NOTES FROM the OFFICE
12/4/19
DUNNING STUDENTS ARE RESPECTFUL, RESPONSIBLE, & READY TO LEARN
Traduções para todos os "Anotações do Office" estão disponíveis rolando até o final de cada newsletter e clicando na barra preta "Traduzir".
All previous Notes From the Office are available by using this LINK.
Tomorrow, Thursday 12/5, is an early release day.
Students will be dismissed at 1:05pm.
Lunch IS served.
If your child rides the bus, you can expect them to arrive at their stop approximately two and a half hours earlier than normal.
walsh fifth grade open house - tonight
Fifth grade parents, the Walsh Fifth Grade Open House is tonight, December 4th, 5:30-7:00 PM
care & share
We would like to match or exceed that for this month's Care & Share Collection. Please send in boxes of pancake mix. Also, please remember that this is a short month.
Thank you for your continued support.
spaghetti dinner
Saturday, December 7th, 4:00 - 7:30pm
$5 per person or $25 per family
Please come and enjoy a delicious pasta dinner from some local Italian eateries. Spaghetti, meatballs, salad, bread, and some sumptuous desserts will be served. Gluten free options will be available. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the evening while our fabulous fifth grade students do all of the work.After dinner be sure to stroll the aisles of the book fair. 100% of the proceeds from this year's pasta dinner go to fund our fifth graders' trips and other end of the year activities.
Reservation forms will be going home in backpacks today or tomorrow, or you can download the form by clicking on the links below.
We want everyone to enjoy this wonderful feast. Scholarships are available to cover the cost. Please email Ms. Schecter (mschecter@framingham.k12.ma.us) if you would like a scholarship.
What are my kids writing in school?
Brett Berkman, Literacy Coach
At Dunning our students spend a lot of time writing! We know that the more they write, the better writers they will become. Students write in all subject areas. During Writing Workshop, we specifically teach three genres of writing.
Narrative: Narrative writing includes personal narratives (true stories about their lives), realistic fiction, and even poetry. We encourage students to write about “small moments” in their lives -- like that one time on the roller coaster -- as opposed to watermelon topics which would be the whole day at the amusement park. You can help your child at home by helping him/her notice the small moments that happen every day and encouraging him/her to write about it at school. Remember, it can be a small event that means a lot to your child (e.g looking for a lost toy, trying something new, getting caught in the rain, a special outing with a new friend).
Opinion: Your child may talk about writing an essay, a literary essay or a book review. This means they are doing opinion or argument writing. As they progress through the grades, the students learn how to support their opinions with reasons and specific evidence. Watch out - they are all getting very good at crafting convincing and viable arguments! They might just convince you to let them stay up later or finally get that dog!
Information: Even our kindergarten students are experts and write their very own teaching books! As students progress through the grades, they also add a research component to their information writing. Students make sure to support their main ideas with facts and information and try including different text features in their writing. In the upper grades, they also experiment with different text structures including cause and effect, problem solution, chronological, and compare/contrast. Everyone at Dunning learns a lot from our students’ information writing.
If you would like to see some examples of these different kinds of writing at each grade level, check out this website. The Massachusetts Department of Education put it together to answer the question, “What does good student writing at this grade level look like?” If you have any questions about writing instruction or want to share some of your child’s work, email me at bberkman@framingham.k12.ma.us.
winter, recess & clothing
At Dunning School, our goal is to get students outside to play during recess whenever it is possible. Though federal recess guidelines suggest letting the children outside when it is above 10 degrees fahrenheit, we have found that other variables such as precipitation, wind, and whether or not the sun is out play just as a significant a role with regards to children's safety and comfort levels. For instance, if the children have had indoor recess for several days in a row and there is no wind and the sun is shining but it is cold (15 degrees or so) we still may let the children outside to play; if it is 15 degrees, windy, and overcast with moisture in the air, we may instead have indoor recess. We make this judgement call each day just prior to recess time as our beloved New England weather can shift swiftly.
Parents can best prepare students by sending them to school each day with a warm winter coat, gloves, and a hat. If your child is in need of a coat or winter clothing, please let us know as we often get donations. We also have many warm clothes in our extensive Lost and Found area that children are welcome to borrow at any time.
When there is snow on the ground, children are allowed to play in the snow if they come in prepared with snow pants, snow boots, hats, gloves, and a winter coat.
Thanks for your support of our policies. Keeping the children safe is our #1 priority!
the book fair is here!
Thank you to Beth Last for organizing this year's book fair. Unfortunately, due to the snow days, it is only open for four days - today (Wednesday), Thursday, Friday, and Saturday during the pasta dinner, which we hope to see EVERYONE at!
fps Senior class annual wreath sale
The senior class at Framingham High School is selling holiday wreaths for the December 7th Holiday Marketplace at FHS. There are 12 inch wreaths available for $10, 14 inch wreaths available for $15, and 18 inch wreaths available for $20. Bows can be purchased for an additional $2 - $2.50 depending on the size of the wreath.
