Hi, Team Remote Families! This week's Positivity Project character strength is Purpose. This strength gives individuals the sense that they are connected with humanity or the universe. People who possess a sense of purpose believe that they were put on earth for a reason. That reason can have all kinds of variety. It could be to create a unique invention, to bring joy through art or music, or to raise their children to become good people. These people have a true calling. Read more about Purpose here.
This week’s example is Malala Yousafzai, the youngest Nobel Prize laureate. A native of Pakistan’s Swat Valley, she bravely stood up against the Taliban —and survived their vicious attack — for girls’ right to education. Her fight for children’s education worldwide exemplifies her sense of purpose.
District Updates
Spirit Week Reminder: This week is Spirit Week!
Monday: Hat/Sports Day
Tuesday: Beach Day
Wednesday: Wildcat Wednesday--Wear Your Blue And Gold!
Thursday: Tie Dye Dat
Friday: Pajama Day
Thank you WG PTA/PTO District Council!
WGMS
Starting Monday, April 26th, WGMS will welcome back hybrid students to 5 days of in-person instruction per week. Please note that our fully remote students will continue to learn remotely.
CMS Starting Monday, April 26th, CMS will welcome back hybrid students to 4 days of in-person instruction. Please note that our fully remote students will continue to learn remotely.
WGHS
End-of-Year Dates
The last day of classes for Juniors and Seniors is Friday, June 11th (Note: the "Senior Walk" is scheduled for Friday, 6/11, so the last day of classes for Seniors is actually 6/10).
The last day of classes for Freshmen and Sophomores is Tuesday, June 15th.
Important Senior Dates Note: All senior events are subject to change in response to state and county health and safety guidelines
Friday, May 7: Cap and Gown Day (Glazed and Confused Donuts & Cap/Gown Pick Up)
Monday, May 24: WGHS Honors and Awards Night
Friday, June 4 (Rain Date Saturday, June 5): Senior Ball Under the Stars (& Mock Crash)
Thursday, June 10: Last Day of Classes for Seniors
Friday, June 11: Senior Walk Day (Chalk the Walk, Senior Video, and Senior Walk Through at Elementary Schools)
Friday, June 11 (Rain Date Saturday, June 12): Senior Celebration (replaces After Ball Party)
Wednesday, June 16: Graduation Rehearsal
Saturday, June 19 (Rain Date Sunday, June 20): Graduation
REMIND App: First, to stay informed, your Senior should join the class on the Remind App. Remind is VITAL for your Senior to receive class information and announcements. The app is free and can be used on cell phones or on PCs through the app itself or by receiving text messages or emails. Students in the following alphabet groups by last name must text the corresponding code to 81010:
A – G @wghsclass
H-O @wghsclasso
P-Z @7caegd
We also have a: Twitter Page: @senateclass2021 and an Instagram page: @wgseniors2021
Be sure to check out the various Principal blogs (links on the right of this page) for building-specific information.
Hi, Team Remote Families! This week's Positivity Project character strength is Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence. This is the ability to identify and enjoy that which is admirable in the world. There are three types of goodness in which positive psychology focuses: physical beauty (e.g. a sunset, song, or building); an exceptional skill or talent; and moral goodness (e.g. a character strength). Appreciation of beauty can generate awe; appreciation of a skill can generate admiration; and appreciation of moral goodness can generate moral elevation. All of these feelings (awe, admiration, and moral elevation) help us forget ourselves and find increased joy and meaning in the world. Read more about Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence here.
As an example, the video below depicts the "overview effect" that astronauts describe--and their intense feeling of awe. The video is about 20 minutes but it is well worth the time to view.
Ramadan
Ramadan Mubarak! That means “Happy Ramadan” to our Muslim community members. This year, Ramadan begins in the evening of Tuesday, April 13, and ends in the evening on Wednesday, May 12. Ramadan concludes with Eid Al-Fitr, the “Festival of Breaking the Fast.”
