Deer Canyon Echoes
January 31, 2025
- Read the minutes of this week's PSO meeting.
- Sign up to volunteer at this year's Book Fair.
- Sign up to host a table, perform or emcee at Family Heritage Night.
- Students: Sign up to perform at this year's Talent Show.
- Order DCES Spirit Wear.
Save the Date
February
- 2/3 to 2/7 - Book Fair
- 2/7 - Funky Friday, Coffee with the Principal and Magic Show @ 6:30 pm
- 2/10 - DC Dining @ Islands Mira Mesa
- 2/10 to 2/14 - Kindness Week
- 2/13 - Nothing Bundt Cake fundraiser delivery (details to come)
- 2/17 to 2/21 - District Recess (no school)
- 2/26 - PSO meeting @ 4 pm
- 2/28 - Family Heritage Night @ 5 pm
Good evening, Deer Canyon Families:
In just one hour, DC students will take the ice at the Gulls game for the singing of the National Anthem. What a way to wrap up an incredible week!
This week kicked off with a staff Professional Growth Day focused on data review and next steps to support and challenge your students in the classroom. On Tuesday, we were wow-ed by magic tricks and messaging around the importance of being people of character. Magician Brock Edwards put on a phenomenal show and reminded students what respect, responsibility, trustworthiness, caring, and fairness look like. I look forward to Brock’s return next Friday night for our Family Magic Show!
Students showcased their musical talent at the Winter Recital on Wednesday. I was so impressed by the incredible dedication of our students; each performer did great! Finally, we wrapped up the week on a silly note with Crazy Hair Day and another VAPA lesson. This week really was nonstop fun!
Next week is School Counseling Week. We look forward to highlighting all of the wonderful work Mr. Higgins does to support our students. We will enjoy a robust, attention-grabbing Book Fair all week long, including an evening family event, thanks to the DCPSO! Students will have an opportunity to participate in Valentines for Veterans on Wednesday, alongside WVHS Ambassadors during our monthly lunchtime playdate. Finally, we’ll cap the week off with our magic show, where I will be cut in half! Students have been reassuring me that it is just an illusion, so that is helping me stay calm. 😜
Welcome to our new TK teacher, Ms. Madilyn Taylor!
As some of you know, Mrs. Friedman has stepped away from the classroom for the remainder of the school year. We are grateful for Mrs. Friedman's dedication to our TK students and families and wish her the very best.
With that said, I want to extend to our new Transitional Kindergarten teacher, Ms. Taylor, a warm Deer Canyon welcome! Ms. Taylor joins us from the Alta Loma School District, where she previously taught Kindergarten at (funny enough!) Deer Canyon Elementary! She comes to us with an extensive background in play-based instruction and a special skill in American Sign Language that she has shared through TK-3rd grade enrichment programs. Welcome, Ms. Taylor!
Wellness Week: April 28-May 2
Deer Canyon will be participating in a Wellness Week, a 5-day focus on Environmental, Intellectual, Social, Physical, and Emotional Wellness. Please email Ms. Bendix at kbendix@powayusd.com if you have community connections, bright ideas, or are interested in partnering in the planning of Wellness Week at DCES!
PUSD Safety Summit: Student Wellness & Mental Health
This week, I attended the PUSD Safety Summit on Student Wellness & Mental Health. I encourage you to review the slide deck and/or event recording, linked here. Panelists shared important information about mental health and suicidality, geared toward parents of children and teens.
Current Tk-4th Grade Families: Continuing Student Family Surveys
FINAL PUSH: Current TK-4th grade families, please complete THIS SURVEY no later than this Sunday. We have currently only heard from 100 students. Your response will provide us with the number of returning students as well as those who will be leaving Deer Canyon, to inform our planning and communication with District staff. Please submit one form per student.
Transfer Requests
The Poway Unified transfer window opens on Saturday, February 1, at 8 am. If you live within the Poway Unified boundaries and want your child to attend a school different than your assigned school, submit your request online through the Transfers page on the PUSD website. (This includes siblings of current students.) Please make sure to still enroll your child at their assigned school of residence when new student enrollment opens on April 1. Transfer requests can only be processed once your child is enrolled in their school of residence. The transfer request window will close on March 31 at 5 pm.
Attendance
Deer Canyon staff are committed to supporting our students' consistent attendance. Research consistently shows that students who attend school regularly are more likely to succeed academically, develop strong social skills, and have better long-term educational outcomes. In fact, studies indicate that children who are chronically absent in early grades are less likely to read proficiently by third grade and are more likely to fall behind in later years.
To support our students and families, we are implementing a new attendance initiative starting next week. Families of students who are on track for chronic absenteeism will receive a notification letter, followed by a personal phone call from our staff. This outreach is not punitive, but rather an opportunity for us to check in, answer any questions you may have, and discuss any barriers to your child's attendance. We view this as a partnership to ensure every child has the best possible chance for success. Together, we can make a significant positive impact on your child's educational and life journey.
Have a wonderful weekend, Deer Canyon!
Katie Bendix
Principal
Greetings, Deer Canyon families!
There was a lot going on this week on campus. Our Fall DC Leaders wrapped up their last week of duties for the year. The new Spring Squad will begin on Monday, starting with a lunchtime orientation meeting. The incoming team sure has some big shoes to fill, as the Fall Squad did an outstanding job. Thanks to all of them for their hard work and participation. I hope to see them next year as 5th graders. And our end of the year pizza party, of course!
The show must go on, however, so while the new team transitions into their roles, the 5th grade DC Leaders will be extra busy next week, preparing for Wednesday’s Valentines for Veterans project, the FUNky Friday skit, and Kindness Week, which kicks off the following Monday.
Our Second Step lessons continued, with our focus on Emotional Management. From TK - 5th, Mrs. W and I are working with students on how to recognize the onset of strong feelings in their bodies and how to gain control of them, sooner rather than later. I like to compare our emotions to a rising elevator. As the feelings intensify, our elevator goes up, making our bodies feel worse. They need to stop the elevator from rising, first, by using a “stop signal” to regain their own attention. Then, they must name whatever feeling they’re dealing with. By doing this, they can start to re-engage their cortex. Next, we discussed three simple but effective calming strategies – belly breathing, counting, and positive self-talk. This easy, 3-step formula (Stop! Name your feeling. Calm down.) will enable them to gain control of their emotions, whether it be fear, anger, anxiety, etc.
Our small counseling groups are in full swing, primarily focusing on emotional regulation or growth mindset. Lots of fun art projects in store this month. Again, we meet for 30 mins each session, once a week. If you received a permission slip, please indicate whether you’d like your child to participate. Feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.
Finally, I am happy to announce the launching of my new DC Counseling & SEL website. On it, you will find information about myself, our counseling vision, and a number of helpful resources for parents and students alike. It is accessible via the “Academics” tab of the Deer Canyon website.
Remember, PUSD’s Caring Connections Parent Education website has new and exciting courses being offered this Fall. Each term they have different parenting education courses. We recommend periodically checking the website for the new courses offered to parents, families, and our school community. Click HERE to view the CCC Parent Education Fall Courses.
