NEW LEBANON SCHOOL
Weekly Updates
¿Necesita leer nuestro boletín en español?
Happy Saturday, Bobcat Families! Despite there being only two weeks of school left, New Leb has not slowed down. This past week, Mrs. Erin John (see below) was recognized as GPS's choice for CT State Teacher of the Year. We celebrated in style, with Superintendent Dr. Jones and Assistant Superintended Dr. Carabillo announcing the surprise moments after 1st grade wrapped up their Spring Show. As we wind down toward the end of the year, please take a moment to reflect - our IB Learner Profile Trait of June - on all that we have accomplished and have to be grateful for. Important Updates are below.
P.S. - next week is going to be HOT! Please apply sunscreen to your child before they come to school. We are not able to do so in school. Please also send them with water every day!
Our June IB Learner Profile Trait is Reflective!
The IB Learner profile aims to develop students who are reflective. Students who are reflective give thoughtful consideration to their own learning and experiences. They are able to assess and understand their strengths and limitations in order to support their learning and personal development. IB students have developed an ability to reflect on their learning and to articulate how they learn. They have learned that critical reflection is an important academic and life skill.
How can parents help to develop students who are reflective at home?
Have your child stop and think throughout the day about their behaviors. Assist him/her with focusing on the following prompts:
~Is what I'm doing appropriate? If so, explain why it is. If not, explain how it is not.
~How can I change my behavior? Have your child think of positive ways to make changes.
~Is the situation I am in a positive situation? If not, how can I make it a positive situation?
~Am I doing my best? Am I working my hardest?
Parents can model the above thinking process by talking aloud to themselves, ask and answer yourself these questions about things you are doing throughout your day. This way your child sees you working through the Reflection process, and can use your examples as their models to learn from.
* Model how to make mistakes, how to fail. And then, how to pick yourself up and dust yourself off. It's okay to make mistakes, making mistakes is part of learning. Being Reflective teaches us how to grow and learn from both mistakes and from positive experiences.
Apple Watches
Please remember that Apple Watches are devices, which are not permitted to be out at school during the day. When in doubt, please leave it at home!
The Bobcats voted, and Student Leadership is excited to report that we will have a Spirit week next week leading up to Field Day!
Monday: 6/5- Pajama Day!
Tuesday: 6/6- Crazy Hair Day!
Wednesday: 6/7- Wear Red, White, and Blue!
Thursday: 6/8-New Leb Spirit Wear!
Friday: 6/9-FIELD DAY!
*** T-shirts for Purple and Gold teams will be distributed!
Let's finish our incredible 2022-2023 with BOBCAT SPIRIT !!!!!
Field Day Schedule
ALL families are invited to join us for Field Day 2023. Please see the schedule below, so you know when your children are participating. Everyone is welcome to join us for lunch!
8:30-9:15 Opening Ceremony (Parade outside w/ banners, pledge, welcome, schedule)
9:15-11:15 PreK - 2nd Field Day Stations
*Pre-K is 9:15-10:15
11:15-11:45 Whole School Lunch on Field (All families are welcome to join and stay for lunch. Lunch is not provided for parents)
11:45-1:45 3rd - 5th Field Day Stations
1:45-2:35 Whole School Kickball Game
2:35-2:45 Announce Winner/Dismissal
Summer Device Opt-In Form for Grades K-5
If you wish to have your child take home their device for the summer, please complete THIS FORM for each child. Please note that the District has a very limited capacity to provide technical support for student devices over the summer.Families are fully responsible for their borrowed device over the summer. If complete responsibility is not desired, families are strongly cautioned not to have their child take a district device home for the summer.
Summer school students, including those in the Horizon program, WILL keep their devices.
5th Grade Graduation
Calling all 5th grade families! If you need MORE than 4 chairs for graduation on June 14th, please email Mrs. Michaelson at alexandra_michaelson@greenwich.k12.ct.us.
Summer Opportunities
Check out this awesome list of summer Opportunities, including scholarships. Please reach out to our School Social Worker, Sandra Corrente, for any support with summer opportunities.
Have a great weekend and GO BOBCATS!
Mrs. Michaelson & Mrs. Eisenstein
Important Upcoming Dates
June
Monday, June 5th: Harlem Wizards (in the gym): 9-9:45 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 10-10:45 PreK, K, 4th)
Monday, June 5th: Grade 3 to Bush Holly House
Tuesday, June 6th: High Touch High Tech, Grade 4
Wednesday, June 7th, 2:15pm - 2nd Grade IB Celebration (all parents invited)
Thursday, June 8: 5th Grade Exhibition
Friday, June 9: Field Day (Rain Date 6/12) - schedule above!
Friday, June 9th: LAST DAY of Literacy Afters
Tuesday, June 13th: 5th to Quassy
Tuesday, June 13th: Magic School Bus Lost in the Solar System Whole School Assembly in Gym
Wednesday, June 14: 5th Grade Graduation, 9am, party to follow (see below)
Thursday, June 15th, 12noon: Kindergarten Graduation
Friday, June 16th, 1pm: Pre-K Graduation
Monday, June 19: Last Day of School for Students, Early Release Day (B&G Club OPEN, all other afters CLOSED)
A Peek at our Week!
