Principal News and Notes
#MotivationMonday
National African American Parent/Family Involvement Day
Today we celebrated NAAPID at Garden City. We had 19 parents participate in today's National African American Parent Involvement Day. Several parents chose to stay most of of the school day, some chose to eat breakfast and/or lunch with their children, and ten parents participated in a Reading Strategies presentation facilitated by Ann Lien and Joel Beck. Overall this was a successful day.
In addition to the parents that joined us today, we had special guests judging our #SocialJustice themed doors. The judges were Rev. Lonnie Branch, Doris Branch, and Sharla Foster. The judges used a 1-4 rubric focused on Attention to Theme (Social Justice), Design Elements, and Standards. Here are some of the comments from the judges:
- "Several doors were decorated on inside and outside; entire use of the whole door".
- "Focused on multiple races, cultures, and identities were acknowledged; expanding the narrative of who fought for social justice"
- "Students used words that were affirming"
- "Student voice"
- "Current and relevant; connecting with our students and families experiences"
- "Current and past social justice leaders were highlighted on doors"
- "Student voice and creativity were used on the entire door"
- "Keep up the good work"
- "inspiring and colorful designs"
- Some doors could have more variation; understood there was a common theme but would be okay to show individuality of students, race, culture, and identities within the grade level
- Invite parents to help decorate the doors
- More student voice and personalizing of the doors
Thanks to everyone for taking the time to participate in the planning, activities, and helping our families feel welcomed today.
50th Birthday
Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes my way today! Please share with your students my heartfelt thanks for their wonderful cards, notes, and pictures. I particularly like this one from Donovan.