Quote to consider:
“It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another.” ~Nelson Mandela
To Dos:
MICROAGGRESSION IN THE CLASSROOM: As you may know, microaggressions are everyday actions, comments, and behaviors which are derogatory or hostile to any marginalized identity group.
The counseling team has put together this important document on microaggressions in the school setting. Please take some time to dig into this document and reflect on ways you can aim to ensure that your classroom is a microaggression-free environment; be sure to check out the resources embedded within the document for further learning and strategies to interrupt microaggressions when you hear them. At a time when safety is on all of our minds, we still need to ensure students feel emotionally safe at school and this is a list of ways as adults we can support safety for all.
If you have questions about microaggressions, or other ways to support marginalized students, Amber will be hosting a Webex for open conversation from 9-9:30am on Wednesday, April 7th.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS: Staff meeting on Wednesday, 4/7 at 11:00am in Nole’s WebEx room.
CONFERENCES: HDMS Spring conferences will be held virtually this year and will consist of two components for all students: teacher introduction video and a take home conference. Conferences by invitation, and optional conference sign up can be held between now and April 30th and will equal four hours of teacher out of contract time. Click here for details and resources on each of these components.
Bits and Bobs:
LOSS OF PREP FOR LUNCH SUPPORT: With our return to all in, we are going to need more lunch support staff. If you are interested in receiving loss of prep pay for supporting lunch supervision, please fill out this form by the end of the day on 4/6.
STUDENT SAFETY CONCERN FLOWCHART: Click here for details for next steps on referring students who are repeat offenders with COVID safety issues.
SAFETY TEAM SETUP SUPPORT: Click here for guidance from the HDMS safety team on classroom setup and more as we plan for the return to all in learning. Koop, Houslet and Vidas are available to support to make sure the logistics of room set up, streamline entry and exit procedures, facilitate the new lunchtime protocol, and most importantly support those of us charged with the noble task of implementing the new CDC and RSSL guidelines.
Safety team wing leaders (and anyone looking for a good time) please join Koop, Houselt, and Vidas Tuesday at 9:30am in the cafeteria for a quick review of these basics
DISTANCING REMINDER: The new three foot distancing guidance is for classroom seating arrangement only. Please don’t intentionally plan activities with three foot or less distancing as the standard. The goal still remains to have students keep six foot distancing or more throughout the school day whenever possible.
PURPLE/GREY CALENDAR: Click here for a calendar showing the weekly rotations (as they stand now). Please note: with the shifting of conferences and non-school days, BLS has adjusted the end of Quarter Three to April 15th. Quarter 4 will begin April 19th. Quarter rotating classes will have one more week of Q3 Purple instruction. Please connect with Tat if you have questions about this.
ADVISORY SUPPORT: Please know that the ICCL team is working to support the extended Advisory time that comes with the all-in schedule. School announcements, Character Strong and safety lessons will continue to be “must dos.” A menu of optional connections and activities as well as sample schedules will be available by next Wednesday. If you have ideas for lessons or projects, or if you would like to participate in Advisory planning at any point, please connect with your ICCL liaison.
STATE TESTING UPDATE: Oregon has asked for a testing waiver from the federal department of education for this year. As of now, this has not been approved… but talks are apparently ongoing. Click here for more information.
ELL NEWSLETTER: Check out April’s ELL newsletter here.
3.31 STAFF MEETING SLIDESHOW: Found here.
UPDATED BLOG HOT LINKS: HDMS specific all in schedule added.
SHOUTOUT: Join me in congratulating Manuel Gutierrez and Cynthia Gruending as HDMS’ Excellence in Education nominees for this year!!! 🎉🎉
Reminders:
HDMS FAQ: We know that many staff have valid and important questions about our return to all in learning. Given that there is often question overlap and that answers may not be immediately available, we’d like to reinstitute the use of the HDMS Staff FAQ document. We will do our best to swiftly answer questions (when we have answers) submitted on this document.
SAFETY FEEDBACK: Here is this week’s optional safety survey for staff to provide feedback to the safety team. And here are the results from last week’s survey.
High Desert Highlights:
