The Schofield Scoop

Welcome to the first edition of the 24-25 Schofield Scoop! We are so excited to have students back in the building - and are geared up for an amazing school year. Below you will see photos from our first few days at school, and some helpful information to keep all Forestdale folks in the loop. I hope you enjoy this week's 'Scoop!

-Kara Schofield

There is so much that goes on behind the scenes prior to opening our doors to students. Here you see staff at a staff meeting (held outdoors) and an example of the amazing bulletin boards that our staff put together for the students.

While teachers patiently await the arrival of their students in their rooms, all other staff come out to assist with bringing students to where they need to go. Many thanks to the staff who do not have classrooms of students for all their smiles, gentle hand holding and kind words while escorting children to their appropriate places. In some instances, the "big kids" directed their familiar younger friends and siblings to the classrooms they needed to be in. With all this help, all students got to the places they needed to be and our school year officially began!

The Sandwich Police Department and Sandwich Fire Department came out on Friday to offer "High-Fives" to staff and students. With the party music for "Dance Party Friday", the morning entry was a hopping, fun and vibrant place to be. Many thanks to our local Police and Fire departments for providing such a welcoming start to our Friday.

All students in grades K-2nd grade heard Forestdale's bus expectations, and practiced going on and off the school bus. Bus drivers met this summer, and I shared strategies and tools to use to encourage appropriate bus behavior from all students. The images below are posted inside each bus, and will continue to be reviewed by drivers and teachers. Reminders from home are extremely helpful, as the students will then hear the same message from the drivers, the school staff and from their adults at home.

This year we are trying some new school wide strategies to encourage positive behavior on the bus. Buses with exceptional rides to/from school earn a thumbs up. The bus with the most "thumbs up" for the month earns some fun rewards for the next month. Additionally, all bus drivers have been equipped with notepads and fun stickers to help celebrate when students are doing a great job on the bus. I look forward to seeing this new strategy help encourage softer voiced, seated bus riders!

Share feedback here: kschofield@sandwich.k12.ma.us Thanks for all your great suggestions and ideas.