Wildcat News

Brrrr...what a week!!!! A few things so you can stay in the know:

~ SAFETY: I continue to hear concerns about safety in our crosswalks, safety in cars driving too fast, vehicles that drop kids off by pulling up on the wrong side of the street for drop-off, etc. Safety is NOT always convenient. Please, please, please take the extra time needed to keep everyone safe. Sometimes this means driving around the block or turning around to drop off properly. Please be alert during pick up and drop off and anytime students are present. Everyone's help with this is needed, so thank you for attention to this matter.

~ Title I Math & Reading Night is TONIGHT, Thursday, February 20. Food, fun, games, books...you won't want to miss this!! Please see the flyer below for more details.

~ How is your at-home OKAY Campaign going??? Please help us keep this alive by engaging in this with your kiddo at home.

Thanks for your continued support of our work--your partnership matters to each child's growth and success!

Ann Haggerty

Washington Principal

ahagge1@isd77.org

February 2025

Dear Washington Parents,

Hello to all Washington students and families! The Washington PBIS Team wants to let you know that during February and March, Washington will be explicitly teaching students the importance of being a first time listener, saying “OKAY” when an adult asks them to do something, and then doing it right away. We are finding that this could be a focus area for additional learning for many of our Wildcats. Perhaps you notice this concern at home sometimes?

We are using the following acronym below to teach:

O - One time asked

K - Kind response

A - Act

Y - You’re welcome

We are using this line with students: Say “OKAY” and do it right away!

It is also very important to note that we will do some teaching about those instances when it would be appropriate for a child to NOT be compliant. Our teaching of this centers around the “3 D’s”: Dangerous, Destructive, Disturbing.

We are asking for your support and encouragement with your child(ren). Tomorrow (Thursday) this same letter will come home with your child, along with an “OKAY” card. Each time you ask your child to do something, and they respond with “OKAY” and do the task, please fill in one of the dots. When all of the dots are filled in, CELEBRATE with your child, and then have them return their completed card to the Washington office for a small token of appreciation. They can then grab another card if they wish.

Thank you, in advance, for your support of our Okay Campaign. Together, we can make a big difference.

Respectfully,

The Washington PBIS Team

Dear Washington Families,

Did you know that if your Wildcat misses 17 or more days of the school year they are considered chronically absent by the state of Minnesota? We know that students miss school for many reasons such as illness, vacation, or family emergencies. It is expected that a student will miss a few days throughout the year. However, when students start to miss more than a few days of school, it can be detrimental to their academic growth. As you may be aware, students with greater attendance at school foster better relationships, have higher self esteem, develop independence, and have more academic success than students who are absent more than 10% of the school year. New findings are also indicating that the achievement of all students can be negatively affected by absent classmates. Here at Washington, we want to see our Wildcats in school as often as possible, so that they can continue to get what they need to succeed in school.

Here are some important things to know about how we will be approaching attendance for the remainder of the year:

• Stay below 17 Days Absent: Mrs. Haggerty will be sending a message out to all families who have students on pace to miss more than 17 days of school this year. We have about 14% of students (53 students) who are at this point. Our school goal is to have less than 5% of our students missing 17+ days this year. If you receive that message from me, know that we are looking to partner with you to make a plan for better attendance for the remainder of the year.
• If your child isn't feeling very well: If your child isn't feeling the best, but they seem like they could be at school, I encourage you to bring them to school and have them checked out by our school nurse, Paula Ziegler. She will let you know if your student should stay at school or go home for the day.
• Doctor's Note Needed: We would like ALL students to bring back a note each time your student goes to an appointment (doctor, dentist, therapy, etc.), excusing them from the time they were absent. If they have no note and it is just called in, it will be marked as unexcused until a note comes in verifying the absence. Further, students should be in school both before and after the appointment should it fall in the middle of the day.
• County Involvement: When a student has 7 or more unexcused absences, our school partners with Blue Earth County to support families with a plan to get their students to school more often.
• Here's a GREAT VIDEO about the importance of school attendance.
  
  

Thank you for your partnership around attendance. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at ahagge1@isd77.org.

You will find your child’s NWEA RIT Score and Overall Percentile score live in Infinite Campus. These help summarize how your child is performing academically, as measured by the most recent NWEA Growth test your child has taken. These tests and scores help teachers check student performance by measuring achievement and growth. Teachers use results to tailor classroom lessons and set goals for students.

NWEA Growth tests are unique and adapt to your child’s responses to measure your child’s knowledge. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If they answer incorrectly, the next one is easier. These results will provide a more complete picture of where your child is on their learning journey—regardless of whether they are on, above, or below their grade level.

Since NWEA Growth tests provide immediate and accurate information about your child’s learning, it’s easy for teachers to identify students with similar scores in similar skills and topics and then plan instruction accordingly.

Your child’s NWEA Growth results are represented as RIT scores. RIT scores have the same meaning across grade levels. This stable scale allows teachers to accurately measure each student’s academic growth throughout the school year and over time.

I hope you find these reports informative. If you have questions, please contact me. For more information about NWEA Growth, visit NWEA.org/familytoolkit.

Here are the directions to access the results in Infinite Campus.

Sincerely,

Ann Haggerty, Principal

Washington Elementary

During the month of February, our entire school will focus on Habit #4: Think Win Win. As parents/guardians, your understanding and support of our leadership work in this habit is very appreciated! I have found this language and learning to benefit ALL, not just students!

Habit 4: Think Win-Win isn’t just about being nice. It’s a character-based code for human interaction and collaboration. Most of us learn to base our self-worth on comparison and competition. We think about succeeding in terms of someone else failing—if I win, they lose; or if they win, I lose. Life becomes a zero-sum game. We start to believe there’s only so much to go around, and if they get a big piece, there’s less for me; it’s not fair, and I’m going to do everything I can to get my share.

These paradigms of scarcity are worth shifting. Win-win is about constantly seeking mutual benefit in all human interactions—about finding solutions that are truly beneficial and satisfying for everyone involved. To go for win-win, we not only have to be empathic, but we also have to be confident. We not only have to be considerate and sensitive, we also have to be brave.

That balance between courage and consideration is the essence of real maturity and is fundamental to a win-win approach to life.

“In the long run, if it isn’t a win for both of us, we both lose. That’s why win-win is the only real alternative in interdependent realities.” - Stephen Covey

Excellence, Equity, Empowerment. Every student, Every day.

Email: ahagge1@isd77.org
Website: https://we.isd77.org/
Location: 1100 Anderson Drive
Phone: 507-345-3059