If you’d like more information about Ramadan, what it means to our Muslim community members, and how to support students who will be celebrating Ramadan, please clickHERE for a write-up from West Genesee High School Senior Sereen Awawda.
Spring Has Sprung!
Reminder: Lowe's Spring Fest promotion continues throughout April.
April 22: 500,000 tree saplings given out in honor of Earth Day.
April 29: Lowe’s Butterfly Quest which helps families create a butterfly garden.
Check out the smile on Remote 2nd Grader McKenna Ramsey's face as she shares a picture of her Lowe's free Garden-to-Go kit!
Andrew Sorochak and his family also went to Lowe’s, and this time got a piñata filled w mystery seeds! He has to break it open to find out what the seeds are.
District Updates
Spirit Week: April 26 - 30
Next week is Spirit Week! The flier pictured below shows what students should wear each day should they choose to participate.
6th Grade Family and Consumer Science Classes
Wednesday, April 21st, marks the last day of FACS classes for remote 6th graders. FACS is a 10-week course and our remote students have fulfilled their FACS requirements. Students are welcome to continue to access Mrs. Bates, Mrs. Boswell, and Ms. Tomi's FACS website for resources.
NYS ELA and Math Assessments
Fully Remote students are NOT required to sit for the annual NYS ELA and Math Assessments this year. However, if you would like your child to "opt-in" to sit for the exams, you can contact your child's building principal.
NYS ELA and Math Assessments for Grades 3 - 4
The information below is from East Hill Principal Craig's blog:
Our third and fourth graders will take the New York State English Language Arts Assessment next Wednesday, April 21st, and the NYS Math Assessment on Tuesday, May 4th. The test is only one session this year and should take no more than one hour. The tests, administered on the computer, will be given to only in-person students (not remote). Like every other day, please make sure your child comes to school well rested, well fed, and on time. Our fourth graders will also take the multiple choice portion of the NYS Science Assessment on Monday, June 7th.
NYS ELA and Math Assessments for Grades 5 - 6
The information below is from WGMS Principal Dunhan's blog:
The New York State Assessments in ELA and Mathematics for grades 5 and 6 will be given in one session and consist of only multiple choice questions. The assessments are computer-based and will be administered in your child’s regular homeroom class. Any student who is not taking the assessment should still attend school and will be able to read during the administration of the assessment. Fully remote students will not be taking the assessments unless parents choose to send their students into the building on the day of the assessments. Please mark your calendars for the assessment dates:
April 20th (Tuesday): ELA, MON/TUE Group A
April 23rd (Friday): ELA, THU/FRI Group B
May 5th (Wednesday): Math, All Students
NYS ELA and Math Assessments for Grades 7 - 8
The information below is from CMS Principal Lozier's blog:
The New York State Assessments in ELA and Mathematics for grades 7 and 8 will be given in one session and will consist of 50 multiple choice questions. The assessments are computer-based and will be administered in your child’s regularly scheduled ELA and Mathematics classes. The science assessment is for grade 8 only and is administered in a booklet format. It will be given in your child’s science class. Please mark your calendars for the dates:
April 19th (Monday): ELA, Mon/Tues Cohort
April 22nd (Thursday): ELA, Thur/Fri Cohort
May 4th (Tuesday): Math, All Students
June 8th (Tuesday): Science, Grade 8 Only
NYS Regents Exams
The information below is from WGHS Principal Ackle's blog:
New York State's waiver request was denied by the US Department of Education. We will be offering the following four New York State Regents Exams: English Language Arts(ELA), Living Environment(LE), Earth Science(ES), and Algebra 1. The dates for these exams are as follows:
ELA- Thursday, June 17
LE- Tuesday, June 22
Algebra 1- Wednesday, June 23
ES-Thursday, June 24
We will administer the NYS Regents Exams during the morning sessions.
Below is some further information relating to this year's NYS Regents Exams:
We are obligated to offer the exams. If your child has a cumulative 4 quarter passing average and is mathematically able to receive course credit, they do not have to sit for the exam and will receive both course and regents credit. Again, that's IF they are passing the class.
