Category: Uncategorized

Greetings All!
I hope you had a fantastic weekend. Michelle and I stole away to Portland for the night to see a concert and enjoy the city life-we saw a great show, ate lots of tasty food, and soaked up the city vibe! Here’s a snippet of the concert (KALEO), a rocking harmonica solo:

The results of the YouthTruth survey (filled out by staff and families) were recently shared with me, and along with lots of super positive comments, the following comment was shared by a parent and I really wanted to share it with you. Priceless!

I dropped out of school in 11th grade, no longer challenged and feeling like my potential and creativity was being caged. Today, I consider myself successful and find myself in a very fortunate place in my life’s journey. That said, if I could go back and do it over, I would want to start off at Amity Creek. I believe the skills that are being taught and learned at Amity would have given me a more substantial and well rounded foundation and I believe I could have experienced a more joyful experience in life with more tools and people skills to achieve the goals I have set for myself.

A few notes to get you going:
1) It’s show time this Wednesday! Our in-person school information night starts at 5:30pm and it would be great if everyone was here at school by 5:15pm. I always look forward to this evening of sharing with perspective parents!

As you begin thinking about what you plan to share at the meeting here is the list of what each person signed up for:
What Amity Means-Jill
History of Amity Creek—Lindsey
Community Time—Ray
Cross Age Learning, Olders and Youngers—Lauren
Invitations, Camp Amity, Community Garden—Frans
Connections with Parents: Volunteering, Café Amity-Lindsey
Celebrating the Journey—Jill
Kinder Program—Lindsey
Outdoor Education—Andy
Our Personal Whys/Why I love teaching at Amity-Everyone!

Please keep in mind that whether or not you have signed up for something specific, we all have lots to share and each of you should be prepared to share when the moment strikes or inspiration moves you speak.

2) As I mentioned to most of you on Friday I’d like to have a short staff meeting today (Mon) at 2:45. Let’s meet in the staff lounge.

3) Haley is out today. There is a sub covering for her.

4) In order to make the morning attendance and lunch count more efficient and less intrusive please be sure you have the small green slip filled out and ready to hand off to Alanna when she arrives (she and Karima are swapping responsibilities). Most of you have been doing a great job with this–thank you! Our goal is to have 100% of these ready to go so that Alanna can get to the Grade 1 class as quickly as possible.

5) HUGE thanks to Lauren and the first grade for the wonderful community time last Friday! The plan is to keep doing Fridays at 1:30pm until we are ready to do it more often. At this point no one has stepped forward to do this Friday-do we have a volunteer? Please let me know by the end of the day Monday. We’ll take volunteers for the next few weeks and then we can start committing to a regular schedule.

6) We have warmer temperatures this week, but the forecast is also showing rain nearly every day. Let’s continue to offer students the opportunity to stay inside during recess when possible. It would be very helpful if you would spend a few minutes to clarify with students that when they stay in they need to stay in the classroom and not roam around. We’re still not quite ready to lift all the mitigation efforts in place. ALSO, a few minutes before the end of recess it’s a good idea to get all the students out of the classroom for some fresh air when you head out to pick up students on the playground. Please don’t leave a classroom full of students unattended.

7) I will be away from school Thursday and Friday. If you need help or there is an emergency please reach out to Sara. Big thanks to Sara for being willing to be the go-to while I am away!

Upcoming
February 28: staff Meeting, 2:45pm in staff lounge
March 2: Lottery Info Night, in person-5:30pm
March 8: Lottery Info Night, virtual-5:30pm
March 16/17: Next Student Support Meetings
March 21-25: Spring Break!
April 13/14: Conversations

Here’s a fantastic week ahead!
Andy

Happy Monday (or Tuesday),
I hope the extra weekend day was amazing, you certainly all earned it after a full afternoon of Olympic events on Friday! Speaking of the Olympics, I wanted to share a note I received from Walt and Sam’s mom, Lily, over the weekend:

I want you to know that Sam and Walt came home on Friday practically floating on air from the Amity Olympics. They had a ridiculous amount of fun, there’s no other way to put it. I love that this school not only teaches academic subjects and emphasizes social emotional learning but also makes time for the very important work of having silly, messy, ridiculous school-wide fun. Our family is so lucky that our kids get to go to Amity.

Thanks for making Amity a school that our kids can’t wait to wake up and go to each morning. Walt is already counting down until the next winter Olympics.

Thanks again,
Lily

It is indisputable that the work you do, and the people you are, make our kiddos want to be at school! Thank you!

