The Pulse of the Pride
Lyme School Friends,
Another two weeks have come and gone. It is hard to believe that we have already arrived to October 20th. Where do the days go? Our students are most definitely into the school routine and the shorter days are starting to have their impact as we get going in the morning.
It is imperative that the ALMA Start Forms and Tasks in ALMA are completed for each enrolled student. If you need assistance, please contact Amanda Perry in the office. The log-in is on our website if you ever need to find it and instructions are below to download the app to your phone.
Parents can opt in to the PTO print directory by opting in to the directory in ALMA. Just click the profile icon in the top-right corner and click on the link for "my info". You can also complete the hard copy form sent home last week and return it to school.
The Pumpkin Book Character Show is ongoing and students should bring their creations in between October 23rd and 27th. Details are below. We also will have our first spirit week of the year when we transition from October 30th to November 3rd. Details are also below! We hope your students join in the fun!
The next newsletter will hit your inbox on November 3rd. That's right, November!
As always, please feel free to reach out to us if you have any questions. Have a wonderful weekend!
Thank you for your continued partnership.
Regards,
John P. D'Entremont, Principal
ALMA - Latest Updates
So far, things continue to progress with our new student information system.
So far, you should have:
- Gotten yourself logged in.
- Received an emergency alert.
- Double checked your contact information.
- Completed ALMA Start Registration for this year.
- Been given instructions to opt in to the Directory. [To opt in to the directory, you can click on the link for “my info” or get there through your profile icon in the top-right corner. You can toggle your visibility in the directory.]
When you log-in, you will be able to see assignments and grades. This is a change from last year. We will continue to update you with each newsletter.
We have not shown our students how to get in to ALMA yet, but older students will be able to access soon.
We have continued working on grading and report cards. You can expect a more detailed outline of what to expect with report cards in the next newsletter.
If you are having trouble, please reach out to Amanda Perry or John D'Entremont.
Meet Sophie Streed by Mrs. Damren
I am so excited to introduce Ms. Sophie Streed. Sophie is a senior at Plymouth State University and is in the teacher certification program in the Heath and Physical Education department. She is also a member of the women’s hockey team at PSU.
Sophie joins us as a methods student, whose responsibilities include observing and assisting my PE and health classes. She will be at Lyme School two days a week through December and I am excited to have her with us.
I am honored that Plymouth State continually seeks out Lyme School and our PE and Health programs and I am grateful for the opportunity to work with Sophie and have Sophie work with our wonderful students.
Lyme School Apparel Store
The Lyme School Apparel Store has a variety of apparel and accessories all customizable with a variety of school logos. The Lyme School PTO earns 12% of all sales. Thank you for supporting our school and go Lions! #LYMESCHOOLROCKS
This Wednesday, I, along with hundreds of educators, administrators, community agencies, and policymakers, attended the screening of the 2022 documentary “Anxious Nation”. Anxious Nation explores and captures the many faces and facets of anxiety. This feature-length documentary takes a deep look into the crisis of anxiety and mental health in America, especially its impact on kids (ages 10-26) and families. We zero in on how anxiety shows up, the nurture/nature debate, what's happening in homes and society that's significantly adding to the problem, the crisis on college campuses, and the impact of anxiety and mental health in lower socioeconomic communities, especially the brown and black communities. We discuss stigma, loneliness, isolation, disconnection, the alarming rise in suicide, the dangers of social media, overmedication, incorrect diagnoses, and the horrific mental health ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic (Anxious Nation, 2022).
Much of the film focuses on the negative impacts anxiety can have on adolescents and their families. For kids suffering from feelings of anxiety and depression, the message is loud and clear: You aren't alone, and, with skills and support, you can get through this.
After the screening, we broke into small groups to talk about what we can do at our individual schools to support students and families directly and what systems-level changes are also needed. We all agreed that more work at de-stigmatizing mental health disorders like anxiety is important for students and families - to not feel ashamed, alone, or judged - so everyone can get the help they need. We need to keep talking about it and normalizing it. We all can struggle with our mental health - life events, genetics, chemical imbalances, seasonal changes, LIFE! Please know as parents, you are also not alone in this: There is hope and there is help! As always, please reach out if you have concerns about your family’s mental health.
Anxious Nation is currently available on most streaming services but also available for 72 hours to watch for free. In honor of National Mental Health Screening Month, register here and you’ll receive an email with all the details. Enjoy the show!
Students of all ages benefit from having digital citizenship skills to participate in online and classroom communities. They must navigate making choices both online and in life. There are both explicit and embedded ways we teach and model digital citizenship at school. Some of the topics within the scope of digital citizenship are media balance, online privacy, digital footprint, communication, cyberbullying, and news & media literacy. During Library classes and Stanton Time in grades K-5, we have been diving into these topics and we will wrap up in the coming weeks. Middle school digital citizenship will be part of the health curriculum later in the year.
