LS Weekly Memo
Week 12, October 24-28
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Thanks to all who are helping our students take advantage of the learning opportunities beyond the bounds of our school walls. It is the season of field trips and campus exploration. I also want to offer a special thanks to those who are supporting the playground design project, giving time and energy to helping our students imagine possibilities and design realities for our play spaces.
Campus Updates
Punch List
We are still chasing items. Be sure to submit maintrequest for any new issues that have arisen.
Scott House down. Remodel of Farris Hall next.
After the destruction of Scott House the remodel of Farris Hall is next. Renovations will include a student fitness center and Athletics offices, music classrooms and practice spaces, and an all-school student design and production lab.
COMMUNITY
Gathering, Friday, October 28
Lower School Assembly, Friday, October 28--Exploring Space through mindful mandalas
Our next Lower School all-school Gathering will be Friday, October 28. Please sit with your buddy in the Performance Commons by 8:10. We will start with a brief introduction to the creation of indoor and outdoor mandalas, asking the question, "How can materials help us connect with people and places?" Buddy pairs will then go around the new Lower School to designated locations and create collaborative sculptures. Some locations are inside and some are outside. In each case, we will use the materials we find (or materials pre-placed in baskets for your use) to help us explore these new spaces and their potentials. How interesting it will be to see both indoor and outdoor mandalas take shape! The activity is meant to be peaceful and reflective and quiet. We will not regather after the activity, but rather, teachers can decide when the classes are ready to go back to their own classrooms.
In order to be efficient and spread out our work, we have designated 10 locations around our new building and play spaces where you and your buddy class could work. Before Friday, please sign up on the spreadsheet below to choose your location. However, if your classes have a connection to another place and you want to go there, please indicate that on the spreadsheet.
Playground Design
Thank you Chris Thompson and her crew for organizing the playground provocations days. We gathered a lot of data and anecdotes. Thursday the Design Team meets to review what we learned.
PNCA Playground Exhibit
An opportunity you all might be interested; a visit to the Pacific Northwest College of Art exhibition, Extraordinary Playscapes, running Oct. 6-Dec. 17th at the Arlene and Harold Schnitzer Center for Art and Design at PNCA. November 6th is a free Design Museum Portland pop-up Adventure Play workshop for families (reservations recommended).
Lower School Open House, Wednesday, October 26 - see Sarah’s email
Dinner before Open House
The Open House is during the rehearsal of the US play, Journey to the West. Usually the Great Hall is blocked off from entrance at that time, (3:30-6) so that our actors can stay focused.
Dinner is planned in the Dining Hall during rehearsal.Teachers, please enter the Main lobby area and Great Hall steps area very quietly, or maybe even enter through the Language wing.
Spooktacular
There is no Spooktacular this year. No volunteers stepped up to run it. We will try again next year.
Halloween
This is the first year in several years that we’ve had school on Halloween, and the first year we haven’t had pumpkin contests or Spooktacular (due to a lack of parent volunteers to coordinate). The children will undoubtedly have a lot of excitement around this day, but they should not wear costumes to school and may save their Halloween traditions for home/family time. Please decide as a grade level team if Halloween is a no homework night.
Some thinking we’ve heard from teachers around managing the possibility of increased energy have been an intensive storytelling focus for the day, spider or leaf observation walks, and outdoor community service. Share your creative ideas with your team!
Chaperones for Overnights
Austin Schock is available to join your class as an overnight chaperone if the trip is happening in May. Speaking of overnight trips, you may want to review the Overnight Trips Procedure . Check the list of things to do for this month or in November.
JR - Challenged by competitive sports
JaSier has had a second issue with getting physical when upset during a competitive sport. He has faced some consequences. For this week, he is allowed to play 5th grade football at lunch recess and must choose a non-competitive option at afternoon recess, such as playing catch with the football, kicking a soccer ball against the wall, shooting baskets. We are working with his family. Contact Chris, Tina or David if you have questions.
PROGRAM
Conferences are on November 3,4, 2016
- See your conference schedule.
