News From The Nest: Issue #12

Hello Elm Street School Families and Friends!

We wrapped up another short week jam packed full of learning and engagement at the Nest this past week. Students across the school celebrated World Kindness Day on Wednesday by sharing notes of gratitude and acts of service adding kindness to our community and filling each other's buckets.

As we head into the latter half of November and December schedules in school and outside of school are flexing and changing with the various holidays, special events, and celebrations. Families are traveling or having loved ones visit and special evening activities fill up our calendars in the next few weeks. While this can be such a joyful and special time of year it also can disrupt routines and consistency. At school we will preview changes in schedule, remind students of expectations, and practice routines to help keep stability. In partnership with us it would be most helpful if you could also be having conversations at home about following the expectations and routines at school so we can have a safe and productive set of weeks leading up to the Winter Break.

In this edition of our weekly newsletter you will find information about:

• upcoming dates and celebrations for November
• November Counseling Newsletter
• Essentialist Newsletter: MUSIC
• Cold Weather Gear Reminder
• Math Update
• Elm Families First
• Multicultural Potluck sign up
• MCAS Dates
• Winter Gear and Holiday Assistance
• Elm Street School Turkey Trot
• Dedham Savings Bank Holiday Card Contest

This upcoming week we have our annual Elm Family Multicultural Potluck celebration on Wednesday November 20th from 6:30 - 8:00p. This is a wonderful event and opportunity for us to all gather in community, learn more about one another, and celebrate all the uniqueness and rich culture that makes Elm such a special place. I hope to see everyone there!

Jen

At the beginning of each month I will share a calendar of some upcoming Elm events as well as upcoming cultural celebrations and heritage months with hyperlinks to more information if you are interested in learning more. Below is information for the month of November.

If there are cultural celebrations that are important to you and your family that you would like to share with the adult Elm community, please email me so I can be sure to include them in upcoming newsletters. If you have any questions about anything you see on our calendar, please don't hesitate to reach out to me directly.

• 10/31 - 11/1 Diwali
• 11/1 Native American Heritage Month begins, All Saints Day, School Photo Make-Up Day
• 11/1 - 2 Day of the Dead
• 11/2 5:00 - 8:30p Diwali Celebration
• 11/5 Election Day, School Closed- Staff Professional Development Day
• 11/8 8:30a Coffee and Conversation- Homework and Executive Functioning
• 11/11 Veterans Day, School Closed
• 11/12 5:00 - 7:00p Family Educator Conferences
• 11/14 5:00 - 7:00p Family Educator Conferences, 6:45p School Committee Meeting
• 11/15 Early Release Day- Family Educator Conferences
• 11/20 6:30p Elm Multicultural Potluck, Transgender Day of Remembrance
• 11/21 7:00p Elm PAC Meeting
• 11/22 Elm K-5 Assembly (Students and Staff Only)
• 11/27 Early Release Day
• 11/28 - 29 School Closed
• 11/28 Thanksgiving, National Day of Mourning

As the weather finally makes a turn please help your children remember to bring cold weather gear to school. Some of our first recesses are early in the morning when it is still chilly enough to wear jackets. It's a good idea to dress in layers as some of the afternoon recesses can be much warmer than bus stop temperatures in the morning. Better to have the jacket and not need it then be too cold outside!

With Family/Educator Conferences coming up next week, many teachers may be sharing information around fact fluency. Fact fluency is not memorizing a list of equations to see how fast a student can complete a paper. Fact fluency incorporates children being able to use efficient strategies to work with their basic facts in multiple ways. Multiplication and division rely on fluency with addition and subtraction. Fractions rely on fluency with multiplication and division. Fact fluency extends to all math concepts throughout the grades.

This year, we are fortunate enough to have the Math Fact Lab program at school so students in grades 1-5 have a systematic approach, filled with visual models to master their math facts. Sessions for Math Fact Lab run anywhere from 8-15 minutes and it is suggested that students complete at least 3 sessions a week. Once students complete a certain number of activities they get a chance to pass a level lifter which will move them on to the next level of facts. Our students are doing an amazing job passing their level lifters to become Math Fact Masters.

There are several other fun ways students can work with their facts to become fluent and efficient mathematicians. Check out this book of math games, Acing Math (One Deck at a Time) that only needs a deck of cards for fun math fact practice. Our Family Math Site has a special section devoted to Fact Fluency where you will find even more resources for fun practice for your child.

End of School Year Fact Fluency Expectations:

Kindergarten: Fluently add & subtract within 5

Grade 1: Fluently add & subtract within 10

Grade 2: Fluently add & subtract within 20

Grade 3: Fluently multiply all products up to 10x10 and related division facts

Grade 4: Fluently multiply all products up to 12x12 and related division facts

Grade 5: Keep practicing all facts for fluency!

DONATE A NEW UNWRAPPED TOY AND/OR A GIFT CARD TO

OUR “ELM FAMILIES FIRST” HOLIDAY GIVING DRIVE

November 12th – December 11th

This year we will be collecting toys and gift cards and winter boots and snow pants for families within our Elm community.

We will collect toys for kids from 0-13 years of age.

SUGGESTED ITEMS:

• TOYS TO LEARN AND GROW

• ARTS &CRAFTS

• BUILDING BLOCKS

• SPORTS EQUIPMENT

• BOOKS

• PUZZLES

• STEM TOYS

We will also collect gift cards to local or online stores.

SUGGESTED STORES:

• LOCAL CLOTHING AND FOOD STORES

• STOP AND SHOP

• BIG Y

• KOHL’S

• TARGET

• WALMART

• AMAZON

Donations will be given to Elm families first. Please drop donations off at the Main Office by December 11th.

We are also collecting winter boots and snow pants in various sizes. If you are interested in purchasing a new pair of winter boots and/or snow pants for a student here at Elm, please reach out to Jen Buller (jbuller@walpole.k12.ma.us).

Thank you in advance for your generosity during this holiday season!

Elm Street School is excited to bring back the Multicultural Family Potluck event on Wednesday November 20th from 6:30 - 8 pm! For those that haven't attended, it's a wonderful community evening at school where families bring dishes from their culture, listen to music, and meet new friends.

Your support will make this event a success. There are already several families that have volunteered by offering to provide a family dish, game, or simply share something that represents the diverse cultures and backgrounds of Elm Street School. These are just a few of the ways you can participate. RSVP is here and signups to bring plates, plugs, etc. is here. Please contact the organizers on the attached flyer if you would like more information or ideas on how you can be a part of this great night. Even if you cannot volunteer to bring a dish, please consider attending on November 20th!

Below are the dates for MCAS for grades 3-5. All elementary schools will be following this schedule.

Grade 3 English Language Arts

April 1 and April 2

Grade 3 Math

April 29 and 30

Grade 4 English Language Arts

April 3 and 4

Grade 4 Math

May 1 and 2

Grade 5 English Language Arts

April 8 and 9

Grade 5 Math

May 6 and 7

Grade 5 Science Technology and Engineering

May 14 and 15

Each year we reach out to all of our Elm families to offer assistance with winter gear (coats, hats, mittens, gloves, boots, snow pants) and holiday meals and gifts. If your family is in need of assistance this year because of financial hardship please reach out to myself (jbuller@walpole.k12.ma.us) or a member of our Guidance Team (Jessica Simpson- jsimpson@walpole.k12.ma.us Tori Dore- vwintersdore@walpole.k12.ma.us). Because of the generosity of our community here in Walpole we are able to support all families with need. When contacting us please share the ages and gender identity/expression of anyone living in the home under the age of 18, coat sizes, and the total number of people living in the home. Please know that all information will be kept confidential amongst myself, Mrs. Simpson, and Mrs. Dore.

We welcome all Elm Street students and staff to participate in our annual Elm Street School Turkey Trot! Each grade will be invited outside during their designated time to see how many laps they can run, walk or jog! Students are encouraged to bring in nonperishable food items on the morning of Wednesday November 27, 2024. These items will be donated to the Walpole Food Pantry to help members of the community during the holiday season. We will keep track of how many laps students run and see if we can run as a school as many laps as the amount of donated items. Lastly, please make sure to dress appropriately for the outdoors including sneakers. In the case of inclement weather the Turkey Trot will take place in the gymnasium.

Example of Nonperishable Items: Canned Items (beans, fruits, vegetables, soup), boxed pasta, rice, seeds, oils, etc.

For more than 25 years the Walpole Elementary Schools has partnered with Dedham Savings Bank and participated in their Holiday Card Contest. Cards can showcase any winter holiday that is celebrated around this time of year. If students would like to participate in the contest, we are asking that this take place at home.

Here are the details:

• All cards should be on 8.5 by 11 white paper

• On the back of the card, please put the student's name, school, and grade.

• The cards need to be returned to school by Friday, December 13th

Below are the generous prizes for each grade donated by the Dedham Savings Bank:

• 1st Prize $100

• 2nd Prize $50

• 3rd Prize $25

Email: jbuller@walpole.k12.ma.us
Website: https://www.walpole.k12.ma.us/o/ess
Location: 415 Elm Street, Walpole, MA, USA
Phone: 508.660.7374

Instagram: ElmStSchool