Cheetah Pride Press

Families,

As the saying goes… the days can sometimes feel long, but the years are short! This cliche typically speaks to parenting, but it’s also true of our school years. We are only one week away from MARCH! Soon, we’ll be welcoming families for conferences, and “springing ahead” into longer days!

While you begin planning for spring events and activities, please put this important date on your calendar. On Thursday, March 27th, Memorial School and Center School, along with the support of the EHEPTO, will be hosting an informative session for caregivers on Social Media And Responsible Technology (S.M.A.R.T). As our learners’ access to technology has continued to increase, so has the risk to their safety. Additionally, we have seen an increase in inappropriate behaviors that are often being mimicked from imagery seen online. As much of the research on this topic states, young children are not developmentally equipped to process all that they’re able to access online; so we must do our best to become informed on what children are accessing. Our students are internet savvy! They are often able to navigate social media sites better than their caregivers.

Scott Driscoll, of Internet Safety Concepts, spent most of his 33-year career in law enforcement as a youth officer with a local Connecticut police department. While serving on a federal task force combating crimes against children, he conducted undercover investigations of crimes committed by people using computers and the Internet. Scott’s work reinforced his desire to inform people how they can protect themselves from the potential dangers of technology in an ever-increasingly connected world. Scott founded Internet Safety Concepts in 2007 with the goal of educating people with a clear message: if we don’t consider safety while we are online and using other technology, we can put ourselves and others in danger.

This will be an adult event. However, the EHEPTO will be coordinating with OSHS’ Interact Club to provide childcare in the Memorial School Library. We hope you will prioritize this event. It is sure to provide a wealth of information.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Joey & Andrea

Exciting announcement: The Annual K-12 District-wide Art Show will be held on March 25th, 2025 at East Hampton High School in the Main Lobby. The opening reception will be held from 5:00-6:30pm. Students from Memorial School whose work has been selected to be displayed during this event will personally receive a letter of selection. ALL families and students are invited to attend! It is an amazing night to celebrate the incredible talents of the students from East Hampton Public Schools!

The month of February was a short (yet packed) month in the art room, filled with exploring new artistic concepts and skills! Here is what each grade level worked on during this past month!

Prek and Kindergarten students finished working on their TEAMWORK project, where all students made snowmen in small-group teams, and snowflakes as a whole class team. We installed a beautiful winterscape in the main lobby! It is so beautiful and many have admired the gorgeous artwork the whole grade worked together to make. Then the students worked on creating HEART shapes, and combining different types of lines to make this very special shape. We learned that the heart shape is BUMPY and POINTY, and can use bumpy and diagonal LINES to make a heart. We then painted those hearts and brought them home to give them to someone we love! Students in Prek and Kindergarten are now beginning their next project, and will be learning all about the style of ABSTRACT ART! This style of art is wild and strange, and unrecognizable (we don’t know what we are looking at). We are learning that abstract art DOES have different colors, shapes, and lines. We even got to look at some beautiful works of abstract art by artist Piet Mondrian. To complete these abstract masterpieces, we will be using: PreK”: masking tape and tempera paintings. Kindergarten: glue, cut scrap paper (these will be 3D Paper Sculptures). We always get excited when we learn that artists don’t always make art look real, and how they can instead let loose, get a little wild, and have fun using their imagination!

First grade students learned how to draw shapes and create an optical illusion. Artist Victor Vaserely is a famous Op-Art painter, who created beautiful works with concentric, repeating shapes. The first graders used HEARTS to create the illusion of those hearts disappearing into space! Like we were flying at warp speed through a portal to another dimension! After drawing our (concentric) hearts, we used crayon and watercolor to add beautiful color to our masterpieces. We then began our next art project, and are currently looking at the works of art by artist Henri Rousseau. Mr. Rousseau would often find inspiration in the unknown; he would paint places, animals, and people he had never met, but knew they existed through books and stories from worldly travelers. His paintings and his artistic goals will be the inspiration for this next project: all about DINOSAURS!!! We began this project by drawing our very own dinosaur drawings, and learned that there are two techniques to creating a sketch of something. Some students drew the CONTOUR (outside shape) first, and other students drew the SHAPES (parts to a whole) first. We celebrated how artists have multiple different ways to create something, and how there is no right way or wrong way to make art. We will finish these Dinosaur masterpieces over the next couple of weeks.

