Schofield Scoop

It is C-O-L-D! Welcome to January in Massachusetts... While we do try to get students out every day, there are just some times when it is too cold for us to go out. Unfortunately, Tuesday and Wednesday fell into that category. You may have noticed your student being a little more antsy, as they didn't get a chance to run their excess energy off. We did, however, get outside for some fresh air and running around on Thursday and Friday - staying on the cleared, de-iced sidewalks.

In order to go out, students need to be dressed safely for the weather - including hats, mittens, jackets and boots. If you notice that some of the above items are missing from your home, please send your student down to check out our Lost and Found - located in the MPR (multi-purpose room). All items remaining on Friday, February 14th will be located to new homes. Please look below at the photo from Friday's Lost and Found.

“It’s not babysitting; it’s not even day care,” Bailes said. “It’s where really fundamental skills are learned and practiced, and put in place for those subsequent 10 years, but certainly leading up to the first round of achievement testing.” (Superville, Denisa. 2023, May 18. "Why Kindergarten Attendance Matters for the Whole School. " EducationWeek.

• Learning is progressive. Students who miss school miss out on carefully planned sequences of instruction. Each day’s lessons build on the previous days.

• Discussions, learning activities and social interactions cannot be made up!

• Research has proven a high correlation between regular school attendance and successful academic performance.

• School attendance lays the foundation for whether children will graduate or drop-out of high school. Absence from school is the greatest cause of poor academic achievement.

So much amazing instruction takes place every day at Forestdale. We work hard to plan, prepare and present rigorous academics and social emotional skills to all our learners, and want every student to succeed. Having students at school is the best way to ensure they receive this quality, formative instruction and gain the necessary skills to continue to succeed when they leave our doors.

Please reach out if you need support in getting your student to school - we are here to help!

Here are a few pics of Music, Science Library. There is such a variety of activities going on in each room - it is hard to document with these few photos. Mr. Horton is our guest teacher for music for a few more weeks. He has been doing lots of singing, movement and listening activities with his PK-2nd graders. Library with Mrs. Scott usually begins and ends with a whole group activity. In these photos, students are playing a matching/memory game about the categories in the library - important information to know to easily find the topic you are seeking. In Science with Mrs. Beers, students start on the floor as a whole group and have a discussion and lesson on the topic of instruction for the day. Science classes end with whole group activities - to give the scientists a chance to share their learnings in the day's class. Between the beginning and end of the class, scientists are doing hands on, collaborative tasks based on the science standards for their grade level. Stay tuned for more images from out amazing specialists.

Every day students in our school connect with books and practice independent reading. While doing so, they are increasing their reading motivation and stamina, practicing skills learned in classroom instruction, improving their fluency and comprehension and broadening their vocabulary. Plus - it is fun! This practice can take the reader into new realms, imaginations, locations, settings - and invites so many wonderful experiences. This week the timing was just right to catch so many readers in action. My favorite part of snapping these pics is that the students are so absorbed in what they are reading that they usually don’t even know their picture was taken.

Want some more information about fostering independent reading at home? Click here for an article from Author Eileen Moynihan.

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