RPS Update

It is hard to believe that we are nearing the month of October- there is so much to do! Throughout this first month of school, we shared our District Priorities with the Board of Education. For those of you who would like to know more about the journey of our work, I would encourage you to watch the Board of Education meetings either live or at your convenience on our YouTube channel. The upcoming meetings will be filled with comprehensive updates on what our work looks like- and our progress. Also, we are incredibly proud of our curriculum site and parent workshops. You can find all things curriculum here, and don’t forget to take a pause at engagED. Relatedly, during a final interview with a teacher candidate this week, when she was asked: “Why Ridgefield?”… she responded by saying, “Everyone talks about Ridgefield and what they are doing…I wanted to be a part of that.” It’s a great feeling to know that people want to be a part of our important work and partner with us.

This week, we began meeting with RHS seniors for feedback on RPS. These students were able to share insights through a unique lens, they can give us perspective on what we have done well over their K-12 journey, and where we can continue to grow. The spirit of our young people inspires us! It is such a privilege to be a part of their lives.

Many RPS families, faculty, and friends will observe Rosh Hashanah, also known as the Jewish New Year, beginning the evening of October 2, and ending the evening of October 3. Schools will be closed on Thursday, October 3, in observance of Rosh Hashanah.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Warmly,

Susie

Susie Da Silva, Ed.D

Before Monday's Board of Education meeting, some BOE members joined Superintendent Dr. Da Silva, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Hannaway, and Director of Facilities Joe Morits to tour the 66 Grove Street property.

Please listen to the Ridgefield Tiger Talk podcast and Monday's Superintendent's Report (approximately 36 min mark) to learn more about this project in advance of the October 9 town vote on the lease.

The Anti-Defamation League singled out RPS in its recent No Place For Hate Coordinator Handbook and Resource Guide. See page 9 for an interview with East Ridge Middle School Principal Jennifer Phostole, who, with her team and student ambassadors, has been instrumental in making RHS, ERMS, and Scotts Ridge Middle School No Place for Hate.

All members of the RPS community are precious—each student, parent, and staff member is valued and needed. September is Suicide Prevention Month, and RPS has year-round, 24/7 resources to support our community. If you have questions or need support for your child in school, please reach out to your child's counselor. For crisis support you or your child can utilize the Kids and Crisis 24-Hour Hotline or the Sandy Hook Promise Say Something hotline.

Here is a resource, "Protecting Our Youth: A Community Approach to Suicide Prevention," from the Connecticut State Department of Education.

Please help RPS go green by checking your students' e-Backpack weekly for important information. Organizations that meet the RPS policy may submit their request for inclusion to cmelagrano@ridgefieldps.net

Please check your school calendar for early dismissals and other school events.

In recognition of this year's Ridgefield High School collaboration with the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra (RSO) Outreach Program, the RSO is offering discounted tickets to attend their upcoming concert at a 50% discount (just $5 for students!). Visit this link for concert details, and enter the code "RHSMusic" at checkout.

The Second Annual K-12 Art Show opens October 8 for the schools on the North side of town (Scotts Ridge, Barlow Mountain, Scotland, and Ridgebury) and October 9 for the schools on the South side (East Ridge, Branchville, Farmingville, and Veterans Park). RHS families are welcome on both nights. The show in the East Ridge Gallery features a sampling of our curriculum from each grade and school, but because of space limitations only selections of the amazing art our students make every year.

“Richardson Park looked very different 12,000 years ago,” archaeologist Lynn-Marie Wieland explains to RHS ninth-grade Foundations of Modern History students this week. “There was no soil, no trees, not a lot of vegetation at all.” Ms. Weiland supervised the archaeological dig at Richardson Park fifteen years ago and brought her knowledge of Indigenous artifacts her team excavated—from the Paleolithic to Archaic to Early Woodland to European Contact—to RHS this week.

A week earlier, students had toured Richardson Park, across the street from RHS, and were surprised to learn the history Ms. Weiland and her team had uncovered there. She explained how the artifacts show the change in the indigenous populations over time. “When there is little vegetation, there are few animals, including people,” she explains. “But as the environment and climate changed, so did the soil conditions, resulting in the availability of food.” Also, the tools changed from informal tools to small projectile points to fine arrowheads; there was evidence of fishing and agricultural technology alongside the increasing establishment of a permanent community.

