Deer Canyon Echoes
December 13, 2024
12/16 - DC Dining @ Chipotle (Carmel Mountain Plaza) @ 4 to 8 pm
12/19 - Girl Scouts Food Drive ends
12/20 - Spirit Day - Pajama Day!
12/20 - Deadline to purchase tickets for the SD Gulls Hockey Night & Performance (details below)
12/23 to 1/3 - Winter Break (no school or ESS)
- 1/6 - School resumes
- 1/14 - DC Dining @ Kebab Shop (Carmel Mountain Plaza) @ all day
- 1/20 - MLK Day (no school)
- 1/27 - Professional Growth Day (no school)
- 1/29 - Winter Recital @ 6 pm
- 1/31 - SD Gulls Hockey Night & Performance
Save the Date
December
January
Good evening, Deer Canyon Families:
Happening now: the DCES Holiday Bazaar! If you’re not on campus, head on over for a choir performance and shopping. Local vendors are selling their goods (many homemade!), and we are enjoying time together. Hope to see you there!
As December unfolds, I want to extend my heartfelt appreciation for our incredible staff, students, and families. Our staff and families dedicate much time and heart into creating positive, nurturing, happy, and meaningful learning environments for Deer Canyon students. We at Deer Canyon hope our families are embracing the spirit of joy and celebration that this time of year often brings.
PARENTS/GUARDIANS: We need your help reminding students of school entry and hallway expectations. Recently, we've noticed an increase in the number of students congregating at the Main Gates before 8:20 am, then rushing, sometimes pushing, and running through the halls when the gates open. We ask that you assist us in a safe and orderly entry to campus.
Please do not drop your student off and leave them unattended before 8:20 am. We do not have adult supervision before 8:20 am.
Please ensure your student(s) are not crowding or grabbing onto the gate prior to our staff opening the gates.
When the gates open, please remind your student to walk to the gate entry, through the halls, and to their classroom backpack rack. All students are expected to drop their backpacks off at the backpack rack before heading to the playground.
ESS students must also drop their backpacks at the backpack racks prior to playing on the playground.
I reviewed these expectations in our Monday Message this week and will continue to do so in the weeks to come. Your presence in the morning and reiteration of our practices and expectations will greatly support our efforts to keep students safe! Thank you for your partnership!
This week, students had the opportunity to visit our Winter Wonderland Holiday Shop! It was sweet to see how excited students were to hand-pick gifts for parents, siblings, grandparents, and more. Mt. Carmel Ambassadors joined us for a playdate at lunch on Wednesday and they brought the energy! Our students were very excited to play with our visitors. Yesterday, Musical Theater families enjoyed a performance of "Matilda," and I was blown away at the talent and creativity!
Next week is sure to bring much fun, as we host classroom winter parties and participate in a schoolwide assembly on Monday. For Monday’s assembly, Musical Theater students will be performing "Matilda" for their peers and teachers. I look forward to providing this opportunity for our students to shine!
As we tidy up campus before Winter Break, please be sure to check the lost and found for any missing items. Any items remaining on the Lost and Found cart will be donated at the end of the day Friday, Dec. 20.
Looking ahead to springtime, please mark your calendars: Deer Canyon will host a site-based Professional Growth day for all staff on Tuesday, March 11. March 11 will be a non-student day for Deer Canyon.
A Note about Attendance and Winter Break
We appreciate everyone’s efforts to ensure their student attends school each day before the winter break and when we return from break. As long as your child is healthy, please encourage and emphasize the importance of positive attendance while school is in session.
Every day of school is an important opportunity for students to learn as well as to connect to their peers and teachers. The student experience in the classroom cannot be replicated and is vital to student progress and development (both academically and social-emotionally).
During the winter break from school (12/23-1/3), we are grateful to our families for helping your student(s) maintain a schedule, structure, and routine in their day. This will ease the natural challenges of transitioning back to school on Jan. 6.
We recognize and thank:
- Our students and their families who do their best to show up daily even when it isn’t easy.
- Our teachers and support staff who go above and beyond to make school a welcoming and safe place for all students to learn.
- Our many, many healers and helpers - the support staff and community volunteers who provide the extra hands and attention our children need.
If your family or your child needs support heading into the Winter Break, please reach out to me or school counselor, Travis Higgins, for assistance or resources.
Thank you for partnering with us! We appreciate each of you. May the upcoming Winter Break be restful and healing.
E-Bike Safety Class for Students & Parents
We are excited to announce an upcoming E-Bike Class for students and their parent(s)/guardian(s), aimed at promoting safe and responsible e-bike usage. The class will take place in the Performing Arts Center (PAC) at Mt. Carmel High School on Wednesday, Jan. 8, at 6 pm. Attendees are highly encouraged to arrive at 5:30 pm so they have enough time to find parking and the PAC.
Please be sure to bookmark the Deer Canyon school calendar and follow us on Instagram (@DeerCanyonPUSD) for event information, reminders, and celebrations!
Here’s to a wonderful week ahead!
Katie Bendix
Principal
Happy Holidays, Deer Canyon! I hope all of you are safe, happy and healthy as 2024 comes to a close.
In our Second Step SEL classes this week, I continued on the importance of “being assertive” and how to disagree respectfully with peers. Iexplained that, by using a respectful tone, avoiding “blaming language,” and acknowledging others’ perspectives, they can create opportunities for productive conversation, instead of causing more conflict. We also discussed compassion as “empathy in action” and how it can be expressed with kind words or supportive actions.
In our TK-3rd grade classes, Mrs W. and Puppy & Snail are finishing up their Empathy Unit, learning how people can have different feelings about the same situation, and that feelings change. Like the upper grades, our younger ones will also be starting an Emotion Management Unit upon return from Winter Break. This important curriculum includes themes like how to identify their own feelings, dealing with strong emotions, calming strategies, and coping with worry.
Our DC Leaders uniforms have arrived and look great! Parents, if your student is an active member on one of our wonderful teams, you should have received an email with payment instructions. If you did not get my email, please contact me at thiggins@powayusd.com.
Another HUGE thanks to all the DC Leaders, student volunteers, and PSO folks who helped out behind the scenes with our Giving Tree donation drive. They, along with our gracious donors, helped make the holidays much happier for a number of our DC families.
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.
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