Second graders have officially started CLAY, and are so EXCITED! We began our clay unit with the introduction of important tools, safety rules, and specific ceramic vocabulary. We will be constructing SCULPTURES of ceramic “magical houses” that can be placed either inside or outside and will offer shelter to toads, gnomes, fairies, and any other creatures! These ceramic “magical” houses can also be placed somewhere safe for display as well. The students are currently practicing the process of constructing PINCH POTS and SLABS, while using their hands and gross motor skills in a variety of ways. New tools that are being introduced for this project include a sponge, rolling pin, and a FETTLING KNIFE (a clay tool used for cutting precise shapes out of clay slabs). Students first discussed and practiced how to use all tools safely during art class. We had a whole class discussion on “knife safety” and why it is so important, especially when using a special clay knife during art class. I was very impressed to see how many students shared that they have already learned at home how to handle a knife safely. We will be constructing our sculptures of “magical houses” over the next few weeks, and will be glazing them after they have been bisque fired. More rich vocabulary will be introduced as the unit continues.

Please let your building nurse know if your child is diagnosed with any illness (such as strep, flu, pneumonia, covid, mono, pink eye, etc.) as the nurse’s office tracks illnesses. Please be specific when you notify school with any of the symptoms your child is experiencing.

Here are some guidelines that are helpful for families.

Consider keeping your child at home for an extra day of rest and observation if he or she has any of the following symptoms:

• Very stuffy or runny nose and/or cough

• Mild sore throat (no fever, no known exposure to strep)

• Mild headache and/or stomachache

• Fatigue

• Keep your child home for treatment and observation if he or she has any of these symptoms:

• Fever (100.4 degrees or higher. May only return to school after 24 hours of no fever WITHOUT fever reducing medications)

• Vomiting (Wait 24 hours after last vomit episode to return to school)

• Diarrhea (may return to school after 24 hours since last episode)

• Chills

• General malaise or feelings of fatigue, discomfort, weakness, and/or muscle aches

• Frequent congested, wet, or croupy cough

• Lots of nasal congestion with frequent blowing of nose

Please remind your child(ren) about good hygiene habits:

• Wash hands frequently

• Do not touch eyes, nose, or mouth

• Cover mouth and nose when sneezing/coughing and then wash hands

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

• Often when a child awakens with vague complaints (the way colds and flu begin) it is wise to observe your child at home for an hour or two before deciding whether to bring them to school. Keeping a sick child at home will minimize the spread of infections and viruses in school. Please send in a copy of the doctor’s note if they are seen. Thank you in advance for helping to make this year at school as healthy as possible.

Health Concerns

• If your child has a new health concern which you would like to speak to the nurse about you can e-mail the school nurse at their email below.

• If you have any specific concerns that arise during the school year (such as stitches, concussions, broken bones/fractures, etc.) please send in a doctor’s note with dates, guidelines, and restrictions, so we can all be on the same page and keep your child safe.

Respectfully,

The EHPS Nurses

Beth Kelpen, RN

bkelpen@easthamptonct.org

East Hampton High School

Phone 860-365-4030

Fax 860-365-4034

Melanie King, RN

mking@easthamptonct.org

East Hampton Middle School

Phone 860-365-4060

Fax 860-365-4064

Jordan Morehouse, RN

jmorehouse@easthamptonct.org

East Hampton Center School

Phone 860-365-4050

Fax 860-365-4054

Katie Williams, RN

kwilliams@easthamptonct.org

East Hampton Memorial School

Phone 860-365-4020

Fax 860-365-4024

Michelle Lemire Health Aid

mlemire@easthamptonct.org

East Hampton Memorial School

Phone 860-365-4020

Fax 860-365-4024