W.E.stchester Weekly

School Lunch Policy: Please be sure to maintain a positive lunch balance for your child. This will help us avoid any unexpected lunch changes for students. Check your Parent Portal frequently to make sure your child has adequate funds for the cafeteria. You may also find the Parent Portal app (for Apple or Android) to be more convenient.

STAR Early Literacy, Reading and Math Assessments: December 2-6 and 9-13

K-12 students will take the STAR Early Literacy, Reading and Math Assessments during the winter assessment screening period of December 2-6 and December 9-13. CSD measures results from this winter assessment screening period against results from the previous fall screening period to track growth and adjust instruction to best meet students' individual needs. These assessments are crucial for ensuring your child's continued success.

Families may use these directions to opt-in to receive the results of the STAR assessments upon completion. For questions, please contact Christie Manasso for any questions regarding this assessment.

November is National Career Development Month! The school counseling classroom lessons this month introduces the Georgia Department of Education Career Clusters and uses the EL Design Principle of Self Discovery to discuss how the many different parts that make us who we are can help to identify our goals, like careers.

Students use their self-awareness skills from the previous month’s lesson to reflect on their various character traits, some they like and some they want to improve, and begin to make connections about how their special qualities might be a good fit for certain roles after graduation.

We read The Bad Seed and they explored the different parts of themselves by creating individual mandalas using symbols for their different character traits. This self discovery activity encourages students to have compassion for every part of themselves including the ones they might think aren’t “good enough”. When we recognize and compassionately reflect on our traits, we gain the power to choose a future that is a perfect fit for who we are and who we want to become.

CSD's School Health Team is preparing for DeKalb Public Health's immunization assessment on Friday, December 6, for all Kindergarten students.

Please ensure your child's immunization records are up-to-date and submitted to the school clinic by Thursday, December 5. If your child is missing any required immunizations, please schedule an appointment with your child's healthcare provider or visit Dekalb Public Health, 445 Winn Way, Decatur, GA 30030.

We appreciate your cooperation in keeping our students healthy and compliant with Georgia's immunization laws. If you plan to submit an Affidavit of Religious Objection to Immunizations (Form #2208), please remember that it must be notarized. Please contact the school nurse with questions or for assistance with immunization records.

City Schools of Decatur appreciates the contributions of parents, students, and staff. Here are three important surveys that are open or will open prior to winter break. Please take a few moments to make your opinion count!

1. 2026-2027 District Calendar Input Survey (Expires 12/4/24)
   Thank you for your continued partnership in evaluating the academic calendar options for the City Schools of Decatur. Please review the proposed 2026-2027 Academic Calendar and provide feedback using the links below. The estimated completion time is 5-7 minutes.

2. First-Semester Teacher Engagement Survey (Expires 12/6/24; for teachers only)

3. Coming Soon! School Climate Survey (Opens 12/2/24)

THANK YOU from Decatur Education Foundation!

Decatur, you ABSOLUTELY blew us away last Thursday! Thank you for celebrating the return of Supper & Sips with us! You helped us raise a record number in one night... more than NINETY THOUSAND DOLLARS in support of Decatur’s kids! Thank you for ALL the ways you show up for DEF so that we can continue to show up for our kids. Visit our website and follow DEF on Facebook and Instagram to learn more about the important work we’re able to support in our schools and in our community, thanks to the generosity of this Decatur community of ours.

Keep it Indie-Catur on Giving Tuesday!

Giving Tuesday is right around the corner! There are countless worthwhile organizations to donate to, but when you give to the Decatur Education Foundation, your support directly impacts kids, teens, and educators right here in our community. Your tax-deductible gift provides essential needs for CSD families struggling with food insecurity, supports student mental health initiatives, provides arts infusion programming in our schools, and allows us to support our amazing educators through Teacher Innovation Grants! Through your generosity, we've been able to do so much good work in our community, and with your continued support, we'll be able to do so much more! Visit DEF's website to learn more about how you can get involved!

Do you have plans for a new garden or class project for spring? Are you full of fantastic ideas for incorporating farm-to-school principles into a teaching unit? Need funds for a "green" field trip?

The Wylde Center Decatur Farm to School Committee invites you to apply for a grant for 2024/25. Teachers, administrators, PTA members, and parent volunteers can apply on behalf of their CSD school. Please get your applications in before December 13, 2024.

2024-2025 DF2S School Grant Application

Who to Contact: Please see who the best contact is for your questions for a quicker response.
Website: https://www.csdecatur.net/Westchester
Location: 758 Scott Boulevard, Decatur, GA, USA
Phone: 404-370-4400
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/westchesterelementarycsd