Team,

Break is upon us. I sincerely hope you shut down any thoughts related to your students, your work, or your profession at large, and just live in the present moment. I challenge you to shut down social media, turn off your phone a bit, and just be absorbed by the ones around you. The rest you invest in now will help sustain you through the drawn-out months of winter.

I enjoyed the reminder provided in the article below and hope you do as well.

Thank you for being such an awesome staff. I feel blessed to work alongside you.

Enjoy the article by clicking here

Edlaw 2d

How to...SLEEP!

This podcast was shared with me by someone on our staff, and I loved it. There has been more and more research on the impact that a lack of sleep has on a person's health and well-being. More than that, there is research about the role that sleep hygiene plays in a person's performance. Do you go on your phone right before bed and first thing when you wake up? Do you ever struggle falling asleep due to anxious thoughts? This podcast might be worth the listen!

Click here to listen to the podcast

Building Hours

Building hours over break are below, however, PLEASE avoid coming in unless absolutely necessary. Your self-care hinges on your ability to make work/work and home/home.

Building hours are Monday, Thursday, Friday 7:00am to 5:00pm both weeks. 

 Gym is closed and no one will be in on Saturdays of both weeks. 

Reminder

If you are coordinating an event for a level, please be sure to add to the school calendar. We all have access to edit the calendar. As a school, we need this calendar to coordinate our emergency drill planning and other events.

You first!

Tips for making it through the holidays

Do not do his first tip, please.

Looking Ahead

Enjoy!

Have a fabulous weekend! Two weeks until Christmas break...hold your hats!

Looking Ahead

Tea with a Tech this Friday, December 6th.

8:00-8:30 Come see how the new Promethean Board works

Band/Chorus Concert FYI

From Heidi:
We will be performing at the Wednesday Morning Meeting and again at night!  Thanks! See evening concert time below. 

Enjoy

Enjoy your time with family; you deserve the time off. Please turn off work, email included, and just be there for your family.

Looking Ahead

Enjoy

Have a fabulous weekend and great Thanksgiving next week. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all you each do for our kids. WE are QUEST!

Looking Ahead

BEDS season is upon us. We GET to do BEDS.  :)

What? 

QUEST Staff BEDS Deadline: Wednesday, December 3rd

Who? 

Teachers AND some non-teaching (counselors, nurse, pysch...) 

How? 

1. Log-in to the ePMF site with your TEACH id.
2.  Validate the information that was uploaded into your school snapshot. Most data should be accurate, but there could be a few discrepancies. If you think some of the data is not accurate, please let Derek know what is wrong and what you believe it should be. 
3. For those who are instructional, you will also need to enter the course you teach, assignment code (see link), assignment name, grade level and the amount of students in your courses. 

Where do I log-in to start?

Log-in HERE

What resources might I need?

The BEDS ePMF User Guide, FAQ's, and Assignment Codes are now listed on the SharePoint called QUEST Shares (schedules) at the top of our blog. Inside that sharepoint there is a folder. Or, click Here

Acts of Kindness

Good one to show the kids as we look to bolster acts of kindness through the Principal's Challenge. Next week: anonymous acts of kindness!

SEL for a Second

What is equity? Why does it matter?

We all come from various backgrounds, and with one's background comes blind spots. How do you ensure that each student has what they need each day, regardless of gender, race, religion, or personality? Where are your blind spots?

This level of self-awareness is an area of strength at QUEST, in my eyes, but as we unpack SEL we will continue to look at the role that equity plays in it all.

Here's a visual that captures what equity is. 

Looking Ahead

FEAST

Many schools are rooted in tradition, but I have yet to see a school where the traditions are so deep and authentic. Last year, our teams unpacked many of the traditions to make the connection between who we are and what we do. Time to feast...can't wait!

IB PYP Policies

From Andrea:

Next year, we will have an engaging, hilarious, amazingly-fun way of sharing/revising/updating our PYP Policies. But until then, please take some time to read them over. This is absolutely an area of growth for us, but really, like our mandatory GCN trainings, you just need to know the information and for now, I'm posting them to the blog. No tests, no memorization needed, no deadlines. Finally, if you're really going to only look at 1-2, please choose Assessment and Language. Let me know if you have questions or ideas!

