Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Any student, who meet the age requirement and currently resides in the state of Georgia, is eligible to attend.
Kindergarten through 5th Grade.
To show your support and get regular updates on our progress, please email us at info@internationalcharteracademy.org. Spread the word to your neighbors and friends, as well! The greater the community interest we can demonstrate, the greater our chances of success!
Yes, our curriculum will align closely with the Georgia Standards of Excellence And it’s true: multilingualism and multiculturalism may be incredibly important in our rapidly globalizing world, but globalization cannot proceed without new technologies – technologies whose development is underpinned by math and science. At ICAGeorgia we understand this, and we plan to make math and science education a cornerstone of our program.
On international math and science tests, Japanese students consistently make top scores. Much has been made of the social factors in Japan that contribute to this success, but the fact of the matter is, there are specific teaching techniques and exercises, such as the “100 Calculations Table,” that Japanese educators practice to bring about these results. At ICAGeorgia, our Japanese-trained teachers know these techniques and are eager to share them with your children.
Furthermore, as a charter school, we will be granted more leeway in selecting which textbooks to use than traditional public schools. By selecting textbooks of a truly advanced academic level, we expect not only to meet the standards laid out by local and federal agencies but to also exceed them.
Many parents worry that by studying two languages simultaneously, their child’s English proficiency might suffer compared to their monolingual peers. On the contrary, research shows that students at Dual Language schools perform as well as or better than their peers in other types of programs. (See “Trends in Two-Way Immersion Education: A Review of the Research” by Howard, Sugarman, et al., 2003).
Children who begin our Dual Language program at the kindergarten level won’t require any kind of supplemental instruction in Japanese. Differentiated learning techniques will be used to gradually increase students’ second-language abilities and integrate them fully into our bilingual school.
We are currently considering developing a Japanese After School program to accommodate pre-K children. First, however, we need to determine if there is enough interest for us to pursue this option. To show your interest in our pre-K program, please e-mail us at info@internationalcharteracademy.org.
Local charter schools and traditional public schools get money from both the state and from their local tax base, but State Charter Commission Schools only get money from the state. Therefore, any financial contribution that you could make would be a tremendous help.
Parents may drop off their children as early at 7:30 am. Between 7:30 – 7:45 am, parents/guardians must park their cars and enter the cafeteria to drop students off. Between 7:45 – 8:10 am, parents/guardians may drop students off in front of the cafeteria or escort their children to the classroom. Students who are dropped off in the car-rider lane will go to the cafeteria where they will be picked up by a teacher from their grade level prior to the beginning of class. Students are expected to be in class by 8:10 am each day. Student dismissal times are: Monday – Thursday: 2:45; Friday: 2:00. Generation In Focus offers an on-site after school program, which is open until 6:30 pm.
No. Students who currently attend ICAGeorgia do not need to re-enroll. In December of each year, we will ask our families to confirm their intention to return for the following year.
Siblings are defined as follows: 1. Biological (including half sibling)/adoptive sibling. 2. Step sibling residing in the same household. 3. Foster children residing in the same household.
Parents of twins, triplets, or multiples applying to the same grade level will complete one application per child in Lotterease. Twins, triplets or multiples applying to the same grade will be placed during the lottery into the desired grade or wait list in individual, yet consecutive slots.
Yes.
We encourage all families to attend Open House/School tour if they have not attended a previous one. If parents support our mission, philosophy and instructional practices, we invite them to take place in the enrollment process by completing Lotterease registration and submitting Enrollment Packet per student. Visit our Admissions page for details.
Yes. Parents should apply to Lotterease per student. By applying at Lotterease, you are indicating that you would like a seat in a certain grade. Visit our Admissions page for details.
All students who have been granted an available seat must complete and return all enrollment forms along with supporting documentation by the deadline or their seat will be forfeited.
No, all applicants will be placed in the same electronic pot throughout the entire period. When the lottery is run, it is truly random (besides previously mentioned preferences).
In the event that a seat becomes available before the next year’s lottery, ICAGeorgia will contact the family at the top of the waitlist for that grade to discuss their interest.
You have three (3) business days to accept the spot. If the spot is not accepted or declined during that time frame, your child will be automatically moved to the bottom of the waitlist.
When you enter more than one child into your Lotterease account, your children will automatically get the “applicant sibling” preference added to all of their accounts.
Yes and no. It only matters if you have multiple children applying to ICAGeorgia. If one of your children has been offered a spot, you will want to confirm as quickly as possible to then change their sibling(s) preference group from “applicant sibling” to “confirmed sibling.” This will allow the siblings to move up on their corresponding list.
Otherwise, if you only have one child entered in a lottery at ICAGeorgia it does not matter when you confirm, as long as it is within the three (3) day window.
We recommend that you plan on having access to the internet and your email account during the time the lottery is run so that you are able to make these decisions.
If another applicant had their sibling get in, that applicant will be moved to the top of their waitlist in the preference order.
The lottery takes between an hour and an hour and a half in total to run. Each grade level takes between 8-10 minutes. All parent emails will be automatically sent after all grade levels have been run.
No. Wait lists are terminated each year and do not carry over.
The enrollment packet is made available on the ICAGeorgia website. Individuals notified of their acceptance from the waitlist have seven (7) business days from the date of notification to submit their completed enrollment packet and required documents or they will forfeit their spot. For any applicant who is accepted after July 20, the enrollment packet is due within three (3) business days from the date of notification or they will forfeit their spot.
No, all regular school day apparel may be purchased through the vendor of your choice. We have only one item of clothing that requires the school logo, and that is the blazer (to be worn for field trips or special events on cool days only). The blazer with logo can be purchased at French Toast Schoolbox.
We want our students to wear comfortable shoes that will allow them to move around the school comfortably. No flip flops or shoes with rollers, please.
No. Students are not required to wear belts.
Kindergarten students may wear solid navy or black suspenders, if needed. However, we prefer for older students to wear belts, if needed. Please check with me if your older student needs to wear suspenders instead of a belt.
Yes, we prefer that any tights or socks that are visible while walking around be solid navy, solid black, or solid white. This will mostly be when students are wearing shorts, skirts, or dresses. Hair bows should be in line with school dress code colors (solid navy, white, or black).
Yes, we have a few samples of polo shirt sizes (children’s small to XXL), and they are in our front office for your review. We also have one school jacket sample (with a school logo).
No, students will stay in school uniforms.
Unfortunately, we do not have enough interest to meet the minimum requirement for arranging for a school bus at this time.
Carpool lane is open between 7:45 am and 8:05 am. Parents may start dropping off students as early as 7:30 am. If you plan on dropping off your child between 7:30 am and 7:45 am, please park your car and physically bring your child to the cafeteria for safety reasons.
Since our school has no full kitchen, our students will bring their own lunch or bento from home. Our school also has contracted a lunch catering company so that parents can pre-order and pre-pay lunches for children. The catering company delivers the pre-ordered lunches to school before lunch time. For our current lunch catering company informaation, please call our office at 770-604-0007.
There is no microwave in cafeteria. Please make sure to pack lunches, which do not require to be warmed up in microwave.