Together We Can
December 12, 2022

Wow! This will be last newsletter of the 2022 calendar year. This year has been full of positive change. We started our kindergarten and first grade co-teaching and Unique Learner program at Cos Cob School, training for all of our elementary and middle school special education teachers and speech and language specialists in the Visualize and Verbalize reading comprehension program, and expanded our co-teaching at the high school is just a few fantastic things going on around the District!
Take a look below at all of the great things happening around our schools as we get ready to close out 2022!
Have a wonderful winter break and a happy New Year.
Best,
Stacey Heiligenthaler, Ph.D.
Chief Officer of Special Education and Student Supports
What We Are Seeing 👀 Around the Schools
Co-Taught Math at Western MS
Mrs. Olyha and Mrs. Fitzsimmon's eighth grade co-taught math class at Western Middle School is reviewing for an upcoming math test. Students have learned about transformations (e.g. dilations) and have applied reasoning, analyzed relationships, and used strategies to solve real life problems.
Gingerbread Contest at GHS
Students at Greenwich High School participated in teams of four creating these amazing gingerbread houses. Over 100 students participated in this annual holiday event, sponsored by Student Activities.
Workshops and Resources

How is my child’s school doing? Using information from the EdSight portal to understand school and district performance. Join CPAC for a virtual interactive learning session for parents and families on December 14, 5:00-6:00 PM.
Inclusion Corner by Rachel Rubin
HI I am Rachel Rubin, GPS’s new Inclusion Specialist.
As part of the Special Education and Student Supports Team, I work across the district with the overall goal of my role is to ensure ALL students are getting the most inclusive, equitable, and impactful support as possible. As GPS prioritizes inclusion, it is important that families and community members, along with their students and GPS staff, are learning about aspects of co-teaching, inclusion, and neurodiversity.
It is my goal to provide a variety of resources and engagement opportunities to help families better understand what it means to be inclusive. I would also like to know what all of you want to know. Please take a few minutes to complete this survey. Each month I will be sharing some resources with you. To start, let’s build our shared language of what inclusion means.
Fall 2022 Progress Reports
At each marking period, progress on IEP goals and objectives are sent out to families. For this fall marking period, due to the change in IEP systems, there will be a slight delay and progress reports will be sent out to families no later than the start of winter break. Thank you for your patience and understanding as the District transitions to the new state IEP system