Here are the HCSD IB Policies:

HCSD Assessment Policy
HCSD Language Policy
HCSD Special Needs Policy
HCSD Academic Honesty Policy

FYI

Hello Everyone!

Three platforms we use, MyLearningPlan, OASYS and IEPDirect, are owned by the same company Frontline.  Next week, the company is combining all of their products into a single sign on, called Frontline Insights, at a new web address, with new names for those three programs and a slightly different look.

On or after Tuesday, November 12, when you first log into MLP/Oasys, you will be instructed to Update Your Account.  Follow these simple steps:

• Log into Frontline MLP/OASYS like you normally do
• Select the button I need to update to a Frontline account
• Type in a username of your choice
• Type in a new password
• Type in your email address
• Check the box I accept the terms and conditions
• Click on Update to a Frontline ID
• Click on Continue to Professional Growth
• Bookmark the new, universal URL: app.frontlineeducation.com and use this web address from now on, and delete the old url from any bookmarks/bar

MLP and Oasys are now called Professional Growth, and when you log into app.frontlineeducation.com, you will navigate from the column on the left shown below.

• Learning Plan refers to your observations and evaluation
• Activity Catalogs refers to our professional development options

Users of IEP Direct (now known as Special Ed and Interventions), you access it  by using the drop down arrow at the top of your screen. 

And as a reminder

Frontline Special Ed and Interventions (formerly IEP Direct) questions – Lisa Czerw (lczerw@hilton.k12.ny.us) ext. 6070
Frontline Professional Growth (formerly MyLearningPlan, OASYS) questions – Claudia Engel (cengel@hilton.k12.ny.us) ext. 6057

Enjoy

Enjoy your long weekend. Be sure to find a way to express your gratitude to our vets!

Looking Ahead

SEL for a Second

SEL in Seconds

Did you know that how schools discipline can hurt or hinder a child's social/emotional development? There are various camps in schools across the country when it comes to discipline: some want hard, black and white consequences, while many districts and schools are moving toward a more restorative approach. No matter where you personally fall on that spectrum, there is a lot of research that supports the power of teaching behavior.

Restorative discipline approaches focus on teaching and restoring. It's all about allowing all kids to feel part of their school. Instead of simply kicking a child out of school or having them serve a detention, in a restorative approach one would also have the child find a way to fix and mend the situation that they caused. This approach teaches empathy, and helps to provide the person who was the "victim" with a voice;  ideally it repairs broken relationships.

Some ways I have seen QUEST use restorative approaches: 

• Volunteering in a classroom
• Writing an apology letter to someone you hurt
• Helping to clean up a mess that you created
• Mediating between two students
• Having students reflect on behavior
• Having students set goals around relationships
• Jamie, Jamie, Jamie...the way she is able to help students find a way to fix things
• Peace circles...sitting kids in a circle as a group and teaching them to talk.

Restorative approaches does not mean you remove any consequence and do not hold a child accountable. Instead, you combine the consequence with fixing and restoring what was hurt/broken. 

Go QUEST.

Team/Department/Grade level scavenger hunt

Introducing our new Instructional Technology Team/Department/Grade level scavenger hunt. Here is how it works:
- We release the tasks
- Your team/ department/ grade level completes the tasks
- You Earn Points
- The grade level/department with the most points wins awesome prizes and becomes the ultimate tech guru

Let the games begin!!!!

Your first challenge and opportunity to earn points... Invite your Instructional Tech to a grade level, team, or department meeting worth 25 points.

Tea with a Tech update

There will not be a Tea with a Tech the next few Fridays.  The next Tea with a Tech will be Friday, December 6th.

Enjoy

Happy November. As a reminder, we are now entering no meeting weeks. Please enjoy the extra time, and please know I see and recognize all the hard work that goes into conferences. Take time for yourself this month.

SEL for a Second

There are 5 core competencies that create the SEL framework. The research says that when these are explicitly taught to kids, there is a direct tie to academic achievement.

Data FYI and Ed Law 2D

Team,

Below are two artifacts that were shared at Leadership Council this week. Dr. Surash mentioned in an email yesterday that this would be shared. The first artifact is our district's vision regarding data. Check it out.


