The Clayville Chronicle
February 2019 Edition
From The Desk of Mrs. Francis
The dedicated teaching staff at Clayville School recently participated in our second Data Day of the school year! During these meetings, grade level teams, including our specialists, analyzed student achievement data in order to effectively plan for instruction. This type of planning requires teamwork, and leads to powerful changes for our students. Our teaching assistants also play a large role in supporting instruction to meet the needs of all learners.
Further, our most recent faculty meeting was centered around RICAS scores. As a team, we celebrated successes and identified areas of need to improve student outcomes. I am proud to be part of a team that is committed to continuous improvement for our students!
Thank you for your ongoing support of our hard-working teaching staff. We look forward to continuing our strong partnership with families as we enter the second half of the year. 5 stars here we come!
Best,
Courtney Francis
Announcements & Reminders
- When possible, students will have outdoor recess during the winter months. Students should come dressed and prepared for outside recess for as long as 30 minutes.
- District Policy requires all parents and school volunteers to maintain a current BCI check and to RENEW all BCI checks yearly prior to volunteering in classrooms/school or field trip activities. Please contact the school office if you are in need of a form.
Parent Tips for Building Math Skills At Home
Communicating with Children Using Math Language
Talking About Math:
Talking about mathematics with your child – whatever his or her age – helps strengthen his or her mathematical reasoning and understanding. Some ways to keep the talk engaged and focused while you support your child include:
Revoice - Repeat what you heard your child say, then ask for clarification (e.g., “So you are saying it’s an odd number?”).
Repeat/Restate – Ask your child to restate your reasoning (e.g., “Can you repeat what I said in your own words?”).
Reason – Ask your child to apply his or her own reasoning to someone else’s reasoning (e.g., “Do you agree or disagree? Tell me why.”).
Adding On – Prompt your child to participate further (e.g., “What more would you add to that?”).
Think Time – Wait several seconds (try five) to give your child time to think (e.g., “Take some time to think.”). You may be surprised by how hard it is to stay silent in that time!
Everyday Mathematics:
Daily Decisions
We all use mathematics daily in what we do. Involve your child in using numbers to solve problems and make those everyday decisions with you. For example:
- “Do we have enough plates and utensils for all the guests coming for the birthday party?”
- “We are doubling this recipe. How much of all the ingredients will we need?”
- “We are fertilizing the lawn. The fertilizer bag covers three square meters. How many will we need?”
- “This store is selling the game you want for 20% off of $27.00. That store is selling the same game for $19.99. Where should we shop?”
Growth Mindset in Math
In general, a growth mindset is the belief that intelligence and ‘smartness’ can also be learned and that the brain grows from experience and effort. The opposite, a fixed mindset, is the idea that you are smart, or you are not. In math, that translates into “some people are good at math, and some are not.” Did you know that praising efforts rather than intelligence or results can impact your child’s ability to persevere in challenges?! The goal is to have children thrive on challenges and see failures, not as a sign of low intelligence, but as a learning opportunity. Brain research tells us that making mistakes actually wires more connections into the brain! When a person has a growth mindset, they accept challenges, see their efforts as worthwhile, and are open to learning from mistakes. Students with a growth mindset achieve at higher levels than those with fixed mindsets. How can you help? Some simple ways:
- Adding “yet” when they claim they are “not good at this” (Respond: “You are not good at this yet.”)
- Ask questions that focus on their effort and choices and get them to reflect on satisfaction of that effort (e.g. What did you learn today? What mistake did you make that taught you something? What did you try hard at today?)
- Model this yourself as you share about your day
Source: EduGains. Permission granted to school leaders to include these ideas in communications (e.g. newsletters, websites) with parents/guardians.
PAWSitive Office Referrals!
Tootles!
All Tootle Tickets and pictures of our PAWsitive Office Referral recipients are displayed in our cafeteria.
Core Value of the Month: HONESTY
January Attendance Winners!
As a reminder, during the course of the school year, we will host friendly competition to encourage students to come to school every day. The class with the best attendance rate for the month will get to "house" our mascot, Paws! In addition, students who have perfect attendance for the month will be entered into a raffle to win a special prize.
Congratulations to our January winners:
- Ms. Radtke's kindergarten class! Enjoy Paws!
- Jacob S. (K-2 winner) and Paige C. (3-5 winner). Enjoy your extra recess coupon!
All students get a fresh start for February
Surveyworks!
- SurveyWorks is a statewide survey sent out annually to students, families, and teachers to hear from Rhode Islanders directly about their experiences in our state's public schools.
- SurveyWorks will be given to all students in grades 3-12, parents, teachers, support professionals and building administrators.
- The Rhode Island Family Survey is for all parents to complete. For the second year in a row, parents of students receiving special education services will receive a single survey that combines the Rhode Island Family Survey and the Special Education Survey.
- Our Surveyworks window is scheduled for March 4th-15th. Survey codes will be distributed via email as the date approaches.
Library/Media Center Redesign!
