The Weekly Roar
Notes from Nick Novak: Sunday December 4, 2016
Kudos
To Doug Kaplan for working with a student to get her Bridge Project completed on time and ready for submission. Thanks as well to Carolyn Mager for reviewing a bridge project so a student can meet a graduation requirement.
To Ron Capurso, Julia Carter, Karina Borkowski, Chip Boling, Leah Foran, Curtis Galbreath, Brian Gertzen, Dave Klotz, Tracey Mai, Matt Mindel, Tracey Richards, Rashel Taylor, and Veronica Valentine for articulating with middle school teachers this week. Thanks for making strong connections with our feeder schools!
To our social studies department for a delicious and nutritious Feast Friday breakfast. I saw some advertising on Twitter from @jwebstergov; I’m not sure if @HDogAPEcon, @mmstratton, or @mrdkaplan also showcased their baked goods online, but it sure was effective!
To Sara Crisera and Jen DiPietro for putting on a fantastic Winter Dance Concert. The program was an entertaining display of the skills the students have been learning this year and went off without a hitch. Great job!
FYI
1) This week is the "Hour of Code" sponsored by code.org! Chad Boothe and Nick Zaron have taken the lead on planning activities for our students. Please encourage students to give it a try during lunch on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday or after school in room A200 on the 6th and/or 9th.
2) Monday's after school meeting will be a department meeting. The staff meeting for the month will be December 19th and will be another cluster-based Strengthsfinder activity. We'll send out the locations and groupings next week. Thanks.
3) Wednesday is Lionstime, but it's also when Howard hosts a regional community forum about the proposed changes to the school start/dismissal times. The program is from 7-9pm, but you can always just provide your feedback online.
4) Winter sports start this week, there's a Poetry Out Loud competition and World Language and Culture Fest on Friday, and music concerts are coming soon. Students love seeing staff attend their events. Try to make it out to something this month!
Staff Birthdays
12/4 Despina Mastrogianis
12/7 Hedy Cohen
"Instructional Tidbit"
At a recent leadership team meeting, we discussed the challenges that counselors, PBIS coordinators, and administrators face when contacting parents about an issue and discovering that the teacher hasn't called home. We know how busy everyone gets, but please remember these tips when communicating with parents:
1) Establishing a routine communication (weekly email blast, monthly newsletter, etc) can sometimes eliminate questions parents may have or at least make it easier with follow up conversations.
2) Email is a quick and convenient tool for communication, but it's hard to replace a phone call, especially with parents who may misread your tone in an email. If you're worried that phone calls aren't captured the same way as emails, follow up your phone call with a quick "Thanks for the phone call..." email in which you summarize your conversation and next steps.
3) Look for opportunities to make a positive phone call home or send a kind note via email. The praise goes a long way, especially for students who always seem to be getting in trouble.
4) If you have a parent who you struggle to connect with, let a counselor or administrator know. We want to make sure we can support you with that parent and the student.
5) Find the time to communicate. Put it on your schedule. If you have hall duty 2nd period, make that email time. Or maybe after school works better for you? Whatever your preference, just make sure it happens. It will make a big difference in how you support your students.
Handling Difficult Students
Mission
In partnership with families and the community, it is the mission of Howard High School to cultivate an environment of collaboration, empowerment, and engagement that exhibits world-class support for staff and inspires students to thrive in a dynamic world.
Email: nnovak@hcpss.org
Website: http://hohs.hcpss.org/
Phone: 410-313-2867
Twitter: @PrincipalNovak