Congratulations to members of our Girls Swim Team and eSports teams for competing at STATE this weekend! We are proud of you! As we continue through November we continue to learn more about The First Nations of Wisconsin and celebrate our Native community with flags of Wisconsin's First Nations in the commons. Additionally, this week we learn more about The Transgender Day of Remembrance and celebrate our progress as a community within our first 100 day school improvement cycle of the year. Please read on for some important calendar updates and other important news and information.

Check out this week's Howl:

• Greetings Wolf Pack!
• Upcoming Events
• Native American and Indigenous People's Heritage Month
• Transgender Day of Remembrance
• SP100- School Improvement Update
• Calendar Update
• Boarding Buses
• Child Find Notice
• Attention Sophomore Families
• College Access Program
• ASVAB- Sign-up today!
• Classroom Corner and Student Celebrations
• In Case you Missed it!

November 13-19- Transgender Awareness Week

November 18th-

• Boys and girls wrestling starts
• Boys swim and dive starts
• Boys basketball starts

November 20th- Transgender Remembrance Day

November 23rd- Last day for Team Anjani Food Drive

November 25th-26th- NORMAL schedule (we will not have an extended SP30 on the 25th or Day of Service on the 26th).

November 27th-29th- NO SCHOOL. Thanksgiving Holiday Break.

This week we pause to learn more about Wisconsin's First Nations. Learn more about the First Nations of Wisconsin here or through the video below.

This month we are excited to expand our representation in our building for Native American and Indigenous People's month with the First Nations Flags of Wisconsin in our commons.

November is National Native American and Indigenous Peoples Heritage Month! As we honor and celebrate the rich history, culture, and contributions of Native Americans and Indigenous Peoples, every Sun Prairie school will be providing a special meal to mark this important month. On the 22nd, lunch provided the following: Fish Sandwich, long grain and wild rice, roasted butternut squash, blueberries, and strawberries. The meal highlighted traditional flavors and ingredients cherished in Native American cuisine, most closely resembling the diets of Ojibew (Chippewa) Ho-Chunk Nation, and Menominee tribes.

This week we recognize and hold space for the Transgender Day of Remembrance on Wednesday, November 20th. Learn more about the Transgender Day of Remembrance here or through the video below.

As a school district we engage in yearlong school improvement planning that is broken into three 100 day cycles. We just completed our first 100 days and last week our Guiding Coalition (leadership team) spent a day reviewing the work we have completed thus far this school year, celebrating the success, trouble shooting the areas of growth and planning for our next 100 days.

As a part of the day each team created a graphic representing celebrations from the first 100 days in the form of: a tree!

The Roots: The roots of our work during the first 100 days were the strategies and actions that all of our other work has been grounded in. Our roots this fall have been norms and agreements among adults, with students and across spaces. We have intentionally built consistency through tightening our universal practices (pass expectations, expectations of students being in classrooms, etc) and restorative practices school wide.

The Trunk: The tree trunk in our illustration is the adult practices that grow out of the roots and allow the branches to grow. Our adult practices have including a universal practice of teachers analyzing student learning in their professional learning teams to identify what students have learned and areas they still need to grow. Additionally we have been engaging in and reflecting on personal and professional learning including Courageous Conversations around race and that the best place for students is in their assigned class.

The Branches: The product of the roots and the trunk are the branches. The results that we have seen so far this fall has been improved attendance, a decrease in the use of out-of-school and in-school suspension and that our professional learning teams are student focused and collaborative.

We have great momentum this fall, moving in the right direction. We have seen a significant uptick in tardies in the last month and next week will have more data on attendance, what is going well and areas we need to grow.

Every Spring we make our best preparations for the upcoming year to be printed in the district calendar. Sometimes we get it spot on and sometimes we miss. Two quick updates (one that is in the calendar and one that is not):

• We will have a NORMAL schedule on Tuesday, November 26th. We had originally planned to do a Day of Service that day and hope to add this as a tradition in the future. This year we are focused on a strong Winter and Summer celebration before Winter and Summer Break. We will have a normal bell schedule the day before Thanksgiving Break.

• We will also have a NORMAL bell schedule Monday, November 25th. This fall we tried a new approach with having hour long advisory times (SP30 aka SP60) to allow for more community building time. While the idea was solid, the draw backs, including change of schedule for students have proved to outweigh the benefits at this time. We will have a NORMAL schedule that day.

For the safety and well-being of all students, parents/caregivers are not permitted to board the school bus for any reason. We understand that sometimes it might seem convenient, but keeping the bus environment secure and on schedule is our top priority. If you need to speak with your child or address something related to transportation, please contact your school principal or Brinda Thompson at Kobussen Buses at (608) 825-8700, and they will be happy to assist you. Thank you for your understanding and support in helping us maintain a safe and efficient ride for all our students.

The Sun Prairie Area School District is required by state and federal law to identify, locate, and evaluate all children with disabilities who are in need of special education and related services. This process is known as “Child Find”. The Sun Prairie Area School District is also required to provide annual notice of its Child Find activities. Below will find a copy of our annual Child Find Notice with the procedures for accepting and documenting a referral. The notice is provided in English, Spanish and Hmong.

