Roland Hayes School

Our North Star

“When children and teachers feel engaged, safe, and supported we have room to grow and learn through collaboration and risk-taking with our peers.”

Previous "Community Notes" can be found here: https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/domain/718

The "Community Notes" is sent every other week. Thanks for reading!

The new year is flying by and, as is typical, there is lots of great stuff happening in our wonderful community. Thanks for reading The Community Notes and joining in our efforts as able!

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Reminders About Arrival Routines

Mid-year feels like a great time to remind folks about our arrival and dismissal routines. From our handbook:

"Students arrive each morning as close to 8:00am as possible, UNLESS the student is eating school breakfast and/or arriving by bus. Students (some with families, some without) will enter the building through assigned doors only and when let in by school staff. Regardless which door a student enters the school through, all students must report to areas outside the school specifically designated for students to wait for the start of the school day to begin.

Here is the arrival and dismissal location map for the 24-25 school year: MAP

Students enter the building through a designated door attended by a school staff member. In the afternoons, students will be dismissed at their designated pick up/dismissal areas. Parents and caregivers remain outside during these transition times.

[Our] arrival and dismissal routines are extremely beneficial for students. Because students are escorted as a cohort by their teacher directly to class, we are able to start instruction almost immediately each morning, gaining significant instructional time. Additionally, we’ve seen that with time, practice, and guidance from our staff that all students can navigate their way to class successfully and independently.

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Gentle, but firm reminder: we cannot heat up student lunches from home. Please send home lunches that are pre-heated and in proper containers or that do not need heating. Or – better yet! – enjoy our school lunches which are free, require no prep time from you, and delicious! Thank you for understanding.

For more PTO news and events, please visit our website:

https://www.hayespto.org/

Did you know we are also on Facebook?

https://www.facebook.com/groups/hayesschoolpto

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BPS FY26 Budget Challenges -

Hayes Community Zoom, 1/31 @ noon

The District’s draft budget for fiscal 2026 reflects a significant deficit - approximately $6 million. If this news and what it means for our students is worrying you, you're not alone.

Join fellow parent and Town government alumnus Dave Gacioch on Friday 1/31 at 12pm on Zoom to learn more about the situation, ask all your questions, and hear how you can advocate most effectively for our students.

Zoom Link (open to all Hayes community members): https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84849582855?pwd=boTfQQECr8oVSijqExSXPKQMsarFv5.1

Passcode: 719166

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Upcycling @ Hayes

Check out the PTO's brand-new (or maybe upcycled...) "Upcycling at Hayes" page! https://www.hayespto.org/upcycle

Before discarding like-new belongings, check with our list to see if someone at Hayes may need them. Follow the steps on the site to find a new home for your items!

Wednesday is Lunar New Year! We welcome in the Year of the Snake!

• Friday, January 24th: Term 2: Term Closes for Grades 6-8 Report Cards

• Sunday, January 26th: Hayes Family Skate Day, 11:00am-12:20pm

• Monday, January 27th: Half Way Day!

• Monday, January 27th: Rainbow Club, Grade 3, 11:20-11:50am

• Tuesday, January 28th: GSA, 10:50-11:20am

• Tuesday, January 28th: Faculty Meeting, 2:45-3:45pm

• Wednesday, January 29th: School Closed: Lunar New Year (Category 1 Holiday)

• Thursday, January 30th: Aspen Closes for K-5 Cycle 1 Progress Reports

• Thursday, January 30th: Term 2: Deadline to complete entering 6-8 grades/reports into Aspen (11:59p.m.)

• Thursday, January 30th: Young Scholars, Room 209, 2:30-3:30pm

• Friday, January 31st: PreK Celebration! "Winter Darkness, Winter Lights", 8:00-9:30am

• Monday, February 3rd: Teachers meet, No Rainbow Club

• Tuesday, February 4th: GSA, 10:50-11:20am

• Tuesday February 4th: BHS Transition Meeting: Parents Only, 6:00-7:00pm

• Wednesday, February 5th: Dress up for World Read Aloud Day!

• Wednesday, February 5th: K-5 Progress Reports Published

• Wednesday, February 5th: Term 2: Grades 6-8 Report Cards Published

• Wednesday, February 5th: Model UN, 11:20am-12:05pm

• Wednesday, February 5th: Winter Band Concert (5-8 Band); FRR Auditorium; 6:30pm

• Thursday, February 6th: School Council Meeting, 8:15-9:45am

• Thursday, February 6th: AAPI Group (Library), 10:50-11:20am

• Thursday, February 6th: Young Scholars, Room 209, 2:30-3:30pm

• Friday, February 7th: PEP, 8:05-8:30am

• Monday, February 10th: Rainbow Club, Grade 5

• Tuesday, February 11th: Author visit: Andrea Beatriz Arango, Auditorium, 9:00-10:20am

• Tuesday, February 11th: GSA, 10:50-11:20am

• Tuesday, February 11th: Faculty Meeting, 2:45-3:45pm

• Wednesday, February 12th: BHS Visit for Grade 8 Students: Electives, 9:00-10:15am

• Wednesday, February 12th: Model UN, 11:20am-12:05pm

• Thursday, February 13th: Young Scholars, Room 209, 2:30-3:30pm

Field Trips:

• Friday, January 24th: Ski and Snowboard Club, 1:50-10:00pm

• Friday, January 31st: Ski and Snowboard Club, 1:50-10:00pm

• Friday, February 7th: Ski and Snowboard Club, 1:50-10:00pm

February 5th is Dress Up for World Read Aloud Day! See details below --->

Hayes 8th graders recently completed the Climate Data Art Project which you can see at this website.

