Friday Memo

April 24 - Late Start Day

April 24-28: MAP Spirit Week

April 26 - Choir Concert, 6:30 pm; Administrative Professionals Day

April 28 - Art 3 Show, Old Orchard

May 1 - School Principal's Day

May 4 - Jazz Concert, 6:30 pm

May 2-5: MAP Testing

May 8 - 12: Teacher Appreciation Week; Late Start Day

May 9-10: NWEA Testing

May 11 - Fine Arts Festival

May 12 - 8th grade to 6 Flags

May 22 - 8th grade Promotion Ceremony, 6pm @ Roberts gym

May 24 - Band Pops Concert

May 26 - Last day of school; Kona Ice visit; dismissal at 12:30 pm

I have received the information for the arrangements for Kendell Rodney Sparks. Please see the information below. All times are Pacific Time (PDT).

Viewing (may send flowers here by May 5):

May 5, 2023, 12pm to 4pm

Inglewood Park Mortuary

3801 W. Manchester Blvd

Inglewood, CA 90305

There will also be a second viewing on Saturday, May 6 from 9am - 10am prior to the funeral.

Funeral:

May 6, 2023, 10am

The Living Room Church

400 W. Florence Ave.

Inglewood, CA 90301

Interment Service:

May 6, 2023

Inglewood Park Cemetery

720 E. Florence Ave

Inglewood, CA 90301

There will be a Zoom link provided so that Kendell's St. Louis family/friends can attend the service virtually on Saturday, May 6, 2023. Mrs. Sparks will share it with me once she receives it. Then, I will share it with you.

I am happy to collect cards to mail/deliver to the Sparks family. You can also mail a card directly to their home in St. Louis. The address is below:

1030 Highlands Plaza Dr. Apt 513

St. Louis, MO 63110

As always, thank you for your care and concern. I will share the Zoom link as soon as I receive it.

On Friday, April 28 during Statesman Time, we will administer the required annual Trauma Informed Sexual Abuse education video to students during Statesman Time. Please click the link below to access the video. I have also provided a link to the opt out list. Parents/guardians have been informed of the training, and they also have the video to preview. Students who are opted out must report to the Cafeteria until the video is over.

Opt out list

Video

Script (please read on the designated dates)

• On April 27, 2023 during Statesman Time, please read at the beginning of class…All Hixson students will view a video on the topic of sexual abuse tomorrow, April 28, 2023. We are required by Missouri law to provide each 6-12th grade student with annual training on this subject. We understand this can be a sensitive topic and potentially cause some students additional stress. Therefore, if you feel like you need to be excused from watching this video due to the sensitive nature, please let me know before the end of class. You will report to the Cafeteria until the video is over.

• On April 28, 2023 during Statesman Time, before you play the video…[Send students who are opted out of the video to the Cafeteria prior to reading the message below.]
• As I shared yesterday, we will view a video today on the topic of sexual abuse. We are required by Missouri law to provide each 6-12th grade student with annual training on this subject. If after viewing this video, you feel like you may require additional support, please sign up to see your grade level counselor. They will respond to requests as they are received. Please understand this may take some time to work through requests but they will do their best to see every student in a timely manner.

Play the video.

There is no expectation for you to facilitate a conversation with your students about sexual abuse. If a student is uncomfortable or needs additional support, please send them to their counselor.

April 24, 2023

April 25, 2023

April 26, 2023

April 27, 2023

April 28, 2023

Soman Chainani, author of The School for Good and Evil Series is coming to Hixson for an all day author event on Tuesday, April 25. Each grade level will attend a one hour presentation from Soman Chainani.

If students own or would like to purchase a copy of his book(s) they will be able to enter a signing line to get it autographed! We are partnering with the Novel Neighbor for purchasing books; click here to purchase books online. We also have physical order forms in the library (as do all ELA teachers). All money and orders are due to the library by Friday, April 21st.

Click here to watch a book trailer for the first The School for Good and Evil book.

Click here to watch the trailer for the recently released Netflix adaptation.

Please contact Jordan Haddock at haddock.jordan@wgmail.org if you have any questions.

If yes, you may join a cohort group starting in the fall with courses being offered through Maryville University. Classes will take place at a Parkway school and the cost is $329.00 per credit hour. This is a draft of the courses that will be offered.

Please email me if you are interested in obtaining your gifted certification, and I will answer any questions you have and provide additional information.

Please see the information from Mrs. Hunter, our head custodian, for how to prepare your classroom for summer break.

• Please clear your teacher desk of everything, including drawers and surfaces.
• Remove all personal belongings from the classroom.
• Mark all things that are trash with a noticeable, legible sign.
• If your classroom has a tile floor, then the bookshelves have to be emptied. We will have boxes available. Please be mindful of how heavy you make the boxes. The saran wrap idea at the end of last year didn't work as well as I thought it would.
• We will be using the 6th grade wing for summer school.

Please don't hesitate to reach out should you have any questions.

Please read the budget timeline below. Please note, department purchasing will be closed in April. Contact Dr. Mayes with any questions.

If you are planning a field trip, please make sure that you are mindful of the building's field trip procedures. To minimize classroom disruptions, students should not be leaving and/or returning to classes in the middle of the class period.

We will begin the collection of the Chromebooks on May 11th and will finish up collections by May 19th. Below is the schedule for collection. This year's collection will take place during ELA classes. More detailed information will be rolled out closer to the time of collection. We wanted to share this information with you now so you can make plans for the second semester.

If you have a need for Chromebooks in your class after collection has begun please submit a technology request well before the month of May so Jason Heisel can plan accordingly. The request should have a minimum and max need.

Example: Need at least 3 Chromebooks and would love to have 15 Chromebooks available for the following dates: May 12-May 15th to allow learners to finish up submitting late work

Please keep in mind that a team of people worked to create this schedule based on feedback from last year and this year as well as working around major events that are on the calendar and testing schedules.

If you have any questions please let Jason P. Heisel, our building technology specialist, know via email.

Welcome back to second semester! Your PTO is continuing the "Getting to Know You" series on Facebook, and we need your help! We only have a few more posts before we will be out of information to share. These posts are typically some of the most loved posts by our parents! Can you please take a moment to answer some of the questions on the Google form so we can
create a post for you? Do not feel like you need to answer every question....just a few so that we can write a little biography about you. And send a picture because everyone loves putting a face to the names we hear about over the dinner table. Thank you so much!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd-hPdR98I-mZHgtAN44dbc7Bi2v40FWzomG9o-TSpuAlO_4Q/viewform

Email: mayes.shenita@wgmail.org
Website: https://www.webster.k12.mo.us/Hixson
Location: 630 South Elm Avenue, St. Louis, MO, USA
Phone: 314-963-6450