Highland Updates

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

Last Days of June 2023: Linked here are the schedules in the google sheet form.

Here are some abbreviated notes for each day;

• Friday 6/9 – Student Appreciation Day
  • Cart coming around with music and snacks in the morning (hoping to get to each room by recess with Kinders on their way out from specialist)
  • Popsicles at last recess (later for Marieka’s class)
  • Special Assembly at 1:30 – Agenda below
  • The Newport Construction Celebration will be occurring behind the school from 10:30-12:00.
• Monday 6/12 – No changes to schedule
• 5:30 Variety Show
• Yearbooks will be distributed on Monday
• Tuesday 6/13 – No changes to schedule
• Wednesday 6/14 – Field Day
  • There will be one recess at 9:10-9:25 for the classes on campus in the morning.  
  • There will be one recess at 12:45-1:00 for the classes on campus in the afternoon.
  • Please check your time to be at Harmon park for your assigned half hour.  The other hour of time is your prep.
  • (Please see email from Alicia regarding Field Day on Tuesday 5/30 for more details.)
• Thursday 6/15
  • 8:50 – classes line the halls to cheer on the 5th graders as they lap the building.  (Teachers form tunnel between room 14 and the gym)
  • 9:00 Ceremony Start time
  • Specialist schedule will follow a modified schedule check the google sheet for your time.
• Friday 6/16 – 12:45 Release Day
  • 9:00 Assembly start time – Agenda below
  • If time permits we can provide an all-school recess after.  If the assembly runs longer than 45 minutes, then we will not have a morning recess.  Everyone will have time for Music/PE – see schedule for your specific time.

Lunch Recess and Lunch Times remain consistent all week.

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons.  Almost there – just two more classes to sign off.

End of Year Meetings/SLGGs:  For those of you on an evaluation cycle I will be sharing a draft of your evaluation via Talent Ed in the next few days (most likely this weekend, since Rowan graduates tonight).  Please take a look and then let me know some times that work for you next week or the following week when we can meet for about a half hour to finalize the process.

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file.  

Student Appreciation Day Assembly Agenda:

• Sparrow Club
• DJ Dustin
• June/July Birthdays

Final Day Assembly Agenda: 

• Deschuetes Public Library
• Mileage Club
• Clubs
• Video

From Walt – Since we are getting closer to summer, it’s time for our custodial crew to start firing up for summer clean. One thing that happens every year that is an issue, is the teacher’s personal items left in the classroom. Because of security, safety and personal reasons custodial will not be handling them. This soft furniture, bookshelves, rugs, aquarium’s, plants, animals etc. shouldn’t be a custodial responsibility to clean and is ultimately a risk if there is breakage, missing or otherwise. Please be sure to take your personal items home. The custodial crew thanks you!

Summer Training: OSU Teacher Training in Corvallis 6/26-29 | Ethnic Studies Standards  

• The Ethnic Studies Summer Institute will take place at Oregon State University, Corvallis Campus, June 26-29. Our program will equip participants from varied subject matter areas to understand and fulfill the new ethnic studies requirement. To ensure relevance and engagement for both teachers and students, we’ll take a dynamic, interactive approach centered on Oregon communities.

Teachers will leave this experience with an understanding of the state’s ethnic studies standards and practical strategies to implement those standards with a curriculum that is site-specific, historically-informed, and inclusive of students and communities all too often overlooked by mainstream U.S. history and social studies.

Note: This professional development opportunity provides 30 hours of instructional time. Space is limited! Visit this page to learn more about our Ethnic Studies Summer Institute. 

From Lora re: 23-24 Work Calendar – If you haven’t already shared this with staff please do so Beginning of the Year Work Calendar

From Roy Fuller re: ipad roll in –   It’s time to roll in iPads for the summer. Please distribute the following slides in hopes that teachers will take a moment to go over it with their class before checking in iPads for the summer. Not only does this effort get a jump on rolling out ready-to-use iPads in the fall, it also introduces organizational skills of digital materials. Realistically, most students in grades 3 and up will be able to follow along and accomplish the tasks.  Schools might want to employ some tech buddies to help with the process for younger students.

Here are the slides for kids to follow:

• kinder-4th end of year iPad slides
• fifth grade end of year iPad slides

For a complete view of what’s happening district-wide, check out the Spring iPad plan. Take a look at BLS tier one page or reach out to your site tech with questions. 

Happy National Donut Day! 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

Excellence in Education:  Congratulations to Cat and Doug for earning this year’s Excellence in Education awards!  Cat and Doug were celebrated along with 77 colleagues across the district at the annual awards ceremony at Summit High School last night.

Careful, these two are now fully equipped with the apple!

Testing: Although our school participation rate will not meet the standard due to the 24 opt-outs, we have really good preliminary results for students completing the tests.  Below shows the combined grades 3-5 of the scored tests so far.  These are unofficial and incomplete, but they already show strong results.  For reference, Green is level 3 and Blue is level 4.  For both ELA and Math we easily have 80% or better in the green and blue.  For further context, our district results show about 60% in levels 3 & 4.  Please tell our students they did really well and pat yourselves on the back.  

