Staff News - Week of 3/28/21

The start of the 4th marking period! I'm not sure where the year went.  

Please take time this week to reach out to parents for any of your students that are struggling or have lost focus.  The counselors, CST, Mr. Clancy and I have been reaching out to students that needed a reminder about the importance of school and the hole they have dug themselves.  Unfortunately, we will have students failing classes and even a few retentions.  Everyone this year has gone above and beyond for their students.  Some students choose to do nothing, for which there will be consequences.

Habit # 3 - Ditch the easy Caricature

The Seven Habits of Highly Affective Teachers

Spend some time to start the 4th marking period getting to know your students even deeper than you already think you do. Make connections, make sure students know you care. 

Ask them some of the following questions:

What do they love to do outside of school?
What brings joy to their life?
What's one thing they wish you knew about them? 
What are their goals after high school?

When a student becomes more to us than the class clown, mean girl, drama queen, geek, or jock, it is easier to remember that each student matters and is worth our time. They are not just one more paper to grade. We think of them specifically as we plan our lessons, and we look forward to watching them progress. Time in their company is time well spent.

Referendum Updates 
Town Hall Meeting tonight at 7pm.  See link for all the details. 

Here are all the social media posts related to the Referendum

Leadership Opportunity (Please mention this to your female students)

Junior Achievement's Women's Future Leadership Academy is a free weekly virtual series open to all NJ high school students. Students register themselves for as many sessions as they like. Info is attached or visit janjacademy.org

Weekly topics build confidence, financial acumen, and employability skills through JA's curriculum.  Guest speakers are from NJ businesses and industries.
Sessions held Tuesdays from 2-3pm beginning March 30.
Provides a high quality extracurricular activity students can include in their college applications or resumes.
Students who attend five or more sessions and submit a final project receive JA's Certificate of Leadership.
Schedule: (PDF of all sessions)
March 30: Becoming a Leader (celebrating Women's History Month)
April 6: Executive Career Panel featuring women leaders from BMS, Janssen, ADP, Commvault, and AIG
April 13: Goal Setting for Success
April 20: Networking with Confidence
April 27: Financial Empowerment / Special Session with CNBC
May 4: Ace the Interview
May 11: Women in STEM
May 13: Special Session with Johnson & Johnson
May 18: Collaboration and Design Thinking
Plus optional weekly Friday reflection sessions led by JANJ Intern from Princeton University

Recent WHS Principal's Blog Post 

Celebration 21 (March)

WHS News - Week of 3/22/21

Happy Spring! I hope everyone had a great weekend and was able to enjoy the sunshine.  I was at a soccer tournament all weekend and got some sun. I now have a "Mask" face tan.  lol Something all of us will need to deal with moving forward. 

I saw the quote above on Twitter last week and though it connected with habit #2.  The struggle is real for some of your students. Keep that in mind as we finish up the marking period and you think about Habit #2.  

Habit #2 - Cultivate Perspective and Reframe (Weeks of 3/15 & 3/22)
From the Seven Habits of Highly Affective Teachers

Phase 2

Next week we start Phase 2.  Please familiarize yourself with the schedule and remind your students about the switch.  

Blog Post regarding - Return to School Plan - Phase 2 

March/April Monthly Calendar 

April Monthly Calendar 

The two major changes are cohort days for Pride and Spirit and the periods rotating 1,3,5,7 and 2,4,6,8 every other day. 

Pride students will report for in-school learning every week on Monday and Tuesday. Every other week they will also report on Wednesday. This would begin on April 7th.

Spirit students will report for in-school learning every week on Thursday and Friday. Every other week they will also report on Wednesday. This will begin on April 21st.

Next week will feel like September all over again, but we will get through it. I will be sending daily Remind messages (which I do every day) with the bell schedule and which cohort should be in.  Also, remember that the first week is a four day week, no school on Friday! 

Senior Portraits - Class of 2022

This is going on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week in the Greenberg Center.  The appointment schedule is posted on Google Calendar.

Master Schedule for 21-22 School Year 

We have begun working on the schedule for next year.  Nothing is finalized yet, we are looking at numbers, sections and trying to make it work.  This week we will be posting on Genesis the student recommendations for their academic courses.  

Positive Referrals are always welcome. I have been giving out Ownit pins and cards over the past two week.  The students love getting them.  Thank you to those who submitted referrals. 

End of Year Items 

Next week we start End-of-Year meetings for the non-tenured staff.  Please make sure you have your PD hours updated and PDP plan is complete.  This is a good reminder to all staff to think about your PDP and make sure you are on task to complete it and your PD hours are up-to-date. 

WHS News - Week of 3/15/21

Strive to be Mr. Jensen!!!

 

 Habit # 2 - Cultivate Perspective and Reframe (Weeks of 3/15 & 3/22)

From the Seven Habits of Highly Affective Teachers 

Think about whether it's better to be right or to be kind in our interactions with students and colleagues. Sometimes our students need a win more than they need a correction, so we might be kind today and right tomorrow. Perspective provides hope where there is little and it helps us commit to the long haul. Teachers who have seen formerly frustrating students come back to visit as successful adults trust in the whole enterprise of schooling and growing up. Setbacks are momentary flashes of concern, not dictates of a locked-in future.

