Mary Hogan Family News

We had a good four day week (again!) at Mary Hogan after a long weekend. Students did a great job remembering the routines after the long weekend. This week, students got into the garden to harvest potatos that will be used in the kitchen, had deep math conversations, created models of the human brain, and toasted with tea.

We can't wait to see you all at Back to School Night on Thursday 9/17 from 5.45 until 7pm. Your children will be able to show you what they have been doing in class as well as show you this year's routines. It will be so fun!

💙,
Jen

Thursday 9/17 - School Picture Day

• 5.45-7pm - Back to School Night

Friday 9/18 - 6pm - Playing Fields at MUMS

Monday 9/21 - No School

Please join us on Friday September 18th for a special welcome back event hosted by the Flynn Center and ACSD! This Whimsical interactive back-to-school party will feature PEARL by Plasticiens Volants. FREE and open to everyone in the ACSD Community.

6pm at Middlebury Union Middle School

1st graders helped to harvest the potatoes from our school garden this week. While they were out there, students estimated the number of potatoes, talked about the weight of potatoes and how to measure them, and more. There was a lot of real world math application happening while they were outside.

After collecting the potatoes, students dropped them off in the kitchen with Steve. I wonder how he will use them? Home fries? Potato salad? Potato soup?

Students in Miss Jessica's class read Luli and the Language of Tea and then applied their learning to some tea in their classroom. They observed the properties of the ingredients - which connects with their unit of inquiry focused on who we are and identity. Then, they made sobolo, a Ghanaian hibiscus tea. With their tea, they toasted to their class.

4th graders are learning about the human body. This inquiry starts with understanding how the brain works. This week, they continued to dig into the different parts of the brain and some even made models of their brains. They loved having their brain map on their head as a hat and some wore it all day long, even at recess.

Do you know all the parts of the brain and what they do? If you don't, just ask a 4th grader!

Across Mary Hogan, students are engaging in deep math conversations with their classmates. Teachers may pose questions of math equations or images and students are working hard to reason through the questions, using their math mathematical knowledge and speaking skills. Their peers practice careful listening. Then, they work together to think about if the answer is reasonable, how they got there and what are some other ways to solve the same problem. It is incredible to listen to and to see how respectful and thoughtful classes are with each other as they work through their mathematical thinking.

If you want to do some math with your child at home, check out the Bridges Math at Home website. It has great, printable games and problems that help your child (and you) think about math with flexibiltiy, logic, and creativity.

We know that social emotional learning (SEL) is crucial for our students’ success in school and in life, so across ACSD we are working on systems to support strong SEL teaching and learning in our schools. As part of that work, we use Panorama surveys, research-backed SEL measurement tools.

The survey asks students to self-reflect on skills related to self-management, self-awareness, responsible decision-making, relationship skills, and social awareness. We ask that all students participate, because their feedback provides valuable insights to help us improve and adapt. It also helps us to know both how students are doing as well as respond with individual, whole class, grade, and school supports as needed.

This survey will be given to students in grades 3-5 will take the survey again between 9/15 and 10/1.

K-2 students do not participate directly in the survey. Instead, K-2 teachers complete an SEL Teacher Perception checklist for each student.

Please notify your child’s teacher as well as Jill Laberge (jlaberge@acsdvt.org) by 9/14 if you wish to opt your 3rd-5th grade child out of taking the survey. Thank you in advance for supporting this important work. If you have any questions please contact Jen Kravitz - jkravitz@acsdvt.org

We are looking for toys for our sandbox that folks may have at home and not be using. If you have some toys we could use that are in good working condition, please bring them by the office.

Across our district, we are facing significant transportation challenges caused by driver shortages on multiple bus routes. You can find revised bus routes here based on Week 1 changes, and also in your principal’s newsletters. We hope the changes we made in Week 1 will offer stability moving forward and we will continue to make adjustments as needed and hope to get back to our normal bus routes as quickly as possible. However, we are also working to capture the full impact this challenge has had on our families as we escalate this situation to the the Secretary of Education and BetCha’s parent company, STA. Please use this form to document the impact any bus disruptions had on your family so that we can act on and/or pass along the information as we seek resolution.

This is an awesome opportunity to see the Omya quarry right in Middlebury. You can get a tour of the quarry, check out the trucks and equipment, and more!

Borrow outdoor gear for free and discover new ways to explore. Hosted by Middlebury Parks & Recreation in partnership with the Vermont Department of Health and Come Alive Outside, the Gear Library offers camping equipment, outdoor games, fishing gear, trekking poles, e-bikes (coming soon) and more!

Whether you're trying a new activity or planning a family adventure, borrowing gear makes it easy and affordable to get outside. Gear pickups and drop offs are available at the Middlebury Parks and Recreation (154 Creek Rd, Middlebury, VT) on Wednesdays from 11am-2pm. Visit https://comealiveoutside.com/gearlibrary/ and click the location bar on the left, choose Middlebury Parks and Rec, and view the items available at this pickup location! For more information email sbourne@townofmiddlebury.org or betty@comealiveoutside.com. Please feel free to print or share the attached flyer.