The Connection Corner
Your "Whole Child Hub"
Fostering Friendships Over Summer
Research shows that positive peer connections support mental health, boost self-esteem, and reduce feelings of loneliness or anxiety (Child Mind Institute, 2022). Without regular school interactions, some children may feel socially isolated over the summer months. Making time for friendships helps keep those connections strong and allows kids to keep practicing the social skills they’ve developed throughout the school year.
Plan Regular Playdates or Meetups
Reach out to classmates or neighborhood families and schedule casual get-togethers. Even simple activities like going to the park or getting ice cream can help maintain and deepen friendships.
Limit Screen Time
While some virtual interactions are fine, try to balance them with real-life social experiences that build deeper interpersonal skills.
When kids maintain peer relationships during the summer, they continue to build important skills like empathy, cooperation, and emotional regulation — all of which are linked to long-term success in school and life.
Helping Kids Process Endings and New Beginnings
The end of the school year can bring a wide range of emotions for children. For those who thrive on routine and consistency, this period of transition may feel especially challenging. As a result, you may notice changes in behavior, including increased emotional reactions or what may appear as “acting out.” During this time, it’s important to remain calm and create space for open conversations.
Normalize mixed emotions: Talk with your child about how it’s okay to feel happy, sad, or nervous all at once. Transitions are complex!
Reflect on growth: Help your child look back on the year—what they’re proud of, what they learned, how they’ve changed.
Preview what’s ahead: Talk about what to expect next year or over the summer to reduce uncertainty and build confidence.
Model your own coping: Share how you handle goodbyes or new starts, so your child sees healthy emotional processing in action.
Staying Consistent As Summer Approaches
Stick with routines: Children still need predictability, even as summer approaches. Try to maintain regular bedtimes, mealtimes, and daily structure.
Review behavior expectations: Reinforce your family's core rules and expectations at home. This helps your child feel secure and understand that the rules still apply, even during exciting or unpredictable times.
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Acknowledge big feelings: Behavioral changes often reflect underlying emotions. Take time to connect, not just correct.
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Use positive reinforcement: Praise the behaviors you want to see, especially when your child shows self-control, responsibility, or kindness during a time of change.
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Prepare for transitions: Talk through upcoming changes (e.g., last day of school, summer plans) to reduce anxiety and help your child feel more in control.
Aspen School Celebrates Neurodiversity Month
To conclude Neurodiversity Month, all Aspen students had the opportunity to participate in a school-wide Sensory Fair—an engaging and educational event designed to celebrate the unique ways our brains work and process the world.
During the fair, students rotated through a variety of hands-on stations featuring both fine and gross motor activities. They explored different sensory tools and strategies that support self-regulation, such as fidget items, weighted materials, movement-based activities, and calming activities. In addition to trying out these tools, students learned more about the diverse sensory and learning needs of their peers and gained a deeper understanding of how to create a more inclusive and supportive school environment for all.
ReferralGPS: Connecting Families to Mental Health Resources
- Searchable Database: Offers a database of treatment options for easy access.
- Care Navigation: Provides services to support families in triage, appointment scheduling, and follow-up care.
- Inclusive Insurance Coverage: The service is compatible with all types of private and public insurance, including PPO, HMO, Medicaid, and it caters to uninsured or underinsured families.
- No-Cost Access: Available free of charge for use by district students, staff, and families.
- Confidentiality Assured: Rest assured that all information entered into the ReferralGPS tool is kept completely confidential and securely stored.
Social Workers
Our students benefit from access to school social work services. Our social workers provide ongoing support in several ways. They collaborate regularly with grade-level teams to promote a positive school climate for all students, and help support staff in using instructional practices that support social-emotional learning across all subjects. Our social workers may also lead class lessons or work in small groups with students to provide more targeted support.
District Social Workers:
Meghan Frazier - Lincoln School - frazierm@hawthorn73.org
Rhonda Malina - Hawthorn School for Young Learners - malinar@hawthorn73.org
Shelby Behrens - Elementary North/Aspen - behrenss@hawthorn73.org
Anna Bach - Aspen -bacha@hawthorn73.org
Ashley Zarinana - Dual Language - zarinanaa@hawthorn73.org
Kathleen Falotico - Townline - faloticok@hawthorn73.org
Paul Mazzetta - Elementary North - mazzettap@hawthorn73.org
Connie Travis - Elementary North - travisc@hawthorn73.org
Nesrin Unlu - Elementary South - unlun@hawthorn73.org
Brittany Langton - Elementary South - langtonb@hawthorn73.org
Lauren Brownstein - Middle School South - brownsteinl@hawthorn73.org
Amunn Jaffery - Middle School South - jafferya@hawthorn73.org
Jaime Medbery - Middle School South - medberyj@hawthorn73.org
Brian Van - Middle School North - vanb@hawthorn73.org
Kelli Cordes - Middle School North - cordesk@hawthorn73.org
Scarlett Davalos - Middle School North - davaloss@hawthorn73.org
Connect with ME!
Megan Goldman
Social, Emotional, Behavioral Coordinator
847-990-4269
Follow me on X (formerly known as Twitter) @D73SOARS
Check out my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCj-L3MVWzHT7xxgWytCWmYA