dV Weekly Newsletter, Dragon Tales

Happy day, da Vinci Families,

I hope the weekend has been lovely for you.

Volunteer Shout Out! Thank you to our newly elected PTSA officers for stepping up, and those that attended the first meeting. See the announcement below. The PTSA provides critical support for our program and a structure for involvement at da Vinci. Thank you, also, to Todd Valentine, Monica Johnston. and Katie Jabara for volunteering on Picture Day.

As students are settling into their routines, we are starting to see a slight uptick in behaviors. Tiktok challenges seem to be making a comeback, as well as the anonymous da Vinci Instagram pages. Please have a conversations with your students about using the restrooms appropriately. We also need you to have conversations about the Instagram accounts, as in the past, they have been primarily used to cause harm or to perpetuate cyber-bullying. I will be working with our IT department to find a technical solution to bring the pages down. On the school front, we will use our SEL Wednesdays to continue to build community (which will hopefully discourage this unwelcomed behavior). If your student has information about the pages, they can drop off an anonymous note under their counselor's door.

Looking into next week

Students will begin MAP testing on Wednesday 9/28 (Math) and Thursday 9/29 (Reading). MAP assessments are district progress monitoring tools; therefore there is no opt-out form (as there is with state wide testing). As much as possible, please encourage students to eat breakfast and to arrive on time to school.

Thank you kindly,

Principal Davis

Gloria Estefan

Gloria Estefan is one of the most successful crossover artists in Latin music history. She is a multiple Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, actress, author of two New York Times best-selling children’s books and producer of the Tony-Nominated musical, On Your Feet! . She is considered the most successful Latin crossover artist having sold more than 100 million records worldwide and achieved 38 #1 hits across the Billboard charts. Her many achievements are a testament to her success: an Academy Award-nomination for the song “Music of My Heart”; the Presidential Medal of Freedom; Kennedy Center Honors; a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; Spain’s Gold Medal of Merit in the Fine Arts; and a National Artistic Achievement Award from the U.S. Congress, among many others. She and husband Emilio are set to receive the coveted Gershwin Prize from the Library of Congress for excellence in songwriting and is scheduled to release a new album in 2019.

Source:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/washington-post-live/2021/08/04/future-cuba-with-gloria-emilio-estefan/

Meet the Counselors, read their newsletters, and find resources on mental health and more on their website. Click this link to read the monthly Counseling Corner newsletter. You can also find this newsletter, and all future newsletters, on the Counseling Corner tab on the school website.

• 9/20- Special schedule for bus evacuation drill in 2nd period.
• 9/23- No School for Students- Teacher Planning, PD Day
  
• 9/28 and 9/29- MAP Testing, special schedule days
• 9/29- Back to School Night, 6 pm - 8:00 pm (in person at da Vinci), look for info coming home this week
• 9/30- Mid-terms
  
• 10/6 Site Council 7:30 AM - 8:30 AM (join via this link)
• 10/14- No School, Teacher Planning, PD Day
  

da Vinci Arts Middle School QSA/SAGA Group Night

The Portland Thorns FC is excited to collaborate with da Vinci Arts Middle School's QSA/SAGA Club for the September 25th game against the Chicago Red Stars at 1:00 PM. Parents and students are welcome to purchase discounted tickets in a specific block just for da Vinci students. Please use this link to purchase tickets. Reach out to Ms. Shannon at sfoxley@pps.net if you have any questions.

QSA Meeting- Our first QSA meeting is this Wednesday from 3:15 to 4:15 in the cafeteria. All students are welcome. If you would like to support the QSA with snacks during the school year please reach out to Ms. Shannon to coordinate either drop-offs or info on how to donate funds for us to purchase food.

BSU will occur every 1st and 3rd Friday, from 3:20 pm - 4:00 pm in the cafeteria.

Latinx Club- Please sign up on this form if you are interested in joining the Latinx Club:

Latinx Sign Up Link

Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI)- coming soon ...

A big thank you to everyone who attended the first PTSA meeting last Wednesday. We have a new Board that was voted in so let’s welcome them!

President: Claudia Contreras-Peters
Vice President: Aja Beckett
Secretary: Allie Weaver
Treasurer: Alisa Welch

We are confident that the 2022-2023 school year will be successful in building up our community of parents and guardians, educators, and students. Please follow this link and join TODAY!

Please see the following instructions for setting up your own account to track assignments and monitor progress. If you have multiple children in PPS, you can set up one account and then add additional students with a separate code for each student.

