Cheetah Pride Press

We are thrilled to share that the Connecticut State Department of Education has identified Memorial School as a School of Distinction for High Performance! This honor is given to schools performing in the top 10% of the state, who don’t demonstrate an achievement gap in either ELA or Mathematics. This is an incredible accomplishment, and we couldn’t be more proud! While the achievement data is based on grade 3 Smarter Balanced scores, it takes the work of every PreK-3 teacher to prepare our students for success. Memorial School is a very special place full of educators who give their best to our students every day. Congratulations to our students, staff, and families for fostering such a strong community of learning!

Mrs. Vigue showed students how she is a life long learner. She shared with students what she learned during her professional development day on Tuesday.

Thank you to Presley Barber and her family for donating Memorial Cheetah chapsticks for students that earn a PAWSitive office referral. Presley came up with the thoughtful idea to have chapsticks made to give to her peers when they earn one of our school incentives. Thank you for thinking of others, Presley.

Mrs. Snyder's class read , "Duck for President.” They learned about Election Day and the process of how an adult votes. Each student got their ID card (their chrome book ID login card) walked into the classroom, gave their ID to Mrs. Gould to check their name off the list. They sat behind a privacy divider and voted for either Duck or Farmer. They turned their ballot in and got an “ I voted” sticker. Students used tally marks to count votes. Duck won by a landslide!

In Mrs. Pezzi's room, they learned the difference between a circle and a sphere.

Today Mrs. Evan's class learned about Veteran's Day and then they created a collaborative poster of the American flag.

Memorial Models are chosen weekly by their teacher. These students have excelled all week in taking care of themselves, others, and things. The recipients will dine at a VIP table during lunch every Friday!

A PAWsitive office referral is submitted when a staff member recognizes a student who is going above and beyond to exemplify one of our three school rules - taking care of others, taking care of self, & taking care of things.

Mr. Debowsky is a Special Education long-term substitute. He is flexible and always willing to help with any task. He jumps into any position with positivity and a smile. His determination and work ethic is appreciated!

Hello Memorial Families! It has been an exciting month of learning in the music room.

Preschool: Students enjoyed some fall-themed songs and poems this month! We sang songs about pumpkins and Jack-o-lanterns! They also pretended to cook “Pumpkin Stew” and put all sorts of silly ingredients in while practicing the steady beat.

Kindergarten: Students are now expected to demonstrate four different voices at the beginning of each music class: Talking, Whispering, Calling, Singing! If asked, they should be able to tell you about the poem we use to practice these voices. When we practice our singing voice, students are learning to make a “perfect match” when it is their turn with the singing ball! They also explored the musical opposites fast and slow this month.

First Grade: Students worked on keeping a steady beat while singing or listening to music. They also learned about the concept of rhythm and contrasted it with steady beat. They learned that tapping the rhythm of the song matches the words while tapping the beat makes hands tap at the same speed through the whole song. Favorite songs and games this month included “Pumpkin Stew” and “Pass the Pumpkin”.

Second Grade: Students focused on their music listening skills! They enjoyed listening to Edvard Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King” and practiced analyzing and evaluating the song! They also got a chance to compare three different performances of the song: orchestra, voices, and electronic. Students also learned about a new rhythm that gets two beats, called a half note. They practiced reading and writing this rhythm throughout the month.

Third Grade: Third graders discovered the names of the two new notes on our solfege staircase: low sol and low la! They also discovered a new way to perform rhythms, by using numbers to count them! We made a fun connection to both fractions and pizza while learning this new skill! Now, when reading rhythmic patterns, students are expected to count the rhythms with numbers. We are getting all of our music literacy skills polished up so that we’re ready to begin our recorder unit soon!

Please check out the music room website for more information about the music program, and reach out on parentsquare anytime!

Mrs. Maldonado

Oftentimes your child’s teacher will talk to you about your child’s reading fluency.

What exactly is fluency?

Fluency is a child's ability to read a book or other text with accuracy, at a reasonable rate, and with appropriate expression. Reading fluency is important because it provides a bridge between word recognition and comprehension. When a child can read fluently, it's easier for them to understand what they're reading. And they read aloud easily and with expression — this makes reading a lot more enjoyable!

