Lowell's Family Newsletter
September 23, 2022
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Table of Contents
- Message from Mrs. Phlean
- Social Group Opt Out Form
- Morning Meeting for Caregivers
- Coffee and Conversation
- Who Are We
- Physical Education Newsletter
- Spanish Newsletter Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
- Diversity Inclusion and Belonging Council
- FTO Update
- Movie Night
- Scenes from the Week
- Student Handbook Part II
- Lowell School Parent Guides 2022-2023
- Events
- SEPAC
- Upcoming Events School & Community (dates, time, and location)
Message from Principal Phelan
Greetings Lowell,
Thank you for attending our first in-person open house in 3 years. If was nice seeing families in our school again.
We held our first Community Meeting on Thursday at Lowell West. The students were amazing! They participated throughout the meeting, helping to describe what the core values mean to them. They recited, vowed to uphold our refreshed school pledge, and clapped and stomped their way through our new school song. Please take a look at our presentation slides and pictures below. Phillips will have their community meeting on Tuesday.
Below you will find an opt-out form. This form only needs to be filled out if you DO NOT want your child to participate in a lunch group or small social group. If your child is selected for a lunch group or social group, you will be notified by the SEL team member leading the group. An email will be sent to you before the group begins. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact one of our SEL team members for more information.
Melina Jacovides, Guidance Counselor, Melina.jacovides@watertown.k12.ma.us
Sheila Gomez, Social Worker, sheila.gomez@waterown.k12.ma.us
Kelley Starrett, Psychologist, Kelley.starrett@watertown.k12.ma.us
Brian Connors, Guidance Counselor, Brian.connors@watertown.k12.ma.us
Abby Killeen, Social Worker, Abigail.Killeen@watertown.k12.ma.us
If you have any questions or ideas in the meantime, don't hesitate to contact me at stacy.phelan@watertown.k12.ma.us.
With a grateful heart,
Stacy
We Are Proud of Who We Are
Our families and students speak 20 different languages and represent cultures from all over the globe.
Tamil
Urdu
Arabic
Armenian
Bengali
Chinese/ Mandarin
Farsi/Persian/Dari
French
Georgian/ Kurtuli
German
Greek
Japanese
Korean
Nepali
Portugues
Pashto
Russian
Caregivers Are Invited to Attend Morning Meeting with Your Student
There are numerous benefits to starting each day with a morning meeting in the classroom that make it worth the few extra minutes each morning. It’s important to note that benefits are seen when morning meeting is a regular and consistent part of each day. Come join us and attend the morning meeting with your student. The schedule by grade is below. Please stay and have a cup of coffee with Mrs. Phelan and Mr. Chen and our SEL team.
Here are a few positive outcomes that morning meeting can support:
- Builds meaningful relationships and establishes the trust (student to student and teacher to student)
- Sets the tone for a positive classroom climate
- Creates a space to highlight and discuss mental health needs
- Promotes the idea that all voices matter and are listened to
- Provides opportunities for teaching social, emotional, and academic skills
- Increases student confidence and self-awareness
- Motivates learners to do their best
- Supports academic learning
- Creates a kinder community
Simply put, morning meetings help all students do their best.
Stay for Coffee and Conversation with Ms. Phelan & Mr. Chen and our SEL team 8:45-9:30 following each Morning Meeting.
Physical Education & Wellness Newsletter
Hello Lowell Students, Parents/Guardians,
Ms. Donahue and Ms. Loguidice, the Lowell PE teachers welcome you to our first P.E. Newsletter. It was great seeing many of you at the Open House. In this P.E. Newsletter, you will find the activities learned in the month of September. Please make sure your child wears sneakers for P.E. Class. We look forward to sharing our activities and lessons throughout the year.
Sincerely,
Eileen Donahue eileen.donahue@watertown.k12.ma.us
Tina Loguidice tina.loguidice@watertown.k12.ma.us
Spanish Monthly Newsletter - Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
Hola familias de Lowell,
We hope you are all staying healthy and doing well! We had a great start to the year! We started by getting to know our Spanish class, introducing names, and practicing greetings in Spanish across all grades. Additionally, we have been incorporating information about Hispanic countries and cultural aspects of Hispanic culture, such as music, food, and more to our lessons in celebration of Hispanic Heritage month, which it goes from September 15th to October 15th.
We are happy to share we'll be sending a Spanish newsletter monthly to keep families informed about what students are learning in Spanish.
We are looking forward to a great school year!
Best,
Señora Quesada & Señora Mitchell
Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Council
Diversity, Inclusion, & Belonging (DIB) Council Updates
Hello Lowell Community Members!
The first week of school under our belts and we hope everyone has had a positive start to the school year. Since our first Diversity and Belonging Council meeting isn't for 2 more weeks, we wanted to send out a quick September update. Read on for information about our meeting dates for the year as well as a volunteer opportunity during the 9/20 Back to School Night event.
Additionally, if you know of any Lowell community members who might be interested in our group, please feel free to forward this email to them, or have them fill out this interest form.
Monthly Meetings
The DBC monthly meetings serve as a space for any Lowell caregivers and staff who are in support of our mission to ensure we have a welcoming and inclusive school community. Meetings can range in their focus from updates of upcoming events or resources to discussion and processing of local or national events. Lowell meetings are on Tuesdays from 7-8pm. We will have 3 “All Council” meetings this year, in which the councils from all 3 elementary schools will come together. Fall meeting dates and topics are as follows:
Tuesday 9/27, 7-8pm- What does belonging mean to you?
Over the summer, the 3 elementary diversity councils held a council-wide book read of Carla Shalaby’s Troublemakers: Lessons in Freedom from Young Children at School. The theme of belonging and what it truly means came up in each of our 4 sessions. In our first meeting, we hope to get to know one another and discuss what the “belonging” in “Diversity and Belonging Council” means for the Lowell community and its families.
Tuesday 10/25, 7-8pm- Disability Equity Audit debrief
The Watertown SEPAC will host a disability-centered equity listening session on Tuesday, Oct. 18 from 6-8pm on Zoom. This session is designed to review the outcomes from the WPS Equity Audit that took place in the 2021-2022 school year from a disability lens. Will will share a recap of the discussion at our Lowell DIB meeting for those who can’t attend and will continue the discussion.
Thursday 11/17- time TBD- *All Council Meeting (1/3)*
This meeting will either be in zoom or in person at Hosmer, time will be either 6:30 PM-7:30 PM or 7:30 PM-8:30 PM). Please stay tuned for details about our All Council meetings!
Volunteer Opportunity on Tuesday, 9/20
There will be a "Meet Our Community" event on September 20th from 6:15-7:45 PM.in the Lowell West cafeteria during annual Back-to-School Night. Caregivers from both buildings are welcome to this event. There will be information tables hosted by the school's special teachers, reading teachers, ESL teachers, Speech, OT, PT, Guidance, and SEL. The FTO, School Site Council, and Parent Diversity and Belonging Council will also have tables.
We would love to have a few parent volunteers to help cover the table between 6:15 and 7:45 so that our parent reps have the opportunity to also partake in the evening's events. If you would like to volunteer (even 20 minutes would be helpful!), please reply to this email and let us know.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us with any questions or ideas between now and our September 27th meeting!
Warm regards,
Liz and Sheila
Family Teacher Organization
Lowell Family Teacher Organization (FTO) Weekly Updates
We’d love your help! If you would like to volunteer, please email: lowellelementarypto@gmail.com
Lowell School Movie Night: Friday, September 30
Moxley Field, Westminster Ave. Watertown.
Join us for a fun Lowell School annual tradition. We’ll show a kid-friendly movie and provide some snacks! Everyone is welcome.
Please include attached flyer.
Mr. Stezzi, Lowell's Math Coordinator, would love some help cutting and laminating some math curriculum materials. If you're available to help with this project at the school or at home, please reach out to lowellelementarypto@gmail.com
Save the Date: Friday, October 28 -- Lowell School Trunk-or-Treat
We'll need volunteers to decorate the trunk of their car and to give out candy! Kids can wear costumes and trick-or-treat safely with their Lowell School friends.
Find Us! You can find us on the web at: http://jrlowellpto.weebly.com/ and please like/follow our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/LowellFTO
Scenes From This Week!
Lowell School Community Meeting at Lowell West Grades 3-5
Nico describing to the audience what cooperation looks and feels like to him.
Lunch Menu Phillips Building Grades k-2
Lunch Menu Lowell West Grades 3-5
School Events
Tuesday, September 27, 2022
Parent Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Council
7:00-8:00
Friday, September 30, 2022
Lowell School Movie Night
at Lowell West
175 Main Street
Waltham, Ma 02451
Sponsored by the FTO
Friday, October 14
Picture Day for Phillips and Lowell West
Phillips 8:30-10:30
LW 12:30-2:00
Friday, October 28, 2022
Trunk or Treat
Phillips Parking Lot
Located
31 Marshall Street
Sponsored by the FTO
Picture Day is October 14th for Phillips and Lowell West
SEPAC Calendar & Updates
Watertown SEPAC Calendar 2022-2023
More detailed event information coming to the SEPAC website soon:
Date/Event/Location
Sat Sept 24, 2022
Booth at Faire on the Square
Saltonstall Park (11 AM - 4 PM)
Tues Oct 17, 2022
Disability-Centered
Equity Listening Session
Zoom 6-8 PM
Tues Nov 15, 2022
Training: Basic Rights (FCSN) Registration Required
Zoom 6-8 PM
December 2022 (TBD)
Social Event / General Meeting
TBD
Tues Jan 24, 2023
Training: What’s a 504?
Online
Tues Feb 7, 2023
SEPAC General Open Meeting
In-person/hybrid (6:30 - 8 PM)
Tues March 7, 2023
Training: Conflict Mediation
Online
Tues Apr 11, 2023
Training: Dyslexia and Screenings
Online
Tues May 9, 2023
SEPAC General Open Meeting
In-person/hybrid (6:30 - 8 PM)
June 2023 (TBD)
Social Event
In person (TBD)