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Hansen Hawk's Newsletter

May, 2022  

 

Announcements

  • Shout out to our volunteers! Last week was public school volunteer week. We appreciate you. 
  • Panorama Survey deadline 5/2
  • Teacher appreciation week 5/2-6/22
  • Board meetings 5/12 & 5/26. To sing up for public comment: Sign Up via Google Form.
  • The Superintendent's Office will take sign-ups for the public comment list from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. the day of the Board Meeting which is usually scheduled the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month unless noted otherwise (holiday).   The final list of public comment participants will be posted by 5 p.m the day of the meeting in BoardDocs on the specific meeting page in the "Opening" Category under the Public Comment section.  Each speaker on the public comment list will have up to three (3) minutes to speak.

 

Principal’s Message

Greetings Hansen Families!

 

As your proud principal, I want to touch on a couple of things as we begin to wrap another challenging yet rewarding school year. 


State Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA)

We are soon going to begin our first series of spring state testing for 3rd through 5th grade since the pandemic began. This assessment is great feedback for us in knowing areas that we were academically successful as well as areas where we can improve. This assessment also helps families get a sense of how students are doing on state standards in relation to their peers. It is important to recognize that our school and your child are far more than a test score and while particular importance is put into this state assessment, it is simply one data point in understanding the child and the community. Please ensure that you talk to your child in doing their very best, but also that they should not overly stress about the results.


Thank You to the Hansen Community Council (HCC) Board, the Hansen Alternative Program (HAP) Board and all of our Individual Volunteers!

Hansen is fortunate to have a great number of people who volunteer their time at Hansen. Of course this has dwindled since the pandemic, but we are picking back up with many opportunities! Even if you volunteer for a small amount of time or volunteer almost daily. Your involvement helps this Hansen Community go from feeling like individuals to feeling like part of a big wonderful family! We take pride in the richness that our volunteers bring and we are extremely grateful!


End of Year Parade!

We are planning to have yet another end of year parade in the evening of Thursday June 16th. More details to follow.

 

Sincerely,
William Harris
Principal

 

Assistant Principle's Message

Greetings Hansen Hawks!

 

Toys & Things

We ask that students leave “Toys and Things” at home. You may ask what that includes; we are talking about toys, fidgets, stuffed animals, etc. What is important is that students all have the tools to be successful at school and we, as the staff will provide students with what they need to be successful. For example, if a student needs a fidget to be able to focus, we will provide the fidget.

The reason for this is to limit the visibility of Haves and Have Nots, as well as distractions from the learning environment. The only potential caveat to this is if a teacher contacts families to communicate a stuffed animal and movie celebration or something of that nature.

When children bring things to school, we will remind them to put them in their backpacks and if it becomes an issue, we will reach out to families to help us remind their children to keep toys and things home.

Thank you for partnering with us! Please reach out to Dannie Clark, assistant principal if you have any questions.

Conflict Resolution/Restorative Justice

As the assistant principal, I have the privilege of engaging in conflict resolution and problem solving with students. In some situations, it is as simple as a student took a soccer ball from a peer to complicated, multi-faceted challenges. When I speak to families, they often ask what the process is for conflict resolution and what I want families to know is that we are very intentional in our processes and part of that process is to communicate with the family when there has been an issue. When resolving conflict, the steps are the following:

  • Listen to each student’s side/perspective
    If there were witnesses, listen to their perspective
    If/when appropriate, restoration is the goal for all parties involved in the conflict/challenge
    In some situations, space and time is honored because individuals are not ready to reengage quite yet.
  • In other situations, we engage in a one-on-one resolution process and the last question is “What do you need from ____?” and the goal in this question is for the student who was offended/hurt to communicate what their needs are and it allows time for the other(s) to listen.

    Restoration may be one-on-one but it also may be a restorative circle if many students were involved in a conflict.

    At Hansen, we believe a school is a place where students learn how to interact, be safe, as well as learn how to get their needs met. We expect mistakes to occur and part of our job is to ensure we are supporting students to process and learn when a mistake occurs. When we see repeated behaviors, we always include the family in problem-solving next steps and/or strategizing how we can better support individuals.

    I wanted to take a moment to share our process for conflict resolution as I often get asked what the steps are and what it looks like for the students to engage in resolution.

    Sincerely,
    Dannie Clark
    Assistant Principal

 

Equity Committee

Currently, our Equity Committee has been working to create a document that is a statement to highlight what we believe as a Hansen staff and what we are committed to. This will live in our Hansen Handbook, which new employees will receive. In addition, it is a statement that we will revisit periodically each year to ensure we are working towards our goals. In the near future, we will be asking for community feedback. We want the statement to represent the needs of our students and families.

Family Liaison

Hello Hansen Families,

For those of you who know me, Happy May! To those of you who do not, my name is Taylor Velazquez and I am the Family Liaison at Hansen Elementary School. My role was created this year to bridge the gap between home and school for many students and their families. I provide assistance to families in a wide variety of ways and I might just be able to help you with whatever you're going through! Contact me to find out at [email protected] or (360) 596-7404.

Summer break is coming up and I will unfortunately not be working or able to provide assistance. In order to ensure a successful break for you and your family, please reach out to me in the month of May to identify barriers and other community resources. I would love to develop a plan for Summer to guarantee your safety, security, and success throughout the break. Please feel free to reach out to say hello! I look forward to meeting you.

Best,
Taylor Velazquez
Family Liaison

 

Hansen Community Council

 Hansen Community Council is gearing up for the end of the year. We are currently accepting nominations for all positions for the 2022-2023 school year. Our next meeting will be at 6pm, May 10th, via Zoom.

The end of the year parade is tentatively scheduled for June 16th and we will be handing out yearbook pre-orders, as well as selling left over yearbooks and spirit wear.

If you are interested in board positions, helping with our upcoming activities, or attending our community meetings- please email us at [email protected]

Thank you and take care,
HCC