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School Wellness Weekly

January 6, 2022
New York City Department of Education teacher in a classroom wearing a mask with students sitting at their desk also wearing face masks.
Teacher-Leader Edition
Launching 2022 Professional Learning Opportunities
Building Community for Our Educators

Without a doubt, returning from the holiday break has been challenging for our school communities. However, Health Education and Physical Education teachers continue to do their best to help students learn the essential skills they need to keep themselves and others safe, healthy, and physically active during this ongoing pandemic and throughout their lives. 

No matter what, we remain dedicated to offering opportunities that meet educators’ professional learning needs, and committed to creating a sense of community for educators during this difficult time. Which is why we are excited to announce the official launch of our professional learning opportunities for 2022, including these highlights (scroll down for details): 

  • CTLE credit will be awarded for eligible Online Professional Learning Community (OPLC) sessions starting December 2021 
  • Save this date, January 31, 2022: Professional Development Day for grades 9-12 and 6-12 schools 
  • Join sessions in January to reengage your School Wellness Council and support your Condom Availability Program 
  • K-5/6 classroom teachers: Join Move-to-Improve workshops in January; PE teachers: share with your fellow classroom teachers! 
  • New session times for Bronx and Queens Physical Education OPLCs 

Educators know firsthand how important it is to focus on the social-emotional health and mental well-being of students right now. High-quality Health and Physical Education—and its deep connections to SEL—play a vital role in ensuring students are more resilient and are equipped with the lifelong skills they need to recover from trauma.  
New York City Department of Education teacher standing in front of a class teaching while wearing a face mask. Students are sitting apart and wearing face masks.

You are receiving this special issue of School Wellness Weekly: Teacher-Leader Edition, to ensure educators and school leaders get timely information about upcoming workshops and events from our Office.
 
All School Wellness Weekly subscribers whose self-reported profile information indicates they are educators and school leaders will receive this issue. Continue to read our traditional School Wellness Weekly issues for highlights of teachers and schools, and resources and opportunities for building the wellness community. Be sure to scroll to the bottom of this email, click “Update Profile,” and follow the quick and easy directions so that we have your most-up-to-date details.  

If you know other DOE educators who would like to receive this Teacher-Leader Edition, please forward this issue to them, and be sure they subscribe (opens in new window)!
Photo credit: New York City Department of Education
Notable
Save the Date! January 31, 2022 Professional Development Day for Grades 9-12 and 6-12 Schools  
Join the Office of School Wellness Programs to connect with other DOE secondary-level teachers and wellness champions in 90-minute webinar sessions designed to improve instruction in PE and Health Education and students’ well-being. Registration links coming soon in School Wellness Weekly! 
 
Reengage Your School Wellness Council in the New Year 
School Wellness Councils play key roles in the health and well-being of our school communities. Connect with other Wellness Champions during our School Wellness Council Best Practices session (opens in new window) on Tuesday, January 25, 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. to explore strategies to strengthen your wellness council and tips for engaging your school community—including students—through wellness councils. 

Calling All High Schools: Get Your Staff CAP-Certified in 2022
Support your school’s Condom Availability Program (CAP) (opens in new window), part of the DOE HIV/AIDS education program, by registering for this three-part series to learn how to provide your students with health resources, information, and referrals. Registration and attendance at all three sessions is required to become CAP-certified. Participants that have already completed the Helping Students Access Health Services webinar for non-CAP staff must only attend Session 1 and Session 2 to become CAP-certified. Visit the Professional Learning Catalog (opens in new window) for additional dates.

Health Education
Join content specialists for a series of Health Education professional learning opportunities this Spring designed to provide instructional best practices for comprehensive health education in grades K-12. Selected topics include: 

  • Skills Based Instruction (Health Ed Basics 1) 
  • Growth and Development for elementary students 
  • Inclusive Sexual Health Education for secondary students (Health Ed Basics 2) 
  • HIV/AIDS curriculum (Health Ed Basics 3) 
  • New Affirming Health Education classrooms (Health Ed Basics 4) 

Visit your grade band professional learning page and register for newly added sessions January to May! Bookmark these pages for access to on-demand webinars for viewing at any time and to register for live webinars on a variety of Health Education topics:  
Are You a New Health Education Teacher? 
The Health Ed Basics 1 series is recommended for teachers who are new to skills-based Health Education or want to deepen their practice by moving beyond simply teaching health content to developing students' health skills. 
Join a Health Education Online Professional Learning Community (OPLC) on Monday, January 24 
Register now for Health Education Online Professional Learning Community (opens in new window) sessions on Monday, January 24, 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. Health Education teachers who participate in OPLCs enhance their leadership skills as they work with colleagues in ongoing, high-performing, collaborative teams that focus on improving student learning. CTLE credit will be awarded for eligible Online Professional Learning Community sessions. 

Physical Education
Join content specialists for a series of Physical Education professional learning opportunities designed to provide foundational concepts and skills for high-quality PE in grades K-12. PE teachers can select from several subtopics within: 

  • Health-Related Fitness (PE Basics 1) 
  • Unit Planning (PE Basics 2) 
  • Community Building (PE Basics 3) 

Visit your grade band professional learning page and register for newly added sessions January through May! Bookmark these pages for access to on-demand webinars for viewing at any time and to register for live webinars on a variety of Physical Education topics:  


January Highlights:  


Next Week! Start Off 2022 Right with PE Online Professional Learning Communities (OPLCs)
Register now for the next Physical Education Online Professional Learning Community (opens in new window) sessions for every borough on Monday, January 10 (see below for new times for Bronx and Queens). PE teachers who participate in OPLCs enhance their leadership skills as they work with colleagues in ongoing, high-performing, collaborative teams that focus on improving student learning. CTLE credit will be awarded for eligible Online Professional Learning Community sessions. 


Move-to-Improve All-Star Deadline is January 31: Register for Training Workshops Now!
Move-to-Improve (opens in new window) is the DOE’s free, classroom-based activity program for grades K-5/6 that provides students the opportunity to engage in physical activity throughout their instructional day. Move-to-Improve All-Star schools may also use Move-to-Improve activities to supplement their PE program. Bookmark the Move-to-Improve page (opens in new window) in the Professional Learning Catalog (opens in new window) to stay up to date. Schools have until January 31 to train teachers or attend a Move-to-Improve workshop to become an All-Star school for the 2021-2022 school year. 
PE teachers: Please share with your classroom teacher colleagues. So that more classroom teachers participate in the following sessions, only classroom teachers who have registered for these webinars are permitted to attend.