Brown School Buzz

December 5, 2023

Dear Families,

It's great to be back for three continuous weeks of instruction and school routines. It's been wonderful to see the kids in classrooms hitting their instructional strides, wrestling with the content as it gets a bit more challenging, and asking really good questions! If your child is verbalizing that school is getting a bit harder, it's completely normal for this time of the year. Students are finishing up their mid-year assessments and we are identifying those areas that are more challenging for each student so we can help them all move forward. And while math and reading development are critical for all students, we value the experience of the arts as well. Including the arts in our education does not only fosters our students' creativity, problem-solving skills and cultural awareness, it enhances and improves their overall learning experience. We are excited to see our students' art work and hear their voices at our upcoming concert and art show for grades 1-3 on February 12th. The kindergarteners will also have their own concert this year in April! Please be sure to check out the flyer below for specific times your children will be performing in February.

As mentioned in the last newsletter, the winter months hold much in store for us at the Brown School. We are officially kicking off our Heart Health Month and Kids Heart Challenge on February 3. However, we are encouraging kids to register early. An email was sent on Friday with the details and link to register. I have also included the information and link below as well.

And in March, we will hold our annual STEAM Fair(Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics). We are also excited to offer students an opportunity to participate in an an after school experience where Marblehead High School students will share and engage students in experiments and STEM activities. More details on this opportunity below as well!

Thank you for your continued support and partnership!

January is Kindness and Justice Month

Check out our Wall of Kindness and Justice

This month we continue to celebrate Kindness and Justice at the Brown School. Students have been reading about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, performing random acts of kindness and talking about ways we can be fair to one another. Students have been encouraged to notice acts of kindness and fairness at school and home and write their thoughts on a paper brick. Here are some of their thoughts:

Handicap Parking Spaces

In the winter months, we typically have fewer walkers and more students being dropped off in the morning. We understand the traffic can be frustrating, and the line for dropping off in front of the building can require some wait time. We have noticed an increasing number of people parking in the handicapped spots during morning drop off that do not appear to have the appropriate plate or placard. If you have the need to park in these spaces, please be sure to display your placard. A friendly reminder to all that those spaces are reserved for families who need them. Thank you.

FEBRUARY IS HEART HEALTH MONTH!

And we are serious about our Brown School Heart Health Goal!

Please help us reach our goals to educate our students about heart health as we join schools across the nation and pledge to be heart healthy!

We will be encouraging all students to participate in the challenge this year and while we'll be doing lots of the activity at school, we strongly encourage kids to get in some heart healthy exercise at home as well. Our PE teachers will be creating some fun activities to get our students excited for the challenge. The first incentive is to register early. Students registering before Feb. 1 will have an opportunity to participate in a Half Court Hoop Shoot (Chuck a Duck)!

There is no financial obligation to register. The kids will be learning all about the heart, its function, the importance of heart health, and how we can all support those with compromised heart health. Please consider helping us with our goal. Many thanks to Danielle McGrath and Amie James for all their work to keep this activity alive and well in our schools!

To Register CLICK HERE or Scan the QR Code!

Thank you for your support!

LOVE OUR SCHOOL COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS!

Welcome MHS STEM Club at Brown!

Last summer we were approached by some very motivated students at Marblehead High School who expressed their interest in bringing their love of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math to Brown School students. They have formed a club and have done the ground work to provide an after school experience for students who have this same interest! They invite students in grades 1-3 to meet after school twice a month to do some fun experiments and activities to help teach them about problem-solving! They may also be able to do some coaching to help students develop a project for our upcoming STEAM Fair in March. The first meeting is February 5th and space is limited. If you are interested, please CLICK HERE to sign up!

Enrichment Performance!

Wowzers!!!

Thank you PTO Enrichment Committee and Magic Hat for your sponsorship of another wonderful enrichment experience! Acrobat Li Liu gave us a wonderful performance, taught us about her native country, a few words in Chinese, and about the importance of hard work and practice. Li Liu was born in the city of Shenyang. At the age of six she began her acrobatic training, and the following year she was chosen to attend The Chinese National Circus School in the capitol city of Beijing. She has performed all over the world!