Cornwall School News 1.16.25

When I worked in the Burlington School District, we often talked about the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday as a day “on”, not a day “off”. In that much larger community, there were lots of different ways to honor Dr. King’s life and work - celebrations, volunteer opportunities, community service projects, performances, talks, and more.

I still feel relatively new to Addison County, and weekends in my family are often even busier than the weekdays, so I have been thinking about how I will reflect on Dr. King’s legacy with my own teenage children. We will read Dr. King’s 1968 speech to the Memphis sanitation workers, popularly known as " I’ve been to the Mountaintop,” and talk about how the content alters or confirms what they already know about Dr. King’s work.

For elementary-age children, the Children's Museum of Indianapolis has a useful list of resources, discussion topics and activities to help families make meaning of Dr. King’s messages: Helping Kids Honor the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

For a list of MLK celebrations around Vermont, check out this Burlington Free Press article.

If your family has other traditions around honor Dr. King, I encourage you to share them with me and your classroom teacher!

In partnership,

Nadya

Monday, January 20, Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday, No School

Tuesday, January 21, Teacher Inservice, No School

Wednesday, January 22, Cross country skiing at Rikert #2

Wednesday, January 29, Cross country skiing at Rikert #3

Thursday, January 30, Cornwall School Winter Concert (see details below)

Wednesday, February 5, Cross country skiing at Rikert #4

Monday, February 10, Band Rehearsal and Concert @ Salisbury

Click here for the ACSD 24-25 school year calendar.

• Cornwall School goes cross-country skiing four times this year at Rikert Outdoor Center in Ripton, VT. Our first trip was this past Wednesday.
• This is a long-standing Cornwall tradition.
• We go in two groups; one in the morning and one in the afternoon, and all students have a ski lesson with Rikert's instructors.
• Students need warm layers, warm mittens, a water bottle, and an extra snack.
• We take care of the rest!

• Because of the potential to spread lice, we can't offer as many shared hats as we have previously.
• Please ensure that your child brings a warm hat to school, so that we can save our "shared" hats for emergencies only, and then quarantine them.

(This way, they can spend more time playing outside in the snow, and less time arguing with Ms. Bech about hats!)

• In ACSD we call report cards "progress reports".
• Progress reports go home in students’ backpacks on 1/31.
• Classroom teachers will follow up with a phone call to see if families have any questions and make notes on topics for discussion at the March conferences.

During All School Meeting this week, third graders shared their work on “How We Express Ourselves.” This work is focused on the central idea that choices can lead to significant, lasting consequences. Third graders shared their understanding of the traits, values and choices made by three historical figures: Rosa Parks, Muhammad Ali, and Katherine Johnson.

Mr. Will is re-joining our community. He previously taught a combined 3/4 class with Ms. Harvey during the 2020-2021 school year. After working as a combined Multilingual Learner Instructor and Literacy Interventionist for Rutland Northeast supervisory Union for three years, he returned to ACSD as part of the multilingual learning team. He loves being outside and enjoying a rare slow moment, and is thrilled to be returning to Cornwall. He will work directly with multilingual students and support all our educators in how to best serve students who are learning English.

North Bus families will soon see a new driver: Ms. Karrie. Almost all the students have already met her while she was learning the route with Cowboy. This is Ms. Karrie's first route in Vermont; previously she has driven in New York. Ms. Karrie is scheduled to start on 1/29. She runs a tight ship, and we're excited to welcome her to our community!

Thursday, January 30th at 6:00 pm will be Cornwall Elementary School’s Concert. Students are asked to wear their nicest clothing and should arrive 15 minutes early and head into the theater to find their seats.

If you have any questions or need to contact Mrs. Cunningham, her email is kcunningham@acsdvt.org.

Where: Middlebury High School Theater

When: Thursday, January 30th at 6:00pm

FOCS is thrilled to offer discounted group ski lessons at the Snowbowl again this year! Two two-hour lessons on Thursday 1/23 and 2/6.

Two sessions:

• Thursday, January 23rd
• Thursday, February 6

3:45-5:45 PM at the Middlebury Snowbowl

$39 per session (including rentals) = $78.00 total

Space is limited. Please register by Wednesday, January 22nd, 2025.

Sign Up HERE.

• Do you have a 3-5 year old ready for preschool? Every preschool age child in ACSD is eligible for 10 FREE hours of preschool at a pre-qualified preschool program and NOW* is the time to begin thinking ahead to the 2025-26 school year. Visit https://mbaker61.wixsite.com/uprek/partners for a list of preschools and more information. Reach out to Ashley Bessette, Universal Prek Coordinator, at abessette@acsdvt.org for support or to ask questions.

*Most preschool programs begin enrolling in February/March for the 2025-26 school year.

• Do you have a child who plans to start Kindergarten in 2025-2026? Make sure they are on our incoming student list! If your child will be 5 years old by September 1, 2025 (or you know a friend or neighbor whose child will be) please call us! 802-462-2463.

Donate clean, gently used or new water bottles to Cornwall. Send them with your child, pass them through the window of the car at drop-off, or bring them to Laurie in the main office. Thanks!