Hello Florida Ruffin Ridley School Families and Friends,

As the autumn leaves are falling from the trees dotting our landscape and we prepare to get our community garden ready for winter, this season of change reminds us of our own capacity for growth and transformation. As the trees and plants prepare for a winter's rest and daylight fades, we are working on building up momentum and launching off the solid foundations that our educators prepared for students in this first quarter of the school year.

PreK-8 our students are meeting their growing edges and are being supported to stretch, reach, and expand in their development of skills and the application of those skills. And while students are pushing beyond their growing edges academically, we are working hard on cultivating a community of care in which all students are seen, heard, respected, and valued in our community, are treated with empathy and kindness, and have the tools to resolve conflict peacefully and productively.

In addition to academic assessments that help inform instructional moves and next steps, students in grades 3-8 will be engaged in completing our Social Emotional Learning (SEL) screener through Panorama in the coming weeks. This data will help us provide individualized, group, and whole class supports, lessons, and activities that promote school belonging, supportive relationships, emotional regulation skills, and self-efficacy.

As always, if you have any questions or feedback to share, please don't hesitate to reach out. I look forward to seeing you around the building at some of the upcoming school based events and family/educator conferences!

Jen

If you need to drive to the building, you MUST use the rolling drop off line on Stedman Street or park on Harvard Street or in the Centre Street lot.

Below is the schedule for this fall's early release days. Please make note that one of the release days is on for K-6 students and the other three include all our K-8 students.

Wednesday November 9th: K-6 Early Release Day

Thursday November 17th: K-8 Early Release Day

Thursday December 1st: K-8 Early Release Day

Wednesday December 7th: K-12 Early Release Day

*a separate email will be shared with our grades 6-8 families regarding the structure and approach to fall conferences in the middle school

We have noticed a lot of students arriving late to the building this past month and increasingly so with inclement weather. Please make sure your child(ren) are at school by 7:55a so they can enter, get settled, and start the day smoothly with their peers. If you are in need of support in regular on time attendance please don't hesitate to reach out to your child(ren)'s grade level vice principal and guidance counselor.

Steve Simolaris (K-2 Vice Principal) steven_simolaris@psbma.org

Jordana Spitz (K-2 Guidance Counselor) jordana_spitz@psbma.org

Erin Burke (Grades 3-5 Vice Principal) erin_burke@psbma.org

Mary Murphy (Grades 3-5 Guidance Counselor) mary_murphy2@psbma.org

Saeed Ola (Grades 6-8 Vice Principal) saeed_ola@psbma.org

Jen Maylone (Grades 6-8 Guidance Counselor) jennifer_maylone@psbma.org

Next Friday (November 4th) the PTO Coffee and Conversation topic will be Bullying, Social Conflict, and Supporting a Safe Environment at FRR. We will review the Bullying, Title IX and Title VI laws and procedures and talk through both the proactive and reactive measures we take and are working on as a school in response to behavior that falls outside our community agreements.

We will meet at 8:05am in the cafeteria at FRR. Please enter through the Stedman Street entrance.