Brown Bears

Dear Families,

It has been another great week here at Brown with students getting to know routines and settle into their classroom community. We had our first school-wide assembly this past Friday where students met the new "Brown Bear" mascot. We learned that our new furry friend doesn't currently have a name, and as a school, we will come up with one in the next few weeks. So far, several great names have been offered by students. We'll learn at our next assembly what our name is for our new friend. Here is a very short clip of students showing their enthusiasm for being back in school.

Best,

Aidan McCann, Principal

1 - OPEN HOUSE

We will be hosting our Open House for ALL grade levels on Thursday, September 22nd from 5:30 to 8:00pm. You will have an opportunity to meet the teacher and support staff, see the classroom space, engage with Specialists, and hear from the principal. We look forward to seeing you soon. Here is the schedule for the evening. Parking will be available at Brown, and in front/behind Kennedy Middle School.

2 - VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

We are very excited about the opportunity to have families back in our building after the past two years. There are many ways of being involved in the Art room, the Library, in the classroom and more. Volunteer opportunities will be pushed out by teachers in their classroom updates.

Please keep an eye out for these, as we would love to have your help.

*Make sure your CORI is up to date and we have seen your vaccination card. These need to be processed in person with the front office in order to volunteer.

3 - FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

We have a range of financial supports available in the Natick Public Schools. This includes assistance with school fees, such as the bus and picture day, scholarships for programs such as the Book Fair and the Winter Bazaar, and connections to community resources that may be helpful. If you are interested in these programs, please contact Chamonix Adams, one of our school counselors, to have a private conversation. Her email is cadams@natickps.org.

4 - CORE VALUES

As part of our assembly last Friday, we started a discussion about our CORE VALUES here at Brown. Those Core Values are:

Practice Empathy

Act Respectfully

Work Hard

Solve Problems Together.

Several students braved the front of the room to share their ideas about Value #2: Respect. We even listened to a little bit of Aretha Franklin's "Respect". Over the course of the year, we will discuss these Core Values at assemblies, in classrooms, and more.

5 - DOGS AT DISMISSAL

In the first few days of school, we have noticed that there have been a number of dogs brought to dismissal, either up to students or even through bus lines as we get ready to leave. I ask you to consider keeping pets at a distance from students as we have many students who are allergic, and some who are just not comfortable around them. Also, we are trying to run an orderly and efficient dismissal. We appreciate your attention to this matter. Thank you for your consideration.

All the best to our families,

Aidan McCann, Principal

The Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) is a volunteer organization made up of parents, teachers and staff with the goal of enriching the educational experience of our children at Brown School. We strive to build community in our school and support our children's personal and educational lives through a wide variety of events and activities. Contact us anytime at brownptonatick@gmail.com, sign up for our weekly email updates at http://eepurl.com/gCRzwH and follow us at facebook.com/BrownSchoolPto.

This month: Don’t forget to sign up for the student directory so you can set up playdates and invite classmates to birthday parties. The only way to get a copy of the student directory is to sign up. Visit www.brownPTOnatick.org to sign up. We typically send out the completed directory in the beginning of October.

Natick Public Schools does not discriminate in employment nor its educational programs, services, and activities based on race, creed, color, age, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions, physical and intellectual differences, immigration status, homeless status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Please be aware all electronic communication to and from Natick Public Schools is public record and subject to public disclosure per Massachusetts General Law Chapter 66, Section 10.

• Title I: Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990Title II
• Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990Title VI
• Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964Title IX
• Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972
• MGL, Ch.76, Section 5: Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 76, Section 5