SLCS District Update
May 19th, 2022
Superintendent's Update
Greetings SLCS Families and Staff Members,
This week's "SLCS Story" comes from our Early Childhood Center.
Recently each classroom at the ECC received caterpillars and butterfly houses. Room 7 was learning about the lifecycle of butterflies. The children spent three weeks watching the changes from caterpillar to butterfly. To coincide with their observations, they read 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' by Eric Carle. The children recreated replicas of both caterpillars and butterflies in the hallway and they were able to observe the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly before releasing their butterflies. Check out the pictures below to see the excitement.
SLCS Pride!
Steve Archibald
Superintendent
More about the ECC
In the fall of 2021, SLCS was awarded an Anti-Bullying Grant through The Family Center for Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (Family Center) and Children’s Special Health Care Services (CSHCS). Our grant work targeted young learners at the Early Childhood Center (ECC). Learn more about the grant work by watching the following video:
E Cigarettes/Vaping Part 2
There are many misconceptions about vaping. The most common misconception is that Vaping or E-cigarettes are safe and the aerosol inhaled is just flavored water vapor. Vapes get their flavors from chemicals. While some of these flavorings are safe to eat in food, they are not safe to inhale. For example, flavoring is safe to eat on popcorn. However, vapes like caramel contain diacetyl and acetoin. Inhaling diacetyl has been linked to a lung disease called “Popcorn Lung” because the same flavoring used to flavor popcorn causes this disease if inhaled through an e-cigarette. Currently, there is no cure for “Popcorn Lung”.
In addition, these flavors can contain other dangerous chemicals when heated into a vapor, such as formaldehyde, which has been shown to cause cancer; benzene, which is in car exhaust; and other toxic metal particles like chromium, lead, and nickel. Some common day items that contain the same chemicals include; batteries, nail polish and nail polish remover, gasoline, tires, pesticides, oil, paint thinners and tires. Obviously, these are not things that should be ingested or inhaled.
If your student is using e-cigarettes, consult your primary care physician to help develop a plan to stop this harmful habit. For additional resources: Check out This is Quitting. It is a program designed specifically for teens and has helped over 400,000 youth and young adults on their journey to quit vaping. Teens and young adults can join for free by texting DITCHVAPE to 88709.
Wellness-Mental Health
Mental health became an important part of the public conversation in 2021, as Olympic athletes, celebrities, and other public figures came forward about their well-being and helped reduce the stigma. As we enter the third year of the pandemic, we can expect mental health to continue to be a top concern in the near future, including right here in our own community.
This is a stressful time for students as the school year comes to an end, whether it’s stress from exams, concerns about the future, or just a student worried about what their summer will look like without the structure of the school day. Our schools are fortunate to have an amazing resource in New Oakland Family Centers. This center provides a wide range of of mental health services including but not limited to eating disorders, substance abuse, suicidal thoughts, depression and anxiety. They offer telehealth visits all the way up to partial hospitalizations. In addition they provide a 24 hour crisis hotline 1-877-800-1650 that has licensed therapists answering the calls (not an answering service). If you or a loved one is experiencing some type of mental health illness, please reach out for help.
Staff Shoutout
This week's shoutout goes to Cherie Myers-Trent, who serves as our Director of Food Services. Cherie is always willing to fill in at a kitchen when we are short staffed, she makes daily runs to the stores and our schools supplying us with food and milk due to the shortages. She is quick with a joke and always there when we need someone to talk to. She puts her team first and we all adore her for it. Thank you Cherie!
Speaking of Food Service
Food service employee Lena Ripley has been nominated for Educational Snacks' School Lunch Hero. Voting continues until 4:59 Friday. Each "like" and "comment" on their social media pages supports Lena!
Did You Know
Kent Lake Elementary has been sharing fun facts in their Friday communication. We like the idea so much that we are going to "borrow" it for the Thursday smore.
Did you Know...
The South Lyon Union School District was formed in 1876. A large frame building was erected for the one hundred children of the community on the site of the current City and School Administration Building at the corner of Liberty and Warren. The first graduating class consisted of two students who received their diplomas on June 23, 1887.
Upcoming Events
May 30 Memorial Day-No School
June 11 Graduation
June 17 Last Day of School