Doyon News

Thank you so much for your patience and understanding as we navigated heating uses at the Paul F. Doyon Memorial School this week. We understand the stress school closures can place on families. The decisions this week were not taken lightly, but ultimately, they were necessary to keep students and staff safe and warm. We are looking forward to welcoming everyone back on Monday and have plans in place to assure that environments are conducive to learning!

Global School Play Day - This Wednesday is Global School Play Day! We are excited to embrace this annual event and invite classes to offer learners some extra time to PLAY. What will they learn as they play, you might wonder? Play allows children to organically apply their CARES skills, and is among the most important work growing minds do! Please see the information below to learn more about Global School Play Day.

Book Fair - Due to the school closure this week, we have rescheduled the book fair to the week of February 9th.

Warmly,
Mr. Whitehouse-Mullen & Mrs. Benincasa

Our next Student Leadership Team Meeting (SLT) is Wednesday, February 11. Please send your child with an appropriate dismissal note or use "School Dismissal Manager". Students without proper arrangements will not be able to stay for the meeting or call home. Pick up will be promptly at 4:00 and be similar to the regular end-of-day dismissal. If you are picking up your child, please have their last name on a card, visible on your car's dashboard, and drive up to the front of the school. We will have someone outside reading off names so children are safely dismissed.

We are excited to share a new program structure we will be piloting in DEEP! This fall, due to the number of slots available, we were not able to offer all interested students a spot in a DEEP class. With collaboration and support from a Doyon parent, we are excited to try something new.

This winter, we will be piloting a before-school DEEP class that will begin at 8:00 a.m. Our hope is that this new structure will allow us to expand access to DEEP programming for more students and families.

If this before-school DEEP option works well for families, we may consider offering it again in the spring.

Families of students who were unable to enroll in a fall DEEP class will be guaranteed a spot in this before-school DEEP pilot. If additional space is available, we will then open enrollment to other K–2 students. Registration closes on Sunday, January 25th at 9:00 p.m.

We are excited to explore this new opportunity and appreciate your continued support of our DEEP program!

Winter DEEP Information

Student Sign Up

Doyon families, we encourage you to consider attending the internet safety webinar that our superintendent, Dr. Brian Blake, is hosting on February 3rd. This educational evening is for all families and caregivers, and the information is sure to be relevant to those raising children of any age.

On Tuesday, February 3, 2026 at 6:30 PM, Dr. Blake will be hosting a viewing of this webinar in the Media Center at the Middle/High School. He will have handouts for everyone in attendance.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts will be hosting a Webex Webinar Keeping Kids Safe and Secure Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents. The webinar will take place on the evening of Tuesday, February 3, 2026 at 6:30 PM in a partnership between the United States Attorney’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations Digital Forensics/Child Exploitation/Cyber Crime Unit.

The webinar will bring awareness to the dangers children face online today and will educate parents/caregivers how to keep children safe online.

Please send Dr. Blake an email if you plan to attend so he will have enough handouts. bblake@ipsk12.net

During January, we are focusing on self-control. At Doyon, we define self-control as the ability to manage your thoughts, words, emotions, and actions.

In anticipation of Global School Play Day on Wednesday, here are some ways children use self-control during play:

• Taking turns and waiting patiently instead of grabbing or cutting in

• Following the rules of the game, even when they really want to win

• Using kind words when they are frustrated or disagree with a friend

• Keeping hands and feet to themselves, even when excited or upset

• Staying calm when the game doesn’t go their way

• Accepting “no” or a change in plans without arguing

• Problem-solving with words instead of yelling, pushing, or quitting

• Including others and making space for everyone to join the game

• Stopping unsafe behavior when reminded by a peer or adult

• Choosing fair play instead of cheating

• Handling big emotions like disappointment or excitement in a safe way

• Listening to others’ ideas and compromising during group play

• Walking away from a game when emotions start to feel too big

• Respecting equipment and space, even during energetic play

• Trying again after losing instead of giving up or blaming others

The library will be open to students on Friday mornings from 8:00-8:40! Students can come to the library before school to read, draw, play with Legos, code, or work on a STEAM project. If your child would like to attend, please sign up below. Space is limited to 12 students per week.

Reach out to Teresa Hohenstein at thohenstein@ipsk12.net with any questions.

Friday Morning Library Sign-Up

Curious about school safety procedures? Take a peek at the documents displayed below. These documents are shared with students at the start of the school year by Detective Joe Perna, our School Resource Officer. The documents may serve as a guide to support families in discussing school safety. As always, please be in touch with questions around school safety at the Paul F. Doyon Memorial School.

FRIES is excited to announce that together with the Winthrop Fries, we’re putting together a parent book club in the new year. The book we’re exploring is The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. There will be two groups with the hopes of accommodating different schedules. More details in the links below or feel free to comment your questions here!

https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/10C0E4EAFA92EA7F5C34-60967215-parentcaregiver

https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/10C0E4EAFA92EA7F5C34-60976580-fries

To purchase the book:

https://libro.fm/audiobooks/9780593829097?bookstore=tidalpagesipswich

https://checkout.square.site/merchant/MLTNGWCES0C7C/checkout/DUPTJC6QIUYME6C3CAHXQMMO

Mary Sforza RN, MSN, NCSN

Doyon School Nurse

February 2026