The next artifact is related to Ed Law 2D:

Please take a look and let a content leader, or me, know if you have any questions. 

Looking Ahead

Tea with a Tech this Friday 8:00-8:30, in the Computer lab

How's your plate?

It was fascinating to watch all of us grapple with the Superintendent's Conference Day. For some, it was a day of pure joy. The topic resonated, and it was well received. For others, it was hard. That level of reflecting can make you feel icky and vulnerable. And obviously for some, there was head scratching regarding why we would spend time, as a district, focusing on us. This is our job...aren't we paid to impact kids?

There is an interesting phenomenon happening across the country. More and more companies and industries are recognizing the connection between self-care and work success. It is great to have things off our plate, but equally important is our job in taking care of the plate itself. When we practice self-care, when we really dig deep and adopt habits that promote brain/body health, our plate all of a sudden becomes stronger--not so that we can pile more on, but so we can better manage what we already have. Simply put, our relationship with self sets the tone for all else!

Being in education is hard. Very hard. With all the mandates, initiatives, and woes in our world, it can become very easy to fall into a stress-filled-hole. As we learned this summer, our brains want to focus on all the negative circling around us.

This year, I challenge you-REALLY challenge you-to take care of your plate. Focus on the relationship you have with yourself, and see what fruits you produce. You deserve it, the kids deserve it, and it will strengthen your plate during the tougher seasons of life.

Your plate deserves your best! Nourish it, strengthen it, and adopt habits that will support it.

Reminders!

• On Monday, we will have visitors from across the state/country visiting QUEST to see IB in action. This is NOT part of our evaluation, but instead is a showcase where people see what we do. Please join me in welcoming our guests. Be sure to give the kids a heads up and encourage them to welcome our guests!
• Make a Difference Day is Saturday morning at the HS! Ask Karen V. for details if you are interested in attending. 
• Continue to contact the main office anytime you are going to the creek, town hall area, or when walking through the community. Although these trips do not need field trip forms, because we are off school property we need to know how to reach you in case of an emergency. An email to the office with a contact number will suffice. 

Looking Ahead

One more reminder...

We will meet in the aud. on 10/31 at 9:30 am. We will tell a few Halloween jokes, and after that we will either parade around the bus loop OR parade back to class so parents can see us. This will be weather dependent, but the goal would be a large loop outside on the bus loop and then back into the building. If you have a student that does not celebrate, please reach out and be sure to find an alternative, fair activity for them to do in lieu of the Halloween fun.

Costumes(please review this with your students): 

• ·         No costumes that suggest or display violence.
• ·         No fake weapons or costume props that could be perceived as a weapon.
• ·         Please be mindful that our school is a pre-k through 6 school, and we may have varying levels of sensitivity to masks that appear scary. If a child has a mask, please have them put it in their bag until you deem it an appropriate time to come out.

I am...YOU are

There is incredible power in what we say to ourselves. When we beat ourselves up, when we listen to the negative voices inside our heads, and when we trust--too much--the perspective of others, we are setting ourselves up for failure. How do you talk to yourself? What are the "I am" statements you say to yourself when you look in the mirror? Often, we do not even say I am out loud, but instead it is a looming voice inside our heads. We make a mistake:

• "I'm not good enough."
• "I'm not organized enough."
• "I'm not smart enough." 
• "I'm not patient enough." 

We become what we say. As complex as our minds are, they always want to find the negative. Watch your self talk this year and be sure to be intentional regarding who you say you are. You deserve that.

Sometimes it feels so much easier to be thoughtful with our "you are" statements versus our "I am" statements. As a team that spends a lot of time together, what are we doing to help one another see the good that lies within each of us? How about for our kids? 

People, and children included, will rise and fall the the level of our expectations. If in your head you've already defined who someone is, you have closed the door to really get to know who they are. With our students, how easy is it to tell students who they are: 

"You are a great writer."

"You are inattentive."

"You struggle in math..."

"You are a risk taker!" 

Have you noticed the You are _________(profile) posters in the hall? Do our kids see the profiles in themselves? Do they believe they are those profiles?

Overall, I believe we are a pretty positive school. We want to do right by kids, and we definitely take care of one another. With that being said, let's never settle. I noticed how hard it was at our SEL training for some of us to lift ourselves up. We can find it in others, but struggle when it comes to us.

