Principal Newsletter // January 14th, 2025

Jan 13

Dear Appleton Community…

THE BEST PREDICTOR OF ACADEMIC SUCCESS IS...

If I could share one piece of advice that makes all the difference in the world for a child’s academic success or one “magic bullet” to academic success it would be this… reading volume outside of school hours is the best predictor of academic success!

The combination of time spent reading and the number of words students actually consume as they read is defined as reading volume. Viewed across a year, there are striking differences in reading achievement between the high-volume readers outside of school and those students who avoid reading.

Now take those numbers and multiply them by 6, the number of elementary years from Kindergarten through 5th grade. As you can see, there is a major advantage for the child where reading outside of school is a priority.

Reading outside of school hours has a profound influence on students’ cognitive abilities, their vocabulary development, and knowledge of the world. Keep in mind that children spend 1,190 hours a year in school versus 6,475 hours outside school. I know it can be tough to get in those minutes. But it is worth it! Thank you for your support, and Happy Reading!

Mid Year Conferences Take on New Importance

The Appleton staff made a decision to emphasize mid year parent/teacher conferences this year and dedicate more evenings for these important meetings. Rather than waiting until the last few weeks of school, every student will have a scheduled meeting at the midpoint. Our hope is that the mid year conferences will help us partner together while there are several more school months to impact the growth of our students. Then at the end of year, there will be a shorter version of student led conferences set up to celebrate their growth. Mid-Year conferences will be January 16, 22, & 23. Report cards will be handed out at your child's Parent/Teacher Conference.

White Iced Tickets on Sale Now

The White Iced Celebration for the D51 Foundation is Saturday, Feb. 3 at the CMU Ballroom. Check out this link to this D51 Foundation sponsored event.

Spell-A-Thon Incentives

Students who earned $100 or more will get to choose prizes soon after our return from break!

Students who earn $250 or more will receive a pizza party with Mr. Hafey on January 23!

Prepare to Go Outside

Please bundle your children in layers and with proper hands, feet, and head gear. We do have a coat and hat closet for students, but please plan for a cold week. Typically, when the wind chill is 10 degrees or below, we have indoor recess. The school district leaves this decision up to each school’s individual principal and at times the temperature at one location in the valley is different from another’s. I have found that if kids are dressed appropriately, they will enjoy our Colorado winters. However, safety will continue to be our biggest concern.

Attendance Check

With the new year, it is always a great resolution to keep great school attendance as a goal for this semester. In December we kept our school trend of improved attendance going. It was a slim margin but we had 16 fewer absences across the school this December compared to last December. That is good news for our attendance improvement goal!

Go Bookworms!

Corey Hafey -

Principal, Appleton Elementary School