The Husky Bulletin 12/11/2024

12/11/2024

Principal Corner

Early Release/Student Pick Up Procedure

Dear Families,

We are making an adjustment to our early release/student pick-up procedure. We’re making these changes in order to ensure that the office is able to fully support all the end of day procedures safely and efficiently. Moving forward, here are the changes that we are implementing here at Oak View to our student early release process:

Early release pick up can happen during the day up until 3:30.
From 3:30 until 4:00, we will no longer be able to call down kids to be picked up from the office.
If you need to pick up your scholar between 3:30-4:00 your two options are:

Pick them up before 3:30.
Wait until 3:55 when we release students.

Please notify the office by 3:15 if you are picking your child up before 3:30. We’ll do our best to have your child in the office ready for you.

Changes to your child’s end of day routine

If you are changing your child’s end of day routine, please call the office to notify them of the change. You must call by 3:15 or no change will be made. We will call your child’s teacher and let them know of the change. An example of a change to end of the day routines would be parent pickup instead of bus, bus instead of KidStop, etc.

Mindfulness at Oak View

Dear Families,

Over the next few months, I’m going to be highlighting the important mindfulness work we’re doing at Oak View and will be providing you with some helpful resources to address the significant changes in children’s mental health over the past 10+ years. As an educator for over 25 years, I’ve seen first-hand the significant increase in children’s anxiety, attention and overall well-being that is creating significant challenges not only in schools but across all settings. I’m proud of the research-based strategies we’re adopting at Oak View and want to highlight these resources and issues so that we can team together to support our scholars and each other.

One important resource that I encourage all of you to explore is the book, The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. He created a website that has a ton of resources and strategies that families can use at home to address what he calls the great rewiring of children’s brains that occurred around 2010. Here is the link to that site: https://www.anxiousgeneration.com/.

Here is an excerpt from the blog by Kathy Flamino who is the founder of Movemindfully

We know that families don’t always have access to mental health support when they need it most. This can be due to a lack of resources (health coverage or funds needed to pay out-of-pocket costs for services), as well as access to the support they need in a timely fashion due to an overwhelmed mental health system. This is why we believe it is critically important to share information about the impact of stress, distress, and trauma on mental health along with practical and accessible ways to use the mind-body connection to ease symptoms of anxiety and depression, assist with focus, and improve sleep. Here are three quick and easy practices you can share:

Head Holds: Bringing hands to the head (on top of the head, holding front and back of the head, or just resting your head in your hands) is a settling practice that can create feelings of safety during stressful times. Try these options right now and identify which one feels calming for you today. The best part of head holds is that people do these movements all the time, so using these practices intentionally to decrease stress is a portable coping skill that can be used whenever you need it!

Self-soothing touch: Ever notice that you wring your hands or start to fidget when you are anxious or stressed? This is a great physical cue to start massaging your hands to ease feelings of anxiety and stress. Massage between the bones in your hands and then massage each finger while you breathe slowly. Self-soothing touch like these releases feel good chemicals like oxytocin. Next time you notice a friend or colleague wringing their hands as they describe a stressful or emotional situation, consider sharing the benefits of this self-soothing practice.

Elevating legs: Lying down on the floor with your legs resting against the wall or on a chair is an easy way to build a rest break into a busy day. Elevating your legs decreases stress in the body and puts you into a more relaxed state. If a friend or family member struggles with back pain or sleep, share this practice to decrease tension and stress at the end of the day.

What is the most important part of public mental health advocacy and activism? It helps you build your own toolkit of stress-management/self-care practices. Now more than ever we need people like you supporting children, youth, and families in our communities. Committing to public mental health advocacy and activism creates an ongoing conversation about mental health while actively sharing mind-body strategies with people who are struggling. The added benefit is that you will be continually practicing these strategies for yourself at the same time.

There is a lot of uncertainty in the world right now. The one thing we know for sure is that people in our communities need support. We hope you join us in a commitment to share the knowledge and skills that can help everyone feel better during times of stress. - Kathy Flaminio

At Oak View, we have been using Movemindfully and are seeing the positive impacts it’s having on students' overall well-being and academic performance. If you are interested in exploring or learning more about the program, check out their website at: https://move-mindfully.com.

With gratitude,

Principal Gibbs

Holiday Toy and Food Drive

Our 5th grade student council is hosting a food and toy drive. There are a few days to donate still! December 13th is the last day but will wait until December 19th to deliver. All the items collected will be donated to the local Ronald McDonald chapter. A list of the most requested items is attached in the flyer.

Thank you to everyone who has donated already. We are lucky to have such amazing and giving families.

Lost and Found

Our lost and found is OVERFLOWING. The lost and found rack is organized and will be available until December 20th for you to come look through if you are missing anything. Anything left after the 20th will be donated to the Three Rivers Park Services.

Office hours are 8:00am-4:00pm