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons.  We have just 4 classes not completed.  Please check this link and complete the info for your classroom. 

Hiring/Staffing update:  Cat is officially hired back!!  Woohoo!  Office manager interviews will be Wednesday afternoon.  There will be no staff meeting on Wednesday so we can use the afternoon to complete these interviews, however we will hold a staff meeting after school on Thursday so we can discuss things like Field day, 5th grade promotion etc..

23-24 Placements: That’s a wrap!  Well done on these meetings.  I will share class solver data with Scott Edmondson so that he has all this information.  These lists will remain confidential until he decides to release them in the fall.  Ideally, you will have these on or around Tuesday, August 29th.  Please remember that it is very difficult to release these any sooner as we need the flexibility to make changes if necessary.

Stage Storage:  As you saw from Marieka’s email we have some work to do to get our stage operational for the variety show.  Unless somebody needs them, the rolling shelves will go to room 14 under the windows.  The chairs will be distributed around the school (classrooms & offices), so you may end up with one or two extras in your room to help with spreading out the storage.  There are 8 double student desks and 4 single student desks, tech presentation stations, standing desk, and metal shelf – I would love to see these find a new home. Anything that has been sitting up there for over a year and left unclaimed will be discarded or donated to another school within the next few days.  Here are some photos to help you see what we have there;

CPR/First Aid Updates From Stephanie Bent – With summer break quickly approaching I just wanted to give an update on First Aid / CPR certification. If you would like to renew your First Aid / CPR (or take it for the first time) before school starts again in the fall, PLEASE SIGN UP THRU PERFORMANCE MATTERS BEFORE JUNE 13, 2023 

HANDS ON SKILL CLASSES (20 min class) will be offered at the end of August. THERE WILL BE NO HANDS ON SKILLS CLASSES DURING THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER. They will resume again in October. 

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file.  

Assembly and Spirit Day: 

Looking forward: We have two assemblies on the calendar. One is June 9th. This isn’t a real assembly. It’s going to be a fun surprise for Student Appreciation Day. I will fill you all in on this soon! The second assembly will be on the last day of school at 9:00. We will have the Deschutes Public Library there to talk about the summer reading program and I will put together an end of the year slideshow. It will be our final “goodbye for now” time.                                                                               

Key Links:

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview: 

• Monday 6/5
• Tuesday 6/6 – Be sure to check culmination notes from the storyline team regarding today.
  • All School Culmination Day
  • Change to PM Recess → K/1 will join the 4/5 group from 12:45-1:00
• Wednesday 6/7
  • No meeting due to interviews
• Thursday 6/8
  • 2:45 Staff Meeting
• Friday 6/9
  • Student Appreciation Day – shhh – it’s a surprise – expect some disruption on this day.
  • 10:30-12:00 Newport Ave Improvement Completion Celebration – this is happening on Nashville – street will be closed off to traffic.
  • 1:30 Assembly

Highland Staff Calendar 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

Newport Improvements Project Opening Celebration: On Friday 6/9, there will be a ribbon-cutting celebration held on Nashville behind the school from 10:30-noon. They will be closing the traffic to the area for this brief time. The Upper Deschutes Watershed will be hosting a booth and we expect several city officials to attend. You have all been invited to attend with your classrooms if you choose to join them. This all ties into the River Keeper storyline nicely as this work was completed not just to improve services to humans, but to protect the river. If you would like to attend with your classroom, please let me know as they have asked me to give them notice.

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons.  According to the tracking sheet we have 11 classrooms completed.  Please check this link and complete the info for your classroom. 

From Kinsey re: our ICCL team and LEAD/Equity work – Next year each school will identify one ICCL member to serve as the ‘liaison’ between your school and the district’s LEAD/Equity work.  This person will have regular collaboration time (within their ICCL role and via sub-release time–not additional hours) with our Office of DEI leadership team, to connect the needs and work of your building with the district-wide efforts and priorities for equity and inclusion.  Please consider this as you think about applying for the ICCL position.

Hiring/Staffing update: Schools were given limited permission to move forward with some hiring as of this week.  We will move forward with hiring the current temp position at 2/3 (Cat’s current position) next week.  Office manager posting closes this weekend and interviews are the following week.  As I mentioned in the past, I will be utilizing ICCLs for interviews, however if you are ever interested in participating on a interview committee, you are welcome to come to talk to me and I will take it into consideration.  Hailey is in the process of letting her caseload of families know about her departure so this will become public knowledge soon.  Tami Ottis will be coming to us from Buckingham to be our new Learning Specialist next year.  Once again, it’s best to allow them to share this information so this is being shared simply to keep you in the loop.  

23-24 Placements: Great work on the first round.  Here’s the schedule for round two;

• 3rd → 4th 1:00-1:45
• K → 1st 1:45-2:30
• 1st → 2nd 2:30-3:15

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file.  