Here are a few resources for you to use at home:
Articles and Tips - Searchable by age and topic
Safe Interaction Online, Grades 6-12
Have a great weekend!
October Art News
In the Art Studio, art educators often talk about "Studio Habits of Mind". These are a set of defined ways in which Artists exercise thinking. Much of what we do as educators is creating the conditions to let this learning take root. Studio Habits are:
Observe, Engage and Persist, Reflect, Understand Art Worlds, Envision, Stretch and Explore, Express, and Develop Craft.
I deeply appreciate this context, because it gives a sense of developing a whole person...these skills are broadly useful to our collective ways of being. I hope you can find this thinking in the following:
In Kindergarten, the orange paint went “missing” and the k kids did not blink.
“Oh, Ms. G, we can make orange!”
First-grade found that they could hold on to multi-step directions, even with the excitement of getting their hands in some clay.
Second grade introduced some face pots to the world (“This is Mr. Poison. He is like a poison dart frog.”)
Third-grade artists assembled their Kandinsky color puzzles using their top-notch color wheel knowledge.
Fourth grade learned about Alebrijes and we are creating some “monster taxidermy” with papier mache and ping pong balls.
Fifth-grade artists are working through drawing with grids. They are learning how the grid gives the artist more ways to "measure" a reference drawing.
Seventh-grade students are drawing with one eye shut, drawing in the air on imaginary glass, and not looking at their paper (aka blind contour drawing).
The new middle school electives started this week! We are working on developing personal sketchbooks. The first rule of sketchbook is that you may not rip out any pages (...for the next 6 weeks).
Happy Fall!
Ms. G
Lyme School Robotics: It's not all about the robot
Inclusion, discovery, teamwork, innovation, impact and fun, these are the core values of the First Lego League and they are modeled and practiced each week by the Lyme School Robotics team. The team must identify a real-world problem related to the theme (the 2023-2024 theme is “Masterpiece”) and are challenged to develop a solution. They also must design, build, and program a robot using LEGO Spike Prime® and then compete on a table-top playing field. It all adds up to tons of fun while they learn to apply science, technology, engineering, and math concepts (STEM), plus a big dose of imagination, to solve a problem. Along their journey, they develop critical thinking and team-building skills, basic STEM applications, and even presentation skills, as they must present their solutions with a dash of creativity to judges.
The team is working hard to prepare for the regional tournament at Hypertherm in Lebanon on Saturday, November 18th. Stay tuned for updates on how you can watch or cheer on the team.
From the music room!
Country Music Month!
Hispanic Heritage Month ended on October 15th and for the rest of the month we will be exploring Country Music! This week we looked at instruments traditionally used in the genre. Better known instruments like guitars and mandolins and less familiar instruments like the dobros and lap steels.
If you play one of these instruments and you're interested in coming into school to play or send us a video, please email me (soleary@lymeschool.com), we'd love to hear you!
This week we learned about a fan favorite: Mr. Johnny Cash and listened to Ring of Fire!
PE at the Primary Level
Students in the primary grades have been involved in a unit on balance. We have begun this unit by working on dynamic balance, which is moving balance. Using a bean bag, students have been tasked with keeping their bean bag balanced on various body parts while moving. The goal is to sustain that balance without having their bean bag fall. This type of work involves the cerebellum, the portion of the brain that involves balance and coordination.
Balance, coordination, and movement. The body and brain at work. All a great combination!
PE in the Intermediate Grades
This past week, grades 4 and 5 have had the privilege of working with Mr. Gelineau, as he joined our PE classes to help the kids learn the basic skills of disc golf. Mr. G is passionate about this increasingly popular sport and worked hard to secure us new equipment at no cost.
Disc golf combines the sport of golf and ultimate frisbee with the goal of throwing long and making putts into a basket with chains. The kids put forth great effort and had an impressive showing of skill. Mr. G. and I have had a blast working together and have thoroughly enjoyed sharing the skill set involved in this sport with our fabulous kiddos!
Team Tournament Play Wrap-Up
It’s a wrap!! With two sport activities left on the docket, team tournament play crowned two more championship teams in the past two weeks .
Congratulations to team white for capturing the outdoor ultimate ball crown and to our non-pinnie badminton team who edged out their opponent in a tight match for their trophy rights.
This elective has proven to be a highly competitive but fun one to host. Round two commences closer to the spring months. Until then, the trophy lies in wait for the next team of champions .
Thanks for a great series to all the middle schoolers who chose to be part of team tournament play!!
OUR VALUES
● Fairness ● Acceptance of Others ● Integrity ● Responsibility
● Perseverance ● Individuality ● Compassion ● Courage
John P. D'Entremont, Principal
Elise Foxall, Academic Director
Geoff Tomlinson, Student Services Director