Dear Staff,

It's hard to believe that we are already halfway through the first quarter of the year. The pace of the school year never ceases to amaze me. This has been a year that has been defined by change: new buildings, new faces, new roles, new resources, and new opportunities. It's been said that the one constant in life is change, and we've been living into a lot of it as a district.

One thing that remains unchanged throughout all of the shifts and transitions is our commitment to student learning and well-being. Every single day, we have the ability to cultivate an environment in which students can feel cared for, safe, and able to grow as individuals and learners. Truly meaningful learning cannot happen apart from truly meaningful relationships, but establishing those requires investment and intentionality.

This month's newsletter highlights the importance of establishing this culture within your classroom, especially in these early stages of the school year. Even if your focus thus far has been getting things up, running, and operational, it's never too late to incorporate practices that can help build a culture of belonging in your classroom.

With gratitude,

Dr. John Nguyen

Assistant Superintendent

This video illustrates the importance of creating an atmosphere in which students simultaneously feel both safe and empowered to nurture a classroom environment in which everyone can belong and thrive.

You're invited to join us for a series we are calling Pop-Up PD, which is intended to serve as a fun, convenient way to support continuing growth related to instructional practices. The focus will be on specific practices that teachers can use right away. Also, we'll have snacks available and PD points for those who attend! The details, topics, and sign-up are below. We hope to see you there!

When: 4:15 - 5:15 P.M. at the dates listed below

Where: District Office Conference Room

Dates/Topics:

• October 17 - From Passive to Powerful: Activating Learning
• November 14 - Teaching with Clarity: The Essentials of Explicit Instruction
• December 12 - Practice Makes Progress: Implementing Effective Interactive Practice
• January 23 - Solo Strategies: Fostering Growth with Independent Practice
• February 20 - The Art of Talk: Boosting Learning Outcomes with Student Discourse
• March 13 - Quick Checks, Big Insights: Strategies for Monitoring Student Learning
• April 17 - Curiosity Catalyst: Leveraging Effective Questioning to Boost Student Success
• May 15 - End with Impact: Techniques for Powerful Feedback, Reflection, and Closure

We are excited to share that we are currently working to update and upload essential information to the Teaching & Learning Canvas sites to ensure ease of access to all of our important documents for staff members. If you are looking for something that seems to have disappeared from the site, please contact our Coordinator of Curriculum and Assessment, Meg Richard (meg.richard@piperschools.us), and she will be happy to assist.

• Early Literacy/Dyslexia * Science * HGSS * Math

Culture and student identity are something we strive to recognize, honor, elevate and incorporate in our classrooms every day not only because it connects to the district strategic plan but also because we recognize that our students comes with large funds of knowledge. When thinking about how to integrate Hispanic Heritage Month into your classroom, consider the following resources from The Library of Congress, linked below.