Panda Press
Paddock Road Monthly Newsletter
September 4, 2020
Calendar
September 14 - 6:30pm Board of Education Mtg.
September is Attendance Awareness Month!
Whether your child is participating in virtual learning or in person learning, daily attendance in school is a strong indicator of future success and a requirement. It is important to ensure your child’s daily participation in each class.
Regular school attendance is an important element for success in school. When a student is frequently absent, tardy or dismissed early from school, students lose valuable instructional time. We realize some absences are for health or other reasons. But when students are absent 2 or more days a month (or 18 days over the school year) they can fall far behind in what they learn. Excused and unexcused absences both mean missing classroom learning time. Absences can add up. Missing just two days every month puts students at risk of falling behind.
Some Attendance Tips:
- Make sure your students keep a regular bedtime and establish a morning routine.
- Turn off all electronics including TVs, phones and tablets at bedtime.
- Make sure clothes and pack backpacks are ready the night before.
- Check with our school nurse or office staff if you are not sure about when to keep your child at home due to illness.
- Avoid scheduling vacations or doctor’s appointments when school is in session.
- If your child seems anxious about going to school, talk to teachers, the school counselor, or other parents for advice on how to make him/her feel comfortable.
- Develop back up plans for getting to school if something comes up. Call on a family member, neighbor, or another parent to take your student to school.
- Seek support from school staff for help.
Please let us know how we can best support you and your student so that they can show up for school on time every day.
Returning Student Registration
Battle of the Books Registration Information
Attention 4th-6th Graders!
It’s time to start forming your teams for this year’s Battle of the Books!
Registration begins Friday, October 2.
For more information, please visit: https://sites.google.com/view/westsidebotb
Sponsored by Westside Community Council.
Instrumental Music Program
MTSS Update
Westside Community Schools continues the implementation of MTSS, which stands for Multi-Tiered System of Supports. This year more than ever, due to the effects of COVID on education and instruction over these past 5 months, MTSS in Westside assures that we regularly monitor student skills and progress and follow-up with providing students what they need to be successful in learning. Right away in August and September this means that we first assess all students to determine their current skill levels, group students, and plan our instruction to meet their needs.
What is MTSS? MTSS is a framework for providing instruction and support to promote the academic and behavioral success of all children. Individual children’s progress & skills are measured, and these results are used to make decisions about further instruction and intervention. The MTSS process is flexible and allows for a continuum of supports designed to meet the needs of individual students. This support may be provided in a large or small group by the classroom teacher or other support staff, either within or outside the classroom.
What does this mean for my child? A key component of the MTSS process is that all children receive high quality instruction in their classroom. Universal screenings are brief tests used to measure the progress of all students and are given three times per year. As a result of the screenings, students may be identified as needing some degree of supplemental intervention in addition to the instruction they are receiving in their classroom. If your child is identified as needing intervention you will be notified. Please contact your child’s building principal with questions.
Nebraska Reading Improvement Act: The Nebraska Reading Improvement Act went into effect at the start of the 2019-2020 school year. The goal is that all Nebraska students are able to read at or above grade level by the end of third grade. This is accomplished by ensuring all students have access to high-quality instruction and for struggling readers to receive targeted support (intervention). Our current MTSS framework in Westside Community Schools already allows for us to meet these state requirements.
*We understand the disruption COVID has caused in the educational system. We continue to use research-based high quality instructional practices to meet the needs of all students to as great of an extent as the current pandemic situation allows. We are adapting as we progress throughout the year. The more students continue to read, review math facts, and write/journal each day at home, in addition to their instruction from school, the more secure their skills may become.