Placement Memo
June 3, 2020
Dear North Reading Elementary School Families:
This has been a most unusual year for all of us, families, students, and educators. It is hard to believe that we are in the final month of the school year. At this time, it is common to begin thinking about next year and the classroom placement of your child.
At this time we are extending our timeline for placement practices as we seek more information. We appreciate your trust and support in our efforts to ensure a successful re-entry to school for the children. If school opens in a traditional model in September 2020, we are planning on placing students as classroom cohorts to a degree. In this model, students in kindergarten through fourth grade will move to their new grade and new teacher with their current classroom of friends.
We believe the decision to move students with their current class cohort has been made in the best interest of our students, as they did not have a full year in the classroom together and the school year came to an abrupt end. We understand or believe that some students may need to be placed in a different classroom in the best interest of the individual student. If this is the case, the teacher may contact you regarding this matter. It is our sincere hope that this decision will alleviate some of the anxiety our students may be feeling. We recognize that having the consistency of a classroom community of learners will help mitigate some of the concern leading up to next year.
We understand that you may still have thoughts that you would like to share with us. We ask that you submit these thoughts to your school principal via email prior to June 8, 2020. This information will be considered by the professionals involved in the placement process. With our priority of providing consistency in classrooms, we cannot honor teacher requests; so please, do not request specific teachers by name. Letters received after the specified date will not be considered, because of the tight timeline of the complicated placement process.
Finally, it is usually our preference to have placement decisions finalized by the end of the school year. However, due to this unprecedented situation and the ever-evolving guidance regarding the re-opening of school, we expect that this work will not be completed until later this summer. As always, we will continue to communicate information as soon as possible to support your child’s transition.
Sincerely,
Mr. Sean Killeen, L. D. Batchelder Elementary Principal
Mrs. Christine Molle, E. Ethel Little School Principal
Dr. Glen McKay, J. Turner Hood School Principal