Happy New Year!

It was great to ease back into school with our two days last week. We are gearing up for a wonderful full week ahead and are excited to dive back into learning with our students.

This week, ACCESS Testing for our Multi-Lingual learner students begins. We appreciate your support in ensuring students are well-rested and ready to show what they know.

As we start the new year, we want to highlight the importance of mindful listening. At school, we are encouraging students to practice being fully present when listening to their teachers and classmates. Mindful listening helps students build stronger connections, stay focused, and feel more engaged in learning.

Parents can support this skill at home by modeling active listening—pausing what you're doing, making eye contact, and repeating back what you hear to show understanding. Encouraging your child to take a moment to think before responding also reinforces this habit. See the video below of the video students watched about Mindful Listening before break.

Thank you for your continued partnership in helping our students grow academically and socially. Let's make 2025 a fantastic year together!

This year, APS is engaging in a comprehensive literacy K-8 review. The goal of this work is to improve our systems so that we can effectively support teachers and families in the hard work of guiding literacy success for all students.

To help inform our strategy, we want to learn more about your family’s experience with literacy curriculum, materials, and assessments through a brief, anonymous survey accessed here: bit.ly/APSfamily. Please complete one survey per household. We hope to have all feedback completed by January 10th. Thank you!

As we continue the K-8 redistricting process, we are pleased to invite the community to highlight areas of interest (i.e., neighborhoods, streets), with an interactive, online mapping tool - ARCGIS. This resource will allow the community to provide visual feedback, written comments, and communicate current challenges to DillingerRAD, the consultant supporting APS with this process.

In Spring 2025, the School Committee will review the proposed redistricting options and vote on the preferred redistricting plan. The approved redistricting plan will be implemented in the 2026-27 school year. This allows the district sufficient time to operationally plan for the new school zones.

Please provide all feedback prior to January 10, 2025. Instructions (video & text) on how to use the interactive tool are below. If you need further assistance, please reach out to Nick Stellitano at nstellitano@dillingerrad.org

See the S'more below for more information and directions on how to use the online mapping tool.

We have been studying the music of the Nutcracker in music class this week. Here are some links for extra watching. Also, there is an entire version of the Nutcracker on Musicplayonline.com at this link. Students are welcome to enjoy other songs, games and instrument tutorials on www.musicplayonline.com Our school code is : D654018

Dates for the calendar:

January 22: Winter Chorus/Orff Concert 7:00pm

January 23: 3rd Grade Lexington Symphony Field Trip (permission forms went home this week)

February 12: 5th grade chorus performs at the Collins Center 7:30pm

Monday, January 6th: Winter Explorations Begin

Wednesday, January 15th: Coffee and Conversation (Multi-Lingual Learner Coffee)

Monday, January 20th: No School

Wednesday, January 22nd: Winter Chorus/Orff Concert 7:00pm

Thursday, January 23rd: 3rd Grade Lexington Symphony Field Trip

Tuesday, January 28th, at 7p Special PTO Meeting with Superintendent Dr. Parvey.

Wednesday, January 29th: Early Release

Wednesday, February 12th: 5th grade chorus performs at the Collins Center 7:30pm

Communication with our families is essential to the success and wellness of our students. To assist our families and help them connect with the appropriate staff who is best suited to answer questions, we have updated our “Who We Are” page on our website. The information will guide families to resources on how to reach staff with concerns and how to stay connected to news and events across the district.

• Winter Explorations will begin on Monday, January 6th. Please note the day of your child's activity and keep an eye on the PTO calendar for any changes.
• Join us on Thursday, January 16th at 6p for Top Secret Science Night! The cost for this event is $15 per child, which includes the materials for the science experiments and pizza. Please register in advance here.
• Mark your calendars! Join us on Tuesday, January 28th, at 7p in the Sanborn Library for a special PTO Meeting featuring Superintendent Dr. Parvey. This is a wonderful opportunity to hear updates, ask questions, and engage with our school leadership. Don’t miss it!
• Did you know that several spots on our PTO Board will be up for grabs this spring? This is your chance to step up, bring your ideas, and make a real difference in shaping the future of our school community. (Spoiler alert: It’s actually super fun!) Ready to jump in? Let’s make it happen together! Information on the positions that will be open for 2025-26/2026-27 is listed here - reach out to us with any questions at pto@sanbornpto.net.
• A few ways to stay up to date on the latest news and offerings from the PTO:
• The Bulldog Spirit is the monthly newsletter from the Sanborn PTO where they communicate about our school events, fundraisers, enrichment activities, etc. Sign up here.
• Bookmark the PTO website!
• For real-time updates during the school year, follow the Sanborn Community on social media: Facebook, Instagram
• Join your child's grade-level Facebook group - this group is just for kids in your child’s grade. Here you can connect, ask grade-specific questions, etc.