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- Order DCES Spirit Wear.
Save the Date
September
- 9/30 - Staff Professional Day – No School for Students and No ESS
October
- 10/4 -
- FUNky Friday @ 8:50 am on the blacktop
- Coffee with the Principal @ 9:20 am in Room 14
- Movie Night @ 6 pm in the MPR
- 10/9 - DC Dining @ Rubio's in Carmel Mountain
- 10/10 - English Learner Advisory Committee (ELAC) Meeting @ 2:15 pm on Zoom
- 10/25 - Monster Mash
- 10/30 - DCPSO Meeting
- 10/31 - Halloween Parade @ 8:45 am
Good evening, Deer Canyon families!
This week was Start with Hello Week at Deer Canyon! Thank you to Mr. Higgins for planning such a wonderful week. Start with Hello Week is a national initiative aimed at fostering empathy and reducing social isolation among students through simple yet impactful actions. Through something as small as a smile and a “hello,” we can increase the culture of inclusion and kindness at Deer Canyon. Our week also kicked off with our School Site Council meeting, where we introduced ourselves and learned about the role of the council.
This week, we hosted many special visitors on campus. PUSD Executive Director of Learning Support Services Christine Donnelly joined me to visit classrooms and listen in on thoughtful discussions, deep learning, and some silly creative writing stories. Wednesday was a double-dose of fun: 20 Mt. Carmel Student Ambassadors joined us for a lunchtime playdate and Interim Superintendent Greg Mizel visited Mrs. Regardie’s classroom to share a note of gratitude he received, which highlighted her inspiring and impactful teaching. It was quite a special day!
On Friday, we brightened each other’s days with our NEON DAY attire! I know, my outfit had very little neon in it, but I tried my best! 😁 We also enjoyed our second VAPA VISION day at Deer Canyon. Students had a blast learning about elements of music and participating in the Global Language lesson.
Next week, I look forward to a Professional Growth Day with staff on Monday and a District Equity Advisory Committee on Tuesday. As a school, we will have a blast with our Westview Ambassadors at a Wednesday lunchtime playdate and welcome them back on Friday for FUNky Friday! Immediately following FUNky Friday, parents are welcome to join me for Coffee with the Principal in Room 14. As a perfect way to wind down the week, I’ll be rocking some comfortable clothes at our first Movie Night of the year. I hope to see you there!
Food and Nutrition Reminders:
School breakfast and school lunch are FREE for all enrolled students, every school day. Meals must still be entered into the cafeteria computer by individual student account.
Even though meals are free, families are highly encouraged to complete the application for free and reduced-price meal eligibility. School site funding depends in part on the number of students eligible for free/reduced-price meals. Families that qualify for free/reduced-price meals may qualify for other benefits, as well. The meal application is available online at MySchoolApps.com.
Printer-friendly PDF menus are available on the PUSD Food and Nutrition webpage. At the top of the page, click or hover over School Menus + and then Printable PDF Menus.
Interactive, web-based menus containing nutrient and allergen details are available at MySchoolMenus.com, as well as via links from the F&N webpage.
Please be sure to bookmark the Deer Canyon school calendar and follow us on Instagram (@DeerCanyonPUSD) for event information, reminders, and celebrations!
Have a wonderful weekend, Deer Canyon!
Katie Bendix
Principal
This week at Deer Canyon, we selected our DC Leaders and held our first meeting, where students got to choose their committee assignment — Safety Team, Positivity/Inspire Team, or Campus Beautification Team.
Typically we have about 40 applicants total, per year. This year, we had 65 – two-thirds of which were from the 4th grade. Truly amazing, in terms of numbers willing to dedicate their time to improve our school. However, it’s also overwhelming, relative to the number of positions we have for students. To be fair to each applicant, our solution was to randomly split the 4th grade applicants into a Fall Squad and a Spring Squad. Fifth graders will serve the full year. Again, thank you to all our applicants. I look forward to an exciting year working with them.
Friday’s NEON Spirit Day marked the end of Start With Hello Week. This special week promoted connectedness, inclusion and new friendships on campus. Students enjoyed making friendship bracelets together during lunch and recess, as well as signing ribbons for our No Place For Hate Wreath, which will be displayed in the Library.
I also began Second Step SEL lessons for 4th and 5th graders this past week. In the first unit we discussed the importance of showing respect to others by 1) listening with attention, focusing on who’s speaking; and 2) having empathy, trying to understand another’s perspective.
Going forward, each classroom will have two 30-minute lessons per month. We will continue to focus on empathy and learning skills for the next few lessons, before moving on to emotional management. Kindergarten through 3rd grade have received a few Second Step lessons from our wonderful Mrs. W. These initial lessons focused on listening skills and following directions.
Friendship groups will begin next week. These are targeted to new students and others who need a little guidance in their social interactions. You will be notified if your student has been considered a candidate for our weekly meetings.
Please note, 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.
We Need Your Help: PSO Open Position
We're still seeking a Volunteer Engagement Chair. This person helps coordinate volunteers on campus to help run various events that take place throughout the year. This person also organizes Room Parent volunteers. This position is a voting chair on the PSO.
If you are interested in any of those roles, please contact the PSO president at president@deercanyonpso.org.
Science-Minded Classes Begin 10/8
Science-Minded is an after-school enrichment Science and STEM program for elementary school age kids. We don't believe in disconnected experiments providing the same educational value as deep learning of foundational concepts within a session. We believe in allowing students to practice design thinking, critical thinking and problem-solving skills through hands-on experiments and projects.
We will instill stamina, leadership skills, and foster love for science in your child, as well as prepare your kiddos for middle school science. Here's a list of content topics at a glance:
Energy and Forces: Light, sound, heat, electric and renewable energy
Scientific Method: Labs, labs, labs (these include Bubble Gum lab, Black Ink lab, Chocolate Chompers lab, and many more)
Space and Aliens/All Things That Fly
7 Weeks of STEM
Classes will take place on Tuesday afternoons from 3:10 to 4:10 pm, beginning Tuesday, October 8.
For pricing info, or to sign up, please contact Irene Lerner at info@science-minded.com.
Get Your DCES Spirit Wear
Our Spirit Wear shop is open and taking orders. Choose from tie-dye (perfect for FUNky Fridays), cartoon (fun for lower grade students — and adults!), school logo, hoodies (perfect for cold weather), zip-up jackets and more. Orders are placed online and can be delivered to school for free or you can pick up at Big Frog (next to Stater Bros).
Place your Spirit Wear order here.
If you have any questions, please contact Razan Lin vpprograms@deercanyonpso.org
