Sunday: PTO hosted our annual October Fest for the Shepherd Community. The community had an awesome time. Thank You for planning another great event!
Monday: Little Mermaid auditions began. Thank you to all that supported the auditions.
Tuesday: We conducted learning walks with our Transcend coach Hannah. Shout out to Ms. Dean, Ms. Rajwani and Mr. Chamovitz on their work with strong start. Coach Hannah noted the joy that was felt from all students.
Wednesday: Our 3-5th grade students started the ANet Math assessment.
Thursday: Shepherd Leadership continued their training with the DCPS Care team lead. We were able to sharpen our lens and build our toolkit in Understanding Our Biases. We were also able to do more work around our Mustang Playbook (the shepherd way handbook)
We also announced the cast for the school musical: The Little Mermaid. Thank you to all the teacher support during auditions. Congratulations to the cast.
Friday: We hosted our final Town hall meeting with the 4th grade families. In this meeting we reviewed the homework policy that will be going home to families today. We also discussed what SEL supports are happening and available to students. Parents had the opportunity to talk through the steps of our discipline when students are physical. Finally, we discussed the conversation from central office around Civil Rights. We are still waiting to here more information about the contents of this lesson.
Also Friday was the IB training for our new staff and leaders. Teachers and school leaders participated in a 1/2 day training session with the IB institute.
Our 5th grade students also celebrated their Mission to Mars projects with family and community.
This week we:
- Conducted an interview for the possible SpED teacher position. The candidate was promising and would be excited to join the team.
Remaining Vacancies
- 1st grade teacher
- 4th grade teacher
- 2 special education aides
- Kindergarten Aide
- Special education temporary teachers.
Interview Updates
- We schedule 2 interviews
- First grade position
- 4th grade ELA position
We recommend students refrain from bringing cell phones or other electronics (tablets, gaming devices) to school. However, we realize there may be instances in which a student need to have their cell phone before or after school (for communicating with family, etc.). We have created a fair cell phone policy and ask families to respect and reinforce it at home.
The usage of cellphones and/or smart watches are strictly prohibited during school hours in all grades. Students may use their cell phones before entering the school building and after leaving the school building. All students must power off their devices and place them in the book bag/locker upon arrival. Devices should not be on the students' person throughout the day. Students who violate this policy will have their phones/watches taken and a parent will be called. An administrator will return the phone at the end of the school day. Multiple (3 or more) violations of this policy will require a parent or guardian to pick up the cell phone/smartwatch from the Main Office.
Please contact our main office at 202-576-6140 if you need to reach your student or in the event of an emergency.
Picture Day
Strong Start
Our strong start sessions will include all components of our daily strong start. Our strong start meetings will fall on a rolling schedule.
Dates
Tuesday, November 26th
Friday, December 20th
Thursday, January 30th
Wednesday, February 19th
Monday, March 10th
Thursday, April 10th
Friday, May 30th
Monday, June 2nd
ECE/CES Playground
Coffee and Conversations
This year we will continue our coffee and conversation series. Instead of a grade level session each session will be open to all families. This event is hosted by Shepherd Admin and will take place monthly in the MPR. Our first session will be held on November 7th.
Doughnuts with Grownups
This year we will implement a donuts with grown-ups program. Once a month 5 or less families ,per homeroom, will be invited to join scholars for breakfast and the strong start meeting. Grown-ups and special guest will be asked to RSVP. The event will go from 8:30-9:10. Guests will be asked to RSVP prior to the event. The room parents will monitor RSVPs as well as providing donuts. Our first event is scheduled for Tuesday 11/12.
October
IB Learner Profile Attribute of the Month:
OPEN-MINDED
We appreciate our own cultures and personal histories, as well as the values and traditions of others. We have tolerance. We consider other points of view and are willing to grow from the experience.
IB Approach to Learning Skill of the Month:
Social Skills
This month, Shepherd Mustangs Celebrate:
- Family History Month
- Indigenous People's Day
- Diwali
IB Evaluation
What is the IB Evaluation?
- It is a reflective process that involves the entire school community
- Assesses whether a school continues to meet the requirements of the IB
- Supports school’s efforts in continuing the delivery of the program
- Results in next steps for future plans and actions
IB Evaluation Date
- IB Visit from February 26th - 27th
Strong Start Morning Meeting
Strong Start is a set of rituals and routines that get students ready to learn by fostering a sense of safety, belonging, community, and self-efficacy. The routines begin as students enter the classroom and continue through morning meeting. Students must be taught the routines at the start of the school year and provided with extensive practice opportunities for Strong Start to run smoothly. When running smoothly, the group portion should not be longer than 15 minutes. The Strong Start morning routine includes the following components, seen in this overview video.
Stay Connected!
Main Office Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Principal Russell: tyra.russell@k12.dc.gov
AP Coles: shamayne.coles@k12.dc.gov
Ms. Wilson, Main Office: Brenda.wilson@k12.dc.gov
Ms. Offor, MSL: Uchenna.offor@k12.dc.gov
School Phone: (202) 576-6140