Silas High School—Principal’s Weekly Message—November 24, 2024—

Silas Core Beliefs

• Every student can learn and grow at high levels.
• Every student brings valuable prior knowledge to school.
• Every student shall have a trusted adult at school with whom they connect.
• Every student shall have access to guaranteed and viable curriculum.
• Every student shall leave Silas High School prepared for post-secondary options.

The November Equity Theme centers around: Taking Ownership

• Accepting the roles we play as part of teams/communities
• Assuming roles that come with different levels of responsibility
• Understanding how we impact others
• What makes you defensive?

Important Dates

Wednesday-Friday, November 27-29—Thanksgiving Break—no school for students or staff

Monday, December 2—New laptop deployment for 9^th graders—9^th graders make sure to BRING YOUR LAPTOP AND POWER CORD TO TRADE OUT FOR A NEW ONE DURING ENGLISH CLASS.

Wednesday, December 4—Mini-late start—Building PD—staff in meetings

Thursday, December 12—Band and Orchestra Concert—6:30 pm

Friday, December 13—Blood Drive—Register Here: Bloodworks - Donor Portal

Sunday, December 15—Choir trip to Leavenworth

Wednesday, December 18—Mini-late start—Individual/classroom time

Wednesday, December 18—Choir Concert—7 pm in the auditorium

Thursday, December 19—Music Department Recruiting Tour—details will come from teachers for music students

Monday, December 23—two-week winter break begins

November days off

Schools and school district offices will be closed Nov. 27-29 for Thanksgiving Break. 

Choice enrollment time
Choice enrollment for the 2025-26 school year is open now. If you know any incoming families who want to explore a school other than their non-neighborhood school, please let share this website link: bit.ly/TPS_choice. (Please note, SAMi, SOTA and IDEA have a separate application process.) DID YOU KNOW? 30% of Silas students are choice enrolled!

SchoolLinks helps high school students with next steps
We’re excited to announce the launch of SchooLinks, a new platform to simplify the High School and Beyond Plan process for our students.

SchooLinks provides a centralized place for students to complete and track every HSBP requirement from middle school through graduation. This tool can help students explore careers, prepare for college, and track progress toward graduation.

SchooLinks is accessible through Clever using your child’s district login. I encourage you to explore SchooLinks with your child and see how it supports their goals.

So What?

15/10

Students should not have red bathroom passes OR orange passes the first 15 minutes or the last 10 minutes of any class. With bell-to-bell instruction/learning tasks, the first 15 minutes should include some type of class opener—an entry task or some other activity. The final 10 minutes there should be a wrap-up, guided practice, an exit slip or assessment…

During the middle 30 minutes of class, students not on the no hall pass list can use the following:

• RED PASSES for bathroom only. Students sign in and out when they take the red pass. (Admin really does check sign out sheets when we work with students who are missing class or having discipline issues!
• ORANGE PASSES to the main office or nurse or library or counselor or another staff member.

Of course, there are exceptions, and students on the no hall pass list have access to escorts, but for the most part, the information above is the practice.

Teens need to eat!

Our school nurse—Nurse Nation—has asked that I share she has concerns about some of our students and their nutrition. Too often, students come to the Health Center feeling unwell, and she discovers they have not eaten ALL DAY. While the school food may not be preferred for some of our students, PLEASE ENCOURAGE your Ram to EAT DURING THE SCHOOL DAY. Meals are FREE to all students, and the kitchen staff works hard to have multiple options available. If your Ram has specific dietary needs, it may take extra planning at home. Please talk with your teen. We need these kiddos to EAT!

Classroom Strategies

Students should be chatting with teachers and other staff members the next few weeks about make-up work, test re-takes, and/or acceleration. Each student should have a strategy. Two strategy options might be:

1.      Get everything done before break to JUST REST over Thanksgiving and/or Winter Break.

2.      Plan specific make-up work over the break and set goals for how much time to work on it. Then, there is a balance of catching up (or getting ahead) and having an actual break!

RamTV News: https://youtu.be/t8vMokuyL8k

What inspired me this week?

The work of our 9^th grade team.

We have a group of staff members who are working particularly hard on 9^th grade success—ensuring that 9^th graders pass their classes and don’t have to dig themselves out of a credit hole after their first year of high school. Next week, I’ll share some data and an opportunity for 9^th graders to get support making up work through an event called SNACKS & STUDY.

GO RAMS.