Monday, January 25, 2021

Helping Others When They Struggle

Hello, Team Remote Families! Can you believe we are just about half-way through the school year?! I think I can speak for the entire West Genesee administration, faculty, and staff in letting you know how grateful we are to have your support in making remote learning a success. With the days getting longer and vaccines on the horizon, I am optimistic for a return to "normal" in the near future...hang in there!!

This week's character trait reminds us that other people matter, highlighting the mindset of supporting others when they struggle. Check out the videos below from the folks at the Positivity Project. The first video discusses the #otherpeoplematter mindset that is the foundation of the Positivity Project's movement. The second is a short video of a preschooler in Alabama who has made it his mission to support others by providing food to the homeless in his community. Feel free to view the videos with your children and use them as conversation starters. In our own community, the WGHS Class of 2021 and the Student Council have exemplified supporting others when they struggle by raising over $3,500 for the CNY Make-a-Wish Foundation. Thank you, Wildcats!

Dr. Chris Peterson and Other People Matter



4-Year-Old Superhero Has the Power to Feed the Homeless


WGHS Class of 2021 Officers



District Updates


Calendar Reminders

  • January 27th: Additional material pick up day for WGHS. From Principal Ackles:
    • We will be having an additional remote pick-up day on Wednesday, January 27. There will be two time frames. The first will be from 9:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. and the second will be from 12:30 p.m.-3:00 p.m. Items can be picked up on the atrium side of the school. Please use the Applebees entrance from West Genesee Street. This pick-up is meant for families that have switched to fully-remote learning.
  • January 29th: End of the 2nd marking period (grades 6-12)
  • February 1st: 2nd semester/3rd marking period begins (grades 6-12)
  • February 3rd: Superintendent's Conference Day--1/2 day (all students, all modalities)
  • February 5th: 2nd marking period report card available in SchoolTool
  • February 10th: Material pick up (WGHS)
  • February 15th - 19th: Winter Break


Grades K-4

Remote Fine Arts 

Reminder: There are some updated opportunities for our remote elementary students to participate in music and art lessons. Lessons are updated weekly and students can turn in their work for feedback from Mrs. Ta (music) and Mrs. Moser-Vogler (art).

Use the link below to access the WG Remote Fine Arts Site:

https://sites.google.com/westgenesee.org/remote-fine-arts/home?authuser=0

Check out some of the artistic creations our remote elementary art students turned in last week. Students learned about the color wheel and the concept of complementary colors. They were tasked with creating their own complementary color monsters. See some examples of student work below:





Grades 5 - 12

Coming Soon: Classlink for Student Attendance and More

Schools must report attendance to the New York State Education Department. Up to this point, the district has been using a tool called Operoo for students in grades 5-12 to register their daily attendance when they are learning remotely. Soon, however, we will be using a tool called Classlink to not only register school attendance, but also to serve as a Single Sign On (SSO) tool and "landing page" on student Chromebooks which will be pre-populated with relevant links for school. Note: Students using personal devices will also have the ability to login to Classlink. We expect to "go live" with Classlink on February 8th. Be on the lookout for more information from your child's principal.

Friday, January 15, 2021

Perseverance

Hello, Team Remote Families! This week's character trait is Perseverance. People who possess this character strength finish what they start, no matter the obstacle, and never give up...quite appropriate for our team of teachers, families, and students working from home! Read more about perseverance here.


video source: https://twitter.com/OriginalYoni/status/1348282347708440576


District Updates


Superintendent's Conference Day
The next Superintendent's Conference Day is scheduled for Wednesday, February 3rd. This will be a half-day for all students, in-person, hybrid, and remote.

Elementary School

  • Kindergarten Registration: Kindergarten registration for the 2021-2022 school year is underway and can be completed virtually until March 31, 2021. Click here to learn about our Virtual Registration process and schedule your remote meeting. Please click here for more info. If you have friends and neighbors who have prospective school-age children, please feel free to pass this information along!

Middle School

  • WGMS Yearbook: Click here to place your order for your 2020-2021 WGMS Yearbook! Yearbooks are $30. Order your Yearbook now through January 29th to be entered to win a $50 Visa Gift Card.
  • CMS Yearbook: The ordering link is open. Click here to order your yearbook by January 31st. Please contact Mr. Keida at dkeida@westgenesee.org or Mrs. Canterino at mcanterino@westgenesee.org if you have any questions.
  • End of the 1st Semester: The last day of the second marking period is January 29th. Report cards will be available in Schooltool on February 5th. The first day of the second marking period begins on Monday, February 1st. 

High School

  • Regents Week January 25-29: With the cancellation of January Regents Exams, the week of January 25-29 will follow the normal schedule for class days and times. Classes will run a typical Monday/Tuesday or Thursday/Friday schedule during their regularly scheduled times.
  • Camillus Optimist Essay Contest: The Camillus Optimist Essay Contest is holding its annual essay contest. If students are interested in applying please use the following link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z4WroC2tJ-uix8vcgNCsil9cGrgO-1TH54cYx6TVNNY/edit?usp=sharing
  • End of the 1st Semester: The last day of the second marking period is January 29th. Report cards will be available in Schooltool on February 5th. The first day of the second marking period begins on Monday, February 1st. 