Chromebooks:

• Each student should have a school-issued Chromebook to use throughout the school year. The PPS Chromebook assigned to each student is the device they should use while in the building, as personal devices are not allowed unless outlined in a student IEP/504.
• Students should plan to bring their charged devices to and from school every day. Many subjects have a new curriculum this year which requires daily technology use while in the classroom.
• Please work to find a good charging spot at home so the Chromebook gets plugged in each night (making sure to use the correct port) and brought back to school each morning.
• Students should find some way to put their names on the device. Please ensure that this personalization is not permanent, as it will need to be removed upon returning the Chromebook.

Parent/Student Technology Agreement:

The district technology agreement was handed out during the first week of school. It can also be found here. Please review the guidelines on the form with your student(s), sign, and return one form for each student. If your student kept their Chromebook over the summer, a form still needs to be filled out.

Please note that the agreement notes no "defacing" of the district-owned technology. This serves as a reminder that any personalization done to the Chromebook needs to be removable. No use of sharpie or paint pens, please.

Attendance Reporting and Tardies

If your student will be absent from school for any reason, please notify sbryan@pps.net with their name and the reason for the absence. You can also call the main office at 503-916-5356 We receive a high volume of calls and email is preferred. If your student arrives after the tardy bell at 8:45 they need to check in at the main office for a tardy slip.

Breakfast times, and Entrance/Exit Routines

Breakfast will now be available from 8:20 to 8:40 in the morning. Students should enter from the SE corner/playground gate through the garden courtyard if they are coming in early for breakfast. After breakfast, students remain in the cafeteria until the first bell.

At 8:38, students can enter through the front doors and proceed to their lockers and class:

• 6th grade enters the building through the east doors, closest to the playground.

• 7th grade enters the building through the center/main doors.

• 8th grade enters through the west doors, closest to the driveway from the parking lot.

After lunch, students return to the building through these same doors.

After school, students should exit through the closest exit to their classroom.

Cell Phone Policy

Phones and all personal electronic devices should be turned OFF and put AWAY during school hours. We do not want to see earbuds or headphones. The school is not responsible for these items if they are lost or stolen. They should be locked up in the locker. Please do not try to text your student during school hours. If you need to reach them or deliver a message, call the main office and we will give them a message or call them to the office to call you.

Doorbell and building access

For security purposes, the building is locked during school hours. If a student arrives outside of normal arrival hours, or you need to visit, the doorbell rings the main office phone line. We can answer on an intercom and release the door. There is a camera so we can see who is at the door. However, if we are on the phone or attending to a student, we may not be able to answer immediately. Please keep trying if we do not answer immediately.

Early Dismissals

If you need to pick up your student early, please let us know in advance and try to plan your pick-up between periods to reduce the disruptions of calling students from class. It can take a while to reach your student in class, and for them to go to their locker. If we are in an assembly, we cannot easily locate them.

Lockers

Students have been assigned a locker and should use it for their personal belongings during the day. We are still working through a few issues so please reach out to sbryan@pps.net if your student is still not able to use their locker. Lockers should be kept secured and students should not share the combinations. The office does maintain a list of combinations. We are not responsible for valuables brought to school. If students bring phones or other electronic devices, they need to be powered off and remain in their lockers for the entire day (including lunch periods).

ParentVue and the Yearly Verification

If you have not yet done so, please complete the YEARLY VERIFICATION process on ParentVue to update your personal information. It is critical that we have current phone numbers, emergency contacts, relevant health information for your student, and your current address. ParentVue is where you see your student's schedules, attendance, and grade reports (once grades are recorded). If you need help accessing your account, please email sbryan@pps.net.

Traffic Pattern Highlights

We strongly encourage you to work with your community and arrange carpools to reduce congestion and help our environment. Additionally, please follow this guide if possible to help with the traffic flow in front of the school:

Everett St. in front of the school is for 6th graders. Travel EAST, from 24th to 28th Ave. Pull to the curb for your student(s) to get out of the car. Carefully enter the line of traffic.

7th graders can be dropped off and picked up from 24th Ave. Please be careful at the intersection of 24th and Everett and yield to pedestrians.

8th graders can be dropped off on Couch (a one-way headed east) and walk through the park beside the Coco-Cola building.

There is also a driveway entering from 24th and Davis that will exit onto Everett for buses and those with special needs. Parking in the neighborhood and behind the school is very limited.

Please be courteous of our neighbors at all times and do not idle as you are parked.