Education Director's Newsletter

At Hayden Canyon Charter, we love to acknowledge good deeds and give gratitude! One of the ways we are encouraging kindness and responsibility is giving students "Caught being good" certificates. Staff members can give a certificate to any student they see exhibiting good character. Students then bring these certificates to the office to have their name entered into a weekly drawing (we choose one per floor) for a Trailblazer backpack keychain!

Since rolling this out, our weekly winners have been:

River Kermelis

McKenzie Jones

Natalia Arbabi

Landon Lacaria

A couple of special Thank You's go out to:

• Patience Spina for making our TrailBlazer Keychains!
• Sierra Pacific Electrical for donating a full-size laminator and stand!
• The Crandall Family for building and donating a ukulele rack to Mr. Hampsch's music program!

Kindergarten- Students have been continuing their Weather Wonders studies. Now that they’ve become such weather experts, they’re going to explore “Weather Around the World.” They’ve also been busy in Labs making shelters for “extreme weather.” They’re looking forward to their first student-led conference with Mom and Dad to present & showcase all their learning in kindergarten so far!

1st Grade:

Students delve more deeply into their study of the sun, moon, and stars, focusing specifically on observable patterns in the sky. In this unit, students pivot from reading Narrative Texts to reading Informational Texts that build their understanding of the patterns of the sun, moon, and stars. Students are introduced to the Science Talk protocol and use it to share information and build onto others’ ideas. Students will be bringing home their Moon Observation Journal to fill out each night, observing the changes in the moon.

2nd Grade:

Second graders are continuing their work on becoming paleontologists. This past week they have been working on the steps of fossilization. To help us really understand fossils and fossilization, we have had 2 Zooms with experts on the subjects where students were able to ask their questions and take virtual tours of museums.

3rd Grade:

Third grade hopped into Module 2, Frogs, when we returned from break. We have been reading frog poetry and writing Frog Pourquoi Tales during ELA Module. The stories the students have written are phenomenal. They have worked hard to develop the characters and setting using powerful adjectives and verbs. They have included dialogue and developed the problem and resolution. In science, they created watercolor paintings of the Plant Life Cycle. These will be displayed during our Student Led Conferences. They are beautiful works of art! In Math we have been working on finding the area in Geometry. Students are able to find the area of irregular shapes, for example, the area of a frog pond habitat. There is so much to tell, but we are looking forward to Student Led Conferences where we can share all about it! Third grade is hopping!

4th Grade:

This month fourth graders are continuing their focus on geometry with an emphasis on the attributes of shapes. They will wrap up their unit with a geometry scavenger hunt inside and outside of the school. Students will take photographs of geometric shapes they find for a classroom collage. In science and language arts they will continue their animal research. Students are researching and will be writing an animal report. They are also creating their own animal that can survive in a chosen ecosystem.

5th Grade:

Science- The students are continuing to learn about the human body. This week, they created a model to demonstrate how bones are strong enough to support weight but light enough to allow for movement. Students also experimented with what life would be like without a thumb joint.

Math -- We are currently studying what it means to multiply a fraction by a fraction.

Language Arts- We are reading the novel Esperanza Rising and learning about human rights. We are also learning how to write a 5-paragraph essay.

Social Studies- In social studies, we are learning about the foundations of American government. Next week, we will learn more about the Philadelphia Convention and the issues that our Founding Fathers had to address.

6th Grade:

ELA- Students continue their novel studies paralleling the Hero’s Journey.

Math -Students are beginning to use unit rate and percentages for real-world applications like shopping and measuring speed.

Science- Students are finishing their heat and matter unit and will be designing portable water heaters.

Social Studies- As students continue to learn about early American colonization, they will form their own settlements. Groups will work together to choose wise locations to establish colonies, hold elections, form governments, write laws, create maps of their forts, determine trading wares and partners, form alliances, and establish reliable food sources. At the end of the unit, students will work with their fellow colonists as they compete in the "Colonial Days," a set of real-life, survivalist challenges, in order to win the coveted "Colonial Cup".

7th/8th Grade:

In science, students finished up learning about the properties of water and have moved on to learning about where our water comes from and how we have an impact on our water sources. For this unit’s project, students will be researching an area of the world where the water is highly polluted and creating a presentation to communicate their findings. Some examples of presentations that can be done are a display board, a learning center, a model, a creative story, and even teaching a lesson about their research to the class. This will tie in with ELA where we are starting to do a deep dive into “The Big Thirst” by Charles Fishman. Students are learning about the relationship we have with water and how it affects our everyday life.

This quarter our conferences will be student-led, which means your son or daughter will have the opportunity to present his/her learning progress through their portfolio, projects and academic goals.

This is your child's chance to share all of the amazing things they are learning at HCC. Teachers have sent out sign-up through Sign-up Genius; if you have not received an email or class Dojo with the link, please contact your child's teacher ASAP.

We would love to achieve 100% attendance and to be able to share all of the great things happening at Hayden Canyon Charter. You'll be so glad you came!

It's that time again! If you haven't already returned your child's intent to return form, please do so ASAP. They are due on February 12.

Please note that if your child is returning next school year you will still need to register for the lottery; however, if we recieve your Intent to Return Form they will retain their spot. This is just a state requirement and the process to place them in their new grade levels.

Spread the word...If you know anyone wanting to join the HCC Family, please direct them to our website to apply for our lottery. We will be holding the lottery for:

1 Half day Kindergarten Class

1 Full day Kindergarten Class

2- Additional 1st Grade Classes

1- Additional 5th Grade Class

1- Additional 7th Grade Class

as well as, any empty seats in our existing classes.

The last couple of months we have allowed everyone a chance to get their sweatshirts, hoodies, and sweaters embroidered; however, we must remind everyone that any items of clothing worn in the classroom must have the HCC logo embroidered or screen printed on it. Students not in compliance will receive a dress code infraction slip. You may view the uniform Q & A sheet HERE, or view the entire dress code policy on our website.

Help us raise funds for our Outdoor Explore Supply Closet! A pink flyer will be sent home today, you will want to take the flyer with you when ordering to ensure that HCC gets credit.

When: February 14th

Where: Mod Pizza 10:30am-9:00pm 2824 North Ramsey Road.

Find out more at:

https://www.groupraise.com/events/176972-hayden-canyon-charter-at-mod-pizza

HCC Annual Gala

Tickets for this year's Annual Gala on April 15 will be available soon! In the meantime, we need your help!! If you or someone you know would like to help support this critical school fundraiser with a sponsorship or auction item, please let us know. We have some great items in the works, but need help to make this event a success for the school! Please reach out to us at HaydenCanyonCharterFoundation@gmail.com if you have connections for auction items, have questions or if you'd like to be added to the planning committee.

Parent Crew Meeting

Parent Crew's next virtual meeting will be held on Monday, February 8 at 6:30pm. All are welcome to join! To receive the link to the meeting and be notified of future meetings and volunteer opportunities, please email Parent Crew at HCCParentCrew@gmail.com and/or join us on Facebook in the HCC Parent Crew group.

Classroom Climb Fundraiser Update

We have two updates related to our fundraiser:
1. Incentive shirts and sweatshirts were distributed today!
2. Playground slides and swings have been ordered and are scheduled to be delivered later in February!!

Feb. 8-11: K-5 Early Release for Student Led Conferences- Students dismissed at 12:30

Feb. 11: 6-8 Early Release for Student Led Conferences- All students dismissed at 12:30

Feb. 12: Existing students Intent to Return forms due today! This is a firm deadline.

Feb. 17: HCC Board Meeting

Feb. 25: School Spirit Day- Jeans Day! (wear your uniform shirt or Trailblazer Shirt with jeans!)

March 4: Module 2 Project Presentation Videos sent home

March 8: Report Cards sent home

Email: info@haydencanyoncharter.org
Website: haydencanyoncharter.org
Location: 13590 North Government Way, Hayden, ID, USA
Phone: 208-477-1812
Facebook: facebook.com/Haydencanyoncharter