Oak Hills Newsletter
January 13, 2016
Principal's Message
I know that everyone is wondering when school will get out this summer with the additional snow days to account for. There are many things the district needs to consider including contractual obligations and state requirements. In addition, we still have several weeks of winter ahead of us. As soon as a decision is made regarding restoring the instructional time, I will be communicating this plan with you. Thank you for your patience.
Last Tuesday, Mrs. Selby and Mrs. Fipps opened up their classrooms so other teachers could come and observe their teaching. Both Mrs. Selby and Mrs. Fipps are our studio classroom teachers for English Language Arts. They have been provided with additional training by the Teacher's College to incorporate the Units of Study in Reading that the District recently adopted. The Reader's workshop model incorporates whole group lesson, small group lessons, and individual conferencing. It works in tandem with the Reading goals each child has based on the Reading Assessment (IRLA). It is quite a complex model that requires teachers to understand the needs of each student while enticing the students to try out strategies that would help them become readers who love to read and have the strategies to understand what they read more deeply. Teachers learn so much by watching others in action and by dialoguing with others about their teaching. Our Kindergarten and 4th Grade teachers were the first groups able to do these observations and pre/post discussions about the lesson. Next week, the other grade levels will have the same opportunity. I can't tell you how proud I am to be able to work with teachers who are so open to sharing and always looking for ways to become better at what they do in the classroom.
Last week, we welcomed Yvette Rojo as our part-time secretary. She will work mainly in the health room. Mrs. Rojo has worked in schools coordinating the parent volunteer programs. She is also fluent in Spanish and will be very helpful in communicating with our Latino families.
Talking about new beginnings, our PE teacher Katy Janega had her baby last week. Marika Julia Janega was born on January 10th! Katy will return to Oak Hills after her maternity leave some time in late April.
Please stay warm and enjoy your family time. I look forward to resuming our regular schedule next Tuesday.
Warm regards,
Sheila Baumgardner
Upcoming Events
January 16 - NO SCHOOL
January 19 - 6:00 pm - DI Challenge Night (Cafeteria)
January 24 8:00 am - Future Ready Parent Community Engagement Committee
January 26 7:00 pm - Family Safety Night
February 1 8:00 am - Coffee with the Principal
February 2 6:30pm - Winter Luau Dance
February 3 - Staff Development Day /NO SCHOOL