A few notes to get you going:
1) This week’s mind blows-
*More people drown in the desert than die of thirst!
*The world’s population has more than doubled since the late 1960’s

2) The cold front has arrived and temperatures will be in the single digits and low double digits for much of the week. With the cold weather it’s likely we will need to eat inside all week, and it may be too cold for AM recess outside (possibly afternoon, too, on some days). With this in mind, please help out by offering choice time in your classrooms at recess. Alanna, Karima, Maya, and I will be circulating to cover your classroom so you can have breaks as needed. Thanks for your help!

3) Staff meeting Tuesday, at 2:45 in Ray’s room. We’ll use the time to plan for the Magnet Information meetings coming up next week (March 2).

4) It’s all about 2’s on Tuesday–2/22/22 (Tuesday tu/tutu/tutu). Some fun to be had?

5) SIW this week will continue to focus on our SEL/Inclusion/Diversity book collection. Lauren has volunteered to lead the group this week (thanks Lauren!). Please meet at 1:30 in Brian’s room. As a reminder I have a district meeting during this time so unfortunately I won’t be able to join you.

6) We’re firing up Community Time again! Grade 1 will host this Friday (once again, thank you Lauren!). For now the plan is to do this in the gym at 1:30pm. Who will be next? In the coming weeks I’d like to start doing multiple days each week. We’ll see how things are looking and decide when the time feels right. I have put in a request to allow us to host CT outside with parents and I am waiting to hear back from the district. Fingers crossed.

7) A few housekeeping notes:
*Please be sure students are taking their jackets with them when they go outside for recess and lunch. We have lots of kiddos wanting to get back in the classrooms during these times.
*Please make it very clear to students that they MUST raise their hand to order hot lunch if they want lunch. Our counts have been a little off lately and this means some students are left without any choice of meal.
*We likely only have a few more weeks of dealing with masks, but we could use your help with this one–please reiterate to students that when outside masks need to be on their wrists or in their pocket, not left on the ground. We’re just seeing more and more discarded masks on the playground and I think a reminder will be helpful.
*Please continue to lock your doors during break times.

8) I notice that a lot of the weekly art being done is pilling up. Let’s try to get the new stuff up in the hallways, or send the pieces home. We also have room up near the top of the hallway. Alanna has time in the afternoons to help get new art up if you’d like her help.

9) The water fountain is back on! Once the cold snap passes I’ll get the portable drinking fountain back in operation outside.

10) I have to leave a little early on Friday, likely around 2pm.

Upcoming
February 22: Staff Meeting, 2:45pm. Lottery Info night prep.
February 23: SIW
March 2: Lottery Info Night, in person-5:30pm
March 8: Lottery Info Night, virtual-5:30pm
March 16/17: Next Student Support Meetings
March 21-25: Spring Break!
April 13/14: Conversations

Here’s a fantastic week ahead!
Andy

Happy Valentine’s Day!
I hope you enjoyed another beautiful weekend. My daughter Arielle and 16- month-old grand daughter Aurelia came for a visit this weekend and it was a real treat!

I heard an interview with Neil deGrasse Tyson (astrophysicist, planetary scientist, author, and science communicator) over the weekend (on Smartless podcast) and he said you should have your mind blown at least once a week. I decided I’m going to help you this week by sharing a few mind-blowing bits of information:
1) Armadillos almost always give birth to identical quadruplets
2) On average, clouds weigh about 1 million pounds
3) Every word used to define a word in the dictionary is in the dictionary. Hmmm…😳

A few notes to get you going:
1) Olympics on Friday starting at noon! Details to be ironed out at our staff meeting. For now you should be working on your event, a team name, and a flag.

2) Staff meeting this Tuesday at 2:45. We’ll use this time to do some Olympic planning, and Sara will give us update about the foundational skills adoption timeline. Also, we’ll check in about starting Buddies again.

We’ll also have a staff meeting next Tuesday, Feb 22 at 2:45. We’ll use the time to plan for the Lottery Information meetings coming up. I would have done this at the SIW on the 23rd but I have to attend a district meeting during the that time.

3) SIW this week is Teacher Prep. Enjoy the time! At the following SIW we will continue to focus on our SEL/Inclusion/Diversity book collection. I am still looking for a volunteer to help host this meeting by sharing a diversity or inclusion book you have read with your class and then lead a discussion. Please let me know if you are willing to do this. Great time to step up!

4) We’re firing up Community Time again! Grade 1 will host next Friday, February 25-thank you Lauren! For now the plan is to do this in the gym. Who will be next? In the coming weeks I’d like to start doing multiple days each week. We’ll see how things are looking and decide when the time feels right.

5) We have a 3 day weekend coming up!

Upcoming
February 15: Staff Meeting, 2:45pm. Olympics!
February 16: SIW-teacher prep
February 18: Olympics!
February 18: NO Art
February 21: No school, President’s day
February 22: Staff Meeting, 2:45pm. Lottery Info night prep
February 23: SIW, school based. Who will help lead this?
March 2: Lottery Info Night, in person-5:30pm
March 8: Lottery Info Night, virtual-5:30pm
March 16/17: Next Student Support Meetings

Here’s a fantastic week ahead!
Andy

Greetings Team!
I hope the weekend was wonderful. I was able to take advantage of the amazing weather both days–a nice skate ski on Saturday, and a great ride at Maston on Sunday. It was my first ride at Maston and I loved it–like riding out east of Bend but without any funky vibe and no gunshots!

A few notes to get you going…

1) We should be finished up with DIBELS data input by the end of the week and I’ll share the benchmark tables with you once they’re ready. We still have a few students to assess (absent last week).

2) As discussed, let’s host our very own Amity Olympics! Below is the news clip from our last Olympics back in 2018. I am tentatively setting Friday, February 18 as our day. This is tentative to allow you to weigh in and let me know if this date works for you. I’ll be checking with each of you in the next day or two, or you can simply email me and let me know. If we are a go I’d like to have planning time on this Wednesday, February 9 (see SIW note below) and next Tuesday, February 15 (staff meeting). I’m super excited about this!

Olympics video: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1400807553357761

3) Upcoming SIWS:
*February 9 and 16 are designated as Teacher Prep. I’d greatly appreciate 20-30 minutes of your time this Wednesday to initiate the Olympics planning. While I can’t require you to attend it would be most appreciated if you could. We’ll meet in the staff room at 3:00pm this Wednesday (after K-2 foundational skills training). The second meeting will take place next Tuesday, Feb 15th during a staff meeting.
*February 23 is designated as school based. While I will not be able to be part of the meeting (they scheduled an admin meeting at the same time!) I would like to continue with the theme of our SEL/equity/inclusion books. For this meeting I am looking for some one to host the meeting by sharing a book they have used with their class that focusses on equity or inclusion and guide the staff in discussion (much like Sara did last week). Please let me know if you are interested in hosting. A really great opportunity to step up, share, and inspire.

4) Now that things are slowing down in terms of sub coverage, Anna (our instructional coach) will be around Amity on Tuesdays. You should start seeing her at school this week, visiting classes, and being available to support. If you have anything you’d like support with (across the academic spectrum) please reach out to her when you see her or via email (Anna Schmitt).

5) I’m sharing this one again–thanks to those that are already doing this! With colder temps in the AM (and at times in the PM), I’d like to encourage all of you to consider shifting to Choice Time (allowing students to stay in the classroom) at least a few days each week. The kids really appreciate this! Note: Please only host your own students for now-hopefully we’ll be able to mix and match soon!

6) We have Lottery Information nights coming up in March. We are required to offer at least one virtual meeting, and we are able to host one in-person meeting as well. Our virtual meeting will be on Tuesday, March 8 at 5:30pm. After speaking with a few of you I have decided we should also offer an in-person meeting-this will be Wednesday, March 2 at 5:30pm. More details to come in the next few weeks, but please block both of these dates/times on your calendar.

7) I’ll include this one last time–I promise if you promise. As requested, please, please, please keep a closer eye on your students during the end of day dismissal. We still have students running all over the place which indicates they’re not being supervised. It’s ok to loosen up a little once the initial surge of parents come through, but during the first few minutes please continue to keep your students close by.

8) I will be off campus Tuesday morning from 7:30-9am. You can call or text me if you need me.

Upcoming
February 9: SIW, Teacher Prep. K-2 Foundational Skills training 1:30-3pm.
February 15: Staff Meeting, 2:45pm. Olympics!
February 18: Olympics! (Tentative)
February 18: NO Art
February 16: SIW, Teacher Prep
February 21: No school, President’s day
February 23: SIW, school based
March 2: Lottery Info Night, in person-5:30pm
March 8: Lottery Info Night, virtual-5:30pm

Here’s to a great, and healthy, week ahead!
Andy

Good Morning!
I hope you had a great weekend. I had a fantastic weekend–a hike at Fall River on Saturday with my gal and a great XC ski with my son-in-law John on Sunday. And lots of football on Sunday! I’m ready for the week and I hope you are, too!

