Salmon Bay Elementary Wisdom Council Statements
November 4 – 5, 2005
&
February 10 – 11, 2006
Our discussions reaffirmed for us what a special
place Salmon Bay really is. At the heart of this special place are our teachers.
How can we enhance our relationship with teachers to best achieve the goals of
our children’s education and support the overall mission of Salmon Bay?
After several hours of discussion, we reviewed
the statements of the first Wisdom Council and discovered that we had
independently discussed virtually identical issues and solutions. This was
really surprising and powerful to us – that we were hitting on universal
concerns to parents. We believe that having teachers and administrators at the
next Wisdom Council will result in much more meaningful dialogue.
Due to the commonalities of the two Wisdom
Councils, we decided to add our statements to the statements of the first
Wisdom Council. (In italics)
Salmon Bay is more
than a school. It is a community. Each student, parent, and staff member plays
an integral role. In support of this community, we come forward with some
conceptual ideas and suggest some attainable goals in order to nurture our
children.
We want to foster
more communication in our school community in order to include and involve
every member of the community.
February Wisdom Council suggested strategies:
We really liked Debbie Kosman’s parent education
night about reading and want to expand on this model so that we are stronger
partners with teachers in educating our children.
-
Similar to volunteering for snack, we envision
parent volunteers for each classroom to aid the teacher. This person would
relay to other parents the teacher’s curriculum, tools and strategies for
helping children at home.
o
This role would rotate on a month-by-month basis.
o
This communication with the teacher is done at
the teacher’s convenience.
o
The communication with parents could be by email
and/or in hard copy as needed at regular intervals.
o
This is different from the weekly bulletin in
that it addresses topics to be taught in class in the next few weeks – tips for
parents on helping with homework, terminology teachers are using, what’s coming
up, what students will be learning, and possible references.
To this end, we
suggest three strategies:
-
An “About Salmon
Bay” Reference Guide (We came up with this, too!)
A binder that
is given to new parents, or existing parents who want a copy, with a suggested
table of contents that include things like:
o
The student directory with added nuggets of the
school’s mission, vision and philosophy since it’s the tool parents use
everyday.
o
Add earthquake preparedness and evacuation plan.
o
A yearly calendar
with important deadlines,
o
Volunteer
expectations, plus volunteer opportunities that speak to all skills and levels
of availability
o
The role of FOSBE,
how the group works, what/who it is
o
Who to call if you
have an idea or want your voice to be heard, e.g. the name and number of all
the committee or topic chair people
o
Current explanation
of the “looping system,” as changes are made a new section can be published and
replaced in everyone’s binder
o
Current understanding
of the “Salmon Bay Way,” how we are different and how we define alternative education
o
Teacher and staff
introductions, with classroom and grade-level specific information
This
binder should be in an email-able format to keep cost down and allow parents to
access it how they choose. Hard copies should also be available for those who
do not have computer or email access.
We acknowledge, respect, and will utilize existing resources
such as: the old parent handbook, the Summer Fishwrapper, the defunct
communication and technology committees, the FOSBE yahoo discussion group, and
the video of Salmon Bay founders sharing their story.
-
An online version
of the reference guide, with an interactive forum for continuing dialogue (We came up with
this, too!)
-
A more formalized
“Buddy System” for new parents to the community to feel welcomed and connected.
We recommend the system be classroom-based, possibly a volunteer coordinator
for each classroom and/or existing parents who volunteer to be assigned new
parents to contact, welcome to the school, entice their participation, and
serve as a resource. (We came up with this, too!)
o
The buddy system strategy should be both within
the elementary school and during transition to the middle school.
We recognize that the
“Salmon Bay Way” is both a fundamental set of values and an evolving vision for
our children. We encourage more conversation about the “Salmon Bay Way.” This
conversation includes:
·
How it is defined
currently,
·
How it can be
refined, and
·
How we can promote
and make visible our philosophy of alternative education.
We want every member
of our community to understand and be able to communicate our philosophy.
(We came up with this, too!)
February Wisdom
Council
We spent a lot of time discussing this and we
think this topic is crucial for maintaining Salmon Bay’s excellence, involving
more parents in a way their talents are used best and helping parents make the
best decision about whether to enroll their children at Salmon Bay.
We came up with a list of what we think makes Salmon
Bay what it is, such as integrated curriculum, teacher autonomy, strong
parental involvement, multi-age classrooms, and looping. And, we look forward
to having broader dialogue with teachers, parents and administrators.
We want to explore
Salmon Bay’s role in the greater community, such as:
·
Between the Salmon
Bay elementary and middle schools
February Wisdom
Council
We
felt it is important to continue the K through 8 dialogue, in order to have better
advocacy in the district and to preserve and enhance the Salmon Bay way. We want the Salmon Bay community to be one
community in a way that allows elementary and middle school issues to be
addressed with equal importance.
·
The Wisdom Council should be continued as a K-8
process.
·
Identify curriculum programs that promote
continuity between the elementary and middle school, like sports, arts programs
and science fairs.
-
With other schools in
the area
-
Among Seattle’s
alternative schools
-
Within the Ballard
community
-
As part of the
Seattle School District, and
-
With the Seattle
Education Association
These
opportunities will serve to enrich our children’s lives by giving back to,
learning from, and strengthening ties with the greater community.
We share these ideas
and goals in the spirit of being role models for our children, recognizing that
open communication, involved parents, and active citizenship model the kind of
citizens we want our children be as a result of their education here at Salmon
Bay.
February Wisdom
Council
As parents, we recognize that for this school to
be more successful, we need to raise more dollars to fund projects that we and
teachers find important to support our mission, such as a school wide band, a
K-8 arts program, etc.
We put forward three
committees to explore each of these ideas further. Point people from our Wisdom
Council have agreed to spearhead continuing conversation that will both utilize
existing resources and work that has already been done and invite community
members to contribute their own ideas and skills to the effort.
·
Angie Kilkenny will
spearhead the Communications effort, getting to work on creating an “About
Salmon Bay” Reference Guide and figuring out who and how to formalize the
“Buddy System.” Andy, Lynn, and Jeff have agreed to explore the technology
aspect of putting the reference guide online.
·
Eric Bass will
spearhead continued conversation about the “Salmon Bay Way” – our vision and
philosophy.
·
Andy Grow will spearhead
continued conversation about Salmon Bay’s role in the greater community.
We also recommend to
the Wisdom Council conveners the following opportunities to disseminate the
results of the Wisdom Council and invite participation from the community:
·
Publishing an article
about the experience, including the statements and a call to action, in the
Fishwrapper
·
Publishing the
statements and a call to action on the school website
·
Using the phone tree
to encourage people to read the statements or watch the community meeting
video, and get involved
·
Putting up posters at
school
·
Sending the
statements and a call to action home in the Kid Mail
We encourage any of
you who are interested in continuing this work with us to sign up for any of
our three committees.