Safety in the W

This week we will be sharing valuable information about the safety of our learning community in honor of Safe Schools Week. Thank you for joining us!

Safety is part of everything we do, but we don't want you to have to go looking for that information posted throughout the district website. We are excited to announce a new Safety Portal to bring all of our safety information together in one place!

No matter what your particular area of concern may be, we hope the Safety Portal will be a valuable resource for you to explore how Woodland is working to keep our staff and students safe. If you have any questions or feedback about this content, you may contact the District Safety Coordinator, Dr. Lanée Walls at LWalls@dist50.net.

Everyone in our learning community plays an important role when it comes to safety, and here are some things you can do from home.

• Make sure to update your contact information through Skyward Family Access if anything changes throughout the year. The district will utilize the contact information in Skyward to send emails, robocalls and text messages during an emergency.
• Talk to your kids about Internet and social media safety, and monitor their activity on these sites. Many behavior issues we see in school start with negative interactions on social media.
• Encourage your child that if they see something, they need to say something, so that we can get students the support they need before a problem escalates.
• Reinforce safe behaviors, and let your child know your expectations for them when it comes to being safe and responsible when they are at school.
• You are the best advocate for your child if they show signs that they may need extra social-emotional support. Monitor your child for signs that they are being bullied, teased, or may be feeling isolated or misunderstood.

Do you know what to expect if there is an emergency? Do you know what to do if you miss an automated phone call from the district? Additional Tips for Parents HERE.

If you know of someone who is NOT receiving district communication through text or email, please encourage them to contact Brooke Hagstrom at BHagstrom@dist50.net to troubleshoot.

Tending to the social-emotional needs of students is more important than ever as we learned during the pandemic. The fact is, all of our children are statistically much more likely to be adversely impacted by feeling isolated, or like they don't belong, than they are by a catastrophic event at school. To make sure that our students are able to show up ready to learn each day, we need to make sure the needs of the whole child are being met. What does Social and Emotional Learning entail?

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is a research-driven approach to equipping Woodland students with the knowledge, attitude, and skills needed to:

• Recognize and manage emotions
• Demonstrate care and concern for others
• Establish positive relationships
• Make responsible decisions
• Handle challenging situations constructively

On the Safety Portal, we invite you to learn more about the various training we provide to staff to support SEL at Woodland. We also offer a collection of resources for Student Supports, Parent Resources, and Mental Health Resources.