Edgewood's Tiger Talk
November 8, 2019
We are committed to our journey of developing EACH child to be an inspired learner and a caring, contributing citizen.
Art
5K Play
Art
Notes from the Principal (Mrs. Boyd)
- Loss of time with face to face contact with friends/peers due to time spent connecting/browsing/playing online is contributing to high reports of loneliness in adolescents and young adults. Yale's most popular course is now on happiness. (I mean, really? Kids at Yale need to learn to be happy? They've gotten into Yale for goodness sake!)
- One in 5 youth now meets the criteria for a mental health condition at some point in their lifetime.
- A new brain study showed a strong correlation between high levels of screen time and less brain development in preschoolers. Young brains build connections through human contact.
What are we to do with this information? As a parent, my first plan is to pack myself and my kids into a DeLorean, and go back to a simpler time with a rotary dial phone. But when that doesn't work, at school, we're working to:
- Build classrooms where each student is connected. Daily Morning Meetings are a big part of this.
- Focus on character traits like empathy, respect, and inclusivity, among others.
- Build relationships with each student, every year and over the years, both in the classroom and around the school.
At home, we can combat the problems by:
- Knowing that connecting online isn't the same as connecting face to face. Encourage play dates. If the kids spend some time playing Mario Kart together--fine. At least they're together. (And make them take a break at some point to do something else).
- Finding"tech free" times in your day, and spending time with one another during it.
- Designating"tech free zones" in your house/life--e.g. "No screens in the car", or "no screens in bedrooms."
- For children ages 2-5, limiting screen-time to 1 hour of high-quality programming and watching with them when you can to help them apply it to the world around them.
- For children over 6, setting limits, don't let it interfere with health/sleep/physical activity, and have ongoing conversations about digital citizenship.
Arrival and Dismissal
Arrival
- Pull down as far as you can so that more cars can get in to drop off students, even when it's cold or raining. The kids will be OK.
- Have kids prepared to hop out quick. If they don't have their mittens on, that's OK. They only have a short distance to go to get inside.
- If you choose to park, please be mindful that you may be trapped by cars for a brief period as we try to get more cars/buses in and out of the loop.
- If you are walking your child across the parking lot, please let cars go and stop to unload before crossing.
Dismissal
- You must call before 2:45 pm if you need to change dismissal plans for your child. Grabbing students off buses slows down the traffic, holding everyone up.
- Let the buses into the lot first. Kids are waiting outside to load the buses, and we want to get them out of the cold.
3rd Grade Writing
Uno is aweseome!
3rd Grade Writing
Snow Gear and Weather Reminders
Children without boots AND snowpants are only able to play on the blacktop. They cannot go into the snow. Experience has shown us that kids without snowpants who play in the snow get wet, and then want a change of clothes, which uses resources (time and clothing) in ways that are unnecessary.
In an effort to help students learn responsibility for their gear, if students are missing gear because they forgot it, we will loan them an item once. Some parents find that sending a bag with snow gear helps to have kids keep track of it. We also encourage you to label items with your child's name.
Edgewood Home and School Association (our version of PTO)
It has been a busy fall and numbers are rolling in from our fall fundraisers… Join us at our EHSA Meeting Tuesday, November 12th at 6:30 PM in the learning commons to get an update on our progress towards our school sign. Our EHSA treasurer, Jessica Horning, will have all of the details.
Coffee and Kringle fundraisers are due on Monday, November 11th. Pickup will be just in time for Thanksgiving. Monday, November 25th, 3:30-5:00 PM.
We are fortunate to have the Scholastic Bookfair at our school each fall and spring. With our Scholastic profits, teachers were able to shop for their classroom libraries, support staff purchased books for their needs, and Ms. Bush in the library found a few student favorites to add to the school library. Scholastic also gives cash profits that EHSA can use towards our school sign. Thank you for shopping!
EHSA runs similar events from year to year because they are successful. We welcome ideas for new events, or ideas to tweak the existing events. Please join us at our meetings as we plan events for the rest of the year and outline early next year. Your experience, feedback and suggestions will help make EHSA events even better!
Raise $ for Our Students by Doing What You'd Normally Do
Many of you shop on Amazon. Did you know that you can earn money for Edgewood's Home and School Association while doing it? You can give more $ to your child's school by doing what you'd do anyway!
1) Go to smile.amazon.com
2) Search for your charity: Edgewood Home and School Association, Inc."
3) This only works from the desktop site, not from the app.
Upcoming Dates
11/27-11/29: No School for Students--Thanksgiving
12/7: EHSA Pancake Breakfast with Santa & Santa's Workshop (shopping for kids), 9-11am
12/10: December EHSA Meeting, 6:30-7:30pm
12/19: Grades 3-5 Concert (time TBA)
12/23-1/1: Winter Break