A few notes to get things rolling…
1) It’s a 4 day week with students. Please remember that we agreed to use Friday to connect with some families. I hope you have already reached out to families you hope to connect with. If you haven’t, be sure you do so before the end of the day. You may work from home on this day.

2) As you know, last week the board agreed to allowing students who have tested positive for COVID or who have had symptoms to return to school on a modified quarantine. Students can now return after 5 days of isolation/quarantine as long as they are symptom free. Several important things with these students for their days 6-10 at school:
*They must wear a KN95 or 3 ply medical grade mask (we have both in the office).
*If eating indoors, they must eat in an isolated area away from the rest of their classmates. We have these students eating in the hallway next to the gym.

If you have students in the 6-10 club we will let you know and we’ll let you know when their 10th day is up. After day 10 they can resume normal activity.

3) As far as I know, DIBELS is this Tuesday. I have yet to hear back from the district to confirm this but I am assuming it’s a go.

4) For SIW this week we will spend time discussing our growing SEL library and how the books can be used. We’ll meet in Ray’s room at 1:30pm.

5) With colder temps in the AM (and at times in the PM), I’d like to encourage all of you to consider shifting to Choice Time (allowing students to stay in the classroom) at least a few days each week. The kids really appreciate this! Note: Please only host your own students for now-hopefully we’ll be able to mix and match soon!

6) We have Lottery Information nights coming up in March. We are required to offer at least one virtual meeting, and we are able to host one in-person meeting as well. Our virtual meeting will be on Tuesday, March 8 at 5:30pm. After speaking with a few of you I have decided we should also offer an in-person meeting-this will be Wednesday, March 2 at 5:30pm. More details to come in the next few weeks, but please block both of these dates/times on your calendar.

7) As requested, please, please, please keep a closer eye on your students during the end of day dismissal. We still have students running all over the place which indicates they’re not being supervised. It’s ok to loosen up a little once the initial surge of parents come through, but during the first few minutes please continue to keep your students close by.

Upcoming
February 1: DIBELS
February 4: No School-you may work from home on this day
March 2: Lottery Info Night, in person-5:30pm
March 8: Lottery Info Night, virtual-5:30pm

Here’s to a great, and healthy, week ahead!
Andy

Good Morning Team!
Well, if we’re not going to have snow we might as well have beautiful sunny days! I hope you got out and enjoyed the sunshine this weekend. After a 12 year break I finally dusted off my skate skis and got out on the trail. After about 30 minutes I was toast! I forgot just how much of a work out skate skiing is!

I want to say again just how much I appreciate how everyone has remained so positive and flexible during these challenging times. I cannot imagine surfing this pandemic wave with a better group of people!

A few notes to get you going…
1) With SIW this week being another teacher prep/directed day I’d like to get us all together for a meeting on Tuesday. We’ll have a Staff Meeting Tuesday at 2:45pm in Brian’s room.

2) We need to do our monthly Fire Drill–we’ll do it this Tuesday at 9:45am.

3) I’m doing formal observations with some of you this week. Please be sure you know your time. Not sure? Please ask!

4) We’ll continue to eat outside, snack and lunch, whenever possible. Please avoid eating inside unless we need to.

5) I’m reposting these housekeeping notes in hopes of helping everything run a little smother–a big thanks to those of you who have already engaged!
*During afternoon recess we need one teacher to grab the red bag with the bell in it and commit to watching the time. I am not always out at the afternoon recess so it’s very helpful if one of you takes this on each recess.
*Please lock your doors at lunch-we still have lots of kiddos coming in to use the bathroom (or under the pretext of using the bathroom) and end up in classrooms. This is a safety issue that we can easily avoid. THIS HAS REALLY HELPED!
*Please do all you can to be aware of who your students are leaving with after school. We have had a few instances when we couldn’t find a student after school and it’s a terrible sinking feeling not knowing where they are. Please be vigilant and keep your students nearby until they leave.
*If you don’t already do so, please engage your students in end of day classroom clean up. The cleaner the room (mostly floors and tables), the more Jeremy can focus on other things in the room that need attention.
*We are not allowing students to play with balls after school so if you see a student with one please ask them to put it away.

