square footage of a room, depending on the age of your child. Exposure to, and casual discussions about, art and music are similarly beneficial to your child's intellectual development. I encourage you to take advantage of these types of activities to extend learning outside of our classrooms.

Thanks again for being a part of a great start to the year! From everything I've seen so far, I expect this year to be wonderfully extraordinary for all of us, especially our students.

Appreciatively,

Patrick Sweeney

Principal