North Scituate Elementary School
April 2021 Newsletter
A note from Mrs. Soccio
Welcome, April, and the start of our final trimester of the 2020-2021 school year! The second trimester ended on March 23rd, and report cards will be sent home on Tuesday, April 6th. A Bridges Math report will be sent home with Kindergarten and Grade 1 students. All students in grades 1-4 will be sent home with an IRLA Home Update as part of our American Reading Company curriculum. If you have any questions about your child's report card or progress, please contact his/her teacher directly.
You may have noticed some changes to the front of our building. Our PTO has organized and funded, with the generous help and donations from Mr. Warner and Central Nurseries, to re-design and make improvements to our greenery out front. This project will be completed in the coming weeks. We are all looking forward to seeing this project's completion.
I have begun to work with Shannon Donovan and Scituate High School to update our raised beds outside of classrooms and have a plan in place for planting in the coming weeks. Students and teachers are excited to grow plants and vegetables outside their classrooms.
Our school department has immediate openings for part-time and full-time bus monitors. Please call 647-4100 for an application.
It will soon be time to begin planning for the 2021-2022 school year! We will be discussing classroom placement, and the faculty, staff and I will spend time considering each student's strengths and needs. The focus will be on ensuring balanced classrooms that are conducive to an optimal teaching and learning environment. Academic performance, learning styles, social and emotional growth, and a variety of other factors will be considered. If there are any special considerations about your child that you would like to make sure we take into account throughout this process, please do so in writing no later than May 1st. Due to fluctuating enrollment, classroom consolidation and/or additions, placement adjustments may occur prior to the start of school.
Please reach out with questions or concerns at any time.
Kaitlin M. Soccio, Principal
Reminders
- All pets must be leashed at drop off and dismissal. We have students will allergies and fears, so please be mindful and socially distance.
- As the warm weather approaches, please be sure to pack your child a refillable water bottle with his/her name on it. Students will be going outside more frequently for learning opportunities.
- Drop off is at 8:35am each morning. If you are driving your children up, they must exit the passenger side of the vehicle and require no assistance from a parent.
- Our school playground is CLOSED between 8:35am- 3:00pm as school is in session.
Dental Screening Survey
Due to the challenges of conducting an annual school dental screening clinic during the present COVID-19 pandemic, the Rhode Island Department of Health has decided that an electronic dental survey for parents can be used in place of the traditional screening for this year, 2020/2021. Please see the link below to access the dental survey.
The hope is that this survey will help identify families that need a dental health provider. With the information obtained, we can make referrals for families to dental health professionals and clinics that meet their needs.
Traditional dental screenings by school dentists will be done as required in the 2021-2022 school year. Yellow dental cards will be sent home in June for appointments students may have during the summer or early fall and winter. A waiver form will also be available prior to the annual dental screening, which is held in February.
Spring Allergies and Covid-19
Spring is now upon us and students with spring seasonal allergies are developing symptoms, such as nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throats, sneezing and itchy eyes. Seasonal allergies and Covid-19 share many of the same symptoms which complicates the ability to differentiate between the two.
As you can see from the Venn diagram below, only two symptoms, itchy/watery eyes and sneezing are exclusive to allergies. The majority of the symptoms are shared between Covid-19 and seasonal allergies.
If your child has seasonal allergies, it is advisable to contact your child’s pediatrician or allergy specialist, to develop a plan, which may include medication, to control the symptoms of their allergies.
If a student complains or exhibits any two of the symptoms that are common with Covid-19 infections and seasonal allergies, they will need to leave school and test for Covid-19 infection, or remain home for 10 days. If only one symptom is present, the student may return to school once the symptom is gone, or once the symptom is controlled with allergy medication.
This guidance has been provided to schools from The RI Department of Health.
Thank you for your continued understanding and patience as we navigate this allergy season during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sincerely,
Mrs. McCann
RICAS Testing
Grade 3 will be testing April 27th-30th. On the Friday after testing is complete, our staff and PTO will be organizing a celebration for the afternoon. This celebration will involve pizza, a treat, and extra recess for students who complete testing.
Parents: Please keep an eye out for a notice going home regarding writing notes to your child for testing week.
Families, please ensure your child has a healthy breakfast, brain food snacks, and encouragement to try their best.
Feinstein Challenge
Please help us with our next challenge- Junior Scholar Food Pantry. Once these two challenges are completed our school will earn $2,000.00 from Mr. Feinstein.