Small groups of 8th grade students were given a data set related to one aspect of climate change. They spent time interpreting graphical data and learning about their particular topic. Inspired by the scientist/artist Jill Pelto, each group designed and created their own piece of art. The purpose of their artistic efforts is to communicate to others about the urgency of climate change through the lens of their particular topic and to inspire action.

On the project website, you'll see the students' artwork, along with screencasts that each group made communicating about their topic and the process they went through to create their artwork. Feel free to share this work with others, as the intention was to use art as a way to share with others about the effects of climate change and what data shows is happening to our planet.

Starting next week, the artwork will be displayed in the Teen Room at the Brookline Public Library main branch. So if you get a chance you might want to check that out too!

I think this was a powerful learning experience for your children, and it is a testament to how much young people care about the climate crisis and are eager to use their creativity to discuss and deal with their emotions surrounding it.

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Mark Goldner (he/him/his)
7th & 8th Grade Science Teacher
Roland Hayes School, Brookline MA
Tel: 617-879-4570
mark_goldner@psbma.org

The Roland Hayes School is excited to announce we will host an author visit from Newbery Honor Award winning author Andrea Beatriz Arango on February 11, 2025. Students in grades 5-8 will hear her speak about her experiences as an author. She comes to us on the day her new book, It's all or nothing, Vale is published.

Students are also lucky enough to be able to get her books personally signed and inscribed to them by following the directions on the attached document or below. All orders must be placed by Sunday, February 9, 2025. Don't miss out on this excellent opportunity!

BUY BOOKS

1. Follow this link

2. Click on the orange “Get tickets” button.

3. Click the blue + by the title or titles you wish to purchase.
4. Click “Check out.”
5. Fill in your first name, last name, and email, then add your student’s full name, grade, home room teacher’s name, and the name of the child the book(s) should be inscribed to (first names only).
6. Choose your payment method and click “Place order.”

Harvard Book Store will deliver the books to the school on the day of the event and the books will be distributed to students by their teachers.

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Librarian

The Hayes School

Brookline, MA

@lindsayteaches

Our attendance data is holding steady from the last few months when I have shared trends. Please take a look at past Community Notes to get a sense of our data trajectories this year.

This month, I will share three points of interest:

• Gender - Our boys have better daily attendance than our girls; our girls are much better getting to school on time than our boys.
• Excused Versus Unexcused - this month only 52% of the absences were excused. My hunch is that many, many folks never contacted the school to let us know the reason you are absent. Regardless of reason, we request a call to inform us of your child's whereabouts when not in school.
• Chronic Absenteeism: Our threshold to be considered "chronically absent" is 10+ absences. About 40 of our students have missed more than 10 days of school. We also have quite a few students with 9 absences, so bordering on chronically absent.
• Monday, January 27th is our 90th day of school. If you have missed 9+ days, then you've missed at least 10% of the school year! That is lost learning and socialization time.

Remember: if you need help getting your child to school, please let us know. We can help!

Brookline’s youngest learners are ready to enter school!

The online registration application for students entering kindergarten with PSB for the 2025-26 school year opened on January 8, 2025.

Visit www.brookline.k12.ma.us/kindergarten to get started!

Kindergarten is an important milestone for everyone involved, and our staff is here to support families in this transition. The Office of Registration and Enrollment (ORE) is committed to ensuring that all families have a smooth and successful transition into their first day of kindergarten in Brookline. All families will have multiple opportunities to engage with our staff throughout the registration process and are happy to work to support each family with any specific needs you may have.

(Please note that pre-Registration for all other grades will open on March 1, 2025)

When: Sun. Jan 26th

Time: 11:00am-12:20pm

Where: Warrior Ice Arena (90 Guest St, Boston, MA 02135)

Details: Everyone is welcome! The PTO has paid for the rink rental so the skating will be free, but families will need to bring their own ice skates or rent them for $6/pair. There is garage or street parking that families will be responsible to pay for. PLEASE reach out to the PTO (contact@heathpto.org) if any of these costs would be prohibitive. We want everyone to be able to come!

*Garage Parking: 80-90 GUEST STREET GARAGE:

(Access behind building under large Warrior Ice Arena sign. Parallel to Guest Street.$15)

Nothing this time! Check back next month.

There was a lot of content in this edition of the Community Notes, so I will simply say "Have a great weekend, everybody!"

~ Asa

This parcel of land that our school sits upon is a special and sacred place.

Before this place was a Town, before our school was here, before this neighborhood was called “The Settlement” or “Chestnut Hill,” and before this land was a farm, this land was held by the Massachusett, the people Indigenous to this place. The Massachusett were the caretakers of this site, living full lives, raising families, and burying their dead right here. We recognize and honor this history, and seek to create thoughtful land stewards and citizens for generations to come.

As a public school, our primary objective is to ensure access, membership, and participation of all community members in our care; with this land acknowledgment we state our willingness to work towards that vision where all feel a true and abiding sense of belonging.

Roland Hayes School

The Public Schools Of Brookline | A METCO Partnership School

Dr. Asa Sevelius, Ed.D. | Principal

Email: asa_sevelius@psbma.org

Pronouns: he/him

Mr. Kirtan Patel | Vice Principal

Email: kirtan_patel@psbma.org

Pronouns: he/him

Website: https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/Page/17
Location: 100 Eliot Street, Chestnut Hill, MA, 02467
Phone: 617-879-4570