Melville Message Community Update
February 2, 2024
Melville Mission
In partnership with families and community, the mission of Melville Elementary School is to provide all students with a strong academic foundation through diverse and challenging instruction in a safe and nurturing environment enabling them to achieve their greatest potential while developing self-confidence, respect, responsibility, compassion and a love of learning.
Melville in the News!
Character Development Quote
Whaledone
A Great Week at Melville School!
Holly and Officer Wes as Guest Readers
Tex and Officer Guerriero as Guest Readers
Cup Stacking in K
Winter 2024 PSD Teaching & Learning Update
A note from Dr. Viveiros
Good Afternoon Portsmouth Community,
I hope this email finds you well. I wanted to share our Winter 2024 Teaching and Learning Update with you. As always, please reach out with any questions you may have.
Sincerely,
Liz Viveiros
Deputy Superintendent
100th day 2/6
MPTG Meeting 2/7 at 6PM
The Melville Parent Teacher Group will meet on Wednesday, February, 7th at 6PM in the Melville Cafeteria. This month the Portsmouth MIddle School team will join us and we invite parents of current 4th graders to complete this short questionnaire.
Football Friday
Family STEAM Festival 2/27
We are excited to announce that we will be hosting a Family STEAM night on Tuesday, February 27th from 5:30-7:00 pm. It will be a fun-filled evening with various STEAM challenges and demonstrations that both our students and their families can explore and engage in together.
We are also looking to add tables of professionals who are experts in the STEAM world and are interested in showcasing their STEAM profession. This is an excellent opportunity to expose students to a wide range of career possibilities. If you are working in a job that falls under STEAM and have something that you can either demonstrate or have small activities, and would like to participate in, please send an email to Margie Brennan at brennanm2@portsmouthschoolsri.org.
Unified Arts
Health with Nurse Trainor
This week, Nurse Trainor taught Kindergarten all about getting help when sick or hurt. Students learned that they can use their words and bodies to get help when they are hurt or feeling ill. They watched a demonstration of how to ask for help from a trusted adult and they listened to stories about kids who need help. Students practiced what they could say to ask for help in each situation.
PE
Art
This week in Art kindergarten and grade 1 students are using their primary colors to create still lifes inspired by apples and French Impressionist painter, Paul Cezanne. Grade 2 are creating 3-d penguins out of model magic! The third graders are studying the history of Greek Pottery and creating their own Greek inspired vases.
Health with Mrs. Powell
Today’s Health lesson focused on helping students make the personal choice to be tobacco and alcohol free. Students reviewed questions to ask themselves when making a decision.
Music
Glockenspiel week!!
Playing classic, pop, and improvised songs
Library
Volunteers Needed!
We have many opportunities coming this SPRING for families to volunteer.
- Whale of an Evening 5/3-CLICK HERE TO VOLUNTEER. For this event you do not need to be VIS Approved as this is an out of school adult only fund raising event (see flyer below).
- Jog-a-Thon 6/3- For this event you will need to be VIS approved. Sign up will be coming.
- Jog-a-Thon 6/3- For this event you will need to be VIS approved. Sign up will be coming.
Choose Love
Health and Wellness
A note from Nurse Trainor 🤮
Gentle reminder that students will need to stay home for 24 hours if they have vomiting and/or diarrhea as a symptom.
Support Rachel's Closet
Fund Raise While You Shop!
Please send in your Clement's Receipts. Our MPTG collets them and over the year Clements gives Melville back a percentage of what was spent. This year Clements gave our MPTG approximately $600!
Dressing for Recess in the Winter
We go outside as much as possible and we want our students to be safe, warm, and ready to play! Please help your children select weather appropriate clothing as we are in the coldest months of the year.
PSD is Hiring!
YEARBOOKS READY TO ORDER!
If you would like to order a yearbook then please do so by following this link and use the SCHOOL ID.
Yearbook Order: https://ybpay.lifetouch.com/
School ID: 12072424
If you do not order a yearbook, then we may not have enough available to purchase at the end of the school year when it comes out. We order some extra, but the only guarantee is to pre order, so I highly recommend ordering one ahead of time.
If you have a child in grade 4 and need financial assistance to purchase a yearbook, then please email me directly at lauried@portsmouthschoolsri.org and we will make sure your child gets a yearbook.
