Hózhó Academy Newsletter

September 16th-20th, 2024

Weekly Updates

Dear Hózhó families,

This week, Hozho Academy begins NWEA testing. We utilize NWEA to monitor student growth. This can be a stressful time for students, and we want them to do the absolute best they can. Below are some ideas to help prepare your child for testing days.

Know when and what tests are taking place: Mark your calendars and openly discuss the upcoming dates with your children!

Try as hard as possible to have your children in attendance on testing days, otherwise, they will need to be pulled from class at a later time to take the tests.
Be on time! Tardy students miss key information at the beginning of a test. If very late, the student will be asked to wait at the office until testing is complete and will have to make up the test at another time.

Limit the screen time before testing: the less stimulated students are going into testing the better. This includes cell phones! Research shows screens, including the use of cell phones should not be used a minimum of an hour before going to bed and an hour after waking for optimal sleep and energizing start to the day.

Be sure your children are getting a full nights rest! Some ways to make sure your children are getting all the rest they need include:

Limiting screen time before bed (see above)
Going to bed at a reasonable hour; one recommendation from psychologists is to start the habit of going to bed and waking up at the same time every night.
Making sure the bed is for sleep, and sleep only! Keep homework, scrolling, games (...etc.) off the bed in order to associate it with sleep.
Getting plenty of physical activity outside during the day! Did you know that the sun is a natural source of melatonin, one that works better than supplements? Studies have shown that people who get the best sleep are spending a lot of time outside, in the sun.
Eat a hearty dinner! While a healthy breakfast is a great way to start the day, a lot of the energy for that day comes from dinner the night before.

Have a fruitful, low stimulating morning:

Limit screen time when children are first waking up (see above)
Start the day with a hearty breakfast; skip the sugary coffee beverages and instead opt for a healthy, balanced meal. An overly sugary breakfast will result in overstimulation in the morning and a sugar crash in the afternoon.