OPR Weekly Update
February 9, 2024
Dear OPR Families,
On Friday, February 9th, families will have access to their child's Elementary Standard Based Report Cards and Special Education Progress Report (if applicable) in the Aspen Family Portal
The Term I report card communicates student progress toward meeting end-of-the-year learning standards. The slight, but important, change we made last year to the descriptors of the Academic Performance Levels this year is the phrase “at this time”. The purpose of adding this phrase is to share with families where their students are academically, at this time of the year.
Teachers assess student performance against these learning standards, which are specific and observable grade-level skills. Our report cards reflect the learning standards as outlined in the current Massachusetts State Frameworks. Teachers assess by measuring individual student performance against the identified concrete learning standards, rather than in relation to the performance of other students.
Please check out the Parent/Guardian Guide b
Be sure to watch the OPR Video News this week. (Link below)
Click here to watch today's OPR Video News.
Have a great weekend!
David N. Barner, Principal
dbarner@walpole.k12.ma.us
FEBRUARY
12 OPR Kindness Week!
16 Student Council Spirit Day: Color Day! Each grade wears the col,or assigned to them: Kindergarten - Red, Grade 1 - Blue, Grade 2 - Green, Grade 3 - Orange, Grade 4 - Yellow, Grade 5 - Purple
19-23 No School - February Vacation
26 OPR Talent Show Forms Due
27 OPR Talent Show Auditions from 3-4:00 in the OPR Cafeteria
28 OPR Talent Show Auditions from 3-4:00 in the OPR Cafeteria
28 Grade K and 1 visit from Dental Hygienist and a Puppet to learn about good dental hygiene
29 PAC sponsored STEM Night for Grade 3, 4 and Grade 5 Students and Parents in the Cafeteria from 6-7:30 PM. This experience is free for families. Sign Up Coming Soon.
MARCH
6 Grade 1 Field Trip to Moose Hill
6 Parent Teacher Conferences from 6:00-8:00 PM by Appointment
8 Early Release at 11:55
8 Parent Teacher Conferences from 1:00-3:00 PM by Appointment
18 PAC sponsored visit from the Discovery Museum to Grade 2 for Physical Changes of Matter
13 PAC Meeting, STEM Lab at 7:00 PM
14 Parent Teacher Conferences from 6:00-8:00 PM by Appointment
15 PAC sponsored Harney Dance Irish Step Assembly for All Students
19 OPR Talent Show Dress Rehearsal in the OPR Cafeteria from 3:00-4:30
21 OPR Student Council Talent Show at Walpole High School Auditorium at 6:00 - FREE Family Event!
22 Early Release at 11:55
22 Student Council Spirit Day: Wear Your Clothes: Inside Out - Backwards - Mismatched Day
26 PAC sponsored Author Visit to Grade 3: Author David Biedrzycki
26 OPR School Council Meeting at 3:05 in the STEM Lab
29 No School - Day of Low Attendance
Arrival: 8:15-8:25 AM
Tardy Bell is at 8:25 AM. (Students must be signed in at the office by an adult if tardy.)
Early Release Dismissal: 11:55 (Dismissal begins at 11:49)
Dismissal: 2:55 PM (Dismissal begins at 2:49)
If your child is going to be absent or tardy, please call the OPR office before school (508-660-7219) and press 1 for the absence line. The automated attendance verification system is in use. Those students marked absent and who have not called in will receive an automated phone call.
Recess!
A quick reminder to please help your child(ren) remember their cold weather gear each day for school. Even if it feels warm enough to run out to the bus/car in the morning without a jacket please remember that we go out for recess for 30 minutes each day as long as the real feel temperature is above 20 degrees Fahrenheit. That means even if it just below freezing we are heading outside for some fresh air and outdoor play.
Cold weather gear that will help your child(ren) stay warm during recess includes a warm winter jacket, gloves/mittens, winter hat. As the winter season wears on, if we get some snow accumulation, dressing in layers including snow pants and boots will keep your child(ren) safe and dry for snow play.
Kindness Week! February 12-16
We are thrilled to announce the commencement of our annual Kindness Week as part of our Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum at OPR. This positive initiative is crafted to celebrate and foster a culture of kindness while enhancing student engagement. Kindness Week is scheduled for February 12-16, 2024. Throughout the week, students will actively participate in various acts of kindness. Our aspiration is that both students and staff will recognize the profound impact of a simple act of kindness, setting off a ripple effect throughout our community. We believe that everyone contributes to creating a kinder community. Please find below a list of activities for the week:
Monday:
Kindness is like a bright sunny day. Wear bright-colored clothes to school today!
