November '24 Newsletter

Students develop a healthy sense of self, learn self-regulation strategies and demonstrate perseverance to achieve personal and collective goals through responsible

and caring decisions.

Scott Reeves, Assistant Superintendent, Teaching & Learning

Hello staff! It’s November which means our days are growing shorter, it’s getting colder (some like that, I don’t!) and it’s getting darker earlier. November also kicks off a rapid span of holiday seasons and a whirlwind of political activity locally, statewide, and nationally. Some of those things get some people excited and energized, while for others, it’s a time of great stress and anxiety. That is true for staff; that is true for students. We were intentional about highlighting our Portrait of a Graduate Competency of Social Emotional Wellness during this time of year. It’s an optimum time to be aware of and focus on our mental, physical and psychological health. By now, you know most if not all of your students very well. By the look on their face, you know if it’s a good day or bad day for them. Intentionally notice their disposition and utilize the variety of supports we have available for students who you know may need them. The same goes for you too! We have support available for staff if you are feeling overwhelmed or a little left of center inside. Reflect on the purpose of what you do to fill your spirit.

This past week, Westerville South conducted its first semester Cats With Class. What an exceptional event having teachers recognizing students for exemplifying all the things they want their students to do! Each ceremony, there is a Wildcat alum invited to be the guest speaker. The speaker this time around was a recent 2017 graduate who is now a professional journalist. In her speech to the students, she thanked her journalism teacher Mary Fuchs for being her inspiration. Mary’s face said it all - “this is why I do what I do for all my students.” You make a difference and don’t lose that reality. To quote NBC News anchor Lestor Holt who signs off every broadcast with this quip, “Please take care of yourself, and each other.”

Guerdie Glass, Executive Director, Specialized Learning Programs

Adam Flugge, Director, Special Education

Suzanne Kile, Director, Preschool Services

Jennifer Winters, Coordinator, Office of English Learners

Valarie Jasinski, Coordinator, Gifted Education

Elizabeth Jelkin, Civil Rights Coordinator

As we continue to navigate the challenges and rewards of this school year, we want to take a moment to remind each of you how deeply valued you are. The work you do every day—whether in the classroom, in the hallways, or in every interaction with students, families, and each other—has an immeasurable impact. However, it’s important to remember that the strength and success of our school community are built not just on what we do, but on how we care for ourselves and each other.

Our social-emotional wellness is critical. It is imperative that we take the time to nurture our own emotional health and to support one another in a way that fosters resilience and well-being. When we care for ourselves, we are better able to show up for our students and our colleagues.

Please know you are seen, you are appreciated, and you are making a lasting difference.

Thank You for All You Do,

The Specialized Learning Team

Preschool Services

Our Preschool Students were joined on Monday by Veterans who served in Vietnam, Cuba, The Middle East, Iraq, Afghanistan, Germany, Eastern Europe, the Philippines and on multiple bases across the United States. Our students had the opportunity to introduce their family members who have served. In addition to learning about the meaning behind the holiday, our students demonstrated their newly-learned Pledge of Allegiance, and shared their appreciation by saying “Thank you!” to each of our guests.

Office of English Learners

As we consider this month’s competency of Social Emotional Wellness, it’s important to understand the unique needs of our English Learners. Providing social-emotional support to English Learners (ELs) in K-12 is essential for fostering both their academic and personal growth. Our students often face unique challenges such as adapting to a new language, culture, and school environment, which can create stress and feelings of isolation.

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) strategies tailored for ELs can address language barriers and cultural differences by promoting inclusivity and a sense of belonging. For example, encouraging students to share their cultural backgrounds enriches the classroom environment and builds empathy among peers, enhancing social connectedness and reducing anxiety. Teachers can foster a positive and supportive classroom environment where ELs feel valued and understood, which strengthens their motivation to engage and participate (Edutopia; Center for Responsive Schools).

More information can be found in the Understanding EL section of our WCS English Learner Program Manual.

Here are just a few topics within this section:

• Definitions for immigrant, refugee and migrant students
• Supporting Limited English Proficient (LEP) refugee/displaced students
• Developing cross-cultural relations
• *Note: See Understanding Culture in the EL Manual Quick Links for more information to support our students and families
• Interpretation vs. translation
• Important information found in PowerSchool
• What are the EL levels and what do they mean?

NEW! We are excited to launch our first EL Newsletter (Multilingual Message). Click on the link to see all the cool things happening in our district and get tips on working with our English Learners.

Gifted Education

The gifted department is pleased to announce that Rita Montgomery has joined us as our new secretary. Please join me in extending a warm welcome to her. As Rita acclimates to her new role, I ask that you copy me on all communications so that I can provide assistance.

