From: NWCS Principal <principal@nwcsny.org>

Date: 9/20/2013 11:20 AM

Good morning Everyone,

Yesterday was the Chinese mid autumn holiday … I hope you had a chance to see the perfectly round moon last night. I remember when I was little (not so long ago) uncles, aunts, cousins, mom, dad and grandparents all gathered together admiring the moon, kids playing games and enjoying the delicious moon cakes … for those family members who were far away and cannot be home for the celebration, they rely on the moon to carry their well wishes to one another …

A friend told me this story … so there was this teacher who thought that it would be nice to have kids write about their experiences on this holiday … she said just look at the moon and write about it and be creative … a week later the students handed in their assignments … she read all of them and they were all good until she read one that said, “It was raining last night, so there was no moon to write about … the end!” Kids … Sigh!

With the regular school starting and fall sports kicking in high gear, learning Chinese on a Saturday has become a challenge for many of us. To encourage and support our kids who are trying their best to do it all, we have relaxed the 6-absences allowed each semester policy. In the past, if you have missed more than 6 classes (out of 14 classes each semester), you are automatically required to repeat the grade the following year. Now, we will instead just deduct points for each absence after the 6^th one from the final grades, provided that the students have kept up with the curriculum (homework and tests). This is to make it fair for those who made the effort to come to school every Saturday. Teachers will provide the homework and arrange for make-up tests (in school). The top students will be awarded with a certificate for the school year.

Our registrar, Mr.Yuan Chi Chang, would like to remind everyone that to full tuition payment is due tomorrow and to receive 100% refund, you need to contact him before class starts this Saturday. I hope that no one is withdrawing because I thought we had a great 1^st day! Please email him at registrar@nwcsny.org.

Speaking of the first day of school, I have received a couple of comments:

· Some parents indicated that they were not able to hear me speak when I had the microphone because I was not holding the microphone close to my mouth when I was speaking. I apologize for that. If you have any questions about the school, please feel free to email me or ask any of the returning parents or board members.

· A parent contacted me and asked about the calendar (thank you for reviewing it) and noticed that we have the Saturday before Thanksgiving off instead of the Saturday after the Thanksgiving. I am reviewing this now and will update calendar if necessary.

· If you are not a Chinese speaking family or have at least one parent who is fluent in Chinese Mandarin, you are strongly recommended to enroll in the B track class. Starting from the 1^st grade the amount of reading and writing will be different for the two tracks and putting your child(ren) in the right track from the beginning is critical. Believe me, based upon past experience, this will help avoid any future trauma for your children if they are not able to keep up with the work. Any questions, please email me (principal@nwcsny.org) and the Dean at Dean@nwcsny.org

· We have free tutoring available during the 3^rd hour, taught by our sr. grade students. They can help your child(ren) with pronunciation and answer questions.

· We received an email from the regular school teacher noting that some items were touched/moved in the classroom. YIKES!!!!!! Please be sure to discuss the code of conduct with your children. We want to make every effort to ensure that we return the classrooms the way they were before we used it. If you have any ideas about how to help enforce this with our kids, please share with our Board chairman, Mr. Calvin Chin at chairperson@nwcsny.org. We will be meeting to review and potentially implement all your ideas.

Last but not least, don’t forget to

· Check if you are the Parent on Duty …. Any questions email our counselor, Kenny Soohoo asap.

· Order your Saturday lunch here: http://23.23.192.51/ibm-restaurant/onlineorder.html

See you tomorrow! Classes start at 9am sharp! Please be on time.