From Instructional Tech re: 5th Grade Step Up to Middle School – Please encourage your 5th grade teachers to take advantage of the Step Up to Middle School Canvas course for their students. Our instructional technology team will come to your school to get teachers ready to run this partially self-directed Canvas class with their students. Please check in with your 5th grade team and encourage them to sign-up for a 20 minute check-in if they haven’t already using this link.

From Jessica @ Juniper re: TAG – Here is the Juniper TAG Night Flyer. Please send this out to your newly identified TAG families so they can attend this informational night.  

May Focus: 

Assembly and Spirit Day: May 5th at 1:30

Looking forward: We have two assemblies on the calendar. One is June 9th. This isn’t a real assembly. It’s going to be a fun a surprise for Student Appreciation Day. I will fill you all in on this soon! The second assembly will be on the last day of school at 9:00. We will have the Deschutes Public Library there to talk about the summer reading program and I will put together an end of the year slideshow. It will be our final “goodbye for now” time.

Character Trait: Integrity and Self-Reflection                                                                           Discussion Question: I have grown- I have accomplished…                                                     SEL Competence: Self-Awareness                                                                                         

Here is our assembly plan and sign up. 

Key Links:

UKG: Use this link to access the page with videos and instructions.  

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview: 

State Testing in grades 3-5

• Monday 5/29
  • Memorial Day – No School
• Tuesday 5/30
• Wednesday 5/31
  • 5th Graders to Camp Tamarack (5/31-6/2)
    • Team meetings for class lists reviews 5/31.
      • 3rd → 4th 1:00-1:45
        • K → 1st 1:45-2:30
          • 1st → 2nd 2:30-3:15
• Thursday 6/1
  • 2:30 Safety Team Meeting
• Friday 6/2

Highland Staff Calendar 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons.  According to the tracking sheet we have 11 classrooms completed.  Please check this link and complete the info for your classroom. 

23-24 Placements: Hopefully you got your student surveys done by today (Friday 5/19).  Please do not forget to hit the “Mark as Complete” button when you are done.  I will run classes and share them electronically on Monday or Tuesday.  You will also receive the parent input forms as well.  Wednesday we will come together to review as a team to look at the balance and make necessary adjustments.  Please remember that class lists are confidential and should not be shared outside of your team.

Middle School Math Bypass Test Info – Here is an FAQ that you can provide to interested families (5th grade students only).  This is hot-off-the-press info regarding our departing 5th graders.  If teachers or parents would like to consider having their student bypass 6th grade math, we will need to administer the Math i-Ready test to them before the end of the year.  

Summer Construction:  The more I think about this, the more I realize this will probably be more than just “dusty”, and I want to strongly recommend we remove all the stuff off open surfaces in the classroom, walls and the locker bays.  We’ll bring some boxes to help.  I also want to encourage you to make a trip down the dungeon and pick one thing to throw away or discard and one thing to bring back up to store in your room in the cabinets.  Rather than do one large clear out, I am hoping you can chip away at it little by little.  If everyone can commit to making a small impact, it can add up.

Lunch Outside: Lunch outside has been going really well! We are working on getting more shade out there soon. A few reminders to pass along to your classes: Quieter voices please (we have kindergarten trying to  learn how to read!), find a spot and stay there,and clean up after yourself. Thank you!

From Lora– Here is the 2023-24 Beginning of the Year Work Calendar. We are also looking at calendaring the Ice Cream Social for Thursday 8/31 from 3:00-5:00.

From Scott McDonald – Greetings Google Users – If you are someone who frequently uses Google Workspace products (forms, docs, sheets, slides) then you should be aware of pending security changes.  Beginning next Wednesday, anonymous public users will no longer be able to access your Google documents without first signing in with a Google account.  Example:  If you share a google sign-up form to your families, they would be prompted to sign into Google before signing up for the activity. Both district and non-district accounts would work just the same.  A user who is already signed into a google product would see no change what-so-ever.   Why?  By simply signing into a document, a user has some accountability and responsibility for what they view or edit.   If you feel that this change will negatively impact your work, please feel free to reach out.   Our IT team will do our best to work with you to provide alternative solutions while also ensuring we keep our documents and data safe.

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file.  

From Instructional Tech re: 5th Grade Step Up to Middle School – Please encourage your 5th grade teachers to take advantage of the Step Up to Middle School Canvas course for their students. Our instructional technology team will come to your school to get teachers ready to run this partially self-directed Canvas class with their students. Please check in with your 5th grade team and encourage them to sign-up for a 20 minute check-in if they haven’t already using this link.

From Jessica @ Juniper re: TAG – Here is the Juniper TAG Night Flyer. Please send this out to your newly identified TAG families so they can attend this informational night.  

May Focus: 

Assembly and Spirit Day: May 5th at 1:30

Looking forward: We have two assemblies on the calendar. One is June 9th. This isn’t a real assembly. It’s going to be a fun a surprise for Student Appreciation Day. I will fill you all in on this soon! The second assembly will be on the last day of school at 9:00. We will have the Deschutes Public Library there to talk about the summer reading program and I will put together an end of the year slideshow. It will be our final “goodbye for now” time.