Starting this year, RHS requires all ninth graders to take a semester-long Foundations of Modern History course. Over the summer, social studies teachers Denise Barrett, Stephen Seltz, and Johnathan Zalucki worked with Grade 6-12 Humanities Supervisor Dr. Annie Tucci and RHS Social Studies Chair Danny Martins to write a new curriculum. The first unit is Thinking Like a Historian: Early Civilizations so collaborating with the team from the Ridgefield Historical Society was an excellent way to provide rich history available locally.

Students seemed fully engaged as they examined the artifacts from the site before listening to the lesson. They asked questions about culture, community, and technological advancements—the paint indicates that they had rituals—and why some of the tools were so small. They looked at a map of Ridgefield with the Native American sites marked in red. Resilience and innovation were the major themes.

The collaboration between the two “RHSes”—Ridgefield High School and Ridgefield Historical Society—has been rich and varied over the past few years and runs throughout the Ridgefield Public Schools. Thank you to our Historical Society partners for bringing history to life and engaging our students with our past and the processes we employ to preserve and study history.

Tiffany Antkies' East Ridge seventh-graders recently completed the Marble Ramp STEM Challenge. Ms. Antkies reports, "The purpose of this challenge was to work as a group to build a ramp with limited materials (one sheet of newspaper and one meter of masking tape). First, the students made a blueprint, then they built ramps that were 25 cm tall, contained one turn, and were able to carry the marble the entire length of the ramp without being touched before the marble stopped at the end." Students continued the project during library class to enrich what they learned and take this engaging engineering lesson further.

Our youngest students engage with letters and numbers through hands-on, multi-sensory activities.

Recently, Farmingville, Ridgebury, and Scotland Elementary students collaborated on school-wide murals, inspired by the art of Robert Reed.

RPS Elementary Art Lead, Rachael Penney provided this information about Robert Reed:

• American artist and professor of painting and printmaking at Yale School of Art for 45 years.

• First African American artist to be appointed as a permanent faculty member at Yale School of Art.

• Known for his geometric abstraction and use of the elements of art such as:

• color

• Line

• shape

• space (when you overlap the shapes)

On Tuesday, RHS inducted 115 seniors to the National Honors Society. NHS student leaders—Caroline Baker (President), Andrew Pearl (Vice President), Vivi Namiot (Secretary), and Molly Williams (Tutoring Chair) led the ceremony with an introduction by Principal Dr. Jake Greenwood and support from faculty advisors Molly Helmes and Mitch Peterson. Dr. Greenwood highlighted RHS's commitment to NHS, evidenced by the fact that the NHS chord is the only chord they allow seniors to wear at graduation. Student leaders spoke about the four pillars of the NHS program, Leadership, Scholarship, Character, and Service. The program with the full list of inductees can be found here. More information about NHS, including the Tutoring Request form, can be found on the NHS webpage. Juniors eligible for NHS received letters and can learn more about the application process during FLEX.

Congratulations, NHS Class of 2025!

Don't miss the latest issue of The Ridgefielder, RHS's student-run magazine.

Stories include:

The new solar canopy.

An interview with new RHS counselor.

Clubs to Join.

Pride flag debate.

And more!

Some RHS athletes and partners attended the Unified Sports Youth Summit at Staples High School this week.

Check the Athletic Department's website for game schedules, tickets, schedule updates, college recruiting information, parental support, and more.

On Thursday, Veterans Park Elementary put on raincoats and broke out umbrellas for the Walking Bus! This PTA-sponsored event is a celebration of community, sustainability, and fitness.

Today was Rainbow Day at Branchville Elementary—the perfect opportunity to get a taste of BES's spectrum of spirit, flexibility, and fun and see all the smiles. Our kindergarteners have lost a lot of teeth. Thank you to the ROY G BIV squad and BES Student Council!

Red—Fifth Grade

Orange—Fourth Grade

Yellow—Third Grade

Green—Second Grade

Blue (Indigo)—First Grade

Purple (Indigo/Violet)—Kindergarten

Rainbow—Staff

We would love to hear from you! Families and staff can submit stories, comments, or corrections to RPS Communications. Please follow us on Social Media with links below.