welcome back-to-school letter

Dear Parents,

Summertime winding down and summer vacations coming to an end signal that back-to-school time has come. It’s a time that many children eagerly anticipate — catching up with old friends, making new ones and settling into a new daily routine

It's that time of the year again, when the children head back to their daily 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. school days.

But before you get too excited, we need to have a short discussion on making sure your student is prepared to "go back to school". Of course parents and/or guardians have been busy purchasing new clothing, shoes, backpacks, and supplies in order to 'prepare' their children for the upcoming school year, and that's a wonderful thing. But, are you sure you have everything? Are you really sure you have provided your child with the essentials needed for the upcoming school year?

Maybe you have. But, I'm sure there are a few parents who may have either over done the preparing, or under done it. When I speak of over and under, I am speaking of preparing the student by keeping them focused on what 'going to school' is all about; school is a place for your child to be a student. Meaning the student is there to learn, not sit in a classroom texting a friend, or not paying attention in class because they cannot hear over their iPods, mp3s and other personal entertainment gadgets. Parents, I cannot stress how important this is. Where is the placement of control for the administrators and educators, when your child has not been "prepared" to give control to their school's administrators, educators? Students have no respect for the staff at the schools because they have not been trained to respect them. And this leads me to wonder if they are disrespecting their parents and other elders at home.

Students are seeing no reason to respect the education system. Why? Is there a shortage on the value of a good education? I'm, seeing a reason sprouting from the media hype and social standards created by the media hype.

No need for school!! The students must be guided with the traditional methods of wanting to be successful in life. It takes hard work, dedication and commitment to be successful.

This leads me back to home. The students' home life has got to be an extension to what the child is learning at school; when the child comes home from school, give their homework assignments a priority. No, television or video games, iPods, mp3s or anything until the homework/house chores have been completed. Parents should check their child's homework; get involved. Nothing says "I love you" like a parent being involved with their child's school life.

I submit this as a collection in reference to school etiquette; a child is a student once they walk through the doors at a school. That means they are at the school to learn ... nothing else; if they are arriving at schools with pagers, cell phones, and/or other [personal] gadgets, they are not at the school to learn. But, are there to 'entertain' them because simply they must feel that whatever is [happening] at the school is not as "important" as what's [entertaining] them.

Help your children understand that a school is not for entertainment, nor for their personal gadgets of disrespect to their educators. The student must realize that for 8-9 hours a day, they are in school under the 'control' of the staff. Another important factor to the success of your student is the support and motivation of family ... no matter what the dreams are for your child.
Like many other school districts nationwide, QLS is gearing up for back-to-school season. This includes taking necessary precautions to protect the community from an onset of the H1N1 virus, more commonly known as the swine flu. You can’t pick up a newspaper or turn on the radio without hearing ghastly predictions as to what would happen once school starts.
Good hygiene
We have placed 40 bottles of alcohol-based hand sanitizers in every school classroom and office for widespread use. Having sanitizer dispensers in every room would promote a "mandatory practice."
Dear Parents, please train your child to:
How to Protect Yourself and Others:

1. Cover your nose and mouth with a disposable tissue when coughing and sneezing.
2. Dispose of used tissues properly immediately after use.

3. Regularly wash hands with soap and water.


4. If you have flu-like symptoms, seek medical advice immediately.

5. If you have flu-like symptoms, keep distance of at least 1.8 meter from other people.


6. If you have flu-like symptoms, stay home from school or crowded places.

7. Avoid hugging, kissing and shaking hands when greeting.


8. Avoid touching eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands.

Have a successful school year! God bless you all and keep you healthy and safe of what ever cause any harm to any one of our school and home families.

Wish you a very successful school year far away from Swine flu.

Sincerely,
Auntie Doha