The Gifted department will begin to solicit referrals for potential gifted identifications in the area of visual performing arts (art, theater, vocal music, instrumental music, dance). Referrals can be filled out here.

ThinkLaw Lessons of the Month

• PK-2-Thanksgiving Parade Balloon Contest: Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade comes out with new balloons every year. In this lesson, students will have a contest to decide which balloon designs of their classmates should be made in time for next year's parade.
• 3-5 What should we give our Veterans? Veterans Day is a national federal holiday created to honor and to thank all Veterans who have served the country. Are we doing enough?
• 6-8 Black Friday: A woman thought she was showing up on Black Friday to get a great deal on a tablet, but instead she left the store with a head injury! Was the store negligent?
• 9-12 $20 for $1: The governor of North Dakota is running for president and wants to participate in the Republican primary debate. He's offered anyone who donates at least $1 a $20 gift card in return. Should this be allowed?

Anne Baldwin, Executive Director, Secondary Schools

Dr. Jennifer Knapp, Director, Secondary Curriculum & Instruction

Matt Misener, Director, Career and College Pathways

Becca Yanni, Coordinator, Extra and Co-Curricular Activities

As we continue to utilize data to grow our practice and improve student learning, it is exciting to see Focus Walks take shape across all of our middle and high schools! We have worked as a secondary team over the past three years to research the instructional core, analyze data, and prioritize student needs by developing a focus for student learning at each middle and high school.

Over the next several months, we have an opportunity to work as building and district teams to continue to study the question, “To what degree are the attributes of our school’s Focus for Student Learning being implemented right now?”. Focus Walks will not only be essential to provide data and opportunities for our teams to respond to student needs, but also provide valuable professional learning opportunities for our classroom instructors and administrators. Our Secondary Team looks forward to collaborating with you around high quality instruction and creating the conditions for every WCS student to be successful!

Secondary Curriculum & Instruction

Student Agency | Student-Directed Learning (SDL) Initiative Update for Middle Level Educators

A team of middle school teachers recently participated in a collaborative session with other school districts in Ohio facilitated by Dr. Mike Nicholson of Learning InspirED and supported by the Martha Holden Jennings Foundation. This is the third year that our middle school team has been involved in this work, and this year Westerville is hosting other school districts. The purpose of this collaborative work is to explore the potential of increasing Student-Directed Learning (SDL) to increase student engagement levels. This aligns with our Educational Framework Element of High-Quality Instruction's focus on Student-Centered Learning.

Key points:

1. SDL increases learner ownership, relevance and authenticity in the learning experience.
   
2. The initiative is part of our ongoing effort to enhance student engagement and instructional quality.
   
3. Our district leadership is committed to fostering a climate that supports teacher autonomy in implementing student-centered practices.
   
4. Student leaders from each middle school will participate in a peer focus group training on December 12th at Genoa.
   
5. These student leaders will conduct focus groups in their schools to gather peer feedback on SDL implementation.
   
6. Feedback from these focus groups will inform our team’s next steps in the SDL initiative.
   

WCS educators are encouraged to consider ways to incorporate SDL principles into their curriculum and classroom practices. This approach empowers students to take charge of their learning, potentially leading to increased engagement, relevance, and authenticity of educational experiences.

For questions or ideas about ways to incorporate more student agency in your classroom, please reach out to Linda Amici at AmiciL@westerville.k12.oh.us or Scott Gaddis at Gaddiss@westerville.k12.oh.us.

Career and College Pathways

One of the best ways to support our students is to foster their interests and connect their post-secondary goals to their high school experience. We are fortunate to work with two outstanding career technical education providers for our students: Columbus City Schools (Downtown High School and Ft. Hayes Campus) and the Delaware Area Career Center.

We will be taking all interested sophomore students to visit these campuses on Thursday, November 21st and Friday, November 22nd. If you teach sophomores, talk to them about their visit experience and learn more about their plans post-graduation. This is an excellent opportunity to deepen your relationships with students.

Extra and Co-Curricular Activities

Every marker measured on our Panorama data increases as the amount of extra curricular activities a student participates in. Shared experiences with students to make connections with like interests beyond the classroom is rewarding for both parties. If you need assistance in figuring out how to make those connections, please reach out to Becca: yannib@wcsoh.org

Reminder: As part of our Strategic Plan work, we want to learn more about the impact of our events across the district and how they help families, community members, staff and students feel connected to their school community.

Please share the QR code below or THIS LINK at any of your events as well as newsletters to help us capture that information. Contact Becca Yanni if you’d like to learn more or see the feedback for your events.

