Welcome to the Panther's Den for Glendale Teachers and Staff Members on Smore! I am excited to share this great tool with you. The Panther's Den is an easy and efficient way to connect with you without clogging up your emails. Smore will allow me to highlight upcoming weekly and monthly information to keep you connected and in the know! Smore will allow us to highlight the amazing things that are happening in our building and stay connected. It is also a quick way to share resources that you may find useful in your practice. Enjoy!!

Although challenges came our way this year as a result of the pandemic, I am continuously impressed with the work that our Sweet Home Community has done to come together to provide the best experience for our children. No matter the circumstance, our Sweet Home Community comes together to support one another, celebrate the wins, and does whatever it takes to make Sweet Home stand above the rest.

As we begin our last remaining months of school, remember to take the time to review and re-establish your classroom/building expectations for students. Take a Panther Pause and connect with your students to refresh those important connections with students, other staff members, and families that make our classrooms, our buildings, and our district so special, finishing the year STRONG! Building positive and authentic connections is at the forefront of my core beliefs, both personally and professionally. When we take time to build meaningful connections with one another, our students, and our families, we begin to provide a safe and warm learning environment for everyone, adults included. Building quality relationships with one another in our building and bringing our Glendale Family together to grow, learn, support, and provide our students with an experience they will never forget. One that we are proud to be a part of!

I hope you all have a wonderful rest of the week with all of our Panthers and enjoy the remaining two months of the school year with one another. I look forward to our continued work together as a Sweet Home Community!

Much Appreciation,

Karen E. DeLaPlante

This year presented so many challenges for our students, the people we work with, and our own personal lives. Trauma comes in all shapes and forms, from adverse childhood experiences, the loss of a loved one, mental health and social-emotional stressors, social media, and pressure that surrounds our children in our nation, state, and surrounding communities in WNY, and more importantly in Sweet Home. Providing unique experiences for our pathers at all levels, all while creating a safe place to feel loved and supported, is at the forefront of the work that we do. The LIM skillsets, mindset, and mind-shift that we have implemented in our schools will help our children form the necessary skills to be future-ready. Our kids at the elementary level will need these important tools as they grow into their adolescent years and beyond the walls of our buildings. Together as we continue to evolve as a Leader in Me school, our children will gain these necessary skills for life. Enjoy this Special Edition from LIM with available resources.

Welcome to Character Strong. A great website with many different resources, tools, and webinars discussing many different topics. Staying relevant in our practice is important to me as a leader, which is why I was excited to have Character Strong as a resource to continue my learning right in the comfort of my own home. Equity and SEL conversations are at the forefront of the work that needs to be addressed in education today. Equity, Empathy, & Implementation webinar walks through the importance of the work that needs to be done and it starts with us.

Our MTSS & SST process is influential in meeting our student's needs, both academically and behaviorally, for Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 students. If you are interested in knowing more about how we can integrate School-Based Mental Health into MTSS and how we can get started with the work of providing equity in our schools, these webinars do an outstanding job discussing the key components of SEL for ourselves, our kids, and the importance of having equitable conversations during the most difficult times in education.

The incredible power of a Professional Learning Network!! Twitter allows us the ability to connect with other professionals across our district, WNY, or around the globe. A PLN gives you the opportunity to take part in professional learning whenever and wherever you want. It connects you to amazing educators, provides access to resources, and helps you keep up with the latest trends in education.

Suggestions:

#kidsdeserveit

#teachersdeserveit

@characterstrong

@teacher2teacher

@Claribel716

@casas_jimmy

I had the wonderful opportunity to join our Glendale and Maplemere Panthers at this year's SABAH Event held at the Buffalo Convention Center on Wednesday, April 4th. Congratulations to all of our athletes and staff members who have dedicated their time to create such an amazing students for our students at Sweet Home.

Karen E. DeLaPlante

Email: kdelaplante@sweethomeschools.org
Phone: 716-250-1364
Twitter: @kdelaplante