Raleigh Hills Newsletter

December 4, 2020

Weekly Message

Dear Raleigh Hills Community,

We have been doing distance learning for 6 months. It's hard to believe. I notice our staff getting into a groove for how to work with your children. However, I think it would be fair to say that everyone is longing for how things used to be. I know I have been and I see it and hear it in the meetings I have with teachers and staff. I've been doing a lot of looking at student work in Seesaw and Canvas. To be honest, there have been times when I have been blown away by the work that I see there. It makes me hopeful that while our partnership with you looks different now, it is still a powerful link to help students progress.

In the spirit of that partnership, I want to let you know that we on the staff are working on developing an emotions matter mindset. We believe that being able to recognize emotions and regulate them can help us stay in the learning mode. It is part of building our own resilience during this trying time and we are using it to help your students build their resilience too. I want to share an activity that you can do with your students to practice recognizing and thinking about emotions. Here are the steps:

1. Draw the outline of a body.

2. Talk about the 8 basic emotions that are included on the picture below

3. Think about a symbol or color that represents those emotions: anger might be red or jagged lines

4. Mark on the outline of the body where you feel those emotions: is anger in your face with a frown or grimace? In your stomach with a tightness?

5. Once you've completed your drawings, compare with one another. Talk about what it looks and feels like to have those emotions and where you experience them.

This activity comes from an amazing book by Elena Aguilar called The Onward Workbook: Daily Activities to Cultivate Reslience and Thrive. The more we are able to recognize our emotions, the better we can regulate them! This will help in all facets of life, not just learning. But it does go a long way to keep us engaged and excited for school. Thanks again for partnering with us in this work!

Warmly,

Jennifer

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Raleigh Hills is Doing OBOB! What's OBOB

Oregon Battle of the Books is a program where students in 3rd - 5th and 6th--8th read a set of books, form a team, and answer questions about the books in a competition against other teams of students. Visit the Raleigh Hills OBOB website for more details about the program. Find a list of books for each OBOB program and links to practice questions for competition. Currently students are reading the books. Check out some books at Library Curbside Pickup. Competition battles will be held in the spring virtually. There are no regional or state competitions. It's a fun program that encourages reading and introduces students to many books. Contact me with questions erica_moore@beaverton.k12.or.us

Library Updates from the Beaverton City Library

Winter Break and SnowFest

You are gearing up for a winter break like none other—Beaverton City Library is ready with free live and recorded online events starting with SnowFest, a weekend full of stories, songs, STEAM activities, and live performances in partnership with Beaverton Civic Theatre.

Beaverton City Library Winter Break: https://www.beavertonlibrary.org/401/Winter-Break
SnowFest with Beaverton Civic Theatre: http://www.beavertoncivictheatre.org/snowfest.html

Book Gift Guide

Looking for a new book to give a young person? Our Beaverton City Librarians have put together a recommended list for babies-high schoolers with some of our favorite new books from 2020. https://wccls.bibliocommons.com/list/share/1275087787/1757829549

“Parenting during a Pandemic” brought to you by Cedar Mill Community Library

How can we, as parents, manage stress, provide structure and connection to our children’s days, and support academics and social development without burning out as parents?

Join Megan Barella, Positive Discipline Educator, on December 10 at 6:30 PM to learn how to make your life easier and more enjoyable during the pandemic, let go of parenting guilt and overwhelm, and also feel confident that your children are thriving during this time. Bring your questions and real-life challenges and let’s come together in a virtual parenting community to support your family during this time.

For more information and to register visit: https://library.cedarmill.org/kids/parents/parent-information-series/

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Note from the Specialists!

We are so happy to see your students on Zoom each week. And did you know there is also a PE and Music lesson linked on Seesaw each week? There are things to do for every grade level. Encourage your students to check it out and send in their responses.

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NO Snow Days in CDL

While we are doing distance learning, we will continue classes even during inclement weather. Because we don't have to drive in to the school, we don't want to miss a moment of instruction with your students. Please have your students log on as usual unless you receive a text announcement from School Messenger.