Don't forget about Habit #1, Find the Joy in others success! 

Wednesday, March 17 - All staff can work virtually (Happy St. Patrick's Day)

Update on student's returning 

As of this morning we have close to 100 students returning for the 4th marking period. 

PSAT and SAT coverage schedule (4/23 & 4/27)

Here is a draft of the schedule.  I am only using grade level teachers and some elective courses to cover.  April PSAT/SAT Coverage (Draft)

For each testing day we will run a full virtual day for all students not testing (AM and PM classes). The expectation is that you will be teaching your classes synchronously as though it were a normal day.
4/23 (Spirit B) - 2, 4, 6, 8 PM 3 & 7
4/27 (Pride B) - 2, 4, 6, 8 PM 1 & 5

Referendum Social Media Posts - All social media posted related to the referendum can be found here.

Mental Health

Andrea Hused has been working with a some of our alumni regarding mental health support that we have been doing in our senior health classes.  One of the groups, PAT (People are There) put together an amazing Bio sheet for some of their members.  I share this because it was pretty cool reading about them and what they are doing now. 

PAT - Bio Sheet 

WHS News - Week of 3/8/21

I hope you found time to read The Seven Habits of Highly Affective Teachers by Rick Wormele.  We are heading into week two of focusing on Finding Joy in Others. 

In addition to the suggestions listed below, please consider nominating a student or two for a positive referral.  I will make sure they get a Warrior Ownit pin. 

WHS Positive Referral

Finding Joy in Others (3/1 - 3/12) (Some examples/ideas)

Send a friend or colleague a positive note/text
Make a positive call/email home
Write a positive note to a student
Celebrate individual student success, in the classroom or on Meet call
Reach out to a student that has been struggling, not participating, change in behavior
Spend five minutes talking to someone about how they're doing (Give your time)
Bake for a friend
Positive words of encouragement

PD Schedule for Thursday, 3/11
Dr. Elias will be posting the schedule either Monday or Tuesday.
All staff will have the option to work from home.

Schedule for 4/23 (PSAT 10) and 4/27 (SAT)
For planning purposes ... for each testing day we will run a full virtual day for all students not testing (AM and PM classes). The expectation is you will be teaching your classes synchronously like normal.
4/23 (Sprit B) - 2, 4, 6, 8 PM 3 & 7
4/27 (Pride B) - 2, 4, 6, 8 PM 1 & 5
I will post the draft proctoring schedule next week.  I am only asking grade level teachers of the students who are testing and elective classes as necessary.

Referendum Update 

The referendum is moving forward with an April 20th vote. Information is being shared via social media.  For those not on social media, I will be adding all posts onto the WHS Principal's blog - Referendum Page. There is also a site created just for the referendum - Stronger Schools for Waldwick

WHS Staff News - Week of 3/1/21

Happy March! With the exception of the rain, the weather seems to be turning springlike! Let's hope it stays. 

Schedule for Thursday, March 11 (PD Day)

Wednesday, March 17 - Staff can work from home  

Schedule Change for 4th MP 

Communication with parents/students related to the 4th marking period schedule change will be sent out tonight. Here is what will be sent:

Blog Post Doc - 4th Marking Period Schedule Change 

Over the weekend I was at a soccer tournament and in between games I was scrolling through Twitter. No surprise there. I came across a tweet with an article written back in October of 2015, The Seven Habits of Highly Affective Teachers by Rick Wormele.

What could an article from October, 2015 have to do with education today? Things change so quickly in our world, that this can’t be relevant. As I read it three times in the car, I felt this article needs to be our focus for the rest of the year. Why? Why more work? Why something new to think about?

The why is easy, SELF-Renewal and a positive mindset!

This year has been hard for all of us. I have watched school moral and school spirit disappear. At times I feel like relationships have been affected because of COVID related decisions that were made in the best interest of all.

All of this happened to no fault of anyone. Priorities shifted to safety and health, new protocols and just finding a way to get through each day.

This article talks about The Seven Habits of Highly Affective Teachers (Before COVID was a thing)

1. Finding Joy in Others
2. Cultivate Perspective and Reframe
3. Ditch the Easy Caricature
4. Explore the Ethics of Teaching
5. Embrace Humility
6. Value Intellect
7. Maintain Passion and Playfulness

Over the next fourteen weeks I would like to focus on these habits as a staff. The idea is, we will focus on one habit for a two week span and then move on to another. Hopefully establishing a new positive habit that enhances us as educators.

Week 1 (3/1 - 3/12) Finding Joy in Others (Some examples/ideas) 
Send a friend or colleague a positive note/text
Make a positive call/email home
Write a positive note to a student
Celebrate individual student success, in the classroom or on Meet call
Reach out to a student that has been struggling, not participating, change in behavior
Spend five minutes talking to someone about how they're doing (Give your time)
Bake for a friend 
Positive words of encouragement

The secret to happiness is helping others ...
There is a Chinese saying that goes: “If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody.” For centuries, the greatest thinkers have suggested the same thing: Happiness is found in helping others.