6) Alanna and Robert have graciously been storing some of our extra furniture that we didn’t have room for when we moved back in last year. At this point we need to claim these items or send them along as donations. I am posting pictures below–if there is something you see that you want to reclaim (or claim) please let me know by the end of the week.

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7) The district is once again administering the Youth Truth survey. If you haven’t already done so please take a few minutes to take the survey very soon: ytsurvey.org/acestaff22.

Upcoming
February 1: DIBELS
February 4: No School–you may work from home on this day

Here’s to a great, and healthy, week ahead!
Andy

Good Morning All!
I hope you had a great, long 3 day weekend! The timing couldn’t have been better, eh? I got out and did some cross country skiing on Saturday and Sunday, and gots lots of chores done on Monday. I hope you got out and did something fun!

A big thanks for all your flexibility these past few weeks as we fight the good fight to stay open. I sincerely appreciate all you are doing!

A few notes to get you going on this 4 day week:
1) Huge thanks for the super productive Student Support Meetings last week! We hope you left your meeting feeling supported and with a clear picture of support for your students going forward. If anything is unclear, please ask. I will be sending an email later this week highlighting a few observations from the meetings.

2) We will continue to try and be outside for lunch as much as possible and it looks like the weather is set to cooperate this week! I’m also asking that all snacks be eaten outside when possible, and that we avoid eating indoors whenever possible.

3) A few housekeeping notes that will help everything run a little smother:
*During afternoon recess we need one teacher to grab the red bag with the bell in it and commit to watching the time. I am not always out at the afternoon recess so it’s very helpful if one of you takes this on each recess.
*Please lock your doors at lunch-we still have lots of kiddos coming in to use the bathroom (or under the pretext of using the bathroom) and end up in classrooms. This is a safety issue that we can easily avoid.
*Please do all you can to be aware of who your students are leaving with after school. We have had a few instances when we couldn’t find a student after school and it’s a terrible sinking feeling not knowing where they are. Please be vigilant and keep your students nearby until they leave.
*If you don’t already do so, please engage your students in end of day classroom clean up. The cleaner the room (mostly floors and tables), the more Jeremy can focus on other things in the room that need attention.
*We are not allowing students to play with balls after school so if you see a student with one please ask them to put it away.

4) As a reminder several of you have formal evaluations coming up this month- Lauren, Sadie, Brian, Sara, Haley, Brad. Check here if you have forgotten your meeting time with me:Pre-Eval Meetings. And please be prepared for the meeting by filling out the Pre-eval form. Thanks!

5) SIW this week is teacher directed/prep.

6) The district is once again administering the Youth Truth survey. If you haven’t already done so please take a few minutes to take the survey very soon: ytsurvey.org/acestaff22.

Upcoming
February 1: DIBELS
February 4: No School

Here’s to a great, and healthy, week ahead!
Andy

Greetings All!
I hope the weekend was wonderful and restful after our first week back from Winter Break–it can often seem like a very long week! I got out for my first cross-country ski of the year on Saturday and it was a glorious day–perfect conditions! In the last few years I’ve enjoyed skiing on the fat tire trails at Wanoga, often I see very few people (just the way I like it!).

I’m assuming you’ve all read Dr. Cook’s email from Friday. The message is clear: we’re doing all we can to stay in school, but don’t be caught off guard if we need to go remote for a short stint. Let’s continue to do all we can to stay healthy and stay in school!

A few notes to get you going:
1) Student Support Meetings on Thursday, Gina will be here to cover classes:
8:15-9:00am: Grade 5
9:00-9:45am: Grade 1
10:00-10:45: Kinder
12:00-12:45: Grade 3
12:45-1:30: Grade 2
1:45-2:30: Grade 4

**Please remember to take some time to prepare for the meeting using the new form: SSM Prep Forms Folder. Ideally you could have this done by Tuesday, Wednesday at the latest–it will give me, Sara, and Haley time to look at it in advance. Thanks!

2) As we are being extra vigilant with mitigation efforts we will put Buddies and Community Time on hold for a few weeks. As soon as it feels right we’ll get back to both of these treasured activities!

3) I am in the process of updating our Informational Video for the Lottery. I will need a little help from many of you, especially those that are new to Amity (and some veteran teachers who may want to re-do some of their original videos since you filmed them while you were at home!). I’ll reach by email to each of you and then can follow up in person.

