Week Ahead: Nov. 2-6

What a fun way to end the week! It was such a joy to see the entire community joining in a celebration. Thank you for making it possible for our students and for us. The coming week also brings opportunity to experience joy in our community. There are lots of student games this week. I hope that you are able to attend some.

Here is what’s up next week:

Monday, Nov. 2
Day 7, DABC
*Contracts due
*Start to All School central Vietnam flood relief campaign
9:30-10:15 Learning Support mtg (PL)
12:15-12:30 DEAR – Video Message re Election
1:30-3:00 Admin Mtg (Molly attends)
3:30ish U13 BBall, boys and girls B teams home v. RISS
3:15-4:30 MS Leadership Team mtg (agenda)

Tuesday, Nov. 3
Day 8, HEFG
8-9:20 Mtgs with Asia Motions
3:30ish U15 BBall, boys and girls A team home v. ISHCMC

Wednesday, Nov. 4
Day 1, ABCD
8:15-9:00 Learning Support mtg (XT)
3:15-4:30 AS Assessment mtgs – various locations

Thursday, Nov. 5
Day 2, EFGH
8:30-9:30 AS Parent Coffee, auditorium
3:30ish Cross country away at AISVN; U13 BBall, boys and girls A and B teams home v. AISVN and ISHCMC

Friday, Nov. 6
Day 3, BCDA
*Dept mtgs Social Studies, Modern World Language, Arts
10:40-11:25 SST Mtg
1:00-3:00 G6 PE Dance rehearsal
3:30ish U15 BBall, boys and girls B teams v. RISS
3:45-4:15 G6 PE Dance Celebration Performance for parents (awaiting approval)

Upcoming (on the radar)

• Nov. 9 – Dragon Time: G6 PE Dance Celebration 1:40-2:00 for G7 and G8
• Nov. 10 – Advisory time (swap with Monday)
• Nov. 13 – Early Dismissal; PD 1:00-3:30
• Nov. 16 – No School
• Nov. 18 – Virtual Author Visit: Stuart Gibbs (same schedule as last author visit)
• Nov. 26 and 27 – MS WWW
• Nov. 28 – SSIS Winter Party, 6-10pm

Fundraising Campaign for Flooding Relief: We are embarking on an all school campaign to raise funds for flooding relief. Our school goal is 150 million with each division attempting to collect 50 million to be used for emergency aid. That works out to about 175,000 per student and faculty member in the MS. Thank you to Elizabeth Davenport for coordinating this effort; thanks to Erica Neal for liaising with HS clubs and StuCo and organizing the HS; thanks to Mel Sylvester for liaising and organizing the ES; and thanks to Tanya Olander for assisting with other departments and with communication.

How the fundraiser will work:

• In your teacher box there will be a labelled envelope Monday morning. During advisory (or any class really) each day you can collect any money students donate. Please write your daily total in the spot provided. After advisory, please bring your envelope to the MS office for safe keeping. This is very important. You may not keep the money in your classroom.
• In the office, we will tally the total donations for the day and update the goal tracking display.
• We will return your ( now empty) envelope to your teacher box ready for the next day’s collection!
• An email to students will be sent this weekend to talk about this fundraiser;
• This will also be included in the morning announcements along with a video created by the HS to promote the campaign. Please make sure you read the announcements each morning during first block.

Changes to G6 PE Dance Celebration:  There have been a few small changes to how we will be running the G6 PE Dance celebration now that our protocols have been relaxed. We are attempted to have a parent performance on Friday from 3:45-4:15.

We also want to combine the G7 and 8 performances on Monday, Nov. 9 to reduce the interruptions. This will require us to swap advisory and Dragon Time. So Monday, Nov. 9 will be a Dragon Time; Tuesday, Nov. 10 will be advisory. The planning calendar has been updated to reflect this change. Other changes include having G6 students change into their ao dais during recess and the first part of Dragon Time. G7 and 8 advisors will depart their classrooms at 1:40 to bring their students to the auditorium. The performance should last about 20 minutes. This means the performance may run just a bit into last block.

We are needing some assistance to make these performances happen. We need 4 faculty members to volunteer to assist on Friday from 3:15-4:30. These faculty members will help supervise students as they wait for their performance / and as they change after the performance. If you are willing to volunteer, please email Molly.

Follow Up on PSAT:  In the event that we have testing occur within classrooms in the future, please take a couple minutes to provide feedback on the testing procedures (preparation, training, during and after.)
PSAT Proctor and Hall Monitor Feedback Form

Guidance about US Election 2020: We want to make sure that we are prepared to ensure a positive, supportive learning environment. There are a few steps we have taken that are student facing. There will be a video to show on Monday during DEAR that will focus on setting the tone and expectations for civil discourse. Each grade level will have a lesson on the global citizenship and respect for all that comes through the lens of the election. Tyler Banks is doing this in Digital Literacy for G6; G7 advisors in small groups (with support of MS Principal, Dean and/or Counselor as needed) will do this during Dragon Time on Tuesday, Nov. 3. John Urdal will be doing the lesson in Science for G8 students. Some students might find this election difficult for them personally. Hillary is another option for those students who might need additional support.

We also have a responsibility as adults in the environment. Please remember that with our influential role, it is important to not share our personal opinions regarding politics or religion with our students. Our community is extremely diverse with many different opinions and perspectives. We need to ensure a safe environment for all of those differences. We can help students explore their own thinking without judgement, without quickly shutting down alternate opinions. As adults, let’s ensure that our conversations take place out of the hearing of our students, even in passing. We also have to make space for each other. Many of the adults in our community also have different views. We need to not assume that those around us share our same perspectives. This election might also bring up difficult issues for us personally. If you need space to think and/or talk about it, Hillary is offering that space and time. If you have any questions or concerns about this guidance, please come see me.

Repeat from email: Curriculum Documentation and Clayton Meeting with Teams and Departments: Likely you have met Clayton Filter, EC-12 Curriculum Coordinator.  His priority for this year is guiding the completion of unit documentation, alignment and reviewing structures of curriculum storage and communication (see this Vertical Alignment doc).  In order to move this process forward, he needs to meet with all departments (MS/HS) or Grade Level Team (ES) or Specialist Team (ES) in order to move the work forward.  Please, by Friday, November 6, send Clayton a Google Calendar invite to an upcoming team or department meeting, a 30 minute time would be a great start. Ideally, each team or department will meet with Clayton between now and winter break.