End of the year Activities!! :-)

It’s amazing to think we are in the final stretch of the 2017-2018 school year! This year has been so jam-packed with fun and learning and it has just flown by! I know this time of year gets a little crazy, so I wanted to give you a bit of a heads up about some big events coming up, and what we will need from you!

Special Education Track and Field- Friday, May 25^th- This is the day where all the students in the district who are in a self-contained special education classroom get to showcase their athletic skills! Students will have the chance to run, jump, throw and win medals! There is also a school spirit competition, and this year’s theme is the Wild West! We’re making individualized t-shirts based on our theme as well as some inspirational sayings. You are welcome to come cheer your student on at Beaverton High School from 10am to 12:30pm. Permission slips are due by next Friday, May 11th. Students will need to bring a sack lunch, running shoes and possibly a jacket, depending on the weather.

8th Grade Roll Ups - Thursday, May 31st - 8th Graders will have the chance to meet their new teacher and tour their new high school! :-) I will be sending out more information about time slots as we get closer to the date.

8th Grade OMSI Trip - Friday, June 8th - The 8th graders at Mt. View are going on a field trip to OMSI as part of their science unit on robots. Permission slips are due by Friday, May 18th. Students will need to bring a sack lunch.

Dairy Queen Field Trip- Thursday, June 14th- Our class will be going to Dairy Queen across the street to celebrate the end of the year together as a class! I will be buying everyone a sweet treat, but if they want to buy something for lunch or as an extra treat they can bring extra money. We will be going in the afternoon from 2:25-3:40pm. It should be a ton of fun! 

Important Dates

Wow! This year is just flying by! It’s amazing to think that we are in the final stretch of the school year :-) Here are a few important dates coming up:

 

April 12th - School Social! :-) 

April 13th - Grading Day, No School

April 16th-27th - Health Unit for Mr. Mitcham's PE classes

April 24th-27th - Outdoor School for 6th graders

April 30th - No school for 6th graders

May 7th-11th - Teacher Appreciation Week!

May 14th-18th - SBAC Testing for all grades

May 25th 10-12:30pm - Special Education Track and Field! :-)

May 28th - Memorial Day, No School

June 19th - Last Day of School!!! :-)

Ways You Can Help

Hello Families and Friends! 

Over the last several weeks, I have had many parents and friends ask how they can help support our classroom. In these uncertain economic times, we have been fortunate to maintain such a skilled staff, supportive administrators and creative solutions for lack of funding for supplies. However, this year has presented new challenges. With the funding being reduced district-wide, we are being asked to do more with an already limited classroom budget, including purchasing sensory supports for our students with Austism. Some of these supports, like Hokki Stools and Balancing Balls, are simply outside the realm of our classroom budget. 

One easy way to help out is to check our class Wishlist, which is posted on the side of this blog. It includes some basic items that we're always in need of, such as hand sanitizer, tissues and Clorox wipes. Occasionally, I'll also list items that we need related to a specific activity, such as cooking items or art supplies. I try to update it at least once a month.  

I also have a DonorsChoose website to ask for assistance in purchasing various supplies, supplemental activities and curriculum, as well as classroom technology that we can use during both small and large group instruction. In case you aren't familiar with it already, the concept of DonorsChoose is simple. Teachers create a page, requesting specific items for their classroom. Donors from around the world read about the need, and donate money. DonorsChoose then purchases the supplies, and delivers them to the classroom. My experiences with DonorsChoose  have been very positive in the past, after I saw the positive impact it has made on many of my fellow teacher's classrooms both at Mountain View and other schools in the Beaverton School District. I am asking that you spread the word about our page to friends and colleagues who may be willing and able to donate. Here is the link: 

Mrs. Z's DonorsChoose page 

Thank you for supporting our classroom!!

Mrs. Zaworski

Quick Update

Wow! This year is just flying by! It’s amazing to think that we are in the final stretch of the 2017-2018 school year already! :-)

Here are a few important dates coming up:

Wednesday, Mar. 7th - Choir Concert @ 7pm
Monday, Mar. 12/Tuesday, Mar. 13th - Book Fair!!
Wednesday, Mar. 14th - Parent-Teacher Conferences 5-8pm
Thursday, Mar. 15th - Parent-Teacher Conferences 8am-8pm
Friday, Mar. 16th - NO SCHOOL
Thursday, Mar. 22nd - Band Concert @ 7pm
Friday, Mar. 23rd - PRIDE Assembly Day! AND Class Field Trip to Pump It Up!! :-)
Monday, Mar. 26th - Friday, Mar. 30th - NO SCHOOL, Spring Break!!! 