We will be creating a wall symbolizing inclusivity in the foyer. Each classroom will receive a precut hand for each student. The students will write their names on the palm of their hand cutout and then display them in the foyer!
Tuesday:
Kindness Card Day
Students will make a kindness card for a person of their choice. This could be a peer, family member, teacher, bus driver, counselor, recess aide, cafeteria worker, custodian, neighbor, or anyone in their community that they wish to show appreciation for!
Wednesday:
Kindness Lunch Compliment Day
Students will write a compliment to a designated person in their class. Each card will have the recipient's name written on the card. This will ensure all students will receive a card. The writer of the card will sign the card. Students will bring the cards to lunch. During the lunches, the students will be told when and how to give the card to the recipient. Students may use both sides of the card and also include drawings.
Thursday:
We will be collecting canned goods for the Walpole food pantry! Below is a list of items that are approved to donate!
Boxed Crackers & Cookies
Boxed Macaroni & Cheese
Boxed Pasta
Brownie & Cake Mixes
Canned Baked Beans
Canned Fruits
Canned Juice (100% Juice)
Canned Meat & Fish
Canned Milk & Dry Cheese
Canned Pasta (Spaghetti-O, Ravioli & Beefaroni)
Canned Stew, Hash & Chili
Canned Vegetables
Cereal (dry and to cook)
Coffee & Tea
Dry Milk
Dry Potato Mixes
Jam, Jelly & Marmalade
Jarred Prepared Pasta Sauce
Mayo, Mustard & Catsup
Meal Helpers (Hamburger Helper, Pasta Roni, Suddenly Salad)
Pancake Mix & Syrup
Peanut Butter
Pudding & Gelatin Mix
Rice (White & Brown)
Sugar, Salt, Pepper & Spices
Friday:
Friday will be “Sit with a New Friend at Lunch” Day. Instead of requiring students to sit with their classmates, students will be encouraged to sit with other peers or someone they do not usually sit with. Students are encouraged to invite others to sit with them, and no student will sit by themself!
Extended Day February Break Camp Information
Where: Boyden Elementary School
When: February 20-22, 2024 (Tuesdays, Wednesday, Thursday)
Cost: $80/day (10% discount for educators or siblings)
Registration Link: https://forms.gle/TujRsqvz3vsMHzw39
Art with Ms. Kroll
Grade K:
Kindergarten artists are working on mixed media artworks that feature winter scenes of snow covered trees. We watched the read aloud Snow, by Uri Shulevitz, for inspiration. Students will create construction paper collages of trees and then add snow as well as other details with white tempera paint.
Grade 1:
Students are working on realistic owl paintings inspired by our featured read aloud, Owl Moon, by Jane Yolen. Each artist drew an outline of their owls resting on a tree branch and had the option of drawing a Great Horned Owl or another owl of their choice. First grade artists received a brief overview of the Element of Art: Value and learned how to lighten and darken a color. Each student has begun adding tempera paint in a variety of browns and grays to their owl paintings.
Grade 2:
Students have been learning about Chinese New Year including a variety of traditions that are practiced during this important cultural celebration. We studied the importance of the lantern and how red symbolizes good fortune and luck. Second grade artists created their own paper lantern templates and designed each section with a theme of their choice. Some artists chose to focus on images connected to Chinese New Year while others picked images of things that they love or care about.
Grade 3:
Students have continued studying the Element of Art: Value and reviewed what tints, tones, and shades are by watching the “Value Song,” by Scratch Garden. Third grade artists have lightly sketched out their winter landscape scenes and will begin adding tints and shades to their skies to create a moonlit halo-effect.
Grade 4:
Students have completed their final templates for their Snow Globe cityscapes with pencil and Sharpie. Each artist will start to add watercolor to their skies using the “wet on wet” technique and then will use the “wet on dry” technique for their buildings and smaller details.
Grade 5:
Students completed their winter landscape masterpieces featuring an Arctic scene with a Northern Lights-inspired sky watercolor background. The next areas of study will be Japanese Theater masks and the Element of Art: Form. Students will learn about sculpture and the three-dimensional form as well as a brief history of the Noh mask. Each fifth grade artist will create their own mask from plaster strips and will decorate it with acrylic paint.