Erin John Selected as GPS Representative for 2024 Connecticut Teacher of the Year
Greenwich, CT, June 2, 2022 – Greenwich Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Toni Jones announced today that New Lebanon School’s Ms. Erin John is GPS’ selection for Connecticut State Department of Education’s 2024 Connecticut Teacher of the Year Program. She will be recognized at the Board of Education’s regularly scheduled business meeting on Wednesday, June 14 for this honor.
“Erin John is a vivacious and incredibly talented teacher who keeps her children engaged with early childhood transitions maximizing every minute of classroom instruction,” Dr. Jones said. “She represents the essence of why New Lebanon School was recognized this year by the State of Connecticut as a School of Distinction.
“She was amazing to watch during my classroom visit, as her non-stop energy had her students grinning from ear-to-ear as she challenged them to tackle math problems with quirky phrases she uses to build confidence and a positive classroom climate,” Jones added. “The children chimed in unison like a well orchestrated state championship team. Her students adore her and she has opened the window that learning should be challenging yet fun, collaborative, and supportive. Support specialists move in and out of her classroom without the students losing a beat. Every first year early childhood teacher should have the opportunity to watch her teach. It was a master class in excellence.”
“I am so honored to represent Greenwich Public Schools in the CT Teacher of the Year Program,” Ms. John said. “I hope that I have the opportunity to highlight what makes GPS so special: our teachers. We are educated, dedicated, and tenacious in our desire to help students grow. All of Connecticut deserves to know about our dynamic learning community in Greenwich.”
According to the Connecticut State Department of Education, the Teacher of the Year Program recognizes and honors teacher excellence. It does not attempt to select the “best” teacher; rather, to identify, from among many outstanding teachers of the year, one teacher to serve as a visible and vocal representative of what is best in the profession. The program celebrates excellence in teaching by recognizing teachers who have inspired a love for learning in their students and who have distinguished themselves in the profession.
“Erin John epitomizes the word 'distinguished' in every aspect,” New Lebanon Principal Alexandra Michaelson said. “Each moment in Erin's class is purposeful and planned. She wastes not a single minute from the second the bell rings to the moment she delivers a student to their bus or family. Her morning message is magnetic. She meshes academics, social emotional learning, and children's needs into a powerful message that is student-centered and often child led. Erin's focus on building the whole child is palpable. The words she chooses with children build their confidence, self-esteem, and independence. Erin inspires me to be a better educator every single day.”
Ms. John has been with GPS since 2012, first as a kindergarten teacher and now as first grade teacher at New Lebanon. She contributes on numerous teams and committees including the PTA Curriculum Enrichment Team, PBIS/Safe School Climate Team, and Social Committee as well as a presenter for the Magnet Open House. Ms. John received her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from the University of Maryland, a master’s in Classroom Technology from Wilkes University, and Sixth-Year Certificates in Inclusive Classroom Teaching and Motivation & Classroom Management from the University of La Verne.
For more information about the CT Teacher of the Year Program, including its history, purpose, benefits, eligibility requirements, selection process, and the duties of the Connecticut Teacher of the Year, visit the CSDE website.
New Leb ESL Field Trip to Eli Whitney Museum
New Leb ESL Field Trip to Eli Whitney Museum
New Leb ESL Field Trip to Eli Whitney Museum
1st Grade Performance: Season of Change
Our very own writer and producer, Mrs. Maurer
1st Grade Performance: Season of Change
Greenwich Police Department joined us for Bike Safety!
We learned how to be safe riding in the elements - like rain!
Greenwich Bike Safety Assembly
Check out what is in bloom!
4th grade paints their dioramas
New Leb Garden!
2nd Grade Preps for Field Day
1st Grade Visits Byram Shubert Library to get library cards for the summer
1st grade designs a garden in art
New Teacher Alert!
Hi New Lebanon Community! My name is Anna Catanzaro and I’m currently an Advanced Learning Teacher at Hamilton Avenue. Next year, I’ll be joining the New Lebanon community as a fourth grade teacher. After graduating from James Madison University with a MAT in teaching, I taught 5th grade for four years in Virginia. Prior to teaching for Greenwich Public Schools, I was a 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teacher at Waterside School in Stamford, CT. I was born and raised in Greenwich and am thrilled to work in the community that has given me so much. In addition to school teaching, I’ve also been teaching yoga for the past ten years and love incorporating movement & mindfulness in my classroom. While I’ll undoubtedly miss Hamilton Avenue, I look forward to being a homeroom teacher again and working at New Lebanon School!
5th grade graduation!
5th grade ib exhibition!
CT Open House Day! Check it out!
Glowing and Growing Together
Fostering Executive Functioning Skills and Responsibility in Children
Looking for Preschool options and Scholarships? See below!
5th grade families - free summer opportunity july 10-14!
5th grade families - summer opportunity below (scholarships available - see flyer)
FREE FUN AT THE AUDUBON!
What's For Lunch?
Remember, breakfast and lunch is FREE for all students at New Lebanon School!
Menu here: https://www.greenwichschools.org/departments/food-services/menus-and-meal-prices#MENU
WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE BYRAM SHUBERT LIBRARY?
Need to Reach Us?
Email: alexandra_michaelson@greenwich.k12.ct.us
Website: https://nls.greenwichschools.org/
Location: 25 Mead Avenue, Greenwich, CT, USA
Phone: 203-531-9139