Learning With Chromebooks: Google Drive Anthology

To date, I have shared several videos about all-things-Google Drive. You can view the entire playlist via this link. Please feel free to pass this along to your children as they are the target audience for this video tutorial series. Click the playlist icon located in the top right corner of the video below to select any of the 23 videos on the list or click the above link to view the playlist directly on YouTube.


Monday, January 11, 2021

Team Remote Updates: Week of 1/11

Hello, Team Remote Families! "Prudence" is our character trait for the week, highlighting the importance of setting goals and making wise choices. With the new year in full swing, it seems like a great time to renew our collective commitment to working toward personal goals whether they are related to school or other aspects of our lives. Of course, my mind goes to two things when I hear the word prudence--the Beatles' "Dear Prudence" and the Dana Carvey SNL impersonation of George H. W. Bush (wow...thirty years ago!)..."Not gonna do it, wouldn't be prudent." You can read more about prudence here.

This week's blog post has some news and notes from around the district as well as more technology tutorials. 

District Updates


District-Wide

  • January 18th: Martin Luther King Holiday (no school)
  • January 19th: Talk with the Superintendent--Please join the West Genesee PTA/PTO District Council for a Talk with the Superintendent on January 19th starting at 7:00 p.m. via Zoom. You will need to register in advance.
  • February 3rd: Superintendent's Conference Day (1/2 day for students)

Elementary School

No "big" news to report. Please check your "home" building Principal's blog for updates (see links on the right -hand side of this blog).

Middle School

No "big" news to report. Please check your "home" building Principal's blog for updates (see links on the right -hand side of this blog).


High School


Material Pick Up
The next remote material pick-up day will be January 13. There will be two time frames. The first will be from 9:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. and the second will be from 12:30 p.m.-3:00 p.m. Items can be picked up on the atrium side of the school. Please use the Applebees entrance from West Genesee Street. Future pick-up days will be as follows:
  • January 13 
  • February 10
  • March 17
Future pick-up days will be scheduled beyond March as needed.

Regents Week January 25-29
With the cancellation of January Regents Exams, the week of January 25-29 will follow the normal schedule for class days and times. Classes will run a typical Monday/Tuesday or Thursday/Friday schedule during their regularly scheduled times.

Camillus Optimist Essay Contest
The Camillus Optimist Essay Contest is holding its annual essay contest. If students are interested in applying please use the following link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z4WroC2tJ-uix8vcgNCsil9cGrgO-1TH54cYx6TVNNY/edit?usp=sharing



Learning With Chromebooks: Classroom Folder

Did you accidentally delete a file from a Google Classroom assignment? Not to worry--the file can be retrieved in Google Drive! 



Monday, January 4, 2021

Optimism

 Happy New Year!

It is fitting that this week's Positivity Project character trait is "optimism." The new year offers an opportunity to look forward with an expectation for future success along with the hard work to achieve it. I am optimistic that our remote learning platform will continue to provide our students with opportunities to learn and grow. 

This week's blog has some updates from around the district as well as more tips for "Learning with Chromebooks." Be sure to check your "home" building's Principal blog for more information.


District Updates


Elementary Remote Materials Pick Up
Remote students should plan to pick up their next set of materials on Tuesday, 1/5, from 3:00 - 4:00, at your "home" building. These materials should get your child through the end of March.

Elementary Remote Fine Arts 
Thanks to the hard work from Mrs. Ta (music) and Mrs. Moser-Vogler (art), I am happy to announce that there are more asynchronous fine arts virtual lessons available to our K-4 fully remote students. In addition to accessing resources through the Wet Genesee Remote Fine Arts website, Mrs. Ta and Mrs. Moser-Vogler have set up Google Classrooms for students to submit their work and receive feedback. You can find the Remote Fine Arts website here: 


Talk with the Superintendent
Please join the West Genesee PTA/PTO District Council for a Talk with the Superintendent on January 19th starting at 7:00 p.m. via Zoom. You will need to register in advance.


Learning With Chromebooks: Sharing is Caring


One of the advantages of using Google Drive is the ability to collaborate in the cloud. Even when I'm working remotely, I can be productive and can collaborate with anyone, anywhere, anytime. When people share files with me, I can locate them using the menu option in Google Drive called "Shared with Me."  It is up to the files' "owner" to designate what type of rights I have to the files--edit, comment, or view. When sharing files, I can also simply modify the link so that anyone, regardless of whether they are a Google user, can edit, comment, or view. In the video tutorials below, learn how to locate files that are shared with you as well as how to share files with others.

Two Minute Drills: Google Drive--Shared with Me


Two Minute Drills: Google Drive--Share a File with a Specific Person


Two Minute Drills: Google Drive--Share a File with Anyone with the Link