4) We’ve got some book money to spend and we’d like to be thoughtful about how we spend it. Sara is looking in to books to support striving readers, and Alanna is looking into high interest/low level readers. We’d like input from you as well in terms of types of books you are looking to add to your classroom library-fiction, non-fiction, poetry, informational, etc. Please be thinking about this in the next week or two and we’ll reach out to gather input from you soon.

5) Please take a few minutes to take the YouthTruth Survey soon: ytsurvey.org/acestaff22. This is for ALL STAFF. Thanks!

6) Grade 4 will soon be getting our composting program up and running again! Stay tuned for details and to find to how you can help.

7) No school next Monday in honor of MLK, Jr. Are you doing anything in your classroom to honor this great man? Need resources? Please reach out if you do!

Upcoming
January 13: Student Support Meetings-see above
January 17: MLK, Jr Day-no school
February 1: DIBELS

Here’s to a great, and healthy, week ahead!
Andy

Happy New Year To You All!
I hope you had an incredible winter break filled with lots of great family time and fun. My trip to Mexico was full of adventure and lots of misadventures–I’m sure you’ll hear all about it from Ray at lunch in the coming days. No shortage of stories to tell!

I’m looking forward to the beginning of 2022, and though we’re likely to continue to face challenges, I have high hopes for good things ahead!

A few notes to get us going:
1) I hope you have had a chance to read the letter sent to families by Steve Cook. We know that the latest COVID variant is moving through the community very quickly but we are committed to keeping school open and students at school. Let’s continue to do our best to mitigate the spread of the virus here at school and stay vigilant!

2) Given the winter temps lunch will be in classrooms for the foreseeable future.

3) I know that from time to time you like to send students out early to recess. If you plan to do this please be sure to join them as there is not always someone out early waiting to supervise. Thanks for your help!

4) We start new buddies in the new year. At this point I think we should wait until next week. As a reminder, here are the buddies: K/3, 1/5, 2/4

5) I am sure that some of you may want to reach out to FOA to say thank you for the holiday gift. I’ve sent you their emails so that you can easily copy and paste into an email.

6) As a reminder several of you have formal evaluations coming up this month- Lauren, Sadie, Brian, Sara, Haley, Brad. Here’s a link to sign up for a pre-eval meeting with me:Pre-Eval Meetings. Please sign up now and I’ll send more information soon.

7) SIW this week–we’ll spend some time catching up and looking ahead.

8) The district is once again administering the Youth Truth survey. Please take a few minutes to take the survey very soon: ytsurvey.org/acestaff22.

Upcoming
January 13: Student Support Meetings (EBISS). More info coming soon!

Here’s to a great new year and a fantastic week ahead!
Andy

A very happy Monday to you all–the last one of 2021!
I hope you had a wonderful weekend and that you’re charged up for a week of fun before the break! 5 more days and you’re off for a 16 glorious days! My family and I are headed to Mexico and I am beyond excited! I hope you have something amazing planned, too.

Last week was really amazing- Camp Amity, Kinder Community Time, and Grade 1 Dolfin cookies! Who could ask for more. Thanks for bringing the joy last week!

A few notes for this week
1) We have to get one more Earth Quake and Fire Drill in before break. We’ll do this on Tuesday at 9:20–EQ then fire drill. Please remember that EQ drills are Drop, Cover, and Hold. We’ll follow the EQ drill with a fire drill and should be done by recess.

2) Staff meeting on Tuesday at 2:45. Ray’s room.

3) SIW time is all yours this week.

4) Community Time on Friday hosted by Grade 2 at 1:30pm. Let’s plan to spend the rest of the afternoon outside after CT (weather permitting).

5) With the snow falling (finally!!!) it’s a good time to talk with your kiddos about snow play outside. The bottom line is this–no throwing snow at others. Please emphasize this with your class before they go outside for fist recess on Monday.

Also, in your communications with parents please encourage them to send their child to school with snow gear to help keep them dry and warm when we are outside.

6) Formal evaluations for some of you (Lauren, Sadie, Brian, Sara, Haley, Brad) begin in January. Here’s a link to sign up for a pre-eval meeting with me:Pre-Eval Meetings. Please sign up now and I’ll remind you when we get closer.

Lastly, as I have done for the last few years, in lieu of staff gifts I have made a donation to the Deschutes Children Foundation (deschuteschildrensfoundation.org) on behalf of the Amity Staff. This is a great local organization that provides many supports for children and families in our community.

Upcoming
December 20-31: BREAK!!!
January 3: First day back
January 13: EBISS–I’ll send info after the break

Here’s to a great week ahead!!
Andy