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SCS Community Newsletter
Week of December 18, 2023
Principals' Message
Dear SCS Families and Caregivers,
We often use this space to highlight some of the many amazing extracurricular activities taking place throughout the SCS community. With good reason! Each SKAT club, family night, sports competition, concert, or other special event adds a little something to the unique fabric that makes our school such a special place. We are grateful to be able to offer so many memorable experiences to make sure we prioritize growth and belonging for all kids.
While less visible sometimes, the projects, activities, and classroom connections that are part of every lesson contribute just as much to the culture of our school. We were thrilled to be able to share some of that this week with our colleagues from across the district. Each month, we spend a day visiting each other’s schools to collaborate and learn from what’s happening in classrooms. On Thursday, the principals from Charlotte, Hinesburg, and Williston joined us and Superintendent Sanchez here at SCS.
Among the many highlights from our classroom visits were:
Our PreK-4 district principals and superintendent visited one classroom in each grade level K-4 with a focus on looking for evidence of student engagement and students' feeling a sense of belonging. We considered the learning environment, peer-to-peer interactions, and student-adult interactions. We were so impressed (and not at all surprised) at how well our faculty, staff, and students are doing in the areas of engagement and ensuring a sense of belonging at SCS.
Each learning space we visited exuded warmth - classrooms were filled with student pride through student work samples displayed on walls, students greeting guests visiting the classrooms/school, learning communities' shared agreements hung at students' eye-level, morning messages written in various languages, take-a-break spaces or peace tables in each space, flexible seating options, intentionally designed room layouts for various learning experiences, visuals, soft music playing in the background, fireplace screensavers projected on the white board, lights dimmed (in some classrooms), and more.
- We noticed a lot of positive peer interactions through smiling, conversations, and invitations to play. Students were provided opportunities to work with partners (playing math games, reading each other's writing pieces and offering feedback, playing during choice time, etc.) where we observed students helping one-another, listening to one-another, and encouraging one-anther.
- We observed some very sweet student-adult interactions which help students to feel seen, heard, and valued as a member of the learning community. Adults were referring to students by name, using proximity to check in with individual students, providing specific positive feedback, making eye contact (and other non-verbal cues), making personal connections, sharing thinking and ideas, huddling up to reflect on working with partners, high-fives, etc.
In 5th/6th grade humanities, students created a historical persona. They started writing journals from the perspective of this character to simulate what it would have been like to travel westward in the 1800s. Local author Lindsey Stoddard visited both 5/6 teams earlier this month to launch this work and share her experiences developing characters in her own young adult novels.
In 6th grade science, students worked together to tackle a complex text about plate tectonics. Each shared a “wow” from the article, which ranged from fascination about the idea of seafloor spreading to surprise that it took scientists so long to come up with the theory in the first place. It was inspiring to see the active listening and engagement as students learned from each other.
In 8th grade humanities, students prepared for a mock trial to better understand the judicial system. With roles assigned and case preparations underway, we’re looking forward to a rigorous debate when court convenes next week!
The day ended with our visitors writing notes of gratitude to our teachers for welcoming them into their classrooms and helping us further our own learning. It was a great reminder of how hard our faculty and staff work to make sure our students are supported in their learning journeys each day.
Take care,
Alison, Brett, & Emily
Mark Your Calendars
Upcoming Dates:
12/18 - 6-8 Musical Information Session (12:30, Yellow Team Common Space)
12/19 - 6-8 Musical Auditions (3:00-5:00 pm)
12/20 - DEI Community Coffee (8:00 am, cafeteria)
12/20 - 7th & 8th Grade Chorus Field Trip (9:45-11:15 am)
12/22 - Last Day of School before Winter Break (regular 2:45 dismissal)
12/25-1/1 - Winter Break
1/2 - School Resumes
1/3 - CVSD Housing Support Drop-In Office Hours at SCS (1:00 pm, conference room)
1/9 - PTO Meeting (6:00 pm, Green Team Common Space)
1/10 - DEI Community Meeting (5:00 pm, Library)
1/15 - NO SCHOOL (Martin Luther King Jr. Day)
SCS Announcements
6-8 Musical Auditions - After School Tuesday
Calling all Grade 6-8 Students - Auditions for the musical, SpongeBob, will be Tuesday after school in Mrs. Sanders' music room. All students auditioning must complete this form.
All information about the musical can be found here.
If you still want to participate in the show but do not want to be on stage, there are many “behind-the-scenes” opportunities! You can help with lights, sounds, or sets/scene changes. You do not need to come to auditions if you want to be in tech. We will reach out to interested tech students toward the end of January for a meeting to discuss opportunities. Please email amyhalpinriley@gmail.com if interested in lights, sound, costumes, prop.
We ARE going to have an in-person opportunity to ask questions on Monday, 12/18 at lunch. If 6-8 students are interested in learning more about the musical, Amy Riley will be at school to answer questions.
Please Claim Lost & Found Items
Please be sure to check out the items in our Lost & Found to claim your child's/children's clothing. Items can be viewed in this photo gallery.
The items will be on display in the SCS breezeway this weekend, and over the winter break, so please come by and claim your belongings. Huge thanks to Michelle Paskevich & Julia Snapp for coordinating this.
SCS Leadership Spotlight: Goat Ambassadors
The Leadership Committee would like to feature members of the SCS community who are exhibiting strong leadership qualities in their work. This week, our "Leaders in Action" are our Goat Ambassadors! Goat Ambassadors are fifth and sixth grade students who take care of the goats from New Village Farm and teach members of our community about the goats. Students and faculty learned so much from the hard work, skills and communication of these students. Thanks, Goat Ambassadors!
CVSD News
CVSD Early Education Programs News
PreKindergarten Lottery is now open for 2024-2025!
The CVSD Early Education Program is now accepting applications for a random prekindergarten lottery drawing for the 2024-25 school year. This lottery is for an opportunity to enroll in one of our school-based classrooms which run 10 hours per week. Our school-based prekindergarten classrooms are 5 STARs, licensed early education programs that provide play-based, developmentally appropriate environments for all children in an inclusive setting. Our curriculum is based on the Vermont Early Learning Standards (VELS).
Our programs follow the CVSD school calendar. Children who will be age 3 or older by September 1, 2024, who are not eligible for kindergarten, and live in the communities of Charlotte, Hinesburg, Shelburne, St. George, and Williston are eligible to enter the lottery. Families who are selected for the lottery and choose to enroll their child in a CVSD program access their Act 166 publicly funded prekindergarten funds for the school-based program.
All applications must be received by February 5, 2024, and are located on the CVSD Early Education website under 2024-2025 Preschool Lottery . Paper applications are available upon request.
For additional information, questions about our program, or any concerns about your child’s development, please visit our website or contact Director of Early Education, Erin Gagne at egagne@cvsdvt.org. Our Early Education team is also available for developmental screenings in the areas of communication, social-emotional development, motor skills, adaptive development, and cognition. More information about an Early Multi-Tiered System of Supports is also available on the website.
SCS Useful Links
CVSD Info
Find information about monthly School Board Meetings, community forums such as the DEI Town Hall, and more on the district website. See the year at a glance on the 2023-2024 K-8 School Year Calendar. See The CVSD Story for the latest blog posts about what's happening across the district.
Let's Talk
Still Need More Information?
Website: https://www.cvsdvt.org/shelburne
Shelburne Community School Administration
Brett Cluff, 5-8 Principal
Emily Cogan, Director of Special Education