Words from the LS Principals

The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools

N/K Lower School Message from the Principals

During the first month of school, all divisions schedule Parent Nights as a means of providing parents with information about our overall program. This includes schedules and routines, curricular goals and expectations, special projects, field trips - all the things that go into creating an engaging school experience for all children.

Also being scheduled are parent/teacher conferences that focus on individual students. These dialogues are an important means of sharing information about student progress and development. In her book, The Essential Conversation: What Parents and Teachers Can Learn From Each Other, Sara Lawrence Lightfoot talks about parent/teacher conferences as a means of creating a partnership in which both parties are “engaged in the important and precious work of raising, guiding, and teaching our children.”

At this first conference of the school year, teachers will expect you to tell them about your child. What’s his personality like? What kind of a learner is she? What are her hobbies, pastimes, fears (if any)? Are there family matters that you want the school to be aware of? Teachers can benefit from knowing your own hopes and concerns for your child. For those families and students in two-year classes, the conversation is one that should provide an update about things that might have taken place over the summer, and possibly questions about changes you might have observed in your student. This is a great opportunity to talk about your child and begin to build (or continue to build on, in the case of two year classes) the foundation for an alliance that will serve us all well.

Carla Young, Nursery & Kindergarten Principal
Beverly Biggs, Lower School Principal