Reading with Mrs. Driscoll & Mrs. Segal
Black History month is a great time to encourage students to read books by diverse authors and also learn about both well known and less well known heroes. Some great examples are Georgia Gilmore, a woman who secretly made pies for the citizens participating in the Montgomery Bus Boycott and Audrey Faye Hendricks, a young civil rights activist who at age 9 participated in marches to protest unfair laws. Also, there was Marian Anderson who drew an integrated crowd of 75,000 people when she sang at an historic concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Our book room contains a plethora of engaging and informative novels, graphic novels, and picture books that bring these heroes to life in our classrooms
Don’t forget that the Walpole Public Library is a great place to explore and find great books for free! https://www.walpolelibrary.org/
News from the Nurse
Here is a link to the WPS Health Services website. On this site you can find links to forms (i.e. medication administration, over the counter medication consent forms), medication policies, and information regarding illnesses, concussions and injuries.
Our substitute nurse is Mrs. Karen Laracy.
Mrs. Laracy's email is: klaracy@walpole.k12.ma.us
99 Old Post Road
East Walpole, MA 02032
phone: 508-660-7219 ext 5804
fax: 866.809.6567
PAC NEWS
Please join us for the OPR PAC Meeting on Wednesday, March 13th at 7:00 PM in the OPR STEM LAB or virtually via ZOOM.
Who loves OPR? We do! Sign up here to volunteer to coordinate one of our great events or fundraisers this year. PAC Coordinator Sign up:
https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/9040e49a4aa2ba2fb6-oprpac1
mabel's labels
https://mabelslabels.com/en_US/fundraising/support/
Starting to lose those water bottles? Put a label on it! Please navigate to Support a Fundraiser and select Old Post Road Parent Advisory Committee.
Box Tops
Download the App for BoxTops for Education and scan receipt within 14 days of purchase. Assign Credit by selecting the Star and entering the Teacher’s Last name before you hit submit.
PAC Socal Media / Contact Info.
Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OPR.PAC
please add: Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/oprpacwalpole
Email with questions: oprpacwalpole@gmail.com
OPR Textile Bin Donations
Massachusetts no longer allows clothing to be disposed of in the trash. Clothing must be donated or recycled. RECYCLE your clothing and textiles in the OPR Collection Bin and OPR receives money.
The collections resulted in the following:
2022 Calendar Year Total - $907.50
January 2023 - $102.00
February 2023 - $83.25
March 2023 - $95.50
April 2023 - $93.00
May 2023 - $88.20
June 2023 - $126.90
July 2023 - $100.20
August 2023 - $92.40
September 2023 - $118.80
October 2023 - $90.60
November 2023 - $113.70
December 2023 - $81.30
2023 Calendar Year Total - $1210.60
January 2024 - $85.80
Arbor Day Poster Contest!
The Town Forest Committee along with Walpole Cultural Council is excited to enhance students' experience of connecting Art and Science. The DCR theme this year is "Healthy Trees, Healthy Towns" this statewide contest is open to all third, fourth and fifth graders. Please see attached for guidelines/ rules of this contest.
Per DCR rules only one entry can be chosen per grade level from each elementary school. Please submit any OPR student entries to Ms. Kroll, OPR Art Teacher, by February 27th. The link to this contest can be found here.
Multilingual Learner PAC (MLPAC) Meeting
Please contact the Multilingual Learner Family Engagement Center at mlfec@walpole.k12.ma.us or at (508) 660-7257 ext. 5033 for further information or to request an interpreter or child care for the event.
WPS Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) MEETING
Please note the following contact information for Walpole’s Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC). Co-Chairs are Sue Pace and Deborah Mulroy. The SEPAC can be reached by email at walpolesepac@gmail.com. Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/walpolespedpac. Notices of future events can be found in this Weekly Update as they are scheduled.
About Us
OPR Mission Statement
The Old Post Road School community educates all students to excel and become productive citizens.
OPR Vision
OPR students will be motivated to learn in a supportive and safe environment. The faculty will foster self-confidence in the students and encourage them to make positive choices. Students will learn to accept responsibility for their behavior and will mature into responsible citizens and lifelong learners. All students will appreciate that they are part of a diverse, global society.
Instagram: OLDPOSTROADSCHOOL_WALPOLE
Twitter: @oprschool
Email: dbarner@walpole.k12.ma.us
99 Old Post Road
East Walpole, MA 02032
508-660-7219
