Hi, my name is Amy Schneider, and I am the High School Science teacher and the Advocate for this year's Senior class. This is my is my eighth year teaching; after spending 15 years in Healthcare.
My philosophy in the classroom revolves around individual student-centered growth; I see each student as a unique individual and love to seem them grow and develop as such. While science is not always everyone’s favorite subject it is mine, and I bring a lot of passion for all areas of science to the classroom. I enjoy watching my students incorporate their passion areas into science and drawing connections that expand my perspective into the world of science. I enjoy when my students can also teach me a new way to approach a problem or a different perspective to utilize scientific inquiry.
When I am not in my classroom, I enjoy spending time with my husband Eric, three children Kyle, Quinn and Zoe and two dogs Belle and Ellie. We enjoy being outdoors exploring, watching the Denver Broncos and spending time with our extend family.
Welcome back, Wonderful Westgate Families! I hope you are excited for the year to begin!
We have quite a few beginning-of-year updates and reminders. Please take a moment to read through the email and reach out if you have questions. Take a close look at the schedule near the end to make sure your student is ready for the first two weeks.
Back to School Night: This will take place this Friday, August 4th (tomorrow) between 4:00 and 6:00 PM. The High School presentation will be down in the high school commons at 5:30. We will go over HS policies and procedures at that time.
New Assistant Principal: I have the great honor of announcing our new assistant principal, Alexia Vasilopoulos! She has already done amazing things for the high school, and we are excited to work with her this upcoming school year. Come say hello at back to school night!
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! We will be running mock interviews for Freshmen on Thursday, August 10th from roughly 9 to 11 AM and could use a hand! We need some community members willing to interview kids as if they were applying for a job. We will provide the questions (though feel free to add more), and volunteers will write notes or feedback to help the students in their future career hunts. Please reach out to myself or Alexia Vasilopoulos ([email protected]) if you would like to help.
Front Range Community College (FRCC): FRCC will begin on Monday, August 21st. Students will have an adjusted Westgate schedule for the first two weeks of school (see below).
Schedule (first two weeks):
That's a lot of information, so here is a table version!
*Seniors: Watch for an email from Amy Schneider with your CPR training day. You only need to attend Monday, Thursday, and the day of your CPR training. Non-FRCC seniors will be here every day, though will miss normal classes the day of their training.
School and High School Handbook: Please take a look at these with your student. The first link is for the whole-school handbook, and the second is for high school-specific information. We will go over policies at Back to School Night in more detail.
I believe that's everything! As always, please reach out if you have any questions. See you Friday!
Good afternoon!
Curriculum Night is this Thursday, August 25th! Here are the details for High School:
Virtual: 6:00 - 7:00 For this part of the presentation, tune in using the link below. Teachers will run through their curriculum for the year, and there will be a chance to ask questions. This will be recorded and distributed by our communications office if you would like to attend but are occupied.
Video link (through Microsoft Teams or an internet browser): https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_OTg5ZjIyNmUtZThhMC00YTU2LWFmYzItOWIzODQ5N2MwODgw%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%2250e4ad83-ece8-419f-8b1e-dd5ca618338d%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%22346b116e-ded8-44ad-916f-7f5f797416b1%22%7d
In case you need it, here's the login information:
Meeting ID: 232 313 505 619
Passcode: k6F3Fw
In-Person: 7:00 - 8:00 - Teachers will be in their classrooms and the high school pod for this part of the evening. Feel free to come by and hear a little bit about how we run our classrooms as well as more small-group conversations. This is not a time for conferences, but instead is designed to be an opportunity to hear more about what students are learning and how the high school runs on a day-to-day basis.
High school students will be taking a field trip to the Denver Art Museum. Students should arrive to Westgate and be picked up at their normal times. The field trip itself will run 9:30 to 2:30 with normal classes on either side.
Please use the link below to find more details and sign your student up for the field trip:
FRCC classes start next Tuesday the 18th.
Please feel free to reach out to me should you have any questions or concerns.
Please remember that masks are not optional at school and students should wear one each day, as well as bringing an extra in case of a mishap. Straps break, they get forgotten on the playground, and sometimes they just need to be replaced so having an extra is important. The school has extras in case of an emergency, but your help in sending them with your child each day will reduce the number of masks we are handing out every morning. Also, please remind your students that it should be worn over their mouth and nose at all times, unless they are eating or drinking.
On that note, please also remember to send a water bottle to school with your student as our drinking fountains are closed and we are going through hundreds of cups a day. We would very much like to reduce that amount of waste.
Thank you for your partnership and commitment to making our school safe!
After a crazy year, I can’t describe how excited I am to have students back in the classroom. Although open for things to change, I am hopeful that this year will run as normally as possible.
Here are a few updates/reminders for the beginning of the year. Please read each as a couple of things have changed from previous years:
School start date: 9th – 11th grades begin on August 2nd (Monday). Non-FRCC seniors also begin on August 2nd. Seniors enrolled at FRCC will begin attending Westgate on August 16th and will be here for the week’s duration.
Safety: We will continue to follow all guidelines from Tri-County health and all district policies. Currently, masks are not required, though non-vaccinated individuals are encouraged to wear them. We will continue washing our hands before and after lunch. Hand sanitizer is in every room, and students may use it whenever they like. Students will once again have the opportunity to work in groups.
Tech: This year, students will be allowed to bring their own laptops to school. The school is not responsible for the safety of those laptops, though, so students should be extra careful. Laptops and cellphones should only be in use when the teacher allows it. Please be sure to charge your computer overnight! If a student doesn’t bring their own device, they must check one out. They can keep it in their locker if they do not want to take it home.
Lunch: Adams12 is not charging for school lunches this year! If you would like school lunches for your student, please sign up on Westgate’s website. Students who attend FRCC will need to provide their own lunch on college days as the bus leaves promptly at 11:30. Online, you should still sign up for the full week – we take FRCC into account and will only deliver lunches on the day your students is here.
Similar to last year, students will not have access to a microwave at lunch.
Off-Campus Privileges: Sophomores, Juniors, and non-FRCC seniors may leave campus at lunch with parent/guardian permission. They must be back in class by the end of lunch (12:22). Students may NOT bring their food into class, so they should plan on eating while they are out.
Freshmen must remain on campus for lunch first semester. They may have off-campus privileges second semester with parent permission.
Please use this link to access the off-campus lunch opt-in form.
Lockers: Students will have the opportunity to claim a locker during the first week of school. Each locker has a built-in lock, so students do not need to provide them. Students will receive the code for their locker by the end of the first week.
I believe that about covers it. As always, please reach out if you have a question. I look forward to seeing everyone on MondayGood morning!
Semester 1 conferences are here! Please use the following link to sign up for a conference. Conferences will be held on Thursday, December 17th and on the morning of Friday, December 18th.
The link will be active until Friday, December 11th at 5 PM. You will receive Zoom information to access your conference around that same day.
Conference Signup Link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080E4DA9AF2AA2FE3-quarter5
We have a limited number of spots available, so please sign up quickly. Once all spots are full, we are unable to provide any other times to meet. We are also unable to accommodate anyone who tries to come into conferences without scheduling beforehand.
Each conference will last for 15 minutes. This is what you can expect when you arrive:
1) If you have questions or concerns, we will address those.
2) Each teacher will speak on how your student is doing in their class. If we are low on time after questions, any teachers who have seen your student struggling will speak first.
In order to keep our day running smoothly and ensure all those who signed up can meet with us, conferences will not last longer than 15 minutes. If you have questions at the end that have not been answered, please feel free to email your student’s advocate or individual subject teacher.
Best, and see you at conferences!
Amy Schneider