Monday, Apr. 2^nd – Health for Ms. Carpenter’s Classes starts

Thursday, Apr. 12^th – School Social at 3pm J

Friday, Apr. 13^th – Grading Day, No School

Monday, Apr. 16^th – Health for Mr. Mitcham’s Classes starts

Tuesday, Apr. 24th-Friday, 27th - Outdoor School for 6th graders at Trickle Creek

Monday, Apr. 30th - No school for ALL 6th graders

Friday, May 25th 10-12:30pm - Special Education Track and Field at Beaverton HS! :-) The theme this year is Cowboy/Western :-) 

Monday, May 28th - Memorial Day, No School

Spirit Week!

Here are the themes for the upcoming Spirit Week:

Monday, Feb. 12th - PJ day

Tuesday, Feb. 13th - Twin day

Wednesday, Feb. 14th - Wear red

Thursday, Feb. 15th - Sports day

Friday, Feb. 16th - Superhero day

Important Dates

Welcome Back and Happy 2018! We have a lot of fun things coming up! Here are a few important dates...

Monday, Jan. 15th - NO SCHOOL, MLK Jr. Day
Thursday, Jan. 18th - 6th Grade Outdoor School Parent Information Night @ 6:30pm
Friday, Jan. 19th - Popcorn Friday (Popcorn is 1 PRIDE ticket at the student store!)
Monday, Jan. 22nd - First Day of Health for Ms. Carpenter's PE classes
Friday, Jan. 26th - PRIDE Assembly Day!

Thursday, Feb. 1st - Pizza Party!! :-) (Our class earned 200 PRIDE Tickets!)
Friday, Feb. 2nd - NO SCHOOL, Grading Day
Monday, Feb. 5th - First Day of Health for Mr. Mitcham's PE classes AND First day of semester 2 (new electives!)
Thursday, Feb. 15th - Spaghetti Dinner @ 6pm (Free for students and their families)
Friday, Feb. 16th - All school Social! :-)
Monday, Feb. 19th - NO SCHOOL, President's Day
Friday, Feb. 23rd - PRIDE Assembly Day!

Wednesday, Mar. 7th - Choir Concert @ 7pm
Monday, Mar. 12/Tuesday, Mar. 13th - Book Fair!!
Wednesday, Mar. 14th - Parent-Teacher Conferences 5-8pm
Thursday, Mar. 15th - Parent-Teacher Conferences 8am-8pm
Friday, Mar. 16th - NO SCHOOL
Thursday, Mar. 22nd - Band Concert @ 7pm
Friday, Mar. 23rd - PRIDE Assembly Day! AND Class Field Trip to Pump It Up!! :-)
Monday, Mar. 26th - Friday, Mar. 30th - NO SCHOOL, Spring Break!!!

Celebrating new friends and new challenges in the ALC!

Hello families!

I hope that the holiday season is going well for your family. Things in the ALC are forever changing and exciting! Below is some information about the new and exciting things your student has been exploring this month:

New friends - We've had some change within our classroom in the last few weeks. We've added two new students to our class, and one student is moving. This has meant learning names of new students, and processing saying goodbye to someone we'd come to know. This has also meant that our schedule has changed a few times this fall, and I am so proud of how well all of our students handled these changes! :-)

New challenges - These first few months of school are PACKED with exciting learning! In the beginning of the year, we spend a lot of time helping students learn (and often re-learn) their new school routines. Now that we've been in school a few months though, we are increasing our expectations for independence. It has been so amazing to see the challenges our students are rising to!

Many holidays and celebrations - This season brings many diverse reasons to celebrate for the many families that make up our Mountain View and ALC communities. In class, we talk generally about lots of holidays that students may participate in or be exposed to. While the holiday season is filled with joy and merriment for many people, it can also be a stressful time--particularly for kids, and most especially for kids impacted by disabilities. Sometimes it is easy to forget that while decoration or celebration is fun and exciting, it may also be overwhelming or just too different for some kids. In no way do I suggest NOT celebrating or NOT exposing kids to the holidays. I just like to make sure kids are prepared. This season is fun, and even if your family celebrates in non-traditional ways, these mainstream traditions are something they are potentially going to be exposed to in their community for many years to come!

Fun times before Winter Break – This is a very fun time at Mountain View and in the ALC. We have a few activities coming up this week and next that your student will have the opportunity to join. Here are some of the fun activities you can expect to hear about:

·      Friday, Dec. 15th - PRIDE Assembly 

    Tuesday, Dec. 19th - OMSI Field Trip!!

