The School Bell

Please label Winter Clothes & Gear - PreK Lottery Open - Walk & Rolls to School 12/5 - WCS Drama Kickoff 12/7 - Explorers Team Food Drive - continue reading for details and more...

A message from Williston Schools Principal Gregory Marino - Full calendar of Upcoming School Events - Williston Families as Partners Coffee with the Principals (NEW FORMAT) - Community Events - and more...

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- DAMLibrary - Upcoming Events/Programs

- Williston Recreation & Parks - Upcoming Events/Programs

- School and District Calendars

- Food Service / Transportation Links

- Families as Partners & Four Winds

- CVSD District and School Board Links

- Important Family Resources

by Gregory Marino, Williston Schools Lead Principal

Dear Williston Parents and Caregivers,

I sincerely hope that your family was able to enjoy the break from the school routine last week and some downtime together filled with some rest, rejuvenation, and joy. Whether or not you celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday, just having a little time away from the regular routine to pause and reflect can be so helpful. I am very grateful for having that chance last week and being able to return to work this week with a sense of renewal and meeting the challenges of this important work with maybe just a little more capacity and clarity.

Speaking of capacity and clarity, your Williston Schools Leadership Team, which consists of principals, Angela Filion and Jackie Parks, Director of Student Services, Lauren Goracy, and myself, decided to take a day on Monday, 11/20 - the first day of the school break - to have a quiet and focused half-day of work together. Finding this time together without a multitude of distractions is always challenging, so we took the opportunity to recalibrate around some important leadership work.

When I think about reflection and planning for action, I think about one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite authors and thinkers, Margaret Wheatley.

• “The future comes from where we are now. The future won’t change until we look thoughtfully at our present. We have sufficient human capacity to think and reflect together, to care about one another, to act courageously, to reclaim the future.”

This quote always leaves me feeling optimistic and empowered and embodies the spirit of what we were hoping to accomplish during our work session. To help direct our reflection we took some time to consider the four main areas of focus we identified with faculty and staff for this school year.

• Social Emotional / Behavior Systems and Supports for All

• Diversity-Equity-Inclusion (DEI)

• High Quality Universal Instruction for All (Act 173)

• Continue to strengthen our connection and engagement with our families / caregivers

We privately reflected on each of these focus areas and answered the following four prompts

1. What elements of the work were most proud of so far

2. What do we believe to be on the verge of attempting or accomplishing within the focus area

3. What do we believe to be the highest priority around the work for the next eight weeks, and

4. Identify one concrete action to take related to that highest priority.

We then moved on to planning how we would implement the specific actions we identified in service of moving the work forward. For the sake of transparency and cohesion, we sent a summary of our work, including the celebrations and identified actions to all Williston faculty and staff. We were once again reminded of how important it is to take time for this kind of thoughtful reflection and discussion, regardless of how busy things get. In fact, the crasier things get, the more important it is! We know that our faculty and staff need this time as well and that we need to build reflection time into our professional development activities. Maragaret Wheatley puts it, we need to “look thoughtfully at our present” so that we can ”… act courageously, to reclaim the future.”

As always, I am most grateful for our continued partnership in your child(ren)’s growth and learning. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me or anyone on the leadership team with questions or concerns.

12/05 - Williston Walks & Rolls to school, ABS & WCS, see maps for details

12/07 - Drama Kickoff Meeting, 6:00pm - 8:00pm @WCS Auditorium

12/12 - CVSD Budget Development Meeting, 6:00pm CVU Rm 160 (and virtual)

12/12 - Intergen Book Groups

12/13 - Virtual Town Hall, 6:30-7:30 pm

12/14 - Families as Partners Monthly Meeting, 8:30 - 10:30am @WCS Community Room

12/18 - Coffee with the Principals, 8:30am @WCS Community Room

12/19 - Horizon Crafting Company Sale

12/25 - 1/1 - No School / Early Winter Break

01/09 - Intergen Book Groups

01/10 - 4 Winds Training, 8:15am @WCS Community Room

01/11 - Families as Partners Monthly Meeting, 8:30 - 10:30am @WCS Community Room

01/15 - No School / Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Allen Brook School - Start Time @ 7:50am;

Dismissal for PreK & K at 2:25pm - grades 1 & 2 @2:30pm

Williston Central School - Start Time @8:00am;

Dismissal grades 3 & 4 @2:35pm - grades 5-8 @2:45pm

**REMINDER: Early Release Wednesdays are 1 Hour earlier every week**

Thank you for helping us to return items to the correct owner by putting your student's name in winter jackets, boots, gloves, etc.

Mark your calendars for December's Virtual Town Hall on Wednesday, December 13 from 6:30-7:30. We'll share updates about the budget development process and our strategic plan and engage in conversations with those attending. This is a great way to connect with Superintendent Sanchez and other district leaders! The Zoom information is posted on the CVSD website calendar.

The CVSD Early Education Program is now accepting applications for a random prekindergarten lottery drawing for the 2024-25 school year. This lottery is for an opportunity to enroll in one of our school-based classrooms which run 10 hours per week. Our school-based prekindergarten classrooms are 5 STARs, licensed early education programs that provide play-based, developmentally appropriate environments for all children in an inclusive setting. Our curriculum is based on the Vermont Early Learning Standards (VELS).

Our programs follow the CVSD school calendar. Children who will be age 3 or older by September 1, 2024, who are not eligible for kindergarten, and live in the communities of Charlotte, Hinesburg, Shelburne, St. George, and Williston are eligible to enter the lottery. Families who are selected for the lottery and choose to enroll their child in a CVSD program access their Act 166 publicly funded prekindergarten funds for the school-based program.

All applications must be received by February 5, 2024, and are located on the CVSD Early Education website under 2024-2025 Preschool Lottery . Paper applications are available upon request.

For additional information, questions about our program, or any concerns about your child’s development, please visit our website or contact Director of Early Education, Erin Gagne at egagne@cvsdvt.org. Our Early Education team is also available for developmental screenings in the areas of communication, social-emotional development, motor skills, adaptive development, and cognition. More information about an Early Multi-Tiered System of Supports is also available on the website.

The Explorers team is participating in a Fall Food Drive for the Williston Food Shelf. Please help by bringing your food donation to the box in the ABS lobby.

Here are some suggestions for donations: kid friendly breakfast cereal, pasta, canned pasta sauce, canned vegetables and fruits, cans of soup, canned tomatoes, canned protein, tuna, peanut butter, jelly, canned beans, coffee and tea, snacks, juice, macaroni and cheese, and pasta side dishes.

Horizon House is dusting off a tradition that began years ago! As a part of our economics unit, we will be selling our school-made crafts.

The proceeds will go to the Williston Food Shelf.

When: Tuesday, December 19th

What: duct tape wallets, bird feeders, ABS magnets, monster bookmarks, and more

Important details:

• All items are $1

• 1 item per person

• Monetary donations welcomed

• Items left over will be sold on Wednesday, December 20th in the morning

As cold and flu season begins, all of us at school are working hard to encourage more handwashing and healthy habits for catching sneezes and coughs. You are encouraged to have these conversations at home to help us slow the spread of germs and illness.

Learn about catching your germs from Nurse Love

Cover Your Mouth

Germ Smart Kids

Please remember: If there is any change to your student's typical end of day plan, please be sure to contact the front office and teacher BEFORE 1:00PM (or 12:00 pm on Wednesdays). Changes in your student(s) schedule will not be accepted after this time unless it is an emergency.

Send all emails regarding attendance and end of day changes to:

1. The classroom teacher

2. Front Office: absfrontoffice@cvsdvt.org

3. The Team Assistant for your grade:

• Kindergarten - cplouffe@cvsdvt.org

• First/Second Grade - lsaladino@cvsdvt.org

We are thrilled to announce our 2024 WCS Drama production…

The Addams Family!

Kickoff information night for students and families will be:

Thursday, December 7th 2023

6:00-8:00

WCS Auditorium

We will cover all the essential information you need to know about the show, the team, and our audition process.

This kickoff is for only students in grades 6-8 interested in being in the cast.

Our presentation will be recorded for those unable to attend.

The Audition website will go live on December 8, 2023.

For further information, please email Carol Spradling cspradling@cvsdvt.org (director)

• All 4th-grade musicians will wear "Williston Central School Performing Arts" t-shirts for our winter and spring performances! We are placing an order now so the 4th-grade chorus members will receive their shirts in time for their winter concert on Tuesday, February 6th, 2024.

• Please complete this ORDER FORM to order a t-shirt for your 4th-grade chorus member.

• The beginner band students will also be ordering the same shirts but at a later date for their spring performance. If your child is in both the band and the chorus, they only need to order this one now. (No need for another shirt since all grade 4-8 WCS performing groups wear the same shirts.)
  

• If your child already has one of these performing arts t-shirts from an older sibling, friend, neighbor, etc., they may use that one instead of ordering one.
  

• Please email Mrs. T-H with questions. dtrasciatti@cvsdvt.org

Artist/educator Katie O’Brien had the idea for a sculpture when a cedar tree fell in her yard and she wondered “what if I were to put the tree back together again - as a sculpture?” The idea was formed and she worked with ABS/WCS teachers Sara Beeken and Julie Rodgers to create a proposal for collaborative outdoor sculpture at one of our Williston Schools. The trio received a grant from the Family as Partners group to fund the project which was supposed to happen in the spring of 2020. It was a little delayed, but it finally came to life this fall!

Katie supplied all the materials for the project from the grant, and her fallen cedar tree. She cut off small pieces of the branches so that each student could “take home a piece of the sculpture” and make something special they could wear as a necklace or hang as a decoration. She wanted the kiddos to be able to contribute to the community sculpture, but also wanted something tangible they could keep as a memento.

As a class we prepared by learning about color theory and color mixing. Next, we learned about contrast and unity as concepts relating to color, and balance and repetition as concepts relating to design/pattern. When Katie came to us, our students learned about the idea of abstraction being either representational or non-objective and considered what kind of design they wanted to use on their section of the sculpture. She showed them an example of a similar work she had made in her garden, and demonstrated painting techniques they could use on their artworks.

Over the course of the next few days two of our 5th and 6th grade classes from Clover and Sterling house contributed to painting the sculpture. A few students helped to “thread” the sculpture like beads and we fine tuned the presentation of it indoors. Then, Katie and her husband Tim came and installed the sculpture in the courtyard!

It was a fantastic experience for all!

Thank you to our student artists from Clover and Sterling, Katie O'Brien, Tim Barritt, Sara Beeken Julie Rogers and Families as Partners for whom we could not have had the experience without! I hope you will be able to see the beautiful sculpture in the courtyard, or outside our music room window, soon!

Families As Partners is striving to support our schools, build community, increase

communication, make positive connections, and provide understanding between the school and families.

Having monthly ‘Coffee with the Principal’ meetings gives caregivers the opportunity to sit down with the Williston School Leadership Team and learn more about what goes on in the schools directly from the source. The format of these principal meetings is evolving. Future meetings will have a 30 minute presentation on a predetermined topic and 30 minutes for Q&A.

We want to hear from You!

What would you like to talk about? What topics are important to you? What questions do you have? Please complete THIS SURVEY to share your topic ideas!

You can also email willistonfap@cvsdvt.org or gmarino@cvsdvt.org

In certain weather and road conditions buses will not be able to travel on hill roads. Hill roads include: Bayberry, Butternut, Cherrywood, Douglas, Evergreen, Fortier, French Hill, Gov. Chittenden, Hasset, Highlands Dr, Horseshoe, Ledgewood Dr, McJay, Meadowridge, Oak Knoll, Porterwood Dr, Route 2 east of Rte 2/Oak Hill/N Williston Intersection, River Cove, Sunset, Sunrise Dr, Terrace Drive, Walker Hill, Wild Ginger Ln, and Yantz Hill

When this happens you will receive a notifications from the school as early as possible in the morning. Information on where families will need to meet the bus is located HERE.

Note: In certain icy conditions, Bus M will not be able to travel on Lincoln or Chaloux and parents/caretakers and students will need to meet the bus on Breezy Valley Ln. You will be notified directly when this change occurs.

Join the CVSD Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Team as we celebrate diversity and connect with the diverse cultures of our community. At these in-person events we will learn the history of the various communities in Vermont. There will be shared cultural experiences, including art, food, and conversations about educational experiences. At each gathering various groups, community members and stakeholders will present about their lives, work, and contributions to our state.

January 19th, 6-8pm - Shelburne Community School

• Nepali Community in Vermont

March 15th, 6-8pm - Williston Central School

• Somali Community in Vermont

• First Call - 488-7777: phone support, crisis intervention, assessment and referrals
• In Crisis: 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) (National Hopeline Network: USA)
• National Suicide Prevention Life line- 1-800-273-TALK (8255), call or chat online
• Crisis Text Line - text HOME to 741741 (24 hours a day, seven days a week)
• Outright Vermont - support for LGBTQ+ community
• UVM Breathe In Breath Out - How to deal with stress due to COVID-19
• Vermont 211 -Vermont database of resources and services
• Vermont Support Line (833) 888-2557) - peer support warmline open 247 - 365 for call or text
• COVID Counselors @ VT-211
• Teen Crisis Text Line - Crisis Text Line provides free emotional support and information to teens in any type of crisis, including feeling suicidal. You can text with a trained specialist 24 hours a day. Text “HOME” to 741741.
• Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide - Website where you can find information to help yourself or a friend who may be having thoughts of suicide.
• Trevor Lifeline - 1-866- 488-7386 - provides suicide prevention and crisis intervention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) young people. It offers free, 24/7, confidential counseling. TrevorText—text START to 678-678; TrevorChat—instant messaging at TheTrevorProject.org/help. It also runs TrevorSpace, an affirming social networking site for LGBTQ youth at TrevorSpace.