Dear Families,

Regular attendance at school is an essential part of a student’s educational experience. At a school like Amigos, attendance is especially important because it affects the amount of time students have with the target language, be that English or Spanish. While we recognize that students get sick or families may need to request excused absences, it is important to remember that any absence, be it excused or unexcused, affects student learning. In an effort to improve our school attendance, we are revamping how we monitor and report absences to families, part of this will include sending out attendance letters more regularly. As a school we aim to have an overall attendance rate of 95%, which we do, however, we also have a chronic absentee rate of 12% which means that 12% of our students miss over ten days of school each year! We hope to improve this rate and in turn improve learning and academic achievement for all. For more information about school attendance, please click here and check out our school attendance policy.

Our Upper School Newsletter came out this week. This newsletter takes an in-depth look at all things “Upper School”. Please take a moment, even if your child isn’t in the Upper School yet, to see all the exciting learning going on.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Sincerely,

Sarah Bartels-Marrero
Principal

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Estimadas Familias,

La asistencia consistente a la escuela es una parte esencial de la experiencia educativa de un estudiante. En una escuela como Amigos, la asistencia es especialmente importante porque afecta la cantidad de tiempo que los estudiantes tienen con el idioma, ya sea inglés o español. Aunque reconocemos que los estudiantes se enferman o las familias pueden necesitar solicitar ausencias justificadas, es importante recordar que cualquier ausencia, ya sea excusada o no, afecta el aprendizaje del estudiante. En un esfuerzo por mejorar nuestra asistencia escolar, estamos renovando la forma de monitorear y reportar las ausencias a las familias, parte de esto incluirá un envío de cartas de asistencia más a menudo. Como escuela intentamos tener una tasa de asistencia general de 95%, la cual tenemos. Sin embargo, también tenemos una tasa de absentismo crónico de 12%, lo que significa que el 12% de nuestros estudiantes faltan más de diez días de escuela cada año! Esperamos mejorar esta tasa y, a su vez, mejorar el aprendizaje y el rendimiento académico para todos. Para obtener más información sobre la asistencia escolar, clicka aqui y consulte nuestra política sobre la asistencia escolar.

Nuestro Boletín de la Escuela Intermedia salió esta semana. Este boletín da una mirada profunda a toda la "Escuela Intermedia". Por favor, tómese un momento, incluso si su hijo/a no está en la escuela intermedia todavía, para ver todo el aprendizaje emocionante que está pasando.

Espero que tengan un buen fin de semana.

Sinceramente,

Sarah Bartels-Marrero
Directora

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Follow the Cambridge Middle School Network (MSN)!
Stay updated on what's happening for middler schoolers in Cambridge. Find @CambridgeMSN on Facebook and Instagram! Be sure to sign up (via Facebook) to get the MSN monthly e-newsletter. View the MSN Out-of-School Time Opportunities Resource Guide >>

What's Happening Outside of CPS?

MIT Science on Saturday 
Saturdays | April 1 
Time: Main presentation 10 - 11AM + hands-on activities 11AM - 12noon 
Learn more >>

East Cambridge Little League Baseball Registration and Tryouts (see flyer)
When: Saturday, March 18th at 10am
Where: Frisoli Youth Center, 61 Willow St
Ages: Boys and Girls ages 4-12
Cost: Ages 4-6 $30; Ages 7-12 $60
Website: http://eclbl.com/

Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers: Noche de Ciencias (see flyer)
When: Sunday, March 19th
Where: Lobby 13 MIT Campus, 105 Mass Ave.
Time: 5-7PM
Ages: All
Cost: Free

The MIT/Wellesley Upward Bound Program is now recruiting current 8th graders to join the program starting this coming summer. All Upward Bound students MUST 
live in the city of Cambridge and attend CRLS starting in the 9th grade. 

Upward Bound Program provides after school tutoring during the school year and a six-week residential summer program at Wellesley College. The program also offers academic support and college preparation including college tours and senior seminars. Both the school year and summer session offer various recreational and cultural activities and field trips.

For more information or an application please contact: 617.253.5124 or see your 8th grade teachers.