Safety Month Update, 3/21/19

This week’s special guest will be Fire Chief Harold Scoggins!  He will be joining our Monday Morning Assembly. 

The first drill we engaged in during safety month was a fire drill.  All students were evacuated in under one minute, and it took us just a short time longer to gather at our safety location.  Students and staff knew exactly what to do, and did a great job moving quickly and safely.  Before the end of this week, we will engage in a Shelter in Place drill, and next week we’ll practice a lockdown.  For at least one of these drills, we will practice a reverse evacuation – returning to the building at a time when most students are outside, such as recess time.  A lockdown drill is used when there is an unsafe person on campus.  Staff and students will practice this drill together, and we’ll talk to students about the drill in age-appropriate ways.

Here’s an example of this language for younger students: 

 We practice fire drills so that we know what to do in case there is a fire.  We are now going to practice being safe when there is trouble around.  Practice helps to make doing the most useful, safest thing automatic.  It creates a program in your mind that then runs itself in a time when thinking could be frozen by fear.  The bad thing may never happen, but when we are practiced in protecting ourselves, we can feel calmer knowing that we know what to do.

We wear helmets when we ride our bikes.  We don’t expect to fall, but if we do, we will be protected.

During a shelter drill, such as a lockdown or shelter-in-place, remember the acronym, PAL:

P is for PAUSE: First, pause and take a deep  breath.  Breathing helps your mind work.

A is for ADULT: Wherever you are on campus, find a trusted adult.  If you are in the classroom, stay there and find your teacher or other adult in the room.  If you are outside, look for the teacher or trusted adult closest to you and listen carefully to their directions.

L is for LISTEN: Listen to instructions.  During this time, the teachers will lock the doors to their classrooms.  You may need to find a safe place in another space besides your classroom.  Listen to the directions of the trusted adult, and wait until they let you know that everything is all clear.

Hiring Team Training

Every year, Seattle Public Schools starts the hiring process for next year’s staff as early as late March or early April. While we don’t anticipate big staffing changes next year at Sacajawea, there may be a need to convene hiring teams as early as April and possibly later in the summer as our staffing needs change. Parents are an important part of our decision process whenever we hire new staff. 

If you’d like to be on a hiring team, you will need to take the District/SEA hiring training. You only need to take it once in your life, and you will then be eligible to be on a hiring team in any Seattle Public School in the future.

Upcoming training sessions are on March 19th, and April 16th. If you attend an upcoming training, or you have already been trained, and are willing to participate in interview teams, please let Rachel know by emailing rlfriesen@seattleschools.org. Thank you!

Here’s a link to all of this year’s training dates, and how to sign up:  https://www.seattlewea.org/file_viewer.php?id=14451.

Get Ready for the Science Fair

Thursday, March 21st is the annual Sacajawea Math and Science Fair, from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Please join us for this annual community celebration of all things math and science!

Students in third, fourth, and fifth grades will also present their science projects. Come explore amazing wonders with our newest scientists — what will you learn?

And, all students can participate in the marshmallow catapult challenge! Your student may already be working on their catapult in their class. If your student's teacher sent their catapult kit home, we've collected suggested directions, tips, and videos on the PTA's Science Fair page to help you.

It’s a family event, and Dante's Inferno Dogs will be on hand providing the best in hot dogs and nibbles. So, bring the whole family, and make a night of it. And, make sure to check out the bake sale to tasty treats!

Upcoming Community Events, 3/14/19

A collection of community events curated by our Equity Team.

1. Cup of Tea. Mar 16 at 4:00pm at the Islamic Idris Mosque. Free, registration required. 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cup-of-tea-get-to-know-your-muslim-neighbor-tickets-55243789662

2. Irish Festival. Mar 16–17 at Seattle Center. Free. http://irishclub.org/irish-festival-seattle/ 

3. Magic Teakettle. Mar 16–17 at Sunset Hill Community Club. $10. https://www.thistletheatre.org/ 

4. Purim Carnival. Mar 17 from 11:00am–2:00pm at Stroum Jewish Community Center. Free, RSVP requested. https://sjcc.org/events-classes/holiday-celebrations/

5. Persian New Year Celebration. Mar 17 from 1:00pm–5:00pm at Seattle City Hall. Free. https://seattleisfahan.org/nowruz-2019/

6. Leemos Juntos - Spanish Story Time. Sundays, Mar 17–Jun 23 at Imagine Children's Museum. $12 museum admission. https://www.imaginecm.org/programs-camps-events/storytimes/

7. Hiphop, Islam, and Enlightenment. Mar 17 at 5:00pm at East West Bookshop. $15. https://www.eastwestbookshop.com/products/march-17-2019-sunday-5-7pm-hip-hop-islam-and-enlightenment-with-mona-haydar

8. Author Talk: Vietnamese Food Any Day by Andrea Nguyen. Mar 18 from 6:30pm–8:00pm at Book Larder. Free. https://www.booklarder.com/events/info/author-talk-vietnamese-every-day

9. Magic Teakettle. Mar 19 at 6:30pm–7:30pm at Kent Library. Free. https://kcls.bibliocommons.com/events/5c589d9ddabc323f00a13cd5

10. History Café: Untold Stories from the Chinese Exclusion Act Files. Mar 20 from 6:30pm–8:00pm at MOHAI. Free. https://mohai.org/event/history-cafe-untold-stories-from-the-chinese-exclusion-act-files/

Safety Month Updates, 3/14/19

We are excited to welcome Seattle Police Chief, Carmen Best for our Monday Morning Assembly next week! The following week, we’ll be welcoming Seattle Fire Chief, Harold Scoggins. Both of these city leaders came to talk to us last year, and students really enjoyed their visits. 

Our safety drill this week is a Shelter In Place Drill. We use a shelter in place drill when it is safest for staff and students to stay inside, but they can move around the building to go to specialist classes, use the restroom or eat lunch in the cafeteria. Incidents that might require a shelter in place drill include police activity in the surrounding neighborhood or a gas leak nearby. This is one of our least-disruptive drills, as instruction continues normally for the duration of the drill. We may also practice a reverse-evacuation as part of this drill. This is conducted the same way in which we come inside in case of unexpected inclement weather during recess. By practicing these drills, we hope that students and staff will feel confident and know what to do when an event calls for one of these types of safety measures.