Lowell School Newsletter
This Week’s Featured Event
Tuesday, 11/14/17 is World Diabetes Day
Lowell School is wearing BLUE and participating in Hands of Hope (simply write the word "HOPE", preferably in BLUE, on your hand).
Let’s light up the Lowell blue in extra support of our own Lowell family members living with diabetes!
Greetings,
I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful but chilly weekend. The holiday season is just around the corner. Which typically brings many events and family commitments. Remember during this busy season to keep an eye on the Lowell Calendar. We too will be celebrating and offering parents the many opportunities to come into school and take part in school activities. Just this past week Elizabeth Kaplan hosted a Parent’s Math in Focus University. The event was attended by many Lowell parents. The Math in Focus University is an event which helped address one of Lowell’s School Improvement Goals. The Home-School Connection Goal: Provide parents with quality communication and resources that increase student academic engagement and performance which aligns to the District Goal: Support High Academic Achievement. The Watertown Public Schools will ensure that each student becomes an accomplished learner in the arts, humanities, mathematics, physical sciences and social sciences. The school system will provide all students with a learning environment that sets high expectations and stimulates thinking, problem-solving, inquiry, creativity, and hard work.
Literacy Night, Math Night, and Science Night are also evenings we hope to engage and connect parents to their child’s learning. I will continue to highlight resources and events which strengthen the home-school connection.
One of the resources available to parents is the Literacy K- 8 website put together by Allison Donovan our Literacy Curriculum Coordinator. This website puts all the information you need in one spot. It gives an overview of our balance literacy initiative and discusses the key components which make up an ELA block. It also gives parents a year plan for each elementary grade level, curriculum maps, ELA overview, core materials used in the classroom and standard of observable behavior. You can also find information about the assessments we use to benchmark students and measure their growth. This information can be found under the heading Assessments. Please take a look. I’ve included a link to Allison’s page.
The Lowell School is once again beginning our Big Buddies program on Monday, November 13th, where students will be meeting their buddies from another classroom! This researched-based program, created by Developmental Studies Center and used widely throughout the United States and Canada, enables every child in our school to develop a special friendship with a buddy from another class. The older buddies and younger buddies will get together for a variety of supervised learning and social activities throughout the year.
Buddies provide an excellent opportunity for older children to be caring helpers, teachers, and friends. Younger children benefit from having a role model and a special, older friend at school.
You may want to ask your child about Buddies, which will usually take place once a month. Don’t worry that you may not know the specific activity for the day - just ask an open-ended question such as, “what did you do with your buddy today?” and let your child fill you in. The buddy friendships turn out to be very important to children. Your interest in this relationship will only make it more valuable!
If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Enjoy the week ahead!
Stacy
PTO Meeting
Tuesday, November 14, 2017
6:30-7:30 Lowell Library
Teachers are coming to present ideas for PTO funding.
Picture Retakes
Wednesday
November 15th
&
Fifth Grade
Class Picture!
MCAS Testing Schedule for Lowell School
Grades 3, 4, & 5 will all test on the same day.
All students will participate in computer based testing.
Please Save the following Dates!
ELA
Monday, April 30
Tuesday, May 1
Wednesday, May 2
MATH
Monday, May 7
Tuesday, May 8
SCIENCE
Tuesday, May 22
Wednesday, May 23
|
Save the Date
Lowell School’s Literacy Night
December 15, 2017
Parent Coffee for English Language Learners
Come meet our ELL teachers and learn more about the supports and instruction your children receive at school.
Friday, November 17, 2017
Lowell Cafeteria 8:30-9:00
Parent Coffee for Title 1
Come learn how Title I grants help to support the Lowell School.
We will explain how we using this money to support your children.
Friday, November 17, 2017
Lowell Cafeteria 9:00-9:30
First Grade’s Annual “Thanksgiving Feast”
Tuesday, November 21st
Lowell Cafeteria
Students will have the opportunity to learn how to make sweet potato pancakes and fresh butter using sweet potatoes from our garden.
First Grade Teachers will keep families posted!
THIS WEEK’S
TOP STORIES
Dates: Event: Time/Location:
November 11/13
|
Meet your Buddy
|
1:30-2:10 pm
|
November
11/14
|
PTO Meeting
|
6:30-7:30 pm
Lowell Library
|
November 15th
|
Picture Retake Day
5th Grade Class Photo
PLT Meeting for Teachers
|
8:30 am/Cafe
“Main” steps
2:45-3:45 pm
|
November
11/16
|
TLA Professional Development Grade 3
& Mr. Fiandaca and Mrs. Riley MacDonald
|
8:30-11:30 am
|
November 17
|
Coffee for parents of
ELL Students
English Language Learners
|
8:30 am
Cafeteria
|
November 11/20
|
Eat Lunch with your Buddy Day
|
During Scheduled lunches TBD
|
November 11/22
|
Early Release Day
|
12:00 noon sharp
|
November 23
|
Thanksgiving Day
No School
|
Happy Turkey Day!
|
November 24th
|
No School Thanksgiving Break better known as Black Friday!!! Shopping Day!
|
Enjoy!
|
December 1st
|
Coffee with Mrs. Phelan
|
8:30-9:30 am
|
December 5th
|
PTO Meeting
|
6:30-7:30 am
|
December 7th
|
School Council
|
7:00-8:00 pm
|
December 13th
|
Grade Level Meetings
|
2:45-4:24 pm
|
December 15th
|
Literacy Night
|
6:00-8:00 pm
|
December 20th
|
PLT Meeting
|
2:45-3:45 pm
|
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