Green Meadow Weekly Update

Principal, Karen Lindquist - klindquist@maynard.k12.ma.us

Assistant Principal, Kate Murray - kmurray@maynard.k12.ma.us

Administrative Assistant- Kathy Sullivan - ksullivan@maynard.k12.ma.us

Administrative Assistant- Nancy Dangelo - ndangelo@maynard.k12.ma.us

School Nurse, Maria Bourgeois - mbourgeois@maynard.k12.ma.us

Main Office Line - (978) 897-8246

Absentee Phone Line - (978)897-0310

10/14 - No School, Indigenous People's Day

10/18 - Early Release Day, GM dismissal 11:45 AM, No PreK

10/19 - PTO Pumpkin Palooza Family Event, more details to come

10/25 - Early Release Day, GM dismissal 11:45 AM, No PreK

10/25 - Parent Conferences, Teachers will share a schedule

10/31 - Green Meadow Autumn Walk, 8:45 AM, Grades K-3

11/5 - Election Day, No School for Students, Staff PD day

11/8 - Green Meadow Veteran's Day Breakfast

12/13 - Winter Concert for Grades 1-3, 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM

4/8 - 4/9 - Grade 3 ELA MCAS testing

5/6 - 5/7 - Grade 3 Math MCAS testing

On Thursday, October 10, families will receive assessment reports from the screening tools described below. The reports will come home in an envelope in your child's backpack. Any student who scored well-below grade level on the Earlybird Learning Early Literacy Screening Tool or the mClass DIBELS8 assessment will also find a letter that describes the interventions that will be put in place to help your child grow in early literacy skills.

Earlybird Learning Early Literacy Screening Tool

This assessment is given to Kindergarten students at the beginning, middle, and end of the school year. It is a game-based assessment that measures a students skill level and growth in English across phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle (phonics), oral language fluency, vocabulary, and rapid-naming speed. The assessment identifies areas that could contribute to difficulty with reading. Evidence-based resources are available through Earlybird Learning to support whole class and small group instruction to support students with identified areas. Teachers, instructional coaches, and administrators analyze the data from this assessment and identify trends and areas of instructional need.

mClass/DIBELS8

mClass is a platform that provides one-minute fluency probes based on the DIBELS8 (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) assessment. The assessment is available in English and Spanish. It is given to all of our Spanish Immersion students in both languages, and our Grade1, Grade 2 and Grade 3 students in English. It measures phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle (phonics), and fluency. The data is analyzed by teachers, instructional coaches, and administrators to identify trends and areas of instructional need. mClass provides teachers with evidence-based instructional resources and recommended groupings. Students are given this assessment at the beginning of the year, middle of the year, and the end of the year.

MAP Growth Literacy and Math Assessment

MAP Growth ELA (English) and SLA (Spanish) is new to the district this year. This benchmark assessment is given to students in Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 3. Students are assessed on their knowledge of literature and informational text, language use and writing, and vocabulary use and functions in relation to the ELA standards. Grade 1 students are also assessed on foundational skills. In math, students are assessed in four overarching topics: Number and Operations, Measurement and Data, Geometry, and Operations and Algebraic Thinking. These topics correlate with the Massachusetts State Standards.

MAP Growth is given at the beginning of the year, middle of the year, and end of the year. The data is analyzed by teachers, coaches, and administrators to identify instructional needs and guide planning and differentiation. For more information about MAP Growth, please click on this link:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1O8MRvXPbsv3M3ekyxwqDeAMpYfahpNyc/view?usp=sharing

Teachers will be sharing sign-ups for conferences during the last two weeks of October. Our early release day on October 25, is dedicated to these meetings but teachers will post additional time slots throughout the two weeks depending on their availability. Please be sure to sign up to a time to discuss your child's start to the school year. If you would like translation services during your conference and your child's teacher has not already contacted you about setting this up, please let your child's teacher know as soon as possible.

Preschool will celebrate autumn by inviting one caregiver per child during an art class with Green Meadow art teacher Taylor Vanaria from 10:05 to 10:20 am at the end of October and in early November. Please see RSVP details in an incoming email from your child's pre-k teacher soon. If this celebration conflicts with your schedule, rest assured that other opportunities to visit the classroom will be offered throughout the year. Happy fall!

Ms. DiLuca: Monday, October 28

Ms. Viros: Tuesday, October 29

Ms. Cohen: Thursday, November 7

Ms. Gonsalves: Friday, November 8.

Keep Those Little Hands Healthy!

As parents, we all want our kids to stay safe and healthy, and a simple habit can make all the difference—hand hygiene!

Did you know that teaching your kids the importance of washing their hands can significantly reduce the spread of germs? With cold and flu season quickly approaching, it’s the perfect time to instill good habits that last a lifetime!

Why Hand Hygiene Matters for Kids?

• Germ Defense: Kids are curious explorers, and their little hands touch everything! Regular hand washing helps protect them from nasty bugs.
• Healthy Habits: Establishing a routine early on encourages lifelong healthy practices—because who doesn't want a super germ-fighting kiddo?
• Fun Learning: Make hand washing an adventure! Sing a silly song or set a timer for 20 seconds—turn it into a game they won’t forget!

Tips for Effective Hand Hygiene

• Wash with Soap: Teach them to scrub for at least 20 seconds with soap and water—don’t forget between those tiny fingers and under the nails!
• Use Hand Sanitizer: When soap and water aren’t available, a fun, kid-friendly hand sanitizer can do the trick!
• Model Good Behavior: Show them how it's done! Kids learn by watching, so make hand washing a family affair.

Let’s make hand hygiene a fun part of your child’s daily routine!

Stay safe and happy washing!

The Green Meadow Nursing Team

The blasting work at Green Meadow is still on hold. This has been explained to the children through our morning announcements. Once we have confirmation that the blasting work will start we will share the information with the school community and review the procedures with the children. While the work sounds very disruptive and a little disconcerting, it will actually have minimal impact on our day to day operations. The children have done a remarkable job getting used to seeing the construction vehicles outside and managing their daily routines.

https://www.maynard.k12.ma.us/o/green-meadow-school/page/gm-building-project-information

We continue to meet and work through the MSBA design development process. We recently held a hybrid meeting to share where we are in the process.

Please click here to watch a short 15 minute presentation regarding the current status and the timeline of the Green Meadow building project.

Link to recent Building Update about the blasting phases of the project:

https://secure.smore.com/n/7xms4

All abutters and others, if desired, can be notified with text or email notification prior to blast. If you would like to be added to this notification list, please call Esta Falvey, at Northern Construction, at 508-603-5220.

Click on the link to read the lastest school lunch menu options: https://www.fdmealplanner.com/

Calling All New Families - Check out our PTO website and join our email list to stay on top of news and events. We can't wait for you to get involved!

https://greenmeadowpto.membershiptoolkit.com/

The next PTO meeting will be virtual on Tuesday, October 8, at 7:00. Please see the PTO website for the meeting link.

ELPAC (English Learner Parent Advisory Council) Resources

SEPAC (Special Education Parent Advisory Council) Resources

Multilingual Learner Resources

SEPAC is collaborating with other districts to offer a webinar about planning for post-graduation planning for students on IEPs on October 30, from 6:30 - 8:00 PM. Please use the link below to sign-up for the event.

https://nesca-newton.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__erGkhPCR7iSpRY_kMYSzg

A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents

As part of the Department of Justice Project Safe Childhood Initiative aimed at combatting the online sexual exploitation of children, the US Attorney’s Office is hosting a virtual internet safety presentation for parents. The presentation will educate parents on the dangers children face on the internet and how to keep them safe online. Please feel free to share this email and the attached flyer with your department, school administrators and community.

What: Webex Webinar – Keeping Children Safe and Secure Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents

When: Wednesday, October 9th @ 6:30 pm (log in begins at 6:00 pm)

Registration link: https://usao.webex.com/weblink/register/r3c6f24c5e409d764c38ac82d069f700e

*Registration is required. Space is limited. The Webex platform has a maximum capacity of 1000 attendees. If you have any questions or if we have reached registration capacity, please email USAMA.PSCOutreach@usdoj.gov to be put on a waitlist for the next presentation.

The Open Table Food Pantry (www.opentable.org; 33 Main St, Maynard) is open on Tuesdays, 3:30 - 6:30 PM and Thursdays, 1 - 4:30 PM and offers free bags of groceries 1x/week. Open Table also allows families to pick up frozen meals for family members weekly.

The Maynard Food Pantry (www.maynardfoodpantry.com; 82 Main St., Maynard) is open on Mondays from 10 AM - 12 noon 1-2x/month

The Maynard Food Pantry offers a weekly Backpack Program for all students in PreK-Grade 5 that aims to offer food assistance to families. Each backpack is filled with nutritious, non-perishable food at no cost. Forms were sent home to families in backpacks last week. If you need a form, they are available in the Green Meadow main office. You can also request one by emailing Kate Murray at kmurray@maynard.k12.ma.us.

Interested in learning more about the Maynard community and the many wonderful things happening around town? Check out the monthly Maynard Advantage Newsletters by subscribing at maynardadvantage.org

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