Tami Santa, Executive Director, Student Services

Jessie Martin, Director, Student Well-Being

Ja'Niece McAlpine, Director, Educational Equity

Megan Orlowski, TOSA, Educational Equity

Rachel Pinto, District Nurse Coordinator

Thankful for the spaces I have been welcomed into so far this school year. Appreciate the work all of our staff are doing each and every day to support students. -Tami

Educational Equity

“Classroom structures and processes need to tend to the emotional well-being of everyone and not just focus on the day's lesson plan. If we want the classroom environment to be a space that is physically, socially, and intellectually safe, we have to understand the stress-producing mechanisms of the brain.”- Zaretta Hammond, author of Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain

We must ask ourselves:

• What values do we want to communicate through our environment?
• How do we want children to experience their time in our classroom?
• What do we want our environment to “teach” those who are in it?

What first steps should teachers take? Learn more HERE.

Student Well-Being

With the uncertainty in our current climate as well as the excitement (and stress) of the upcoming holidays, make time to check in on each other. Trauma-informed resilience-focused schools understand the importance of staff support and self-care. This model reinforces four domains - belonging, independence, mastery, and generosity. These domains make up the Circle of Courage.

Here are some questions to consider engaging with your co-workers in each of these areas.

• Belonging:
• What or who makes you feel like you belong in your school community?
• Who do you feel close to at school? Who can you trust?
• What activities promote belonging in your family or with your friends?
• Independence
• What fosters a sense of autonomy in your school?
• How do you demonstrate leadership skills?
• In what ways do you exercise a balanced sense of self control in your personal like?
• Mastery
• What motivates you?
• What makes you successful at work?
• What are you known for being strong in at work?
• Generosity
• How do you share compassion and empathy in your school community?
• Is your generosity in balance or do you often neglect your own needs?
• Are your thoughts and words often loving toward yourself?

Clinic & Health Services

Effective October 24, 2024, HB 47 requires compliance for AED placements in schools and building cardiac emergency response plans and teams. Look for additional communication from your building administration soon for more information and opportunities to consider participating on your building’s team.

Do you know where your building’s AED(s) are located? Reach out to your clinic staff/building administrator if you need assistance locating yours.

Cheryl Relford, Executive Director of Elementary Schools

Kate Thoma, Director of Elementary Curriculum & Instruction

In the last T&L Connections, we shared that we would love to collaborate with YOU at an upcoming Collaborative Problem Solving Meeting. These meetings have been well attended in the past and based on topics of high interest to our staff. While we haven’t been able to hold them yet this Fall, we do have the following dates secured:

• January 29
• February 26
• April 2

The first step in planning these meetings is to hear from YOU. What would YOU like to collaborate on? Click here to complete a feedback form. We only had three total responses which resulted in November’s date being canceled. We wanted to try one more time to see if there was interest in holding these meetings in February or April. If we don’t hear from at least ten, we will move to cancel these dates as it is hard to have collaborative conversations with so few participants.

Elementary Curriculum & Instruction

Due to recent legislative updates, we needed to complete a curriculum adoption process to identify a state approved core ELA program for K-2. This work has been completed and shared with the Elementary Curriculum Council. You can review the process and updates shared by clicking here. You can also find the revised K-2 ELA Course of Studies below:

In addition to ELA, Mystery Science has made some updates to their lesson titles and scope and sequence that required us to revise our Science Course of Study. These minimal changes can all be found on this document or in the revised course of study below:

You can review the entire Elementary Curriculum Course of Study Slide deck by clicking here to read about additional updates including timelines and PD offerings for K-2 teachers on Wit and Wisdom.

Nick McIlwain, Director of Alternative Education & Assessments

The end of the grading quarter or semester is a great time to give students a checkpoint or benchmark assessment in the Readiness Portal. These formative assessments give students an opportunity to show what they know and build their skills and confidence before taking the OST in April. For help on launching a checkpoint or benchmark assessment, please refer to this step sheet. For information on how to print student testing tickets, please refer to this step sheet. Please let Nick (ext. 56105) or Brandi (ext. 56103) know if you have any questions. We are here to help and support our teachers and students.

Did you also know that the Assessment Authoring system received new and updated content at the end of September? The updates include:

• OST Spring 2024 released items
• Spanish versions of math, science, and social studies OST items
• Additional OST ELA passages
• AASCD Spring 2024 released items
• Additional AASCD items

With the addition of Spanish versions of math, science, and social studies OST items, users can now create Spanish bilingual tests in Assessment Authoring. When building a test in Assessment Authoring, the language can be set to English or Spanish. If both English and Spanish versions are needed, first build the test in English, then copy the test and set the language of the copy to Spanish. Utilizing these practice items can help alleviate stress and anxiety for our EL students when it comes to taking the OST’s in April. Please feel free to reach out to Nick or Brandi if any help is needed in the Assessment Authoring or the Readiness Assessment portals.