Dear Parents and Guardians,
I want to take a moment to share how pleased I am with the start of our school year! Our students and staff have been
working hard, and it has been great to see everyone settling into routines, getting comfortable with expectations, and
getting back into the rhythm of school. We are off to a great start, and I am excited about the year ahead!
As we settle into our routines, I also want to take some time to talk about the importance of regular school attendance.
We understand that sickness happens, especially when we are all together in a school setting. We certainly do not want
students coming to school when they are sick. At the same time, we want to work together as a school and as families to
keep absences to a minimum whenever students are healthy and able to attend.
Although we are still very early in the school year, our attendance data is already showing a significant amount of missed
instructional time. At this point, 4th and 5th grade have had 12 days of instruction, while 3rd grade has had 13 days of
instruction. During that time:
● 3rd Grade: 39.78 days of absences
● 4th Grade: 39.55 days of absences
● 5th Grade: 47.68 days of absences
Combined, that represents more than 127 days of missed instructional time across grades 3–5 in just the first 12–13 days
of instruction.
These numbers are a good reminder of how quickly missed days can add up. Every day a student is in school provides
opportunities to learn new material, complete assignments, participate in classroom activities, build relationships, and
receive support from teachers. Even occasional absences can create gaps that become more difficult for students to
make up as the year progresses.
Our goal is not to make families feel badly about keeping a child home when they are genuinely sick. Rather, we want to
be proactive and work together to make regular attendance a priority. School and home are a team, and when we are all
on the same page about the importance of attendance, our students benefit.
Thank you for your continued support of our school and, most importantly, for supporting your children. We appreciate
everything you do at home to help your child come to school ready to learn and make the most of each day.
If there is anything we can do at school to help support your child’s attendance or success, please reach out. We are
always happy to work with families and find ways to help.
Thank you for a great start to the school year. I am looking forward to all that we will accomplish together!
Sincerely,
Michelle Clawson
Lincoln Elementary Principal