Character Contest
Kindergarten: Fallyn O. (winner) Ellyana G. (runner-up)
1st Grade: Colton S. (winner) Sylvia W. (runner-up)
2nd Grade: Amelia K. (winner) Paige D. (runner-up)
3rd Grade: Cody D. (winner) Austin M. (runner-up)
4th Grade: Gene O. (winner) Elliott K. (runner-up)
5th Grade: Sophia M. (winner) Logan W. (runner-up)
School Improvement Team Members Welcome
Please email me (Kaitlin.Soccio@ScituateSchoolsRI.net) directly if you are interested in serving on this important committee. Meetings will take place no less than quarterly.
Positive Office Referrals
February Reading Challenge Winners
In February, students had three weeks to read as many steps (15 minutes of reading) as they could. Students recorded the books they read on their challenge sheet. For every hour read, students received a raffle ticket that could be used towards a gift card, raffle basket, or the grand prize of a bike. Huge thank you to Expressos and Moose Trackers for their gift card donations to support this challenge.
Our Kindergarten students who completed their entire reading choice board of 25 books: Dominic Santilli, Robbie Francazio, Casey Davis, and Antonio Woodhead.
Grade 4 Reading Group
GRADE LEVEL HIGHLIGHTS
Kindergarten
Grade 1
Grade 2
Grade 3
Grade 4
Grade 5
Art with Ms.Davis
Meet our new Social Worker- Ms. Ricci
A Message from the School Psychologist
Good Sportsmanship
Spring is here and many spring sports and outdoor activities will be starting soon! Good sportsmanship is when teammates, opponents, coaches, officials and parents treat each other with respect. Kids learn the basics of sportsmanship from adults in their lives, especially their parents and coaches. Kids who see adults behaving in a sportsmanlike way come to understand that the real winners in sports are those who know how to persevere and to behave with dignity-whether they win or lose a game.
Parents can help their kids understand that good sportsmanship includes small gestures such as shaking hands after a game or saying congratulations to the winning team. Remember, actions speak louder than words! This is especially true when it comes to teaching your kids the basics of good sportsmanship. Your behavior during practices and games will influence them more than any pep talk or lecture you give them.
Here are some suggestions on how to build sportsmanship in your children:
Unless you are coaching your child’s team, you need to remember that you are the parent. Shout words of encouragement, not direction from the sideline.
If you are your child’s coach, don’t expect too much out of your own child. Don’t be harder on him or her than anyone one else on the team, and don’t play favorites either.
Keep your comments positive!
Try not to focus on the win or lose. After the game ask your child, "How did you feel during the game?" If your child feels weak in a particular area offer to work on practicing that skill with his/her together before the next game.
Applaud good plays no matter who makes them.
Look for examples of good sportsmanship in professional athletes and point them out to your child.
Finally, don’t forget to have fun. Even if your child isn’t the star, enjoy the game and think about all of the benefits your child is gaining such as new skills, new friends and a positive attitude that can help them all through life.
Mrs. Schiappa, MA, CAGS
School Psychologist
PTO 2021 Fundraiser
Thank you for your support on our restaurant fundraisers!
- Sonic $250.16
- Chelo's $297.00
Calendar Raffle: Congratulations to all the raffle winners. We will be in touch soon for arrangements for prize pickup. All water bottles have been distributed to students who sold at least five tickets. Thank you to EVERYONE for making this fundraiser so successful!
As many of you have seen, we have some works in progress:
Front Landscape - Thank you to Mr. Warner for his landscaping expertise and leading this project. Thank you to all the parent volunteers who assisted him. We would also like to express our gratitude to Mr. & Mrs. Pagliarini for their generous donation of the new shrubs that will be planted soon. We greatly appreciate it!
Picnic Tables- We have ordered four picnic tables for the play yard in back of the school. Once assembled and installed, we hope students can do some more outdoor learning and eating!
Scituate School Committee
Important Dates
- April 2nd: No School- Good Friday!
- April 15th: Spring Picture Day
- April 12th-15th: RICAS Testing ELA/Math Grades 4 & 5
- April 19th-23rd: No School-April Vacation
- April 27th-30th: RICAS Testing ELA/Math Grade 3
- May 3rd-6th: RICAS Testing Distance Learning Students Gr. 3-5
- May 3rd-21st: Pennies for Patients
- May 11th & 12th: NGSA Science Testing
- May 13th: No School-Eid al-Fitr/ PD for Staff
- May 17th: Distance Learning Day Students/PD for Staff
- May 24th-28th: Scholastic Book Fair
North Scituate Elementary School
Email: kaitlin.soccio@scituateschoolri.net
Website: https://nses.scituateschoolsri.net/
Location: 46 Institute Lane, Scituate, RI, USA
Phone: 401-647-4110
Twitter: @NScituateSchool