MMM
11/25/19
Gary Mlinac (3rd)
Kelly Roberge (14th)
Sandy Duplessis (14th)
Deb Puumala (18th)
Kevin C. Lynch (19th)
Tara Haire (27th)
- I've been trying out Patterns of Power: Inviting Young Writers Into the Conventions of Language in 2 classrooms this week. Thanks for letting me try something new! The program is an interesting, new-ish way to teach grammar and conventions. So far, the students seem engaged and it's pretty easy to follow If you want to know more, feel free to reach out! Brett
- We survived our third five day week of school!
- Fourth and second grade technology buddies!
- Fifth graders made amazing and beautiful grateful jars!
Special Thanksgiving Edition staff circle tuesday at 8:15, room 17
fifth grade student council
We are pleased to announce the Charlotte Dunning Student Council for 2019-2020. Harry will be working with the student council again this year.
co-planning
i-Ready
Teachers,
As discussed at Data Chats I am monitoring our cusp students on iReady Math. If students in this group are not passing lessons I will be adding teacher lessons to support their growth. Please note these lessons will show up as blue lessons that they need to complete before continuing on their path.
Please let me know if you have any questions!
Best,
Lauren
holiday party
When: Tuesday, December 3rd, 4:30
Where: Dave and Buster’s at the Natick Mall
Cost: $35.00 made payable by cash, check made out to Charlotte Dunning Social committee or venmo@social committee Dunning (please put cash and check payments in Elaine Picard’s mailbox, with your name included)
In the spirit of the season, this year we would like to provide gift cards to Dunning families in need. Please consider bringing a gift card to: Target, Walmart, Stop & Shop, Market Basket, etc.
hour of code
We will be doing an Hour of Code again this year. In meeting with the building STEAM team, we thought it would be a great experience if all students did the hour at the same time. We have scheduled it for Thursday afternoon, December 12th, 1:30 - 2:30. We will make sure that students who are in specials have chromebooks.
I am including a great video that you may want to share (thank you Cheryl) with your students, particularly in the upper grades. Clink on this LINK to access the video.
We will be kicking off the Hour of Code on December 10th at the Community Meeting, as well as hearing from our third graders.
student behaviors and the holidays
Holiday Tips!
Here are two things to try to keep in mind this year as you finish out your lesson plans for the end of the year.
- Be cautious asking students about their favorite present/holiday memory/tradition. Not all students get presents or have happy memories or family traditions. Sometimes they are just trying to survive the day. Other students might have really unhappy/triggering memories associated with holidays. Maybe Christmas Eve was the night that their parents got into a fight and split up. Maybe Thanksgiving is when they have to interact with that abusive family member. Maybe they did actually get Christmas presents, but they were sold or returned a week later because someone needed extra cash. These things happen way more often than we realize! We need to keep this in the back of our mind as we incorporate holiday activities into our classrooms.
- Watch for changes in behavior. Obviously most kids get excited around this time of year, which means that they might have trouble sitting still, or they might talk more in class. That’s totally normal. Pay attention to the students who start acting out more – those who seem like they are deliberately misbehaving or the negative behaviors suddenly seem to increase. Those are the students who might be feeling anxious (and not in a good way) about the upcoming holidays. Don’t push them beyond what they can handle because they will probably not rise to meet your expectations. They literally won’t be able to do it because their brains are putting them into survival mode as they anticipate the holidays and whatever stress that might bring into their lives. Any change in schedule, even due to class parties or fun programs, can also be stressful for these students because the safety of their structure and routine was thrown off. This can cause some students’ brains to move into survival mode because they no longer feel safe.
(The Holidays, School, & Trauma)
speech screenings
It is time for speech screenings. Courtney and Krystn are planning to conduct screenings during the week of December 2nd. Please complete the form that was shared in the email from Courtney and Krystn and submit it to them by November 26th. Consider submitting a screening request form for students who demonstrate:
- observable articulation, voice, or fluency difficulties
- social difficulties
Please include the student's birth date. They do not have access to X2.
Students for which you have language and academic concerns will now be reviewed by the ART or SBLAT teams prior to submitting a screening request. Please contact either the ART or SBLAT teams if you have concerns regarding a student's language and academic skills.
Monday, 11/25:
- Book Fair Previews
Tuesday, 11/26:
- Special Thanksgiving Restorative Practices Circle, 8:15 (Room 17)
- Book Fair Previews
Wednesday, 11/27:
- Staff Breakfast: Grades K & 1 Elena, Maura, Lori, Greg, Laura, Sarah, Jaymie, Raquel
- Book Fair Previews
- Panda Paw Celebration
- Half Day, 12:30pm Dismissal (Lunch is NOT Served)
Thursday, 11/28:
- No School:Thanksgiving Recess
Friday, 11/29:
- No School:Thanksgiving Recess
care & share
Please remind your students to bring in items for Care & Share. Our monthly food collection makes a huge difference in our community, while teaching our students the importance of giving. As an added incentive, the class that brings in the most each month will earn 15 minutes of extra recess!
Community Meetings
- Tuesday, December 10th at 2:30: Grade 3 (TIME CHANGED)
- Tuesday, February 11th at 1:45: Kindergarten (TIME CHANGED)
- Thursday, March 26th at 2:30: (TIME CHANGED)
- Wednesday, May 13th at 1:45: Grade 4 (TIME CHANGED)
- Friday, June 12th at 9:30: Grade 5
staff breakfast schedule
12/13/19: Holiday Breakfast - Office staff - Donna, Shannon, Michele, Tara, Kathie, Claire, Suzanne
01/10/20: Specialists/Sage/Coach - Kelly, Harry, Nick, Brett, Leigh, Beth
01/24/20: Sped - Sharon, Cara, Tess, Jo, Kevin
02/07/20: Social Emotional Support Staff - Gary, Jen, Daphna, Krystn, Courtney
02/28/20: Grades 4 & 5 Julie, Lissa, Kelsey B., Jae, Mike, Jaimie D.
03/13/20: Grades 2 & 3 Colleen, Kathleen, Elaine, Lisa, Sara, Sally
03/27/20: PDD/BCBA - Jen, Nicole, Keri Ann, Kelsey, Michelle K., Scott
04/09/20: Thursday Breakfast - Grades K &1 Elena, Maura, Lori, Greg, Laura, Sarah, Jaymie, Raquel
05/08/20: Office Staff/Nurse - Donna, Shannon, Michele, Tara, Kathie, Claire, Suzanne
05/22/20: Specialists/Coaches/Sage - Kelly, Harry, Nick, Brett, Leigh, Beth
06/05/20: Staff Pot Luck
Staff Meetings - before school 8:15 - 9:00am
- December 2nd
- January 6th
- February 3rd
- March 2nd
- April 6th
- May 4th
- June 1st
Professional Development Schedule
Below you will find the schedule of professional development for the rest of the 2019-2020 school year.
- December 5th: Building-Based PD
- March 5th: District PD Day (FTA Day)
- May 21st: Building-Based PD