For classes that have regents exams that are not listed above, (i.e. Chemistry, Physics Global History, US History, Geometry, Algebra 2) again, if your child is passing the class, they will automatically obtain the Regents/graduation credit without having to take the exam as long as they have a 4 quarter passing average.
What happens if my child does not pass a class this year? The student would then attend summer school or some other type of remedial program such as Grad Point. If they satisfactorily pass the course in summer school, they would then be awarded course credit and regents credit (if the course ends in a regents exam). If they do not attend summer school to make up a failed course, they would have to retake it next year AND take the Regents Exam connected with the class in June 2022.
Be sure to check out the various Principal blogs (links on the right of this page) for building-specific information.
Hi, Team Remote Families! This week's Positivity Project character strength is Fairness. Fairness means that you believe that all people have value. You approach situations with an unbiased mindset and treat everyone with respect. However, fairness is complex and personal. The Positivity Project highlights how we can look at fairness from one of two perspectives: the justice-reasoning approach, which uses logic and determines right from wrong through ethics, or the care-reasoning approach, which is based around empathy and the willingness to understand the needs, interests, and well-being of others. Read more about Fairness here. Check out the video below as professional tennis player Jack Sock tells his opponent, Lleyton Hewitt, to challenge a point in a great display of sportsmanship in the spirit of fairness.
In-Person Parameters Are Changing...What Does That Mean For Remote?
Now that social distancing guidelines are changing, our in-person modalities are able to accommodate more students in the classroom for more days per week. As you may know, students in grades K-4 are able to attend school in person five days per week as they have done all year. Hybrid students at WGMS will return to school five days per week starting on Monday, April 26th. At CMS, hybrid students will attend school on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Wednesdays will continue to be used for Office Hours and planning time for teachers. At WGHS, hybrid students have already begun attending classes on alternating Wednesdays. You might think that following the lead of our in-person counterparts would be a logical next step for Team Remote, but it wouldn't be as simple as it sounds, nor would it necessarily be advantageous for students.
Asynchronous Learning Trends
Some might consider the scheduled asynchronous learning days as "off" days, but I would like to invite you to think of those days in a different light. Asynchronous learning, while challenging for learners of any age, offers an opportunity to develop skills like resilience and perseverance, as well as dispositions like student agency, which are crucial for future college and career success. Throughout the 21st century, there has been a steady increase in distance learning (i.e. asynchronous) opportunities for students enrolled in post-secondary degree programs. According to a 2018 study from the Babson Survey Research Group, distance education enrollments have been increasing for nearly two decades, with about one in every three students enrolled in at least one online course.
Based on my teaching experience at Onondaga Community College, I can attest to the fact a teacher's pedagogy will vary based on whether a course is taught face-to-face or is delivered entirely online. For example, I teach Western Civilization courses in both face-to-face and online formats. While the pacing may vary, both formats convey the same content and measure student learning using the same assessments. I would argue that the online version of my course fosters greater student participation as I expect to hear from 100% of the students for every activity whereas students in a face-to-face setting may be more passive during class. At the primary and secondary levels, I am confident that teachers will continue to integrate elements of asynchronous pedagogy into their repertoire in the years to come as they have learned to leverage instructional technology in meaningful ways. Continued exposure to asynchronous learning now has the potential to pay dividends in the future.
What We Can Do
While I don't want to run through the litany of obstacles that would prevent Team Remote from adopting the same schedule as our in-person counterparts, I would like to share with your some of the measures our remote teachers are taking to meet their students' needs:
Grades 5 - 6
Remote Teachers at WGMS may merge sections if possible. For example, our Remote 6th Grade will be merging the Monday-Tuesday sections with the Thursday-Friday sections. Teachers will communicate these decisions with their students and families.
Remote Teachers will continue to provide personalized learning opportunities on Wednesdays. Students are welcome to contact their teachers for availability.
Grades 7 - 8
Remote Teachers at CMS may invite students to join synchronous classes to bring the M/T and Th/F cohorts together when possible and prudent. Please be advised, however, that oftentimes, the lesson would be a repeat of the same lesson they would present on scheduled synchronous days. Further, class size may be a prohibitive factor. Teachers who are willing to invite both cohorts to thier their synchronous classes will communicate these decisions with their students and families.
Remote Teachers will continue to provide personalized learning opportunities on Wednesdays. Students are welcome to contact their teachers for availability.
Grades 9 - 12
In-person Teachers at WGHS may invite their remote students to a join a livestream of their in-person classes on alternating Wednesdays. To be sure, many of our WGHS Remote Teachers also teach sections of in-person classes. Teachers who are willing to livestream their Wednesday in-person classes will communicate these decisions with their remote students and families.
Remote Teachers will continue to provide personalized learning opportunities on Wednesdays. Students are welcome to contact their teachers for availability.
All Grades
Remote Teachers may implement strategies that require more student-centered activities to be assigned on asynchronous days. I meet with the Remote Faculty regularly and plan on addressing this topic during our upcoming (4/21) faculty meeting. Stay tuned...
NYS ELA and Math Tests for Grades 3 - 8
Fully remote students are NOT required to sit for the NYS ELA and Math assessments for grades 3 through 8. See the memo below from the New York State Education Department (NYSED):
Schools are not expected to bring students into the building to participate in the tests if the students are receiving entirely remote instruction during the testing windows. However, to assist in scheduling, NYSED suggests that schools consider contacting parents of students receiving entirely remote instruction to advise them of the testing schedule and ascertain the parent’s interest in having their child come to school to participate in the test.
If you would like to "opt-in" and have your child participate, please contact your child's "home building" principal. Please see the appropriate leadership blogs (links on the right of this page) for testing dates.
Elementary Updates
Out of This World Zoom Class!
Mrs. Binns' 3rd grade class recently learned all about NASA from the experts themselves during a recent remote Zoom lesson. Feel free to check it out below:
Secondary Updates
Participation in Government Virtual Food Drive
Before leaving the West Genesee community, our Seniors want to give back! Each year the Senior Participation in Government students individually fulfill a community service requirement to engage in active citizenship. This year we are working in collaboration with Food Bank of Central New York. Donating $1.00 will provide THREE meals to a family in need. The need for food has been further magnified by the Coronavirus pandemic. Please help us contribute to this worthy cause. A gift made through the virtual food drive will provide more food than through a traditional drive, doubling or even tripling the amount of items your dollar can purchase at a regular grocery store. Every dollar raised through this virtual food drive will be used to buy nutritious food for our hungry neighbors.
Check out the promotional video the students made on TikTok:
Hi, Team Remote Families and welcome back from Spring Break! This week's Positivity Project Character Strength focuses on the "Other People Matter" mindset of Identifying and Appreciating the Good in Others. From the P2 website:
Identifying and appreciating the good in others isn’t always what comes naturally. Often, it’s easier to blame others for our problems or find flaws in others to use as excuses for our own jealousy, bitterness, or resentment. The problem is that this negativity usually leads to problems – for ourselves, for the other person, and for our relationships.
To see the good in others, we must first slow down and take the time to pay attention. Look for the intentions behind people’s words and actions. If you feel slighted, you can use perspective and ask, “Did that person intend to hurt me or did he/she just come across in an awkward manner?” It’s also useful to see the skills and character strengths others possess. Doing so leverages your appreciation of excellence and strengthens your leadership capacity.
District Updates
Since we are fresh off of Spring Break, I don't have much to share in terms of important dates, etc. Be sure to check out the various Principal blogs (links on the right of this page) for building-specific information. I thought I'd dedicate this week's blog to sharing information about some free resources to help make pandemic life less monotonous.
Free Audio Books for Elementary, Teens & Tweens from Audible
If you enjoy audio books, you may be familiar with Audible, an online audiobook and podcasting service owned by Amazon that allows users to purchase and stream audiobooks and other forms of spoken word content. In addition to their subscription-based content, Audible also has a free service called "Stories" that offers access to a large collection of audiobooks for kids. Listeners are not required to create an account, nor will Audible ask for any personal information. Listening categories include stories for teens, elementary, littlest listeners, timeless listens, folk and fairy tales, and more. Further, there are also collections in 7 other languages. You can check out Audible's Stories via this link.
Six Minutes--A Podcast the Whole Family Can Enjoy
If anything, this pandemic has given us the gift of enjoying our time at home, especially for those of us that like watching TV and movies. Truth be told, I have exhausted just about all of the shows I have ever wanted to watch on various streaming media services (Ted Lasso on Apple TV has been my favorite!). So now I'm moving on to podcasts. One of the things I love about podcasts is that I can listen to them when I walk my dog or drive my car. Listening in the car, however, poses challenges as my kids don't always appreciate my taste! Nonetheless, I recently discovered a podcast that is a hit with kids of all ages and their families: Six Minutes. I'm about 20 episodes in and I'm hooked. Here's the premise:
Eleven-year-old Holiday is pulled from the icy waters of Alaska with no memory of who she is or where she came from. Are her mom and dad really who they say they are? When she begins to develop incredible abilities, she’ll soon discover she’s not alone in the world.
Who is Holiday? Where did she come from and how did she end up floating in the icy waters off the coast of Alaska with no memory? And what’s the deal with that cool hoverboard? The mystery unfolds in six-minute episodes. Catch up on the award-winning worldwide sensation.
Check out Gen Z Media's Six Minutes website to subscribe and see what other family-friendly content they have to offer. Note: if the above link to Six Minutes results in an error message, try refreshing your browser or use the 2nd link and locate it from the list of shows on Gen Z Media's website.
Free Family Project Kits from Lowes
Looking for some stay-at-home outdoor activities the whole family can enjoy? Lowe's will give away free family project kits every Thursday in April as part of its "SpringFest" celebration. According to syracuse.com, customers can register at Lowe's website for the Garden-to-Go kits. Distribution will be curbside on April 8th and will continue every Thursday through April.
April 8: Garden-to-Go kit sponsored by Miracle-Gro with exclusive recipes from professional cook and food stylist Amanda Frederickson.
April 15: Lowe’s Mystery Garden Piñata with mystery seed packets.
April 22: 500,000 tree saplings given out in honor of Earth Day.
April 29: Lowe’s Butterfly Quest which helps families create a butterfly garden.
Seize Your Summer at OCC
For the past 13 years, I have been an adjunct instructor at Onondaga Community College teaching Western Civilization and World History in both online and face to face modalities. The message below recently came across my email--an opportunity for high school juniors and seniors to help students bridge the gap from pandemic life to a brighter future:
Over the past several weeks, in response to the work of our First Year Student Task Force, faculty and staff from across campus have planned an enriching summer program, which showcases topics like College 101; academic prep, especially in Math and English; the tech you need to succeed; academic showcases, and fun and engagement—all built around the 8 Schools at OCC.
“Seize Your Summer” will be offered in four one-week sessions, either in the day or evening, Monday, July 12th through Friday, August 6th. All programming is in-person on the OCC campus and will follow all health and safety protocols.
The program is completely FREE and designed for students of all types – incoming OCC freshmen, prospective OCC students, high school juniors and seniors, adult students, and even students whose plan currently doesn’t include OCC. This is an opportunity for our campus – the “community’s college” – to step forward with solutions and hands-on learning that help people get energized and started on a new beginning that is full of possibilities.
Communication will begin going out this week to students, families, and the community, to let them know about this fantastic program at OCC and how to reserve their spot. For more information, please contact the Seize Your Summer team at 315-498-2150, SeizeYourSummer@sunyocc.edu or visit https://www.sunyocc.edu/summerprep