           Character Trait: Integrity and Self-Reflection                                                                                                       Discussion Question: I have grown- I have accomplished…                                                     SEL Competence: Self-Awareness                                                                                         

Here is our assembly plan and sign up. 

Key Links:

UKG: Use this link to access the page with videos and instructions.  

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview: 

State Testing in grades 3-5

• Monday 5/22
• Tuesday 5/23
• Wednesday 5/224
  • Team meetings for class lists reviews 5/24.
    • K→ 1st 1:00-1:45
    • 1st → 2nd 1:45-2:30
    • 3rd → 4th 2:30-3:15
• Thursday 5/25
  • 2:30 Culture of Care Team
• Friday 5/26

Highland Staff Calendar 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

Spring Carnival: I just wanted to take a moment to acknowledge how fantastic the Spring Carnival was this year.  Last year was great and this year was even better!  The vibe was so fun.  Taelor Little did an amazing job and if you get the opportunity to simply say “thank you” to her, please do.  I also want to acknowledge Cameron for his MCing of the raffle – you did a great job, Cam.  I also want to give a shout out to Zach and Tim as these events always throw wrenches in their scheduled work – so thank you both!  For those of you who were able to attend, I hope you enjoyed it!

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons.  According to the tracking sheet we have 6 classrooms completed.  Please check this link and complete the info your for classroom. 

OSAS Testing Grades 3rd-5th Resources:

These resources can help answer questions and get you started administering the tests. Reach out if you need help.

• Step-by-Step Directions for Creating a Test Session: Click here
• Step-by-Step Directions for Checking Test Progress: Click here
• Full Testing Manual: Click here
• Accessibility Information: Click here or the full accessibility manual: Click here
• Universal Supports: Click here (available to anyone, any time)
• Designated Supports: Click here (support they have all the time in class)
• Accommodations: Click here (only for students on an IEP or 504)
• Science Supports: Click here (all levels of supports explained for science)
• Testing Security: Click here (reminders and directions about the testing environment)
• Test Lengths: Click here (how long they anticipate each test might take)
• Math Manipulatives: Click here (what math manipulatives students can use during the tests)
• Script: Click here (the last page is what we can say during a test)

Forms

• Opt-Out Form: English: Click here, Spanish: Click here

Training Presentations

• Mod 2 (Test Administrator Training): Click here
• Mod 4 (Test Security Training): Click here
• Mod 5 (ELA & Math State Test Training): Click here
• Mod 6 (Science State Test Training): Click here

23-24 Placements: Please remember that “1”s and “5”s are to be used for the extremes on either end for the different characteristics.  For example, to be a 1 in reading, the student should be in intervention based on the multiple measures.  Next Friday 5/19 is the deadline for completing your surveys.  The parent input form is due by Friday 5/19 as well.  We will share the parent input for your students on 5/22 which will give you a little bit of time to review.  We will meet in teams on Wednesday 5/25 to review the lists and make adjustments as necessary.  You are asked to complete the survey prior to the parent input so that your professional evaluation is the primary influence on placement info.  Then we consider the parent input secondarily.  In order to create truly balanced classes in an equitable manner it is best practice to avoid personality matching.  ClassSolver will help us achieve that objectively if you complete those surveys with fidelity.  As always we can and will make adjustments based on information that is not on that survey.  If you are having discussions with parents about placement it is important to keep that conversation open-ended – do not make commitments to placing students with specific teachers as that is clear favoritism. 

Summer Construction:  We have a contractor scheduled to start work the week after school gets out.  We are being told to expect a fair amount of dust from the construction as they will be removing old lighting fixtures and adding new ones.  You should box or cover anything left out that you want to keep clean.  As is always the case, the less stuff you have out the easier it is for the summer cleaning, so this summer is no different.  This also means the materials on the walls need to come down as they will collect dust if they are left up. The furniture will be moved out or to the perimeter of the room to make work easier.

2023-2024 ICCLs:  Here’s the new process;

1. Submit to me via email a cover letter indicating your interest in the position and why you think you would be a good candidate.
2. Complete application through UKG.
3. The colleague’s recommendation is no longer required.
4. No paper applications will be accepted.
5. We have the green light to complete the hiring process for these positions at any time.
6. We have 2 positions funded by the district and additional positions are funded via SIF funds.
7. My intention is to fill at least two positions by the end of June, possibly more.

Office Manager Position: The office manager position is posted until the end of May.  My hope is to conduct interviews on Wednesday, 6/7, however I have to admit that might be a little too ambitious so be prepared for a change.  My intention is to use some of our ICCL team and a couple other panel members to conduct the interviews for this position.

Learning Specialist Position: Our new learning specialist will be coming to meet with Hailey in a couple weeks.  We are still keeping this transition confidential to ensure Hailey is able to deliver the news to her students and families first.

Counselor Position: Our new counselor is Katy Parker.   We will share her half time with Miller.  I’ve already received unsolicited feedback about what an awesome human being she is, so I am really excited for her to join the Highland community.  I am also really excited to add this expertise to our site to benefit both students and your classroom environments.