To order online, please click here to fill out the order form, and afterwards please click here to submit your online payment. Please do not forget to do either step as we cannot order a wreath for you unless both the order form and payment have been submitted. Please submit all orders by Wednesday, November 20th as we will stop accepting wreath orders after then.
Wreaths will be available for pick up at Framingham High School (115 A St.) on Saturday, December 7th at the Holiday Marketplace from 10am - 3pm. Please email Jake Benoit (jbenoit1442@fpsed.org) with any questions.
Thank you,
Class of 2020 Officers
k pre-registration - Welcome Class of 2033!
Online Pre-Registration is Open for Framingham Public Schools Class of 2033!
Parents can now begin the registration process for the incoming Kindergarteners for the 2020-2021 school year.
Families who have a child or children that will be five years old by August 31, 2020 are invited to pre-register their incoming Kindergarteners online. The Parent Information Center, located at 31 Flagg Drive – Door # 4A, has just opened the process that all families must go through before a child can begin their academic career in Framingham Public Schools.
Here is a snapshot of the Kindergarten registration process. Please visit https://www.framingham.k12.ma.us/kindergartenregistration to begin registration and for additional information including detailed steps and timing.
New this year: Parents / Guardians can book their registration appointment online after completing the online pre-registration form.
- Online pre-registration (Now - April 1, 2020)
- Schedule a registration appointment with the Parent Information Center after completing step #1. (December 2019 - April 1, 2020)
- Attend the Kindergarten Information Expo (Monday, January 13, 2020)
- Tour Elementary Schools (March 2020)
- Submit School Choice Form by Wednesday, April 8, 2020)
- Receive school assignment by May 15, 2020
- Attend Kindergarten Orientation on Monday, June 1, 2020
As always, the Parent Information Center welcomes parents to call or come in to the office with any questions. They are open year round and can be reached at the following times:
- Monday: 8:00am - 6:00pm**
- Tuesday through Friday: 8:00am - 4:00pm
- Closed on weekends
- ** Extended hours are available on regular school days only; Please check the FPS School Calendar for holidays and school closings.
Se habla Español / Falam Português
Framingham Public Schools looks forward to welcoming the class of 2033!
school hours
School Hours 9:15am - 3:30pm
Students are welcome to begin arriving at school at 9:00 am, when teachers will be present to greet them.
Early Release Days
- Students are dismissed at 1:05pm.
- Lunch IS served.
- If your child rides the bus, you can expect them to arrive at their stop approximately two and a half hours earlier than normal.
- Early Release Thursdays: 10/17, 10/24, 10/31, 11/7, 12/5, 3/5, 4/30, 5/7, 5/14, 5/21, 5/28
Half Days
- Students are dismissed at 12:30pm.
- Lunch IS NOT served.
- If your child rides the bus, you can expect them to arrive at their stop three hours earlier than normal.
- Half Days: 11/27 and the last day of school.
sign up deadline for stop & shop rewards is january
Please check the calendar each Notes From the Office as dates may be changed and/or added.
Wednesday, 12/4
- Book Fair
- Walsh Fifth Grade Open House, 5:30-7:00 PM
- Book Fair
- Early Release. Students are dismissed at 1:05pm. Lunch IS served
- Book Fair
- First Grade - Ocean World in House Field Trip
- Last Day of Book Fair
- Pasta Dinner, 4:00 - 7:30pm
- PTO Teacher Appreciation Coffee & Dessert
- Readathon
- Winterfest
- No School - Winer Recess
- School Resumes
- Third Grade Wampanoag Visit - In House
Thursday, 1/16
- Family Literacy and Math Night, 6:30-8:30pm
Monday, 1/20
- No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Friday, 1/24
- Family Movie Night, 6:30 - 8:30pm
care and share
The Jane Shapiro Care and Share began in 1995 as a Dunning School community service project. Each month a specific food item is collected at the school to help keep A Place to Turn's shelves stocked. What a great sharing and learning project! Donations are gathered up by the students and then with help from staff, they are delivered to A Place to Turn. Learn more about A Place to Turn here.
Thank you for your contributions to A Place to Turn during the year. Our monthly food collection makes a huge difference in our community, while teaching our students the importance of giving.
- December: Pancake Mix
- January: Canned Fruit
- February: Rice
- March: Crackers
- April: Spaghetti
- May: Juice Boxes
- June: Cans of Tuna Fish
NO Homework Days
- January 30, 2020
- April 30, 2020
November Distribution Flyers
- Framingham Youth Hockey
- Nick Cerio's Kempo Karate
- StarFun Theater Camp
- Performance Art Center of Metrowest
- Framingham Parks and Recreation
- Suburban Athletic Programs
- Holiday Market Place
- Department of Public Works Open House
Visit the Dunning website
join the dunning pto fb page
follow us on twitter
december character trait - Responsibility
RESOURCES: