A very Happy New Year to all! I hope you had an amazing break and I look forward to hearing what you’ve all been up to! And, I am really looking forward to a great 2023 with all you incredible people!
A few notes to get us rolling in 2023:
1) SIW this week: Roll our of our theme(s) for January–Integrity and Responsibility. 1:30pm in Brian’s room.
Resources for Integrity and Responsibility are on the shared drive (School Wide Themes and Community Events): Resources
2) BINGO Night on Wednesday, January 8 starting at 5:30pm. Dinner will be from 5:30-6pm and families will be bringing their own food or pre-ordering pizza from Friends of Amity (I will send info and link to families). We will do BINGO from 6-7pm. This is always a really fun, easy night!
3) Brian and I are putting the final touches on the evaluation and goal setting document and it will be shared with you soon. You will use the document to prepare for individual meetings this month–be on the look out for an email with more details.
4) After some super productive conversations with the football crew, we will be reinstating football this week–but only after one more meeting with the group to clarify the new agreements. If you are interested, here are the new agreements:
Amity Football Agreements
1) Games will be played at first Choice Time and Lunch recess only, except for Tuesday AM and Thursday Lunch (no football).
2) Friday Lunch will be a “Competitive” Game for advanced players
3) Skill practice will be available at afternoon Choice Time each day
4) Picking of teams
*Captains will be either 4th or 5th Graders (weekly rotation)
*Player selection will happen on a rotation (except Friday) starting with either 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade—see rotation below:
| Mon | Tues | Weds. | Thurs | Fri | |
| Morning Choice Time | 3, 4, 5 | NO Football | 4, 5, 3 | 5, 3, 4 | No rotation |
| Lunch | 4, 5, 3 | 5, 3, 4 | 3, 4, 5 | NO Football | Competitive |
5) Safety is extremely important, so when there is play that is not safe it is the responsibility of those playing to notify an adult.
6) When the bell rings and there is a play in progress, the play is allowed to finish and then the game is over. If there is not a play in progress, then the game is over.
5) I assume this information is being communicated to you from the district but just in case–there has been a small adjustment to the last week of school. Here is the note I received:
June 20th Teacher Work Day The last day for students has been moved from Thursday, 6/15, to Friday, 6/16. The district needed to push back the teacher workday to Tuesday, June 20th, because of Juneteenth. Certified staff who have completed check out do not need to report on the 20th. This is consistent with past practice when we have had to extend the school year due to unexpected circumstances (i.e. snowmaggedon).
6) From the Bend Science Station for our k-5 teachers – Announcing an exciting professional development opportunity at the Science Station! Over the past few years, they realigned the Amplify curriculum for grades 2-5 to make it manageable and relevant for Bend-La Pine teachers. In addition, they designed POP Science, which includes a short sequence of NGSS-aligned, hands-on science lessons for each grade level. This January, they will conduct teacher “refresher” trainings on 2nd-5th grade modified Amplify units and on K-1 POP Science lessons. These HANDS-ON workshops combine interactive instruction and time to collaborate with grade-level peers. You will practice and walk away with specific lessons for your classroom. Even if you’ve done these workshops before, we encourage you to participate again.
Sessions run from 3-6 pm and will take place at the Bend Science Station on the OSU-C campus. You will be compensated by the district at the curriculum rate for your time. In addition, the Science Station will be offering food and drinks. Click here for a list of the sessions and dates then follow this link to up: Bend Science Station Amplify + POP Science Training – Google Sheets
Upcoming
January 4: SIW-Integrity and Responsibility roll out
January 11: SIW-Educator Network (at Elk Meadow again)
January 16: MLK Day, NO SCHOOL
January 18: Winter DIBELS
January 18: SIW-teacher directed
January 18: Family BINGO Night! Details to follow…
January 26: Student Success Meetings
February 2: Work day, no students. We’ll split this day–part team time, part your time
February 22: Amity info meetings for lottery, 2:00 and 5:30pm
February 28/March 2: Tours for perspective families
March 1: Variety Show!
Here’s to a great week, and YEAR, ahead!
Andy