Grizzly Gazette- 10/3/22
3 Day Week for Students
Monday, October 3rd marks the first day of the Cycle 2 grading period and Report Cards will go home on Friday. This is only a 3-day week for students- see the Calendar Notes below as we have a Staff Development Day Tuesday and a Fall Holiday on Wednesday. We will also be running our Advocacy Schedule on Thursday so that everyone can view our Student Council election videos.
- Oct 3 - Report Card Cycle 2 Start Date
- Oct 4 - Staff Development Day (No School for Students)
- Oct 5 - Fall Holiday (No School for Students/Staff)
- Oct 7 - Fun Foods Friday (see flyer below)
- Oct 8 - Dance with WHS Pride (Westside HS)
- Oct 12 - PSAT 8 (8th gr only)
- Oct 14 - Westside HS Homecoming Parade
- Oct 21 - Homecoming Dance (7th/8th grades only- see flyer below)
- Oct 24 - 28 - Red Ribbon Week (see flyer below for dress-up days)
- Oct 28 - Student Verification & Socioeconomic Form Due Date (see both articles below)
- Oct 28- WBMS Glow Fest
Grizzlies Power Up- Laptop ID's
We will be issuing every student a laptop ID tag this week that will be affixed to student's laptops in their English class on Monday. (If a student misses this, they will receive theirs on Thursday.) Please remind your student that this ID tag should not be removed and is a quick way to differentiate laptops from one another.
Other Power Up Reminders:
- Charge your laptop each night & keep charger at home.
- Keep it cased- the hard case is not to be removed.
- No Food & Drink near device- do not eat around your laptop and be mindful of what's on your fingers when typing.
- Laptop Bags- these are allowable.
Need help with digital learning resources for you or your student? Check out:
- Houston ISD Academic Instructional Resources Page (Canvas, Google Workspace, Office 365, etc.)
Step 1: Update/Verify Student's Information
HISD Connect is the web portal to all things student information in Houston ISD. The HISD Connect Parent Portal allows parents to complete forms, update student contact information, and view/track grades and attendance. There is also a a corresponding Power School App (for students and parents). Parents/students can use either the app or the website to view grades and attendance.
Use the links below and videos that follow to maintain your HISD Connect Parent Portal and view student's grades/attendance:
Houston ISD Connect How To Page
- This page includes all the below videos plus more information.
Houston ISD Connect (Power School) Log In Page
Step 2: Socioeconomic Information Form
Each school year, all parents must complete the Socioeconomic Information Form (SIF). This form can be completed online within the HISD Connect instructions above or can be filled out on the hard-copy form sent out from campus. Copies of the form can be found here:
Hard copy forms can also be requested from the West Briar Front Desk or House Secretary.
Why do we have to sign the Socioeconomic Form each school year? Read about it HERE.
Canvas Learning
In addition to becoming a Power Up campus, HISD is utilizing CANVAS as an instructional base for learning in and out of the classroom.
- Classroom textbooks and other Digital Learning Resources are accessible through Canvas.
- Students should be able to log into the Grizzly Den in addition to their assigned Course pages.
- The Grizzly Den is the Canvas Course dedicated to important campus student information. This course will be updated more as the school year progresses.
Say Something: Anonymous Tip line
Students were presented with the Sandy Hook Promise School Safety Training last week. If your student missed this training, we have posted the below resources to our website and students will be able to view it in the Grizzly Den. This page explains how students or parents can report safety threats to our campus or to individual students and this video will give more information about what the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System is.
- The Say Something website listed above is also linked in the left toolbar of our WBMS homepage. (see image at right)
During this presentation, students learned how to recognize the warning signs of threats to school safety, how we are all responsible for reporting anything we see, and how to make a report using this anonymous reporting link: Say Anything School Safety Anonymous Reporting LINK
- Reports made using this link go directly to WBMS Administrators
Please encourage your student to report safety threats through this system, with a Counselor or Dean, or with any school staff member that they feel safe with.
West Briar