MHS/WES Newsletter
January 13, 2021
Happy New Year!
From the MHS & WES offices:
A reminder about outdoor recess.............
Kindergarten - Fall 2021 Pre-Registration Form
We are starting to collect information about our incoming kindergarten students. Please fill out this form if you plan to register a child for kindergarten for the 2021-2022 school year. Your child must be age 5 by August 31, 2021.
Kindergarten Fall 2021 Pre-Registration FormUpcoming dates:
- January 18: NO SCHOOL-Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- January 26: Westminster PTO virtual meeting
- February 15-19: NO SCHOOL-February Break
From the school nurses:
MASKS:
Kids' masks are getting wet during recess due to outside play. We are asking if a back-up mask can please be sent to school with your children.Also, please remember the importance of washing your children's masks. Thank you for your cooperation.
FLU SHOTS:
Just a reminder if you have not already submitted documentation of your child's flu vaccine please do so as soon as possible. If you have any questions please contact the school nurse.
From the counselor:
What is GRIT?
By Kayla Marston, M.Ed.
Grit is defined as having perseverance and passion for long-term goals and working toward challenges, even when failure and adversity presents itself. Grit is a non-cognitive skill, similar to self-control, resiliency, and curiosity. Researchers now realize grit is as important, if not more, than academic skills. We know that teaching literacy and life skills are important for a student’s long-term success. But what happens when the math gets a little tricky? Or when the reading is a little boring? What keeps a student from giving up? GRIT! And grit can be taught! Here’s how to help your child develop grit.
1. Praise the effort, not the grade When you praise your child’s “stick-to-it-ness” of your child’s efforts, they will be more determined to continue to work hard.
2. Let them struggle As hard as it is to see your child struggle, they need to learn how to work through frustration and failure. If you swoop in and save them before they fail, they will never learn how to deal with failure, which is part of life.
3. Keep an open mindset An open mindset is believing that things can change. That we can improve our skills and challenges. Instead of saying, “I can’t do this,” you can say, “I can’t do this…yet.”
4. Find new ways to challenge your child. Encourage your child to try new things, even if they aren’t sure they are any good at it. Trying new things is how we learn from our mistakes. Find new hobbies and involve your child. Praise their effort along the way.
For more information on grit, please visit the following websites. https://www.ted.com/talks/ angela_lee_duckworth_grit_the_power_of_passion _and_perseverance?language=en#t-356535 https://characterlab.org/playbooks/grit/ information derived from Kayla Marston, M.Ed.
Title 1 - Reading Tips
“How can I help my child read more proficiently?”
Reading is a skill that needs practice.
Just like learning how to skateboard or ski, you need daily practice.
Reading is the same, in order to get better,
you need lots and lots of practice to increase
fluency, accuracy, and reading comprehension abilities.
Refer to the word reading strategies above to assist your child’s decoding skills.
Check out this free reading resource:
Friendly Attendance Reminders
Fully Remote Attendance:
Students are required to attend their initial morning meetings on their remote days. This is the time we take attendance. If your child is having trouble logging-on to a Google Meeting, please notify your child's teacher so we can mark your child "Remote Present." We understand that technology and circumstances do not always cooperate, we just need to hear from you. If we do not hear from you, your child is marked "Remote Absent" for the day.
Hybrid Attendance:
If your child is not in school on his assigned in-person cohort day, then he will be marked "Absent." We will not be providing remote work for in-person cohort days. We appreciate your understanding as hybrid/remote learning can be quite complex to plan.
Google Meet Expectations ~ Friendly Reminders for Students
- Please be on time for all Google Meets
- Keep your camera on and your microphone muted
- There is no eating during the Google Meets
- Put forth your best effort
Art, Music, Gym, Technology - Google Meets
Wednesday
Grade 5: 11:30
Grade 4: 11:55
Grade 3: 12:20
Grade 2: 12:55
Grade 1: 1:20
Kindergarten: 1:45
Tuesday/Friday Check-ins: 12:30
Each specialist hosts a Google Meet every Tuesday & Friday at 12:30 p.m. for all grade levels to attend. Students should attend the google meet with the specialist that they are currently working with. This is an optional meeting for students to ask questions about a project or assignment they are working on.
Art ~ Ms. Anne Banning ~ abanning@awrsd.org
Music ~ Mr. Lucander ~ klucander@awrsd.org
PE ~ Miss Creonte ~ ocreonte@awrsd.org
Technology ~ Mrs. Breen ~ nbreen@awrsd.org
Westminster Softball and Baseball Registrations
Westminster SB & BB is now taking registrations for the 2021 season.
Registrations will close on March 5th, if your child is not registered and paid for by then they will not be entered into the draft on March 8.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we will not have an in-person registration; it will all be done by mail or electronically.
The 3 ways to register are:
1 - Online at www.westminsterbaseball.org
2 - Email, if your child is a returning player all you need to do is reply to this email; westminsterbaseball@gmail.com w/player's name, Jersey size, & level of play, you will be sent a confirmation reply back once received.
3 - Mail, please email westminsterbaseball@gmail.com and we will send documents for you to fill out.
Parent Child + Program
If you are NOT part of the ParentChild+ Program YOU & YOUR CHILD ARE MISSING OUT!
The MOC Parent Child+ Program is a FREE home-based (virtual for now) early literacy program for parents and their children that promotes learning & language development through the use of books and toys. Trained Early Learning Specialists visit families with children 16 months-3 years twice a week using carefully chosen books and toys which are the program's gifts to the family.
Available in the following towns - Barre, Oakham, Hardwick, New Braintree, Hubbardston, Fitchburg, Gardner, Ashburnham & Westminster.
PC+ is a Nationally recognized program.
Contact Program Manager Cindy Lapinskas at clapinskas@mocinc.org for more information.
MOC hires Chardell Davis as new CFCE program Coordinator:
MOC Coordinated Family and Community Engagement program funded by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care, is very excited to announce that Chardell Davis has been hired as the new CFCE Coordinator, serving the towns of Gardner and Templeton. Chardell has vast experience and knowledge in Early Childhood Education and family support, with over 20 years working in the field in a variety of rolls. She recently worked as a Literacy Specialist for the Ashburnham-Westminster Regional School District, and as support staff at Stevens Memorial Library in Ashburnham. Chardell enjoys spending time with her 2 children, reading and hiking. Chardell is looking forward to meeting and reconnecting with families at her virtual playgroups on Wednesdays at 10 am! If you would like to join her Wednesday play group, Please email her at cdavis@mocinc.org