Principal's Message

________________________________________________

5/9/22

Destin Elementary Family,

Good day DESTIN DOLPHINS! The time of the year that our students have been preparing for is here! Our 3rd and 4th graders are working hard to do their best on their FSA assessments. Our students are focused on showing what they know and all students and staff have been doing a fantastic job of creating a great testing environment. Our KG - 2nd grade students are also preparing for and completing the third round of iReady Diagnostics to measure their growth this year. Wish all of our students good luck as they finish up assessments this school year. Thank you to all of the volunteers that we have working on campus. From the lunchroom, to the grounds upkeep, the classroom deep cleans, to the curriculum support, we appreciate you! While it is not an overnight transition, facility upgrades are occurring or in the planning stages as I type, to include: playground upgrades (replacement of sand in playground areas), technology and infrastructure upgrades (internal tech infrastructure and Smart Board purchases), Safety and Security Upgrades, and Facility Expansion to name a few. As these upgrades and changes are implemented, we plan to remain steadfast in providing the top quality instruction this community has always expected. Our data tracking has shown growth across all grade levels in both Reading and Math! Our staff is working hard to grow as professionals to address the needs of students in every area and are the right staff for the job! Please continue to communicate with your teachers any needs or concerns you may have. We are appreciative of the support that is provided at home! Please continue to help support your students growth by reading a minimum of 20 minutes each night!

Every year students and staff work to improve in all areas. Our big focus this year will be building off last year's theme of DIVE DEEP. As we continue to push our students to grow, we will be challenging them to EXPLORE THE DEEP by taking on rigorous content, having a growth mindset, and developing essential critical thinking skills! Recently implemented on campus is our new Critical Thinking Plan (CT 60) which is direct Critical Thinking Instruction in the classroom as well as implementation of, InfiniD- a Critical Thinking based program aligned to current educational standards. Please see the information below for important updates.

STATE CHAMPS- ARCHERY TEAM

Congratulations to our Archery Team for brining home the gold at the State Championships in Newberry, FL. We are proud of all of our Archers and Coaches for the great work this season. Additional congratulations to Claire Gentile who placed 1st overall for the girls and Colton Romeo (1st), CJ Hunter (2nd), and Weston Moore (4th) for all 4th grader boys!

Kindergarten and New Student 2022-2023 Registration

Kindergarten and new student registration for the 2022-2023 School Year opens Tuesday, February 22nd. The Okaloosa County School District is in the process of transitioning to a new Student Information System called FOCUS. Registration for Kindergarten students, as well as other new students to Okaloosa County public schools, will be conducted through FOCUS. Parents will be asked to create a FOCUS Parent Portal account and complete the registration process for their child. Parents can complete this process on their own device with internet access, or they can go to the front office of the school they are registering for and use the kiosk provided specifically for kindergarten registration. Once the online registration process is complete, parents will need to bring their Driver’s License and their child’s birth certificate to the school to complete the process. The registration link will be live on our website on February 22nd. Please visit https://okaloosa.focusschoolsoftware.com/focus/auth/ to begin the process!

Florida Standardized Assessments (FSA)

Did you know that there are family and students resources available through the Florida Department of Education to prepare your child for the types of items on the FSA? There are both computerized and paper-based assessments in ELA reading, ELA writing, math, and science for your child to practice to become familiar with the test format. Visit the following website for additional information: https://fsassessments.org/families.html

COVID-19 PROTOCOL UPDATES

Please be aware of the District's COVID -19 Protocol Updates that have been released and updated as of Jan. 3rd, 2022.The update protocols are currently in effect. Please CLICK HERE for the most up-to-date practices that will be implemented in Okaloosa County School District.

Calendar Update:
May 9th and 10th

FSA- 4th MATH

May 13- KG Field Day
May 16- 1st Grade Field Day
May 17- 2nd Grade Field Day
May 18- 3rd Grade Field Day
May 19- 4th Grade Field Day

May 25th- 4th Grade Graduation

Please look out for more information from your student's teacher on the upcoming activities.

Feedback:

We want your feedback! Please check out our Parent and Community Climate Survey HERE!

Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI):

Teachers in our school are participating in a research study conducted by Florida State University to better understand how a professional learning program for teachers called Cognitively Guided Instruction impacts mathematics teaching and learning. You have the right to have your child’s information withheld from the study if you do not wish to participate. Please review the parental notification letter here for more information about the study. https://teachingisproblemsolving.org/parental-notification Please contact your students teacher directly for more information.

Transportation Update:

The District is using Bus Bulletin to send notifications to parents if there are unexpected delays or schedule changes involving a student's bus.If you would like to receive these notifications, please register at the Bus Bulletin website. For more information, view the Bus Bulletin flyer.

Community Reminders:

FOR FOOD FOR THOUGHT UPDATES: text OKALOOSA to 474747; email support@fftfl.org ; or call 850-714-1960

Thank you to all of our community members for being gracious neighbors and supporters. We want to send a big THANK YOU to the City of Destin for their role in helping maintain our facilities that truly enables us to be a community school. Please help us to continue to improve our facilities through proper usage and following all signage that is posted. Also, please remember to not park in our neighboring houses or on the side streets. We and they appreciate all of our families being good neighbors.

We hope that you and your family are doing well, staying safe, and healthy. Please let us know if there is anything we can do to support your family!

Joe Jannazo

***Por favor, comuníquese con la oficina principal para obtener asistencia con la traducción.***
***Por favor, entre em contato com o front office para suporte de tradução.***

HELP KEEP OUR CAMPUS SAFE BY CHECKING OUT THE RESOURCES AND LINKS BELOW!	WE ARE WORKING TO BECOME A PURPLE STAR CAMPUS. PLEASE CLICK BELOW TO CHECK OUT OUR MILITARY DEPENDENT RESOURCES!