R15 Equity & Inclusion Newsletter

November is National Native American Heritage Month according to presidential proclamation, starting in 1990 and continuing to date. It is also known as National American Indian & Alaska Native Heritage Month.

See the picture below or click here for a recommended text to enjoy with your student(s). This text is carefully crafted to explore both sides of the historic event when the Wampanoag people and English colonists first shared a feast at Plimouth in 1621. It is written by Chris Newell, who is a member of the Passamaquody tribe, an educator, author, and multi-award winning museum professional.

R15 is sharing this guide to support your conversations with children about the recent & ongoing events in the Middle East and in other times when our country and nations across the world are faced with a crisis.

Region 15 students, staff and community members have family or cultural ties to the Middle East. Please know that we are committed to ensuring that our schools are safe spaces for all members of our community. We welcome resources and ideas to continue the conversation.

Our children are looking to us to know that home and school are places of safety, routines, and connection. As families and educators, we need to listen to our children. They need a safe space to share their feelings. They may wonder about their own safety, the safety of their families in the U.S. and abroad, and the safety of the people in the Middle East. They may be seeking facts or information. They may rely on us to offer hope

The Unified Sports program at PHS received Special Olympics Unified Champion School national recognition status! This is a distinction given to about 200 select programs nationally for demonstrating commitment to inclusion by continuously meeting the 10 standards of excellence set forth by the program year after year. Congratulations to all Unified Sports athletes and Mrs. Stephanie Bregman for your dedication and hard work!

Kindergarteners in Mrs. Musante's class at PES recently enjoyed the read aloud book Paletero Man by Latin-Grammy winning musician Lucky Diaz, illustrated by Micah Player. We acted out parts of this lively book to show our understanding. Paletero Man incorporates Spanish and English words, and we really enjoyed practicing pronouncing Spanish words and learning from our students who are native speakers of and experts on Spanish! We introduced students to the concept of Hispanic Heritage Month, and the importance of celebrating the richness of our own class and schools' families who are Spanish speakers and also those who are Latino/a/e. We danced to the book's accompanying song. We created our very own paletas flavors, too!

The French Honor Society and the French Department at PHS will be celebrating National French Week November 1st to November 8th. The theme is "All around me, la francophonie." Throughout the week, students will explore "Le Monde Francophone'' while playing games, tasting some francophone dishes, singing, etc. Students will also participate in the National Francophone Culture Trivia Contest.

• November 1 ALL SAINTS’ DAY • (Western Christian) Commemorates all known and unknown Christian saints. Eastern Orthodox Christianity observes it on the first Sunday after Pentecost.
• November 2 ALL SOULS’ DAY • (Christian) Commemoration of all faithful Christians who are now dead. In Mexican tradition it is celebrated as Dia de los Muertos between October 31 and November 2, and is an occasion to remember dead ancestors and celebrate the continuity of life.
• November 9-10 KRISTALLNACHT Also known as the Night of the Broken Glass, commemorates the 1938 pogrom against Jews throughout Germany and Vienna. (Secular observance)
• November 11 VETERANS’ DAY Honors military veterans and the U.S. Armed Services (Secular observance)
• November 12 DIWALI • (Hindu) Also called Deepavali, “Festival of Lights”, it celebrates the victory of good over evil, light over darkness, and knowledge over ignorance

(Source: ADL)

Because our intention in sharing this information is to increase awareness of and respect for religious observations and ethnic and cultural festivities that may affect students, colleagues and neighbors in our community, your input is important. Please email equity_inclusion@region15.org if there is something we missed!

Background photo credit: This photograph is from the beautiful Library Media Center at Gainfield Elementary School!

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The importance of listening to your lived experiences, insights, ideas, and perspectives cannot be overstated. Please feel free to reach out! We'd love to connect.

*Note: Quotation (c) 2019 CLC Collective and Dottir Press

Email: equity_inclusion@region15.org
Website: https://www.region15.org/community/equity-and-inclusion
Twitter: @r15equity