As we move forward, be intentional with what you put after I am and you are. What we put after them can lift us up or tear us all down...it can build connections, or ruin them.  WE are QUEST, and WE are destined for great things.

Proud to be your Principal, and I am grateful to be part of a school that is intentional. Have a great weekend!

HALLOWEEN!

We will meet in the aud. on 10/31 at 9:30 am. We will tell a few Halloween jokes, and after that we will either parade around the bus loop OR parade back to class so parents can see us. This will be weather dependent, but the goal would be a large loop outside on the bus loop and then back into the building. If you have a student that does not celebrate, please reach out and be sure to find an alternative, fair activity for them to do in lieu of the Halloween fun.

Costumes(please review this with your students): 

• ·         No costumes that suggest or display violence.
• ·         No fake weapons or costume props that could be perceived as a weapon.
• ·         Please be mindful that our school is a pre-k through 6 school, and we may have varying levels of sensitivity to masks that appear scary. If a child has a mask, please have them put it in their bag until you deem it an appropriate time to come out.

Reminders

• CIA on the 29th moved to Monday am at 8:15. Please join us in the BOE room for a light breakfast and to welcome our guests from IB. They will love QUEST. You all work so hard and do so much for our building, next week is a good time to celebrate that. 
• Andrea will be sending out the schedule for next week. Please be sure you are aware of any meeting time that you may be a part of! They want to see you, meet you, and hear you.

Looking Ahead

3 Day Weekend here we come!!!

Looking Ahead

Digital Citizenship Week October 14th-18th

Digital Citizenship week is next week October 14th to the 18th.  It would be awesome if QUEST had 100% participation in this important topic.  I challenge everyone to do at least one thing with students next week that teaches students about Digital Citizenship.  Remember Digital Citizenship starts with basic safety tips and spirals up to teaching kids what to do with social media and  how to be digital leaders.  

For some ideas to use in your classroom check out this recent Cadet Tech Blog post written by Jason or have a conversation with him.  The post has quick 5-10 minute ideas all the way up to hour long lessons for every grade level.  

https://hiltoncadettech.blogspot.com/2019/10/digital-citizenship-week.html 

I'd be happy to run any one of these lessons in the lab with your students or in your classroom.  

Cadet Connect

It is that time of the year again to start thinking about Cadet Connect. Cadet Connect is a day where high school students and Merton students come into the elementary schools and build connections with our students. PBIS is going to plan a friendship week which will culminate in Cadet Connect Day. Each day will be a theme related to friendship with a dress up day, and an easy pre-planned activity for your classroom. This year our Merton and HS students want to build connections earlier. You will be paired with a class in the winter. You and your buddy class will each send two flip grid videos to each other. This will be the class that comes into your room on 2/14. If you would like to participate, please sign up with the link below. Cadet Connect Day is normally in the morning( around 9:00am) for about 45 minutes. Special Areas can sign up too!

If you have any questions related to the flip grid or the day – ask!

It is a fun day that the kids enjoy and PBIS is trying to create more connections this year through the flip grid J

Please sign up by Tuesday, October 15! This will give us time at our district PBIS meeting to pair the classes and start the connections.

https://forms.gle/y124PC9Yd2b2P4sG7

Enjoy the Weekend

Looking Ahead

Reminders

• Next week I will be starting unannounced walk-through observations. Later in the year, I will be doing announced. If you have a preference in what you want me to see because you'd like feedback, please feel free to suggest a time of day for me to come. Looking forward to it!
• Next Thursday we will have our first announced lockdown. Please be sure to review this with your students. In addition, just a reminder that we use Navigate to take attendance and communicate needs during the lockdown. If you are not using your phone for this, please be sure to log-in to a computer to ensure our kids are accounted for. 
• No school for kids next Friday. Please check out Karen's email for specific information about the Superintendent's Conference Day. 
• If you have not done your SLO worksheet yet(see earlier post), please stop by the main office to complete that. 

NYS K-12 Kids Safe Online Poster Contest

The New York State Office of Information Technology Services’ is once again hosting the “NYS K-12 Kids Safe Online Poster Contest.”  The contest is open to all students in New York State public, private and home-schools. 

