The #DexterParkPride
Every Child. Every Day.
The Dexter Park Innovation School
Vision
At the Dexter Park Innovation School we celebrate each other’s differences and strive to meet the needs of all students through collaboration among staff, family, and community. By providing an inclusive, welcoming environment and sustainable instruction carried out with fidelity, we will nurture the whole child and meet individual needs. We believe all students can find success.
Mission Statement
The Dexter Park Innovation School will strive to provide an inclusive environment with instructional practices designed to meet individual needs. All students will be provided with differentiated educational opportunities to increase achievement. Our mission is for all students to gain skills, both academic and social, in order to be successful in the future.
Core Beliefs
We believe that all students who attend The Dexter Park Innovation School:
Can learn
Have a right to feel:
Safe
Welcome
Respected
Successful
Adult Community Guidelines
We will strive to recognize and respect the perspectives and ideas of all staff, while assuming we all have positive intent for our students.
We will work together to create an adult learning community in which all members feel valued and respected.
We will communicate our ideas, concerns, or needs for support openly, honestly, and respectfully.
We will help each other identify root causes of problems and consequences without judgement to problem solve as a team.
We will work together to create and protect time in our schedules to share, discuss, and collaborate with fellow educators.
"People Not Programs"
Visioning for Positive Change in 2018
Here are some examples that I have already seen across the building.
Congratulations are in order!
"If you want to give light to others, you have to glow yourself."
Field Trip Opportunity
Fablevision firmly believes that a well-educated student is not complete without less "test-able" skills, including the 4 Cs (plus 1): creativity, communication, collaboration, critical thinking — and compassion. They also believe in providing hands-on, meaningful, authentic learning experiences to help ALL learners realize their true potential.
These foundation skills are the building blocks upon which a lifetime of learning can be built. While the details of educational goals and outcomes vary from state to state and country to country, we all share this fundamental vision for students' success.
FableVision’s mission is to help educators inspire their students to develop and strengthen these essential skills. We will continue on our "200-year mission" to develop, discover, and share creative learning tools that help educators and students move their lives — and the world — to a better place.
I am looking to bring a small group of staff to Fablevision Studios in Boston on February 15th. We will have a chance to tour the studio and speak with staff about the personalized learning opportunities we can bring to the students at Dexter Park. Please let me know if you are interested.
Fundraisers to benefit Make a Wish Foundation and Special Olympics
Our North Star
Positive Behavior Support Update
Our Dexter Park Promises
Positive Phone Calls Home
Current phone call count= 25
We Want to Hear from You
Get Staff Updates to Your Phone!
Upcoming Events
February 5th: All school assemblies @ 1:30 and 2:00
February 7th: PBS Team @ 3:15 p.m.
February 8th: Innovation School Planning Team @ 3:15 p.m.
February 13th: Staff meeting @ 3:15 p.m.
February 19th-23nd: Winter Break
Quotes to Ponder (I have the full article if you'd like it)
"Don’t assume that every student understands the material just because no one asks a question.” Youki Terada
“So how can we feel satisfied delivering the usual academic experience – one that students, on the whole, can barely remember?” Chip Heath and Dan Heath
“On a daily basis, they are tripped up by three obstacles: lack of impulse control; thoughtlessness; and difficulty with forgiveness, or letting things go.” Kristin van Ogtrop on the difficulties experienced by a group of fourth graders, in “One Hope for the New Year: A Kinder Culture” in Time Magazine, January 15, 2018 (Vol. 191, #1, p. 55), http://ti.me/2B2fytJ
“Human resource research shows that the general interview has the least reliability in predicting future job success.” John Eller and Sheila Eller in “Recruiting, Hiring, and Retaining Teachers” in Principal, January/February 2018 (Vol. 97, #3, p. 44-45), http://bit.ly/2G6BM19
“The read-aloud is like the Swiss Army knife of literacy; it has multiple uses at every age and in every content area.” Laura Varlas
“[S]uicide is complex, and in the aftermath of suicide, no one person, and no one thing, is ever to blame.” Scott Poland and Richard Lieberman
Need Some Information?
About Us
Email: christopherdodge@orange-elem.org
Website: http://dexterparkprincipal.blogspot.com/
Location: 3 Dexter Street, Orange, MA, United States
Phone: 978-544-6080
Facebook: facebook.com/dexterparkinnovationschool
Twitter: @PrincipalDodge1