Our last week in April was a great one at Walden. We enjoyed our Rainbow Day on Thursday where students dressed up in different colors by grade level. It was fun to see our school look so festive! Our first graders enjoyed their first field trip to the Botanic Gardens where they were able to hold worms, plant seeds, and learn new things! Our 5th graders enjoyed their trip to Shepard Middle School today where they were able to see the music, Matilda Jr. which is playing all weekend if you'd like to attend! We are beginning MAP testing next week and are looking forward to our Showcase Night on Thursday!

Have a great weekend and we'll see you back on Monday!

-Stephanie Strenger

We are excited for the next session of our Spring DPS109 Parent/Guardian Workshop Series on Thursday, May 4th at 7:00 pm: (Zoom link). This session: “Understanding Children’s Hardest Moments” will focus on the following topics:

• Seeing challenging behavior through the lens of emotional regulation.

• Seeing mis-behavior as stress-behavior

• Helping children develop self-regulation skills

• Every hard moment is a teaching opportunity

Additional topics for the subsequent events will include:

• The Basics of Childhood Resilience (5/11)

• Collaborative Problem Solving (5/18)

Please click here to access the zoom link for all of the events. Each webinar will begin at 7 p.m. No sign-up is required ahead of time, and the sessions will be recorded and available on the DPS109 website following the event.

The Walden PTO is looking for mentor families for the Walden Welcoming Committee for this upcoming school year! The purpose of the committee is to welcome new families to the Walden community by pairing them with a volunteer family. We are currently seeking families who would be interested in connecting with a family (or multiple families) to check in periodically, proactively asking if they need any guidance about Walden-related events, programming, and other community-related activities.

Please let us know if you are interested in volunteering for this position and if so, how many families you would be available to mentor. In addition, so that we can match up families who have children of similar age(s), please respond with the grade level(s) of your own children.

On Tuesday, May 23rd from 3:30-4:30 the Philanthropy Club will be hosting our annual Philanthropy Fair! It will either be outside on the blacktop or inside the gym if there’s rain. The Philanthropy Club students researched to help us find an organization to support. This year we will be raising money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. To help raise money, 2nd-5th grade students can sign up to sell something at the fair. Items can be something you create or a collection from your home that you no longer need/want. Any collection needs 10 or more items. You may also sell nut-free baked goods that are individually pre-wrapped.

Participants can sell items with, at most, a group of four. However, you don’t need to be in a group. Since we have a limited number of tables, there is a possibility we will not be able to accept every student, but we will try our best! Please complete the digital application linked here by Friday, April 28th.

Please prepare the following before submitting the form:

• Confirmation that ALL group members will be able to participate and be at the fair (please confirm with families)

• Confirmation that at least one adult will be there with the kids at the table (At least one adult must be present at each table for the ENTIRE fair)

• Confirmation of the item you will be selling

• Confirmation that you are the only member submitting this form for your group (only ONE application should be submitted per group)

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Ms. Schmidt at nschmidt@dps109.org. Thank you for helping us give back to such an important cause!

• Thurs. May 4 - Walden Showcase Night (5-7pm)
• May 8 - May 12 - Teacher Appreciation Week
• Fri. May 12 - Kindergarten Round Up
• Fri. May 12 - Family STEAM Night
• Thurs. May 18 - 5th Grade Music Show
• Fri. May 19 - Bagel & Donut Breakfast
• Tues. May 23 - Philanthropy Fair
• Mon. May 29 - Memorial Day (No School)
• Wed. June 7 - Last Day of School (Half Day AM)