December APS Family Newsletter

Dear Arlington Public Schools Families,

Welcome to December! We hope you and your students have had a wonderful semester so far and are gearing up for a wonderful winter. Regardless of what you are celebrating this season, I hope it involves lots of fun with family and friends. I will be enjoying the winter break at home with my husband, my dog, and my two children, ages 4 and 7, who are very excited to have their grandparents visit from Illinois.

In this month's newsletter, we feature a few announcements about upcoming events, important dates to remember, and a PRIZE for the students and staff at the school with the highest response rate on our Climate and Culture Surveys! Read on for more details.

Sincerely,

Dr. Elizabeth C. Homan

Superintendent, Arlington Public Schools

Thank you so much for taking time to complete the 2023 Fall Family Panorama Survey for your child's school. If you did not get a chance to give your feedback, that's ok! We're extending the deadline to Monday, December 4th! The school with the highest family, staff, and student response rates will win a Cookie Party for students and staff with cookies from The Cookie Monstah Bake Shop! A variety of cookie options will be made available to meet all dietary needs.

Your feedback will help us continue to strengthen the culture in our schools and create more opportunities for students to experience growth and joy in an environment where each student feels belonging. All questions are optional (you can skip them if you do not find them relevant to your experience).

We thank you and your family for being our valued partners as we work together to educate the children in our district. Arlington values input from our community – and we need to hear from your child or children! Students are important partners as we work to improve our communication, academic program, and overall experience for everyone.

In order to learn more about student experiences at school, we will be asking for your child’s feedback via an online survey they will be given at school. The survey shouldn’t take more than 20-30 minutes and will be completed some time between December 11th and December 22nd.

We are asking that all of our grade 3 through 12 students participate in the survey, as their feedback will provide invaluable insights into their experiences and how we can improve and adapt our district to their needs. If a student doesn’t feel they have enough information to answer a question, they can skip the item altogether. All responses to these surveys will be completely confidential. We are partnering with Panorama to support us in administering these surveys.

The survey will ask students to self-reflect on their experiences of cultural awareness and action, rigorous expectations, school climate, sense of belonging, school safety, and teacher-student relationships. Copies of the surveys are linked below. Please notify us if you would like your child to opt out of taking the surveys by filling out this brief form by Friday December 8, 2023.

We thank your students in advance for their thoughtful responses. If you have any questions about the survey administration or need a translated copy of the survey, please don’t hesitate to contact Matt Coleman at mcoleman@arlington.k12.ma.us.

APS Central Offices have officially relocated! As of November 13, 2023 all APS administrative offices that were formerly located at 869 Mass. Avenue on the 6th floor can now be found at 14 Mill Brook Drive. This is also the location for our new APS Family Welcome Center and Resource Hub! We look forward to offering virtual tours very soon. Thank you for your patience during this process.

All are welcome to join us online on Dec. 12th at 7:30pm for our monthly business meeting. Hear updates from district staff, learn about upcoming workshops, ask questions, and connect with other parents and guardians interested in special education.

Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86234778319?pwd=ZDFPdDNZZjZxbXVwNUYyZDR1VjJsUT09

The district is aware of recent news stories regarding individuals attempting to gain access to Massachusetts schools. Authorities from the FBI are working with local authorities on investigating this in the affected communities. Arlington has not experienced any unusual or concerning behavior; however, given the recent events, we are working with the APD to ensure our protocols for ensuring school safety are up-to-date and understood by staff. All visitors are expected to identify themselves and sign in at all APS buildings, staff are expected to wear identification, and all doors are expected to be closed and locked during the school day and after school activities. If you have any questions about security protocols at your child's school, please contact the principal.

The Black Joy project is hosting a free community event on Saturday, December 9th from 11-1 at the Town Hall auditorium. "Inspired" is a celebration of three local Arlington Black artists, Maria Fonesca, who photographs Afro-Cuban dancers, Musician Larry Terry, who creates rhythmic interpretations of music with oil and pastel, and TJ Reynolds, who portrays friends, family and local leaders & legends to create powerful tributes to oil pastel. On Dec. 9th from 11- 1 there will be a celebration of the artists, with live music from Larry Terry, activities and refreshments, plus a special same day exhibit of quilts by guild members of Sisters in Stitches Joined by the Cloth, who celebrate the African American art of quilting. Click here to see the official flier!

The School News app by Edlio is an activity feed for alerts, news, and events from APS. It’s a simple way to view the school news feeds and calendars. The app is free to download to your iOS or Android phone and quick to set up:

• Go to the App Store or Google Play and search for “School News by Edlio” to install.
• Open the app and search for Arlington Public Schools; tap “Add School.”
• Enable push notification by going to the Alerts tab and tapping “Enable Notifications.”

As the school year begins and public health concerns continue, our office is excited to reach out to all school superintendents to share two videos, created in partnership with talented students from New Bedford High School and with practitioners from the New Bedford Community Health Center, to highlight the harmful impacts of illegal idling and provide information to Massachusetts residents to help tackle this problem. To read more, click here.

• Dec. 6th - Elementary Early Release @ 1:00 p.m.

• Dec. 12th- Menotomy Conferences (Early release at 11:30)
• Dec. 12th- SEPAC Meeting, 7:30 p.m.
• Dec. 13th- Early Release (All Schools)
• Dec. 14th- School Committee Meeting @ 6:30 p.m.
• Dec. 19th- Menotomy Conferences (Early release at 11:30)
• Dec. 25th- Winter break begins

Learning doesn't have to stop when your child leaves school! Our friends at Robbins Library are offering a wide array of events and activities for children of all ages throughout the month of December. We welcome you to take a look at all the possibilities by clicking here.

ACE is pleased to fully fund these classes for Arlington residents.

Level 1: For beginner level students with little knowledge of the English language, learn the alphabet, numbers, pronouns, verbs, simple present tense, basic adjectives, prepositions, and everyday vocabulary.

Level 2: For students who have taken the Level 1 course or for students who are familiar with the basic grammar topics taught in the Level 1 course. Learn simple present, past, future tenses, yes/no questions, adverbs of frequency, and daily vocabulary.

Level 3: For students who have taken the Level 2 course and/or for students who have acquired survival conversation skills and basic grammar concepts. Practice advanced tenses, comparative and superlative adjectives, and simple clauses.

Please note: Free for Arlington residents with registration. If you live outside of Arlington, please add yourself to our “waitlist” class and we will contact you if we have space.

For more information and to register please click here or contact ACE at 781-316-3568.

Do you have a future hoop star in your midst or someone who wants to learn the basics of basketball? The New Balance Foundation is hosting adaptive basketball every Tuesday from February 27th-April 9th from 5:00-6:00 p.m. Attendees will work on dribbling, passing, and shooting before participating in games. All participants ages 4-21 are welcome! Please see the flier for more information! Slots are limited! Click here to learn more!

The APS Communication Process Flier is your go-to resource for direction on all your questions and concerns regarding district matters. We believe that clear communication is vital for building a strong and thriving educational community. We encourage you to consult this tool when wondering who to go to first with your question or concern.