On Friday, all Sophomores attended an ACP Planning Presentation in the PAC. Students gained valuable information about their academic and career plans at SPW. You can view the presentation HERE.

Topics included:

• Graduation Requirements

• Reviewing Transcripts

• Testing options

• Academic and Career Opportunities

This year we are offering the ASVAB Career Exploration Test on Thursday, December 12. It is a no-cost career planning tool. The ASVAB offers information about all options after high school for college-bound students and those interested in other pathways. It is a great opportunity for those who are not sure about what they want to do after they finish high school. This test will be available to any sophomore, junior or senior. The test will be administered by Education Service Specialists and school personnel. The test takes about 2 hours to complete and results will be provided a week after. Location of the test is at SPW, room TBD. Testing will start at 8:45am. Student scores will NOT be released to the military unless requested.

The ASVAB is designed to help students:

• Learn more about themselves and the world of work.

• Explore occupations in line with their interests and skills.

• Discover all the ways to enter the career fields they are best suited for

• Develop an effective strategy to achieve their career goals.

If you have any questions please reach out to Ms. Saldana (cmsalda@sunprairieschools.org), school counselor.

Please use the QR code to sign up by December 5, 2024 or sign up in Student Services.

AP Seminar students began their team project by crafting research questions centered around real world problems or issues. Students then completed a gallery walk to provide constructive feedback on each other's questions and then made revisions based on the feedback they received.

Sejal Rose was honored to be a part of the State of Wisconsin Veteran’s Day Ceremony at the Capitol in which she sang the Veteran’s Hallelujah.

Our own Annie Silva Ibarra created an amazing mural on the windows of the library announcing Seussical the Musical! Stop by and see her beautiful artwork! Thank you for sharing your talent, Annie!

In preparation for “Empty Bowls” last Thursday, students in ProStart tackled 50 pounds of onions!

Multilingual students collaborate with the Spanish class in a celebration of Día de los Muertos.

We need YOUR input too! Do you have an idea of something that should be included in the Howl? Your ideas are always welcome. Email our Admin Associate to the Principal, Jordain Blank at jnblank@sunprairieschools.org.

STATEMENT OF NONDISCRIMINATION

No student may be unlawfully discriminated against in any school programs, activities or in facilities usage because of the student’s sex (gender identity, gender expressions, and non-conformity to gender role stereotypes), color, religion, profession, or demonstration of belief or non-belief, race, national origin (including limited English proficiency), ancestry, creed, pregnancy, marital or parental status, homelessness status, sexual orientation, age, or physical, mental, emotional or learning disability. Harassment is a form of discrimination and shall not be tolerated in the District. It is the responsibility of administrators, staff members and all students to ensure that student discrimination or harassment does not occur.

(SPASD District Policy JB)

If a student or parent/guardian would prefer to have this information translated into Spanish, please contact us at 608-834-6620. Si un estudiante, padre ó guardian prefiere tener esta información traducida en Español, por favor contactenos en el 608-834-6620.

If a student or parent/guardian would prefer to have this information translated into Hmong, please contact us at 608-834-6630. Yog tus me nyuam lub xiv los yog niam thiab txiv/tus neeg muaj cai saib xyuas tus me nyuam xav tau qhov ntawv ntawm no ua lus Hmoob, thov hais rau peb paub rau ntawm 608-834-6630.

We strive to keep The Howl as streamlined as possible with all of the important information for our community. To the end once something has appeared in The Howl, it will move here to the "In Case you Missed It!" section. Take a moment to peruse and make sure you have not missed important info!

As we enter the holiday season and the winter months many in our community are in need of assistance. Did you know that Sun Prairie Areas Schools and SP West are experiencing the highest levels of students in housing transition in our history? This also means we have many families experiencing food insecurity. We have two upcoming food drives. The current drive is accepting donations until Thanksgiving break in the front office through Team Anjani. Following Thanksgiving and into December we will have a schoolwide food drive competition through SP30.

SkillsUSA is raising funds for community service projects this year. Please consider supporting their efforts. Popcorn is sold through our Double Good popcorn store. Sale is open Monday through Thursday, and orders are shipped directly to YOU! Some flavors shown below.

As your Deans of Students, we’re here to support you in any challenges you might face. If you need to report bullying, harassment, or conflicts with teachers or peers, please reach out to us. We’re committed to helping you get the assistance you need and will connect you with the right resources to resolve the situation. Rest assured, all conversations are 100% confidential, and our goal is to ensure you feel safe and supported at school. Stop by any time and visit us across from the Restorative Practices space (1423) and next to the Admin Office (we are between 1400 and 1500). - Coach Rob and Ms. Diaz

Our before and after school tutoring is up and running!!! Schedule out time this week to stop by the Wolf Study lounge to get help, catch up, or study for your classes.

• Morning Tutoring: 8:05 AM – 8:35 AM

• After-School Tutoring: 3:50 PM – 4:40 PM- Activity bus available at 4:45pm
  

Questions? Reach out to Nehemirah Barrett @ntbarre@sunprairieschools.org

Great work on the progress made! Keep up the great work.