- If parents cannot attend conference during the two days David will ask them to try and work out a phone call or skype session during conference days
Fall Conference Reports
We know many of you in the midst of fall conference preparation. The templates for Fall Conference Reports were sent to you via email on 10/10 to preserve formatting:
The Lodge Fall Conference Report Template: see email from Kirstin
Grades 1-5 Fall Conference Report Template: see emails from Kirstin and Chris
SST Member at Conference
Please contact individual SST members if you’d like Melanie, Ari, Kirstin, Chris, Elaine, Heather or David to attend a child’s conference. Be sure to let parents know in advance.
SST meetings are available on Thursdays from 3:15-4:00 for anyone who would like a whole team approach to supporting a student or students. Please contact your Assistant Head to request a Thursday afternoon SST. Also let us know who you’d like to request to attend.
PGD Requests - 2016-17 PGD Request List
PGD Site - John Holloran has launched the OES PGD website, which will come to include recommended PGD opportunities and writeups of PGD experiences.
October 14 PGD Day
Everyone did something. Come to Monday’s faculty meeting and share a highlight
Monday - LS Faculty Mtg - Open House, Primary, PGD
Thursday - No Meeting (except for Playground Design Team)
Primary Program
The BY Teachers and support staff have been working to clarify our articulation about our Primary Program. We’ll be sharing some of these preliminary steps with parents at the upcoming Grade Level Rep meeting as well as at conferences. BY Specialists, please see Kirstin’s email this week for resources related to your feedback into the process. You can access our updated drafts of parent and specialist communication about the purpose and role of Primary here. You may also be interested in our Habits of Mind Observation Form (for Primary candidates or general use).
FLG Planning Meeting
- Thanks to Kirstin and Chris for organizing an informative FLG/PGD meeting
- Year 1 folks
- Schedule a time with David to review inventory and ideas before winter break
- Schedule a goals meeting in January or February
OPERATIONS
Thunder and Lightning
If there is thunder and lightning children must go inside or remain inside until an hour after the last thunder and lightning. If it happens within the time for dismissal we will conduct and indoor dismissal.
PA System Test
We will be testing the PA system this week. Please record the PA volume in your class in the LS PA Test document. Thank you.
Attendance
The only attendance you can report in PCR are:
- PRESENT
- ABSENT UNEXCUSED – even if you know that your students are late or absent excused
Transitions and Duties
- Know your duties
- Be on time
- Know transition responsibilities
- Review Transitions Document
Chris Thompson made a great screencast of the process of creating a "My Duties" calendar. If you need help doing this let Chris or Jeffrey know and you can walk through it together.
Recess Reminders
- Be on time
- Care for people and equipment
Epi pens are no longer kept in the first aid kits for walks to the wetlands or for field trips.
- important to always gather any student prescribed epi pens for your outing
Substitute Procedures 2016-2017
- Email requests to lssub@oes.edu
- Kathy will check this email box at 6:00pm and 6:00am. You may send the email as soon as you know you need a sub.
- Kathy will email teachers and subs as soon as the assignment is made.
- Only for morning of emergency on the way to work needs-after 6:30am. Send a text to Kathy Finn-Brennan at 503-989- 3737
New Substitute Teachers and Sub Folders
Our substitute teachers were trained in procedures and safety last Wednesday, and we have five new teachers who will soon be available to us. You can meet them here! In the meantime we still have many returning guest teachers who are also listed in this document.
Lyn and Kathy will be placing new substitute folders in your mailboxes soon. In your folder, please keep a current copy of:
- a class list (with photos is especially nice)
- emergency information and allergy info.
- your duty schedule
- other relevant documents
For planned absences, please also leave a hard copy of your plans in the folder for your sub.
At the sub training the returning subs mentioned how nice it is when the students’ After School Weekly Plan is easily accessible or in the sub folder--thanks for helping our guest teachers’ days go smoothly!
Food from Home
Only after we have done the following:
- Worked in partnership with the parents and Bon Appetite to test in-school options
- Had a parent meeting including a Bon Appetite representative and the OES Nurse
- Received doctor’s statement about the medical issue and proposed interventions
Maintenance Requests
Rod would like us all to return to the usual maintrequest@oes.edu protocol for maintenance requests. The Maintenance Log will become a view only document.
Your Announcements
Send any announcements you have for faculty to Kirstin, Chris or David by Thursday each week and we will include them in the Weekly Memo. This should help reduce the number of emails we are receiving, and maximize our time to collaborate during meetings.
Archive
Utilize the archive for previous Weekly Memo.
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