There are no other updates to hiring and positions at this time.  As soon as that information changes, I will share it.

WebEx Goes bye-bye:  FYI the district will be phasing out WebEx and Microsoft Teams will be our option for video conferencing moving forward.

From Ryan Kelling re: Professional Development Opportunities for Licensed Staff:  Lewis & Clark University is hosting information sessions for already-licensed staff interested in learning more about adding either a Special Education endorsement or a Principal License to their license.

• An online informational session for L&C’s Special Education Generalist added endorsement program will be Wednesday, May 17th. Tuition is discounted from the typical Lewis & Clark rate, classes are held fully online, and the 18-credit program can be completed in 10 months. Here is a link to register for the information night. 
• An in-person information session for their Principal License cohort will be held at the High Desert ESD’s office in Redmond on Wednesday, May 31st from 4:00 -6:00 pm. This is a 2-year program that consists of 27 units at a discounted rate. 

Both of these programs would be eligible for 50% tuition reimbursement for Certified staff. More information about the tuition reimbursement program, including an application, on the staff portal.

Lunch Outside: We are going to try having lunch outside on nice days! Thank you to Danielle, Steph and Zach for helping to get the courtyard between the main building and the gym ready! Teachers will not need to do anything different on outside days except for picking up your students from the courtyard instead of the cafeteria. The expectations will be the same, level 2 voices, stay seated, and clean up after yourself. Thank you to the PTO for the umbrellas and umbrella stands. 

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file.  

From Instructional Tech re: 5th Grade Step Up to Middle School – Please encourage your 5th grade teachers to take advantage of the Step Up to Middle School Canvas course for their students. Our instructional technology team will come to your school to get teachers ready to run this partially self-directed Canvas class with their students. Please check in with your 5th grade team and encourage them to sign-up for a 20 minute check-in if they haven’t already using this link.

From Jessica @ Juniper re: TAG – Here is the Juniper TAG Night Flyer. Please send this out to your newly identified TAG families so they can attend this informational night.  

May Focus: 

Assembly and Spirit Day: May 5th at 1:30

Looking forward: We have two assemblies on the calendar. One is June 9th. This isn’t a real assembly. It’s going to be a fun a surprise for Student Appreciation Day. I will fill you all in on this soon! The second assembly will be on the last day of school at 9:00. We will have the Deschutes Public Library there to talk about the summer reading program and I will put together an end of the year slideshow. It will be our final “goodbye for now” time.

           Character Trait: Integrity and Self-Reflection                                                                                                       Discussion Question: I have grown- I have accomplished…                                                     SEL Competence: Self-Awareness                                                                                         

Here is our assembly plan and sign up. 

Key Links:

UKG: Use this link to access the page with videos and instructions.  

COVID Reporting Form 

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview: 

State Testing in grades 3-5

• Monday 5/15
• Tuesday 5/16
• Wednesday 5/17
  • 1:15-1:45 Staff Meeting 
  • SIW – All School Storyline
• Thursday 5/18
  • 2:30-3:30 Leadership
• Friday 5/19

Highland Staff Calendar 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons.  According to the tracking sheet we have 6 classrooms completed.

MTSS Round 3: Thank you once again for your participation in these important meetings.  I want to acknowledge our core team for sitting in all four of those meetings and processing everything in such a thoughtful and helpful way.   I also want to acknowledge the progress of all our students due to your work; According to Lexia data, 94% of our students K-5 are working at or above grade level (for students meeting usage it’s 100%).  I also know our reading playground data is also really positive across all grade levels; I just don’t have a way to display it but I know it shows a huge impact from your teaching.  According to Dreambox data, students averaging between 2 and 5 lessons a week grew by 80% and students completing 5 or more lessons per week grew by 140%.  When examining the FYI data, you can see a large number of students who respond well to the instruction around their lagging skills and a clear pattern of learning from their mistakes.  I know there are students that challenge that paradigm and cause a lot of frustration, but my hope is you can use this information to open up your perspective to allow you to enjoy the results of your hard work.

OSAS Testing Grades 3rd-5th Resources:

These resources can help answer questions and get you started administering the tests. Reach out if you need help.

• Step-by-Step Directions for Creating a Test Session: Click here
• Step-by-Step Directions for Checking Test Progress: Click here
• Full Testing Manual: Click here
• Accessibility Information: Click here or the full accessibility manual: Click here
• Universal Supports: Click here (available to anyone, any time)
• Designated Supports: Click here (support they have all the time in class)
• Accommodations: Click here (only for students on an IEP or 504)
• Science Supports: Click here (all levels of supports explained for science)
• Testing Security: Click here (reminders and directions about the testing environment)
• Test Lengths: Click here (how long they anticipate each test might take)
• Math Manipulatives: Click here (what math manipulatives students can use during the tests)
• Script: Click here (the last page is what we can say during a test)

Forms

• Opt-Out Form: English: Click here, Spanish: Click here

Training Presentations

• Mod 2 (Test Administrator Training): Click here
• Mod 4 (Test Security Training): Click here
• Mod 5 (ELA & Math State Test Training): Click here
• Mod 6 (Science State Test Training): Click here

23-24 Placements:  Please see the separate email from me on Tuesday 5/2 evening regarding placements.  You should have received an automated email from class solver inviting you to complete the survey for your students.  Please be sure to have the conversation with your team about your rankings, etc. prior to completing the survey.  It works best when you are all using a similar understanding of the rankings you give students.  I am happy to join you for that conversation, just give me a heads up of when and where.  All students K-4 will need their info completed for best results.

