It's been a busy week of learning at Cole School. Students in K-5 worked to complete the iReady diagnostic in both ELA and Math. Classes will begin the Fastbridge winter screening assessments in ELA and Math on Tuesday. On Monday, the 4th and 5th grade students welcomed the Norwell High School Peer Educators to discuss cliques versus inclusive friendship groups. Bus Ambassadors presented bus reminders and the newly created bus kits to buses 4, 2, and 8 this week. The other buses will meet next week. Students were able to enjoy outdoor recess and have been busy working to create the world's largest snowballs out on the field! We are all looking forward to a three day weekend in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Enjoy the extra time with your family!

Valentine's Day is such a fun day in elementary school! Students truly love getting simple Valentines from their friends and teachers. If your child decides to be part of a Valentines exchange in their class, please refrain from including any candy or food items and ensure one for every child in the class. We will not be able to send candy or food items home with students as it is not permitted. However, the true joy in the day is really found in the sentiment behind the Valentine. Handmade Valentines or special notes are heartfelt and appreciated and can be a fun screen-free activity to make at home.

Did you know that Mel the Meerkat is Cole School's Mascot? In 2017, the school community worked together to brand our school with a motto, mascot, and name for the weekly newsletter. The motto Dream Big, Dare Greatly, and Shine Brightly and Mel the Meerkat came to life thanks to the many ideas and suggestions from the community. Liliana MacDonald, a Norwell School's alum, created the winning design for the mascot. The original picture is hanging in the main entrance. The name for this newsletter, Cole Miners' Dig, is a play on the word "coal" since our mascot is dressed as a miner and is always looking for gems. That's why each class has a gem jar too!

This group of Magnificent Meerkats had many similarities in their nominations including showing persistence in their school work, thinking flexibly, and being kind and helpful to others.

• He has been showing excellent persistence when faced with academic challenges. He is working hard to focus during lessons and then has been applying what he learns to his independent work.
• She gives a tremendous amount of effort. She is earnest about experiencing success and it shows. She has made many great strides academically and I cannot wait to see how much more progress she continues to make.
• She is doing a great job of persevering when confronted with a challenge. She isn't giving up on herself - she if being flexible and finding a way to make the best of a given situation. I am so proud of her!
• She consistently leads by example, makes others in our classroom feel valued and exhibits Habits of Mind without reminders!

This week, we started our Integrity unit. We discussed the many meanings of integrity, like doing the right thing even when no one is watching, showing good sportsmanship, and being honest in our words and actions. Our community meeting on 1/27 will also focus on integrity, please join us!

You may start to hear about the high prevalence of Norovirus in the news. As cases rise nationwide, we are also being impacted here at school. With that in mind, here are a few reminders:

• If your child has diarrhea or vomiting, they should stay home for at least 24 hrs after the last occurrence. It is not uncommon for norovirus symptoms to go on for 3 days.

• Wash hands well with soap and water; hand sanitizer alone does not work well against norovirus.

• Do not prepare, handle food, or care for others when you are sick.

In PE/Gym each grade level had different challenging, cooperative, team building activities. Kindergarteners and first graders played a game called Red Lion, Red Lion. Second graders worked with bean bags playing Frozen Bean Bag and a new tag game called Sliders. Third graders were challenged with passing a “Noodle” creatively in a group. Fourth graders played a game called Frogger and Crows & Cranes. While being timed, Fifth graders strategized as class in a fun game called Popcorn.

Library: Cole School Book Challenge Update!

The Norwell Schools Web site has been redesigned and the path to get to the COLE SCHOOL BOOK CHALLENGE TRACKER (to log books in) is a little different:

Go to: www.norwellschools.org and click on -- Our Schools -- Grace Farrar Cole Elementary -- Students -- Library. Then proceed as usual clicking on COLE SCHOOL BOOK CHALLENGE. The direct link is here: https://cole.norwellschools.org/welcome/cole-school-book-challenge-2024-2025. Email michelle.ready@norwellschools.org with any questions!

January

January 20 - No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

January 27 - Community Meeting 2:30pm - Theme: Integrity - Parents and Community invited to attend

January 29 - Early Release Day - all students dismissed at 12:20pm

January 29 - Kindergarten Field Trip (Thank you, PTO!)

January 29 - Lunar New Year

Looking Ahead

February 3 - Baking for Good Presentation for Grade 4 Students

February 7 - Tentative 100th Day of School (if no snow days)

February 7 - World Read Aloud Day

February 10 - Connections Meeting, reading A Bad Seed by Jory John

February 10 - Grade 5 Field Trip (Thank you, PTO!)

February 12 - School Council Meeting 3:30pm

February 14 - Valentine's Day

February 17- February 21 - February Break

February 24 - Community Meeting 2:30pm

A Public Forum will be held on Tuesday, January 21, 2025 at the Norwell Public Library large meeting room from 6:30pm to 7:30 on the proposed South Shore Regional Vocational Technical School Building Project that will be voted on at the regional election scheduled for January 25, 2025. For more information, please see the Town of Norwell's page

South Shore Regional Vocational Technical High School MSBA Building Project Information

Basic Rights: Understanding the IEP

A virtual presentation for Parents and Professionals

Date/Time: 1/22/2025 6:30-8:30 PM

Registration Link: https://fcsn.org/event/norwell-understanding-the-iep/

Featured Presenter from Federation for Children with Special Needs: Jessica Sales Cohen

Contact Norwell SEPAC with any questions at TheNorwellSEPAC@gmail.com

Handouts will be provided to registered attendees on the day of the virtual presentation.

REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED.