Mary Hogan Family Newsletter
September 26, 2025
Dear Mary Hogan Families,
We had another awesome week here at Mary Hogan. Students have been active outside - even in the rain. We had two rainy recesses this week but were outside for both of them. Some students like or don't mind getting wet. Other students really don't like getting wet. You know your child best, so make sure they have what they need on rainy days - rain coats, umbrellas, change of clothes. It will help them feel more comfortable after recess, too!
Check out the awesomeness below, especially what we are doing on 10/10/25 for our Fall Fun Day and how you can help support all the fun and community on this day!
Best,
Jen
Mary Hogan School Goals for 2025-26
Mary Hogan School will focus on three key areas during the 2025-26 school year:
Writing and Math (K-5) - Teachers will collaborate with instructional specialists MaKayla Broughton (literacy) and Amanda Burnham (math) to review student data, align teaching practices, and examine student work. We're creating vertical alignment across grades to ensure students develop consistent strategies they can apply in new contexts.
K-3 Reading - Building on three years of strong growth in foundational reading skills, teachers will work with MaKayla Broughton and literacy coordinator Heather Gebo to continue implementing early literacy best practices and supporting reading progress.
Growth Mindset (Preschool-5) - We're developing student and staff understanding that everyone can grow through challenges. Using our Responsive Classroom approach, we'll help students set goals, reflect on learning, and track progress—supporting both academic determination and overall wellbeing.
In the Library...
Every month the library will present the students with a reading challenge and the students who meet the challenge will win some small prizes. The September challenge is to read 3 books about people (biographies). There are sheets in the library to record their progress and the completed forms should be turned into Julie or Liz in the library. We hope students will explore different genres throughout the year! Some topics we might cover are Vermont (author/setting), Animals (fiction and nonfiction), How-to books, Around the World (fiction and nonfiction), poetry, etc. We hope many of our students will participate!
Farm to School
We are in the middle of a 16 month Farm to School grant to build our foundational capacity in the areas of cafeteria, classroom, and community. The cafeteria portion of our Farm to School work was on display in the cafeteria this week as Steve and our amazing Food Nutrition staff highlighted all of the local produce we have served this week. Many students were interested in the sign and checked it out. Be on the look out for more info about our local foods!
Football Mentors
Middlebury College Football Coach Doug Mandigo helped to start a mentoring program between his football team and students at Mary Hogan last spring, when many players were mentors to 5th graders during Exhibition.
This fall, the football team is mentoring 3rd through 5th graders at lunch. The college athletes came this past Wednesday to start their work. The team is a huge hit in our lunch room, sitting and chatting with many of the students while paired with a particular Mary Hogan student for the semester. The hope is that the partnerships help build confidence, social skills, and connection for our students with these awesome college athletes.
We are hoping to go support the team as Mary Hogan Hawks at their home games on 10/4, 10/25, and 11/8. More info will be in the Upcoming Events section.
Out in the Woods
Lots of students were out in the woods this week, exploring, playing, and finding all sorts of animals - bugs, slugs, squirrels, chipmunks, and even a cat! The students love this time in the woods, so if you have time to get them to Battell Woods or anywhere along the TAM - or in the woods by your house, you will find happy kids! Get out there and play this weekend!
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