Attendance

It has been widely shared that all MS teachers need to record their lesson launch and post it in Canvas on the same day – for those students who miss attending the class period. What hasn’t been shared as widely is a recommended (and likely most efficient) way of doing this… until now. Please watch this video [link updated 9/11 at 4:59pm]. By following these steps, you will be able to post your recorded lessons within a short period of time after completing the recording (as opposed to the next day if the recording is saved to Webex). Reach out to Christie McCormick if you have any questions! 

Canvas

Have you heard yet that all students have a Canvas “icon” (it’s actually a “web clip”) pre-loaded on their iPad… and there is a Canvas “app” in self-serve? Confused? (I was at first too.) Here is a short video that I suggest you watch – Please share with students in Advisory at some point early next week. If you have questions, please reach out to Christie McCormick.

Update- Connecting w/ Spanish Speaking Families

To ensure that all students receive an equitable education, it is imperative for us to serve and meet the needs of our students and families from linguistically diverse backgrounds. Click here to see key feedback from last fall’s Excellence and Equity listening sessions around this topic.

Please note some additional information (written in purple) that we added to Nole’s email on this topic yesterday. All of this info has been previously shared in various settings, but with so much info being shared, we’d like to highlight it again.

• Call anyways** (AND do at least one of the other bullets below)
  • Here is a great quote from Maria on this topic: “even if the only thing that is communicated is High Desert, their students’ name and the teacher’s name, letting these families know we are expecting their student and trying to reach out shines through the language barrier.”
  • ** Additionally, it is Civil Rights law, BLS policy, and best practice that schools “communicate information to limited English proficient parents in a language they can understand about any program, service, or activity that is called to the attention of parents who are proficient in English.” Click here for more information.

• Utilize and rely on our district’s translation/interpretation services:
  • Linguistic Link
  • BLP Language Access Plan (which includes updated procedures for document translation)
  • These links, and directions for using Linguistic Link, are included in the blog’s “hot links” so staff can easily refer back to them
• Partner with Liz Vargas as HDMS’s Latino Community Liaison
  • Liz is a great resource for supporting teachers with connecting with Spanish speaking families now and throughout the school year
• If Liz is not immediately available for a pressing concern, check if one of our bilingual support staff people are able to help:
  • Heather Petersen – dean of students
  • Veronica Trejo – counseling secretary 
  • Cynthia Gruending – bilingual EA
  • Amber Goemaat – counseling intern 
• Continue to partner with HDMS’s ELL teachers Clarissa Weibe and Jane Aleksey when working with our ELL students and their families