This is a great opportunity for teachers to talk to students about being safe while on the Internet and while using computers and mobile devices.  The contest has five entry categories: Kindergarten–Grade 2, Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12 and Special Education. New York State winners will be displayed in the 2021 NYS Kids Safe Online Calendar and entered into the MS-ISAC National Computer Security Poster Contest.

More information on the “NYS K-12 Kids Safe Online Poster Contest” can be found on the contest web page at https://its.ny.gov/2019-2020-kids-safe-online-poster-contest. Questions regarding the contest may be submitted to cyber.outreach@its.ny.gov.

Don’t miss out!  

The contest entry deadline is December 9, 2019.

Fire Safety Poster Contest

Safety First

CLICK HERE

RtI?

How do I know if a child went to RtI last year? 

If you are wondering this, please refer to the roster you received at the end of last year. On that roster, RtI should be checked for all students in your classroom who were at RtI last year. If this is not the case for you, please let Lisa know so that we can share the exact names with you.

Enjoy

QUEST,
You are all awesome. Thank you for doing your part to make our school what it is.

Next week!

Looking Ahead

Walk to School Day! Wed, October 2, 2019

Join QUEST as we walk to school! Please park and meet in the Hilton United Methodist Church parking lot at 8:15 am (21 West Ave.). Families are welcome to join our walk but staff can wait with them once we all arrive to school.

Reminder about subs.

Two reminders regarding subs:

• Please be sure you have two days worth of emergency plans on your desk OR left in the main office--that choice is yours. If you were to be out in an emergency situation, these would be used to support our sub. This was agreed upon last year with HCSTA. 

Also,

• This is a reminder for when you are out of the building, we use a common format for explaining our emergency procedures. Please be sure that what is below is filled out specifically to your room and included in your sub plans if you are going to be out. All sub plans should have this included in them. 

Link to Emergency for SUBS

Emergency Response for SUBS 

Emergency Cards	In our school, we have red and green emergency cards. These are used during evacuation drills and can be used to have a class roster when attendance is needed.   Our emergency card is located:
Lockdown	A lockdown is used to secure our school building and the grounds during incidents that pose an imminent concern outside of the school.   When you hear lockdown announced, you should move quickly to execute the following actions.   If safe, gather students from hallways and common areas near the classroom.  Lock the door. Barricade if necessary  Move students to a safe area in the classroom out of sight of the door/windows.  Keep all quiet, silence cell phones.   Take attendance, if possible.   Do not communicate through door or answer room phone.  Do not respond to P.A. announcements or fire alarm.  Stay hidden until physically released by law enforcement personnel.   In our classroom, students hide:
Evacuate	Used to evacuate students and staff from the building.   Listen for instructions about the situation and your actions.  Lead students to designated assembly or announced assembly area. Use secondary route, if necessary.   Bring attendance list and class roster.   Close the classroom door after exiting.  Take attendance when safe to do so.  If evacuating off site, take attendance before moving from and upon arrival at off site location.  Listen for updates.   In our classroom, our evacuation location is:
Shelter-In-Place	Used to shelter students and staff inside the building.   Listen for instructions about the situation and your actions.  Students in hallway should return to assigned classroom, if possible.  Classroom teachers, take attendance.  All other staff assist students, as needed.   Move away from windows, if situation warrants.   If instructed, move out of classroom to designated safe area. Stay together at all times.   Listen for updates.
Hold-In-Place	Used to limit movement of students and staff while dealing with short term emergencies.   Listen for instructions about the situation and your actions.  Students in hallways should return to assigned classroom, if possible.  Classroom teachers, take attendance if directed.   All other staff assist students, as needed.   Listen for updates.
Lockout	Used to secure school buildings and grounds during incidents that pose an imminent concern outside of the school.  Listen for instructions regarding the situation and your actions.  Lock all exterior doors and windows.   Leave blinds/lights as they are.   Take attendance if directed.  After initial instructions listen for updates.  Classroom instruction continues as normal.  All outdoor activities are terminated and immediately moved indoors.  Listen for updates.
Emergency Extension Numbers	Main Office: 6100  Principal: 6101  Nurse: 6155  Attendance Office: 6153  Security Desk: 6000