Hamline Family Newsletter

Hamline Families,

Like I am guessing is true for many of you, I have been trying to process everything we saw at the U.S. Capitol this past week. An insurrection and an attack on the Capitol Building, unlike anything we have ever seen in our lived experience. We saw a confederate flag carried through the Capitol Building, windows smashed, offices ransacked.

While I am far from done with that processing, I wanted to reach out. I am angry. I am sad. I am disappointed. What happened before, during, and after the riots is more evidence of deep divides, racism, and injustice. I know we can be better.

What I keep thinking about is how to proceed? How do we teach our children better? How do we truly unite across our differences? How do we confront the racism and deep divides in our country in a way that truly moves us forward together?

This past week were dark days for America, but I do believe that brighter days are ahead. If we can commit to acting together. If we can seek to understand before being understood, grant each other grace, and truly believe we are all in this together.

We at Hamline believe that people thrive when they feel connected, trusted, and affirmed. We believe that we are all accountable for removing barriers and creating equitable systems.This is our work and promise to you.

In Partnership,

Principal Kristin Reilly

Hamline Huskies-

The deadline to apply for Virtual Learning School has been extended to January 11, 2021. Please click on the following link if you would like to apply for Virtual Learning School.

If you have any questions about Virtual Learning School (VLS) or in person learning, please call or email me.

Please click on the following link for more information regarding our return to in-person learning on February 1st for Pre-K thru 2nd grade.

Email: jennifer.ewald@spps.org

Office: 651-744-6055

Google Voice: ‪(612) 315-0791‬

We do not have school on the following days:

January 18th - Martin Luther King Jr Day

January 25-January 28 - Teacher Preparation for In-Person Learning

January 29 - Professional Development Day for Staff

Please click on the following icons for more information.

"Our job is not to prepare students for something; Our job is to help students prepare themselves for anything."

As we build our inquiry-based learning model at Hamline, we have identified five competencies that we want every student leaving Hamline with: Collaborators, Communicators, Problem Solvers, Creators, and Self and Community Aware. We believe these are the characteristics needed to prepare students for the 21st century.

Greetings Hamline Huskies,

Study table hours are held every day for students that need extra assistance with homework or classwork. Below are my study hours, but if that doesn't work for your scholar, please email me at Kalu.abosi@spps.org and we will figure something out.

Monday: 9:00am-10:am, 2:00pm-3:00pm

Tuesday: 9:00am-10:00am

Wednesday: 9:00am-10:am, 2:00pm-3:00pm

Thursday: 9:00am-10:am, 2:00pm-3:00pm

Friday: 9:00am-10:am, 2:00pm-3:00pm

Kalu Abosi

Behavior Intervention Specialist

I was in a meeting with a parent recently and our conversation was about supporting her child with distance learning while working full time outside the home. We came to the realization that our children may be missing the parent side of us that . With distance learning turning many parents into educational coaches for their children, we notice a shift in the relationship that may create tension and some resistance from our children. We are regularly reminding our kids of their schedules, meetings, checking on their work all while multitasking everything else and for many of us working parents, we may be doing this throughout the day and nights.

So what can help since this is the way things may be for some time? Something I started doing and talked to this particular mother about was having time in the day where school is completely not talked about. Where we connect with our children in a way that is meaningful to them and us. Being completely present with them in that time even if it was short can have a long impact on them feeling connected to the parent and reassuring them that the relationship is more than constantly focused on academic performance.

- Kaltun Abdikarani, School Counselor

Hello Hamline Husky Families!

I am planning to host a Family Night in the coming months and would love to get your feedback. Please take just a couple of minutes to complete my survey and tell me which two topics you are most interested in. The Family Night will take place sometime between 5 - 7pm on a weeknight. Once I tally everyone's vote, I will send out an update and hopefully a date for the event.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf4cU1Q-aT2O_M3D0-pm06t84fXi2ZKy3hypPmRSNKzMTDVTA/viewform?usp=sf_link

Resources for Free Winter Gear

● Call United Way 211 or go online for a listing of places

that may have winter clothing on hand.

● The Salvation Army also offers coats for children.

Peace, Joy & Love

Lynnette Medcalf, School Social Worker

Should you consider Mental Health Therapy for your child?

Life has been turned upside down for everyone. The current life events that are happening should not be processed alone. Therapy can help children begin to process and make sense of their worlds with a Mental Health Professional.

Paying attention to the mental health of children can help reduce problems at home, school, and in social interactions with others.

If you would like more information about starting therapy services for your child please reach out to our School Social Worker, Lynnette Medcalf at Lynnette.medcalf@spps.org or School Counselor, Kaltun Abdikarani at Kaltunabdikarani@spps.org. You can also fill out the help form for families on the Hamline website, spps.org/hamline.

Thank you,

Sharice Zaccardi

Community School Mental Health Practitioner

The Midway Food & Empowerment Project aims to collect and distribute resources to our community on an ongoing basis.The speed at which multiple community partners came together to make this happen is nothing short of amazing. We will continue to work with our partners to ensure that our community members receive the items they need to thrive

https://www.hamlinemidway.org/TheMidwayProject

Reminder to fill out the annual iUpdate student form at Campus Parent. It is important we have updated contact information so you will receive updates from the school. If you need any help with your login or password, email karen.azen@spps.org or leave a message at 651-744-4287.

Bridging Snelling Avenue, Hamline Elementary and Hamline University are one integrated campus. Each member of our community is both a teacher and a student, engaged in a journey of lifelong learning that provides a rich variety of resources to support this diverse education. Our partnership with Hamline University, the first of its kind in the nation, places more than 100 tutors and mentors in classrooms and provides students with access to the university campus on a continual basis. Hamline students see themselves in college students. As the saying goes, "College begins in kindergarten". We are two campuses, but one community in the heart of the Hamline Midway neighborhood.

Website: hamline.spps.org
Location: 1599 Englewood Ave, Saint Paul, MN, USA
Phone: 651-293-8715
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hamlineelementaryschool
Twitter: @HamlineElem