Thank you to all who joined us for curriculum night. It is always nice to see all of you! We are so lucky to have such an involved community.

As of today, our fall benchmark testing window has closed so we have completed all Aimsweb and MAP testing. The reports will be emailed home next Thursday, September 12th. In addition, our staff will be participating in data review meetings throughout September and October to discuss the data and determine best ways to meet student needs through instruction.

Next Wednesday, we invite students to wear red, white, and/or blue to honor Patriot Day. In addition, next Thursday, we have our first assembly. Dr. Cool & Pride will be joining us to share their message of kindness, anti-bullying, and positive behavior. We look forward to this assembly and thank our PTA for funding this opportunity for our students.

We have a few drills coming up over the next few weeks. We will always alert you of when we have safety drills. We will also let you know how the drills went once they are complete.

We hope you have a wonderful weekend :)

Katie Novosel

Principal

knovosel@dg58.org

Lauri Smith

Assistant Principal

lsmith@dg58.org

Each week during announcements, we will review a different location of expectations. Next week, we will review how to be respectful, responsible, and safe at recess!

Lester School will recognize Patriot Day on Wednesday, Sept. 11 by flying the American flag at half-staff, observing a moment of silence, and sharing the following message with all students during morning announcements at 8:45 a.m.:

September 11 is Patriot Day. On this day, the President requests that the American flag be flown at half-staff and that we observe a moment of silence.

Patriot Day is a day we remember the events of September 11, 2001 and we honor and celebrate the courageous service of our firefighters, police officers, paramedics and military. On this day in our nation’s history, in the face of tragedy, we saw courage: firefighters, police officers, and paramedics rushed to help. We saw selflessness: strangers helped strangers. We saw love: people from around the world sent cards, supplies, and comfort. In honor, respect and remembrance of this important event in our nation’s history, we will now observe a moment of silence.

Today is an opportunity to turn something negative into a positive activity by honoring the good work of others and by doing good works ourselves. Today, look for opportunities to be courageous, selfless, and loving, and if possible, say thank you to those who work so hard to keep us well and safe.

Thurs. Sept 12: Dr. Cool & Pride Assembly (provided by PTA)

Thursday, Sept 19: Bus Evacuation Drill

Wednesday, Sept 25: Fire Drill

Monday, Sept 30: Fire Drill with DGFD

Monday, August 19- Friday, September 6: Fall Benchmark Testing

Friday, September 27: Fun Lunch (More info to come from PTA)

The staff at our school will be utilizing The Zones of Regulation™ curriculum, commonly known as "The Zones." You may recall that this program was introduced in its pilot form last spring to our students. This year, we look forward to starting the year integrating this into student’s daily practice. As a refresher, this program includes lessons and activities designed to help your child develop self-regulation skills, which encompass self-control, self-management, and impulse control. Self-regulation is defined as the optimal state of alertness of both body and emotions for any given situation. The curriculum aims to teach students to recognize which Zone they are in and how to use strategies to maintain or change their Zone.

Through these lessons, students will expand their emotional vocabulary, learn to read facial expressions, understand others' perspectives, identify triggers for their behavior, and develop calming and problem-solving strategies.

A key component of this curriculum is ensuring that all team members understand and use The Zones language. This shared understanding creates a supportive environment, allowing students to practice and quickly adopt self-regulation skills in various situations. You can assist in this process by:

• Using The Zones language and discussing the concepts as they apply to you in different environments. For example, verbalize your own experiences: “This is really frustrating me and putting me in the Yellow Zone. I need to calm down by taking deep breaths.”

• Helping students become aware of their Zones and feelings by pointing out your observations.

• Validating the student's current Zone and helping them brainstorm appropriate self-regulation strategies for the context.

• Sharing how the student’s behavior affects your Zone and feelings.

• Encouraging students to use The Zones language to express their feelings and needs, and to share their Zone with you.

• Showing interest in learning about the student’s triggers and preferred tools for self-regulation, and asking how they would like reminders to use these tools.

• Asking students to frequently share what they have learned related to Zones.

• Reinforcing students for recognizing their Zone and managing their behaviors appropriately, rather than only pointing out unexpected behaviors.

It's important to remember that everyone experiences all of the Zones, and it is not considered “bad” to be in the Red and Yellow Zones. The Zones of Regulation aims to provide a neutral, judgment-free framework for understanding and managing emotions. We look forward to partnering with you in our implementation of Zones of Regulation this school year.

The National PTA Reflections program provides opportunities for recognition and access to the arts which boost student confidence and success in the arts and in life. This program is a wonderful way for your student to express themselves through creativity in the arts, photography, dance, film, music, writing, and more. This year's theme is Accepting Imperfection.

For those interested in participating, please fill out the Interest Form. Additional details can be found here.

Projects are due Friday, October 25, 2024.

Check out a few of last year's entries! They make Lester Leopard proud!