Hawks' Weekly Update

It was a terrific week at Shadow Hills. Most of the pedagogical conversations staff have been having on campus this year have been about student engagement. Students are more likely to enjoy their learning experiences when there's an abundance of positive interactions with peers in the lesson and when they can do “hands-on” activities. In addition, students are more engaged when they have choices in how they are going to learn or in how they demonstrate what they have learned. Teachers on campus are exploring additional ways to differentiate the learning activities to address various student ability levels and interests. Another important student engagement strategy is to incorporate “real-world” experiences at school. We saw great examples of this concept when 5th graders prepared resumes and interviewed for jobs at Biz Town. Kudos to Maestra Cruz and Mr. Israel and all our 5th graders on a job well done this week!

Student Attendance

Low student attendance can hurt the school environment. Post-pandemic attendance rates are down in many parts of the state. In addition to the lost learning opportunities, school attendance rates impact school funding. Even legitimate, excused absences for illness or doctor’s appointments mean lost funding for the school. Kids will miss school when they are ill or when getting doctor and dentist appointments is difficult, but we can improve the school culture if we limit absences for other reasons.