Counselor for 23-24: I am super excited to share with you that Highland will be adding a half-time counselor to our staffing next year.  Our district is moving in the direction of providing counselors across all schools to help meet the social and emotional needs of our students and this is a big step in the right direction.  I sat in several interviews last week and I was thrilled with the pool of candidates.  Highland will truly benefit from this additional team member.  This is still emerging information, so more on this later.

IPad Roll In:  FYI – All students will be turning in iPads this year.  More details on the how and when coming later, but I just wanted to plant that seed.  One important thing to remember is that the iPads need to be updated and charged prior to the turn in time.  If you can help do this on your own, you will greatly reduce the workload on Debbie (and she would really appreciate it).  More details on the when, where, who, etc. coming later.

From Jackie Mueller re: May walk and bike challenge –  The May 11th event can be shared with teachers and parents. Parents can log trips and teachers should help gather data for the district about the # of students walking, biking, busing and carpooling. There is a Google form and any hand talleys. Any other data or posters can be sent to Jackie Wilson, Sustainability, Admin

1. May 8 – 19 is the walk and bike challenge. If your school has some active commuters via walking or biking, this is a great way to get involved and eventually get rewards. Please share with staff so we can the carbon offsets through the month of May.
   • Go to Get There Oregon
   • Sign up – use your school email
   • Check email and confirm account
   • For the find and join a network, look for your school under Bend-La Pine – YOUR SCHOOL
   • Start to log trips commuting via carpool, walking or biking
   • The district will review the schools with the most trips logged in May in the hopes of getting you involved in a reward program like Caldera’s. 
   • Here are BLS current statistics for this school year to date:

2. BLS is celebrating the May Walk + Roll Challenge on May 11th 2023, with support from Commute Options. K-8 BLS Students are encouraged to Walk or Roll to School (Park n’ Walks and Remote drop off locations are an excellent option for families that live outside of the walk zone), form walk to school groups together, and log their trip to win prizes. Participating students from the top 2 schools (highest amount of trips logged) will be entered into the raffle to win new Kick Scooters. Their trip can be logged at commuteoptions.org/walkroll. Additional details can be found here.

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file.  

From Instructional Tech re: 5th Grade Step Up to Middle School – Please encourage your 5th grade teachers to take advantage of the Step Up to Middle School Canvas course for their students. Our instructional technology team will come to your school to get teachers ready to run this partially self-directed Canvas class with their students. Please check in with your 5th grade team and encourage them to sign-up for a 20 minute check-in if they haven’t already using this link.

From Jessica @ Juniper re: TAG – Here is the Juniper TAG Night Flyer. Please send this out to your newly identified TAG families so they can attend this informational night.  

May Focus: 

Assembly and Spirit Day: May 5th at 1:30- We have a guest speaker (storyteller!) Thanks JJ!!!! Spirit day is career day! 

           Character Trait: Integrity and Self-Reflection                                                                                                       Discussion Question: I have grown- I have accomplished…                                                     SEL Competence: Self-Awareness                                                                                         

Here is our assembly plan and sign up. 

Key Links:

UKG: Use this link to access the page with videos and instructions.  

COVID Reporting Form 

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview: (Please check the FT times as I am not sure I have the most current info on these.)

• Monday ⅝
  • 9:30-11:30- UDWC FT- Glogau (Kolleen) Sacamano (Colette)
• Tuesday 5/9
  • 9:30-11:30 UDWC FT- Greene
  • 2:30 PTO General Meeting
• Wednesday 5/10
  • 1:15-1:45 Staff Meeting 
  • SIW – Teacher Prep
• Thursday 5/11
  • 9:30-11:30 UDWC FT- Chambers
  • 2:30 Safety Team Meeting
• Friday 5/12 
  • 9:30-11:30 UDWC FT- Howard
  • PTO Spring Carnival

Highland Staff Calendar 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons.  I moved this to the top of the blog as we are reaching the end of the month (April is Abuse Awareness month) and I noticed we still have quite a few who need to sign off on completing these lessons.  You can continue to complete these lessons through May, but please remember testing starts soon, so you will have another demand on time. 

MTSS Round 3: Thank you for your participation in the Tier 1 meetings on Wednesday.  I took a quick peek at your slides, but it looks like there is still some work to be done, so I will check back on them later.  These slides provide our documentation for completing Tier 1 processes of a multi-tiered system of support so it’s a crucial piece to the overall picture.  Tuesday we have the last Tier 2 meeting.  You should have received an email with links to your grade level data on Thursday morning.  Linked here is the schedule for the day.  Please make sure you leave clear plans ready for your subs and be sure you are on the stage at your meeting start time (highlighted in yellow).  

OSAS Testing 3rd-5th Grades:  Here is a document with all of the testing training modules for the OSAS Testing. Our testing window begins on May 15th so you have some time to complete these but please do so before we begin. Thanks, Heidi T.

Spring is here!  There! I wrote it… so  therefore spring might actually be here to stay for a few weeks.  With the arrival of spring, we are closer to a BIG transition for our students.  There are so many factors that truly mess with our heads, so let’s try to remember that when students are “acting out” or “forgetting” everything they learned.  The porcupine brain is taking over for many students at times and it’s not a conscious choice to misbehave.  Find your curiosity and seek out the why.  Doing so allows us to get upstream and truly help our students to better cope with change.  Let’s do our best to avoid a fear-based (punitive consequences) environment for our classrooms and school.

ICCL positions:  For the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 school years all the ICCL positions are open.  If you are interested in being a part of the leadership team to guide this school with your new principal, consider completing the application.  We have not been given the greenlight to start hiring these positions yet, but  I will link the job description and application as soon as we can.  Be on the lookout!

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file. 

We Play Wednesdays: Starting in May, we will use our combined morning recesses to allow olders to work with youngers on playing at recess. You will still have the same recess time but your students don’t need to worry about staying on the blacktop or field. Please send me the names of any 3rd, 4th or 5th graders that are interested in leading games during recess on Wednesdays mornings. I will have a quick meeting with them on Tuesday morning at 8:00 in the library.  

May Focus: 

Assembly and Spirit Day: May 5th at 1:30- We have a guest speaker (storyteller!) Thanks JJ!!!! Spirit day is career day! 

           Character Trait: Integrity and Self-Reflection                                                                                                       Discussion Question: I have grown- I have accomplished…                                                     SEL Competence: Self-Awareness                                                                                         

Here is our assembly plan and sign up. 

Key Links:

UKG: Use this link to access the page with videos and instructions.  

COVID Reporting Form 

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview: 

• Monday 5/1
• Tuesday 5/2
  • MTSS Cycle 3 Day
• Wednesday 5/3
  • 1:15-1:45 Staff Meeting 
  • SIW – School-Wide Storyline
• Thursday 5/4

• Friday 5/5 – Spirit Day – Career Day
  • DIBELS Day
  • Kindergarten Forest Day
  • 1:30 Assembly
  • Spirit Day: Career Day!

Highland Staff Calendar 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

 Camp Tamarack:  Just in case you have not heard, our 5th graders will be returning to Camp Tamarack this spring.  Our students will be attending along with Rosland 5th graders from 5/31 to 6/2.  Camp Tamarack staff will be coming to Highland on Thursday 4/27 to provide a parent information session.  With the passing of Senate Bill 439 and mMeasure 99 in 2015, and OSU taking on the distribution of funds in 2017, this Outdoor School experience is available free to all 5th grade students in Oregon.

MTSS Round 3: We have our last round of MTSS coming up; Tier 1 meetings led by your ICCL during our SIW time on Wednesday 4/26.  Tier 2 meetings will be on Tuesday 5/2 with roving subs similar to the last two cycles.  We will not have new dibels data since the next dibels day is not until Friday 5/5.  Since we have both Lexia and Reading Playground data, this should be enough to identify any changes to instruction needed for the final weeks of school.  Ideally, I will share the Tier 1 slides with you on Friday 4/21 afternoon, but realistically they might not come until Monday 4/24.

Staff Appreciation Breakfast: Please note the district-served breakfast is on Tuesday morning before school.  They will be ready to serve at 7:00am, so this is a great day to be early and enjoy a good breakfast before you start teaching.

OSAS Testing 3rd-5th Grades:  Here is a document with all of the testing training modules for the OSAS Testing. Our testing window begins on May 15th so you have some time to complete these but please do so before we begin. Thanks, Heidi T.

Stage Use: Taelor Little (our PTO Events Magician) is asking to use the stage between now and Friday 5/12 to stage items for the carnival.  Other than our MTSS meeting on the 2nd, I do not see any conflicts on our calendars, but I just wanted to put it out there before I give her a full green light.  If your team is planning on using the stage between now and then, please reach out to me asap.  

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons. 

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file. 

April Focus: 

Assembly: Canceled- we will combine April/May Birthdays at our May assembly.                       Character Trait: Leadership                                                                                                        Discussion Question: I will know I am successful when…                                                        SEL Competence: Self-Management                                                                                           *I put a few more ideas for discussion questions around leadership in your mail boxes on Tuesday. 

Here is our assembly plan and sign up. 

Key Links:

UKG: Use this link to access the page with videos and instructions.  