     Wednesday, Dec. 20th - Holiday Party in the ALC! We will enjoy hot cocoa, popcorn, cookies and a holiday movie as we ring in the end of the school year for 2017! :-)  

 

Spirit Week and Important Dates

Spirit Week is coming next week!! :-)

Monday - College or Sports Fan Day
Tuesday - Costume Day (No masks or weapons, please)
Wednesday - Comfy Day (aka Pajama Day)
Thursday - Fancy Shmancy, Dress Your best Day
Friday - Grading Day, NO SCHOOL


Important Dates Coming Up

Wednesday, Nov. 1st - First Day of health for Mr. Mitcham's PE classes
Thursday, Nov. 2nd - PRIDE Celebration!
 Friday, Nov. 3rd - Grading Day, NO SCHOOL
Friday, Nov. 10th - NO SCHOOL
Wednesday, Nov. 15th - First Day of health for Ms. Carpenter's PE classes
Friday, Nov. 17th - PRIDE Assembly!
Wednesday, Nov. 22nd - NO SCHOOL
Thursday, Nov. 23rd - Thanksgiving, NO SCHOOL
Friday, Nov. 24th - NO SCHOOL

Conferences

Important Dates

Saturday, Oct. 14th - Official Opening of Mt. View Champions Park
Monday, Oct. 16th - First Day of health for Ms. Carpenter's PE Classes
Friday, Oct. 20th - PRIDE Assembly (Theme: Embracing the Community) and art project with Ms. Case :-) 
Wednesday, Oct. 25th - Conferences 5:30-8:00pm
Thursday, Oct. 26th - NO SCHOOL, Conferences
Friday, Oct. 27th - NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, Oct. 31st - Halloween!

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Wednesday and Thursday, October 25th and 26^th are parent-teacher conferences for Mountain View Middle School. This means that there is no school on Thursday or Friday, and families will soon have the opportunity to sign up for conferences. You will be receiving a conference sign-up form to fill out and return, or you can sign up using a link provided on Mt. View's website which will be available Oct. 11th-23rd.

Conferences will be scheduled on a first come, first serve basis and are in 20-minute segments. You will be able to meet with me, as well as your student’s elective teachers (Mr. Grant, Mrs. Mevis, Ms. Carpenter, Mr. Mitcham, Ms. Chasteen or Mrs. Bauer). The daily conference schedule is as follows:

 

 Wednesday, Oct. 25th - 5:30pm-8:00pm
 Thursday, Oct. 26th - 8:00am-10:40am, 12:30pm-2:30pm, 5:00pm-8:00pm

      I look forward to seeing many of you there!

Too Sick for School?

Can you believe it? We already have our first bug going through the classroom! I agree that it is WAY TOO SOON for this, but it's here! Half our students and teachers have experienced fever, coughing, congestion, runny nose or stuffy nose. Our students tend to be such little warriors and troop through, even when they are feeling crummy. Please keep in mind though, that sometimes our kids aren't really able to tell us how bad they feel, and when we don't feel great, we often don't feel up for learning. We are doing all that we can in the classroom--cleaning with disinfectant several times a day, washing hands multiple times, avoiding any physical contact we can and teaching and reteaching germ awareness. I've also spoken to our school custodian about getting an extra "deep cleaning" for our classroom.

We need your help too. I know that our students are serious troopers, and really want to be at school to maintain their routines. But what we often see is that kids (and adults) are coming back too soon. In the last few weeks, we have seen kids and staff come back to school, thinking they're feeling okay--so happy to be back--and then end up crashing within a few hours :-(  While this is sad for them, it also runs the risk of infecting and reinfecting others. I really hope that in the next few days we can all get well so that we have the energy for the exciting learning and fun events to come!

Here is a reminder of the Beaverton School District "Too sick for School" policies:

-Fever: You must be fever free without the aid of medication for 24 hours prior to returning to school

-Vomiting: There must be 24 hours since the last incident of vomiting prior to returning to school

-Diarrhea: There must be 24 hours since the last incident of diarrhea prior to returning to school

-Cough: Free of serious, sustained coughing or shortness of breath

-Rash: Any new rash accompanied by a fever--may return with clearance of the rash or release by health care provider

-Skin Lesions: Draining from sores need to be contained by a bandage

-Other: Symptoms that prevent the student from active participation in usual school activities or student is requiring more care than school staff can safely provide