Feinstein Cards
You can learn more by visiting this site:https://feinsteinfoundation.org/jr-scholar-card.html
Drill Information
Fire drills occur on a regular basis. State law requires each school to conduct eleven fire drills, two lockdown drills and two evacuation drills each year. Shelter in Place drills are conducted throughout the school year. Children are given instruction on all procedures. Children are expected to behave in a calm, orderly manner during these exercises. Please review the importance of such exercises with your child and emphasize the need for appropriate behavior.
A lockdown is an alert to a school community that students and staff should not leave the classroom and should gather in one area of the room until provided with further direction.
An evacuation requires all students and staff to exit the building and meet at a designated safe place.
A shelter in place is an alert to a school community that movement outside of classrooms is being restricted for a brief period of time. It is typically used when a student or staff member is requiring some sort of attention (sometimes medical) and the school is trying to keep that area clear and/or protect that person’s privacy. If there were a serious safety concern the school would not issue a shelter in place.
We will send notification of lockdowns, evacuations, and shelter in place drills and events via email.
Here is the presentation that was shared at a Parent Safety Forum that was hosted in conjunction with the Police and Fire Departments. The Run, Hide, Fight FBI philosophy guides our safety training.
The P3 Sandy Hook Promise Anonymous tip line is a resource that we encourage anyone to use if there is ever an immediate safety concern.
Volunteers
MAIN OFFICE EMAIL ACCOUNT!
Please use meloffice@portsmouthschoolsri.org to notify the main office of changes to your child's dismissal routine or of your child's absence.
Help us to Celebrate our Students!
Planet Aid
Our Food Pantry is Always Open!
In keeping with the spirit of giving, our Feinstein Jr. Scholars are excited to start an in-school food pantry that our students and families can donate to and access when needed.
Please help us as we continue to support our community by sending in food items with your child from time to time. Please email
Mrs. Powell: powelld@portsmouthschoolsri.org or
Mrs. Pascoe: pascoen@portsmouthschoolsri.org
if you would like to access our food pantry during the school year.
Securly Home
Securly Home is an app that allows parents to monitor their child’s Chromebook activity at home and add rules for home use. Please take some time to review the slideshow from the informational parent meeting hosted for families.
We encourage you to sign up now for Securly Home!
Community Resources
Important Dates
February
7th-MPTG Monthly Meeting, 6PM-7PM, Melville Library
8th-Parent Teacher Conferences 3:30-6:30
19th–Presidents’ Day
19th-23rd –Winter Recess (No School)
27th-Family STEAM Festival
March
12th–End of Trimester 2
13th--MPTG Monthly Meeting, 6PM-7PM, Melville Library
14th & 15th- Grade 3 Seal Watch Field Trip (date to attend per class TBD)
29th–Good Friday (No school)
April
2nd–Staff Professional Development Day (No School for Students)
10th-MPTG Monthly Meeting, 6PM-7PM, Melville Library
15th-19th– Spring Recess (No School)
May
3rd -Whale of an Evening (more information to follow)
6th-10th-Teacher and Staff Appreciation Week
8th--MPTG Monthly Meeting, 6PM-7PM, Melville Library
16th - TBD tentative date for Spring Parent Teacher Conferences 3:30-6:30
21st-Fun Run (rain date 5/23)
24th-Grade 4 Field Trip
27th-Memorial Day (No School)
29th-Grade 2 Family & Caregiver Celebration
30th-Kindergarten Family & Caregiver Celebration
31st-Grade 3 Wax Museum and Family & Caregiver End of Year Event
June
3rd-Field Day (rain date 6/4)
5th-Grade 1 Family & Caregiver Celebration
6th-Grade 4 visits PMS
6th-Casey Farm Field Trip
6th-Pre Kindergarten Graduation
7th–PHS Graduation (Tentative Date)
12th-FINAL MPTG Meeting, 6PM-7PM, Melville Library
13th-Grade 4 Stepping Up Ceremony with Family & Caregivers
14th- or 180th day – Last Day of School – All Students
17th,18th, 20th, 21st– Snow Makeup Days
19th – Juneteenth (No School)
Melville Elementary School
Email: lauried@portsmouthschoolsri.org
Website: https://www.portsmouthschoolsri.org/Domain/11
Location: 1351 West Main Road, Portsmouth, RI, USA
Phone: 4016831650
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009159177892
Twitter: @MelvilleSchool