COVID Reporting Form 

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview: 

• Monday 4/24
• Tuesday 4/25
  • 7:00 Staff Appreciation Breakfast in Cafeteria 
• Wednesday 4/26
  • 1:15-1:45 Staff Meeting 
  • SIW – MTSS – Tier 1 Meetings  (Please note our Tier 2 MTSS day is Tuesday 5/2)
• Thursday 4/27
  • 2:30-3:15 Culture of Care Meeting
  • 5:30-6:30 Camp Tamarack Parent Information Session
• Friday 4/28

Highland Staff Calendar 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

From Julie: Educator Network Day is April 19th from 2:00-3:15- please sign up to facilitate a session!  

UKG: Use this link to access the page with videos and instructions.   

OSAS Testing 3rd-5th Grades:  Here is a document with all of the testing training modules for the OSAS Testing. Our testing window begins on May 15th so you have some time to complete these but please do so before we begin. Thanks, Heidi T.

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document after you complete the lessons. 

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file. 

April Focus: 

Assembly: Canceled- we will combine April/May Birthdays at our May assembly.                       Character Trait: Leadership                                                                                                        Discussion Question: I will know I am successful when…                                                        SEL Competence: Self-Management                                                                                           *I put a few more ideas for discussion questions around leadership in your mail boxes on Tuesday. 

Here is our assembly plan and sign up. 

Key Links:

COVID Reporting Form 

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview: 

• Monday 4/10
  • Storyline Team Meeting
• Tuesday 4/11
  • 2:30 PTO General Meeting
  • 6:30 Highland Harmony Concert
• Wednesday 4/12
  • Conference Prep
  • Conferences
• Thursday 4/13
  • Conferences
• Friday 4/14

Highland Staff Calendar 

Highland Norms:  Linked here is a draft of Highland Norms.  If you have any concerns or questions regarding these norms, please make an appointment with me to share your concerns.

From Julie: Educator Network Day is April 19th from 2:00-3:15- please sign up to facilitate a session!

Winter Culminations:  Nice work on your culminations!  That was an active week!

UKG: Use this link to access the page with videos and instructions.   

OSAS Testing 3rd-5th Grades:  Here is a document with all of the testing training modules for the OSAS Testing. Our testing window begins on May 15th so you have some time to complete these but please do so before we begin. Thanks, Heidi T.

23-24 Class Placements: Placements will be here in a blink of an eye!  Here’s the timeline:

• Post Parent Input Forms – 4/28
• Grade Level Teams reach agreements/calibration for student information – Monday 5/1 (PLC)
• Teachers complete Class Solver Survey – Surveys open on 5/1 and close on 5/19
• Deadline for Parent Input forms – 5/19
• Parent Input results shared with teachers on 5/22. Teachers review parent input prior to team meetings.
• Team meetings for class lists reviews 5/24.
  • K→ 1st 1:00-1:45
  • 1st → 2nd 1:45-2:30
    • 3rd → 4th 2:30-3:15
• 2nd Round Team Meetings if necessary 5/31.
  • 3rd → 4th 1:00-1:45
  • K → 1st 1:45-2:30
  • 1st → 2nd 2:30-3:15

Erin’s Law Resources Linked Here Please fill in the tracking document.

From Scott Mc Donald – During Spring Break week (March 27-31), IT will be making some changes to the “electronic” web help desk ticket system (https://bls.fyi/help). The most significant changes will be to the category layout used for creating new tickets. Our hope is that the enhanced ticket system will be clear and intuitive for everyone.  If you wish to provide any feedback or have questions about the changes, please reach out to our “human” Help Desk at extension 1200.

Spring Conferences:    We have been talking with Sarah Barclay about the upcoming spring conferences and the importance of making sure your teachers DO NOT start conferences prior to the end of the work day (3:15 for most) on Wednesday the 12th.  The BEA has bargained to have a full work day and it is important that the day is used as that.  

From Heidi Thomas and Highland’s Culture of Care Team: Here is the link to our 22/23 Highland Culture of Care Folder. This is where our school expectations posters and videos will live. I have also made a copy of all of the Classroom 180 SIW slide decks and added them to the file. 

Here is our assembly plan and sign up. 

March:

• Character Trait: Curiosity 
• SEL Focus: Self Awareness 
• Discussion  Question: I want to explore…

Key Links:

COVID Reporting Form 

Highland Literacy Resources 

2022-2023 Staff Meetings – Agendas & Notes

2022-2023 Master Schedule   

FYI Ticket   

SEL Concerns

Bias Incident Report

How’s It Going 

Piper Posts

Recess Rules

Week Preview:  PLC Week – PLC Form – ICCLs please use this during your PLC meetings this week.

11 Weeks to go!

• Monday 4/3
  • 1:20 RK Hook Assembly 
• Tuesday 4/4
  • 3:15-5:15  Admin/ICCL Workshop – Bear Creek
• Wednesday 4/5
  • 1:15-1:45 – Not-a-staff-meeting – Quick Check In for all school storyline business.
  • SIW – Individual Teacher Prep
• Thursday 4/6
  • 10:45 Choir Field Trip to Touchmark
  • 2:30-3:15 Safety Team Meeting
• Friday 4/7
  • Kindergarten Forest Day

Highland Staff Calendar