A Little Bit About Me -  Hello, I’m Mrs. Sally Siegler and I’ve been the Guidance Counselor at Westwood since 1993.  In addition, I’ve been in the district in other capacities, as a Kindergarten and First Grade teacher, reading interventionist, and a resource room teacher for both learning disabilities and behavior disorders.  I reside in the community with my husband and both my children  are West Geauga grads that have returned to live and work in the Cleveland area.  At the moment my weekly schedule is shared with Lindsey Elementary in that I am at Westwood on M, T, TH, and F and at Lindsey on Wednesdays.   I continue to run small groups, meet individually with students, and teach classroom guidance.  At Lindsey I work with only the 4th and 5th graders.  For your questions or concerns, I can  be reached directly through the central school number 729-5990 (Westwood) and 729-5980 (Lindsey).

About the Intervention Assistance Team Process

At the elementary level we have an ongoing process to intervene with students who may be having difficulty progressing with academics and/or behavior.  The Intervention Assistance Team (IAT) meets weekly and includes the classroom teacher, psychologist, and guidance counselor as well as the principal, parents, and intervention specialists (i.e. Speech, OT, General Education and Special Education) as needed.  Our IAT process is data driven in that we gather information from previous years’ progress and interventions and compare that with current benchmarks and progress.  If needed, tiered interventions are available and are put into place.  These intervention and documentations of progress must be in place prior to any consideration of “testing” or special programming.

For the 2010-2011 school year, IAT meetings will be held on Tuesdays.  While I know that many of you have busy schedules, please know that we will do our best to send written notification well in advance if you will be needed at one of these meetings.  Thank you for your continued support and I hope that you and your child/children have a wonderful school year.  

Guidance Curriculum

In a bi-weekly rotation I will be teaching a pro-active guidance curriculum to each class at Westwood and the fourth and fifth grades at Lindsey.  The yearly focus involves appropriate themes of “respect for self and others” and bullying.  I incorporate these concepts into lessons by focusing on the child as a student, an individual, and a group participant.  Umbrella topics for these concepts are: (K) making and maintaining positive friendships, (1) naming and understanding feelings, (2) behavior (defined as actions, manners, and self control), (3) problem solving, (4) handling stress and conflict, (5) personal power (decision making, priorities, and goals).  Fifth grade also has an additional focus in the spring involving transition to the Middle School.

This year's Social Skill

This year the staff and students are focusing on noticing and giving positive feedback to those who are showing IMPROVEMENT in any academic or behavioral area.  Those caught showing improvement are mentioned during morning announcements and their “CAUGHT IMPROVING” slips are placed on the main bulletin board in the front hall for all to see.  Parents are welcome to “catch” their children at home as well.

The Parent's Corner – 

Over the course of my years in guidance I have collected many professional suggestions and tips for parenting.  This corner will feature some of those ideas.  If you have any questions or concerns about the information, please do not hesitate to call.

Tips on Gift-Giving and Receiving

 (summarization of an article printed in the REPORT TO PARENTS by the National Association of Elementary School Principals)

With the major holidays upon us, parents can face two challenges: how to pick perfect presents for their children - gifts that will be loved for years, not just hours - and more importantly, how to make sure their children are kind and grateful recipients, no matter what they get.  Here are some ideas to try.

1. Teach them what they are thanking people for.  What children need to learn is that the thanks they give is not necessarily for what is in the box but for the effort and caring that went into it.

2. Understand that disappointment is a part of life.  It is a guarantee that at some point your child is going to receive something he or she doesn't like or want.  Explain this to them ahead of time.  Laugh about some gifts you've gotten that were unusual.  Talk to about things you absolutely wanted in the worst way but then became unimportant.

3. When to write thanks, when to say thanks.  Let your children know that if a relative is in the room when they open their present, that a sincere face-to-face from you (and a hug) is great.  For everyone else, a thank you note is an absolute must.

4. When they're the "giver."  One of the best ways to help children realize the significance of giving is to make sure they spend time finding and wrapping the gifts they give to others.  Give them odd jobs to help them earn money to buy gifts.  Help them get excited about choosing just the right gift for each person.

5. Give to others.  Help your children help those less fortunate.  Save money for charity bell-ringers, adopt a less-fortunate child through anonymous giving programs, or work at a food kitchen.  Show your children that giving is more rewarding than receiving.

6. Give gifts that expand their interests.  Among the best gifts for children are things that introduce them to new activities:  origami, tie dying, model planes or cars, scrapbooking, photography, cooking or basic woodworking.

7. Look for presents to help them stay active.  Any kind of sports equipment helps kids have fun and get exercise.  Either give the child something you know he or she wants and needs (a new glove), or introduce him or her to a brand new sport (tennis racket and balls).

8. Practical gifts can be fun, too.  A sleeping bag for overnights, or a small overnight bag or suitcase can be wonderful presents.  Look for designs that will appeal to the child for years to come.

9. Spin the wheel, roll the dice, or deal the cards.  Card and board games are classics for a reasons - they have been fun to play for decades.  Look for games that children can play with just one or two others, as well as those that are for family-sized groups.

10. Open up to books.  When you give a child a book, you're giving both of you a present.  Younger children will enjoy the time they get to spend reading it with you.  Older kids will be quietly building their reading skills and vocabulary, as well as their imaginations.

If you're really stumped about gift-giving, talk to friends or relatives who have children slightly older than yours.  Ask what gifts their children really played with - gifts that lasted in appeal long after the "newness" wore off.

My heartfelt wishes for a MERRY CHRISTMAS, a HAPPY HANNUKAH, or a HAPPY KWANZA.  May the year 2011 be a happy, healthy, and peaceful NEW YEAR for you all.