The Clayville Technology Team is partnering with our PTO to redesign our library/media center! Our goal is to create a warm space where students and staff can access materials and resources to support curriculum needs. The redesign will keep STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) in mind, creating spaces for kids to design, present, and show what they know. Thanks to our Tech. Team, a plan is in place to begin the redesign! Here's the outline of the changes to come:
- The floor plan (below) shows the different sections of our new design
- New furniture (tables, chairs) will replace the old circular wooden tables/chairs. Stay tuned for the final decision - we are looking at modern furniture that can be arranged in different ways to allow for collaborative/creative grouping. Thanks to our PTO for covering this cost!
- A smart TV will be installed (fingers crossed that our Grant gets funded!)
- Flexible seating & new rug will be purchased using Scholastic Bucks
- Book characters & quotes will be painted on the walls. Students will vote on the characters and teachers will vote on the quotes
We look forward to our new and improved learning space!
District Wide Spelling Bee!
Best of luck to:
- 5th grade winner: Jaicee D.
- 5th grade alternate: Joshua A.
- 4th grade winner: Eve D.
- 4th grade alternate: Victor S.
Our Clayville representatives will compete in the District Bee on February 6th @ 6:30 p.m. in the Scituate High School auditorium.
Grade 3 - Hands on Mathematics Learning
Grade 4 Mathematicians
Readers Theatre in Grade 2!
Kindergarten Hibernation Projects
Balancing Work and Play in Grade 1!
Grade 5 Writers
STEAM Enrichment Highlight of the Month: Chess!
Robotics Club
We look forward to seeing Clayville, North Scituate and Hope School students put their skills to the test during the 2019 Scituate Elementary VEX IQ Tournament on March 21st! This event will consist of team work challenges and skills-both autonomous and driver controlled.
Cupcake Decorating Skills!
All Sports Skills!
High 5 Friday with Scituate High Cheerleading Squad!
Patriots (team) Spirit Days!
Scituate Kindergarten Registration for 2019-2020 School Year
- Children who will be five years old by September 1, 2019 are eligible to attend kindergarten in September 2019. The Scituate School Department requires registration for Kindergarten in Scituate.
- The registration date for Scituate elementary schools is Thursday, April 4, 2019.
- Parents of children scheduled to attend kindergarten this fall should contact the school of attendance so that a registration packet can be sent to you prior to the registration date.Parents/guardians of students whose last name begins with the letters A-L are asked to register between 9:30 AM and 10:30 AM.
- Parents/guardians of students whose last name begins with the letters M-Z are asked to register between 10:30 AM and 11:30 AM.
Clayville School: 3 George Washington Highway, Clayville
Phone: 647-4115
Hope School: 391 North Road, Hope
Phone: 821-3651
North Scituate School: 46 Institute Lane, North Scituate
Phone: 647-4110
If you have a question regarding which school your child will attend based on your address, please contact the Scituate School Department at 401-647-4100. Be advised that the Scituate School Department reserves the right to selectively redistrict your child to another Scituate elementary school based on class size issues. In most years this involves a relatively small number of students.
Further, if your child will not be five years old by September 1, 2019, but will turn five by October 1, 2019 and you desire to be considered for a waiver, you must do so by May 17, 2019.
Tips From Our Speech and Language Pathologists!
Strategies parents can use to support their child's best communication efforts:
Source: Teletalk
Notes from Nurse Lisa
Flu season is here! Protect yourself and your family this season with an annual flu vaccine for everyone in your family who is 6 months and older. The flu season runs from October-May, with most infections happening in January and February. It takes about two weeks after the vaccination for it to protect against the influenza virus, so if you haven’t already, now is the time to get your flu shot !
If your child is sick with a fever, vomiting or diarrhea, do not send him/her to school. Keep your sick child home for at least 24 hours after these symptoms go away.
Please talk to your children about washing their hands often, coughing into their sleeves or
tissue, not sharing their personal items (such as chapstick, drinks and food) and keeping their
hands out of their months, nose and eyes.
Let’s all work together to keep our school healthy and reduce the number of days both staff and students are out because of sickness.
PTO Update
News from the Scituate School Committee
Dates to Remember:
- 2/1: Kindergarten Hibernation Presentations @ 2 p.m.
- 2/5, 2/12, 2/26: Robotics Club 3:10-4:15 p.m.
- 2/5, 2/12, 2/26: Yoga Skills 3:10-4:15
- 2/6: Spelling Bee @ 6:30 (SHS)
- 2/7: School Improvement Meeting @ 3:30
- 2/8: PTO's Valentine's Bingo Event 6:30-8:00 p.m.
- 2/11: PTO Restaurant Night @ Uncle Tony's (Johnston)
- 2/12: School Committee Meeting @ 7 p.m. (SHS)
- 2/13: PTO Meeting @ 6:30 p.m.
- 2/15: No School- Professional Development Day
- 2/18-2/19: No School - Winter Recess
- 2/21: PTO Playdate 3:10-4:10
- 2/22: Box Top Submission Deadline
- 2/28: Cupcake Decorating Skills 3:10-4:15
Stay in Touch!
Email: Courtney.Francis@ScituateSchoolsRI.net
Website: http://www.scituateri3.net/Clayville/
Location: 3 George Washington Highway, Clayville, RI, USA
Phone: 401-578-8477
Twitter: @Mrs_Francis7