Fluency develops gradually over time and through practice. At the earliest stage of reading development, students' oral reading is slow and labored because students are just learning to "break the code" – to attach sounds to letters and to blend letter sounds into recognizable words. When fluent readers read silently, they recognize words automatically. They group words quickly to help them gain meaning from what they read.

Fluent readers read aloud effortlessly and with expression. Their reading sounds natural, as if they are speaking. Because fluent readers do not have to concentrate on decoding the words, they can focus their attention on what the text means. They can make connections among the ideas in the text and their background knowledge. In other words, fluent readers recognize words and comprehend at the same time.

How can you support your child at home? Follow the link for some tips from Scholastic.

https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/raise-a-reader-blog/reading-fluency-strategies.html

Medications

Every medication that is brought into school requires a “Medication Authorization” form to be signed by the student’s doctor and parent/guardian and the medication in original packaging with prescription label is to be brought in by a parent/guardian, not in the child’s backpack. No child may carry their own medications at the Elementary level. Please use a large ziplock bag for the medication plus the medication order, and label the bag with your child’s name before dropping off. Any controlled medications will need to be counted and signed off with the RN and parent so please allow for a few extra minutes at drop off.

Please note: COUGH DROPS count as medications and are not allowed in school. All over-the-counter medications also need a medication order from your provider.

Food

We have several students with severe food allergies, therefore we highly recommend non food items to share for birthday celebrations. We ask for at least 48 hours advance notice. A great resource for allergy free snacks is the Safe Snack guide at https://snacksafely.com/safe-snack-guide/. We appreciate your assistance in keeping our school safe.

Health Concerns

• If your child has a new health concern which you would like to speak to the nurse about e-mail kwilliams@easthamptonct.org and mlemire@easthamptonct.org at any time.

• Please let us know if your child is diagnosed with any illness or injury (such as strep, flu, pink eye, fracture/broken bone, lice, etc.) as the nurse office tracks illnesses and sends notification letters home if there are 2 or more cases in a specific classroom.

• If you have any specific concerns that arise during the school year (such as stitches, concussions, broken bones/fractures, etc) it is best that you send in a doctor’s note with dates, guidelines and restrictions, so we can all be on the same page and keep your child safe.

Respectfully,

Katie Williams, RN

and Ms. Michelle Lemire

kwilliams@easthamptonct.org, mlemire@easthamptonct.org

Your Health Office Team

Memorial Elementary

Phone 860-365-4020

Fax 860-365-4024

11th- No school Veteran Day

14th- PTO sponsored Dinner

20th & 21st- Early Dismissal Parent- Teacher Conferences

27th- Early Dismissal Thanksgiving Break

28th and 29th No School

The East Hampton Board of Education and the school community as a whole promote a secure and productive school climate, conducive to teaching and learning that is free from threat, harassment, and any type of bullying behavior. Therefore it shall be the policy of the Board that bullying and/or teen dating violence committed against a student by another student is prohibited. The Board believes that a school environment in which students feel safe, supported, engaged and helpfully challenged is optimal for learning and healthy development. The Board seeks an environment in which students and adults feel socially, emotionally, intellectually and physically safe; an environment that is free of harassment, intimidation, teen dating violence and bullying. Our website provides links to various policies and reporting forms including our Safe School Climate Plan. Hard copies are also available in our main office. If at any point you have any concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to building administration for further assistance.

When considering the number of absences your student has accrued, keep in mind that a student must be present for 195 minutes in order for the day to count! When bringing your student in late, or signing them out early if they have not been in school for a 195 minutes the day will be recorded as an absence.

Memorial School Attendance email:

memorial_attendance@easthamptonct.org * there is an _ between memorial and attendance!

Please Review This Important Information Below.

Students, parents, and community members have access to an anonymous tip line on the front page of the school district website to report self-concerns, mental health concerns of a friend, or concerns of violence. Simply click here or view on the website: https://www.easthamptonps.org/.

Email: jbauer@easthamptonct.org
Website: https://www.easthamptonps.org/o/memorial-school
Location: 20 Smith Street, East Hampton, CT, USA
Phone: 860-365-4020
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ehmemorialschool