Silas High School—Principal’s Weekly Message—September 15, 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 September Equity Theme centers around: LISTENING

Listening is critical for problem solving and building positive relationships with others. It doesn’t mean we always agree, but it helps us be more aware of how others are feeling and better understand what others are going through. When we remember that everyone deserves to be heard and we listen with kindness, we can learn things we didn’t know before.

Both/And Thinking: Listening and a Sense of Urgency

Be clear about how you will make informed decisions in an atmosphere of urgency. We must prioritize listening before making decisions; rushed decisions can be harmful when stakeholders are not included. Having a sense of urgency can be good, but we must be mindful of how to balance listening with immediate action. If we spend too much time reflecting or seeking feedback, then we are not disrupting inequitable practices. If we spend too much time in action, we can cause harm by not reflecting.

Important Dates

Tuesday, September 17—Back to School Night—5:30-7:00 PM—

5:30-6:30—Open House-style with teachers in classrooms. This is a time to visit and get basic classroom information. Specific conversations about your child are most appropriate for email and/or conferences Thursday and Friday, October 17 and 18.

6:30-7:00—Panel discussions—Accelerated Courses with Assistant Principal Ms. Hartman; Freshman Transition with Assistant Principal Ms. Bennett; Athletics and Eligibility with Principal Ms. Ray. Other staff members and students may join these short information sessions. Specific campus locations for each panel will be confirmed and communicated on Monday.

6:00-7:30—Girls Varsity Soccer vs Lincoln out on the turf

Wednesday, September 18—Mini-Late Start—staff have individual classroom time per the collective bargaining agreement.

Wednesday, September 25—Mini-Late Start—staff have PLC time again per the collective bargaining agreement.

Friday, September 27—Homecoming pep assembly (end of school day) and football game vs. Bellarmine

 

Please complete CNEEB application
Have you completed the CNEEB application? I’m asking all families to complete the application by Oct. 1: MySchoolApps - Select District. 

It’s important because it helps schools get additional resources for students, and it helps many families directly with benefits like fee waivers for school-related activities.

It takes about 10 minutes to complete on a phone or computer. Feel free to take care of it at our school’s front office. Families can choose to translate the application in their preferred language.

Printable applications are also on our website at: https://www.tacomaschools.org/departments/enrollment/annual-forms.

Questions? Contact our front office or email householdapplication@tacoma.k12.wa.us.

Make it super easy for you? Here’s a QR code:

 Report an absence
If you need to report an absence for your child, you can do that through the ParentVUE app. ParentVUE - Tacoma Public Schools (tacomaschools.org)

Why do we move teachers and students?
Experience tells us that every year our enrollment will fluctuate during the first two weeks of school, as some students have moved, and new students register for school.

When enrollment numbers stabilize, we make final classroom adjustments for our school. Families with students in classrooms impacted by enrollment changes will be notified by me Sept. 17-27.
 

Cell phones, earwear and Bluetooth speakers

Students did a nice job adjusting to our new cell phone and earwear practices. There are a few still struggling to take that one Airpod out. A couple are still wearing their corded iPhone headphones around their necks. Please discuss this with your Ram. Keep earwear home or out of sight. Phones out of sight during class. Phones are OK at lunch and during passing OR if/when teachers ask students to take them out for class use.

RamTV News: https://youtu.be/IWrdOg0eAfQ

So What?

What are co-taught classes?

At Silas we have limited co-taught Math and English classes. I wish we had more in different subjects. Co-taught classes are taught by two different teachers. One is a content area specialist—like a Geometry teacher. The other teacher has a specific certification in Special Education and is called a learning specialist. This person is an expert at strategies for differentiation, explaining things 25 different ways, and scaffolding content so that all students can access the content and understand it—not just students who qualify for Special Education. The content area specialist also knows strategies and scaffolds, and the learning specialist also knows much of the content. The pair works together with the goal of depth over breadth for students. The class is not “slower” than other content. It’s just delivered a bit differently. Co-taught classes can also be a great fit for students looking for acceleration—that depth—but they don’t want to take Advanced Placement (AP) or College in the High School (CIHS) courses. Have questions? Let me know.

What inspired me this week?

…laughing with students and staff.

…the comedic timing of English Teacher Tom Springer.

…Picture Day—the good and the goofy.

GO RAMS.