Cunningham Connection

Dear Cunningham Families,

As we head into the weekend, I wanted to say goodbye for now. Beginning Monday, I will be on leave for at least six weeks as my wife has surgery and I spend time supporting my family.

I will miss seeing your children each day and being part of the learning, laughter, and the many moments that make Cunningham such a special place. Just from today, preschool students sang songs in front of dozens of unique pumpkins . We also had our first Pawsitivity Awards today where we celebrated students being recognized for showing Self Awareness in September and October. We are looking forward to more exciting events in the future!

Andy Young will be leading Cunningham while I am away. Please reach out to him at ayoung@miltonps.org if you need anything.

I look forward to seeing everyone when I return. Have a great weekend!

Best.

Jon Redden

• Cunningham Calendar
• Veterans Day Ceremony - November 9th
• Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day - November 13
• Classroom Spotlight - Kindergarten Literacy Skills
• Classroom Spotlight - 4th Grade Monster Math Lab
• Unity Project - Volunteer in your Child's Class

• Second Step - Bullying Prevention Unit

• Playing Your Way to Literacy - Preschool & Kindergarten

• Fruit Center Shopping Days
• PowerSchool Forms
• Attendance Matters

• MHS Theatre - The Addams Family
• Superintendent Search Update
• MHS French Club Event
• Milton Fire Department Open House
• November Flu Clinic

Cunningham Forms and Important Links

• Tuesday, November 3rd - Professional Development Day (NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS)
• Monday, November 9th @ 9:00 - Veterans Day Assembly
• Wednesday, November 11th - Veterans Day (No School)
• Friday, November 13th - Walk to School Day (Begin on Fullers Lane at 7:45)
• Tuesday, November 17th - Picture Retake Day
• Wednesday, November 18th - Early Dismissal For Term 1 Conferences

We are looking forward to hosting our Veterans Day Ceremony on Monday, November 9th @ 9:00 in the new 4th floor library/classroom space and we hope that you will be able to join us! This annual event is one of the ways our Cunningham community celebrates the sacrifices and contributions our veterans have made for our country. The event will start at 9:00 with light refreshments and an indoor ceremony for veterans, family members, and students of the veterans in the library. We have two special guests speaking that morning along with a few 5th grade students. This ceremony will be livestreamed into classrooms for all students to see. We will then go outside for a flag raising ceremony with all classrooms coming out and for some songs led by our 5th graders. We encourage all students to wear red, white and/or blue.

If you are interested in attending, we ask you to please complete this form by Wednesday, November 4th. Any pictures of your veterans can also be sent to Mr. Young (ayoung@miltonps.org) to be printed and displayed throughout our hallways. We look forward to another very special morning on the 9th!

On Friday, November 13th, Cunningham will participate in the annual Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day.

The Story Behind the Movement: On November 14, 1960, 6-year-old Ruby Bridges took her historic steps into William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, becoming the first Black student to integrate the all-white school. Escorted by federal marshals past angry crowds, Ruby showed unimaginable courage on her very first day of first grade.

Nearly 60 years later, a group of elementary AAA School Safety Patrollers in South San Francisco learned about her story and asked a simple question: Why isn't there a day to commemorate her historic steps? They took action, presenting their idea to the State Legislature and launching a national, student-led movement to honor Ruby's legacy and ignite change.

Key Themes we will share with our students

• Courage Has No Age: Ruby showed immense bravery at six years old—proving that children can carry big movements and shape history.

• The Power of Education: Despite every barrier placed in her way, Ruby's commitment (and her family's belief) in learning was unwavering.

• Kindness & Resilience: Ruby famously stopped in front of shouting protesters every day not to yell back, but to quietly say a prayer for them on her way inside.

• Student Leadership: The Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day itself was created by elementary students, showing today's kids that their voices and actions matter.

Wear Purple: Please encourage your students to wear purple on Friday, November 13th, to show our unity and support for this movement!

Meet up: Families can walk on their own and meet down by the circle on Fullers Lane at 7:45 to walk to Cunningham together that morning.

Mrs. Grout and Mrs. O'Flaherty’s kindergarteners are hard at work strengthening their early reading and writing skills! Using individual whiteboards and word work mats, students practice encoding and decoding two and three letter words (VC and CVC words) as well as irregular "heart words." They also use magnetic word work mats to build phonemic awareness by manipulating beginning, middle, and ending sounds to create brand-new words, and then immediately put those decoding skills into practice by reading their newly built words aloud! It is exciting to see their confidence grow as they bring these hands-on literacy tools to life.

4th grade students in Ms. England's class put their multiplication skills to the test! Students solved problems involving 2, 3, and 4-digit numbers multiplied by 1-digit numbers to earn monster parts. Every correct answer earned a new feature, and there was no limit to how many eyes, horns, arms, or fangs they could collect! Students loved getting creative as they built their own unique and silly monsters.

They practiced using different multiplication strategies (area models or partial products) to solve increasingly challenging problems. We finished with a gallery walk where students showed off their creations and shared strategies they used to solve the problems. The Monster Math Lab was such a fun way to strengthen our math skills!

Volunteers Needed for the UNITY Project - Join Us in the Classroom at Cunningham!

We’re excited to launch this years' UNITY Project in classrooms this fall - and we need your help to make it a success. The UNITY Project is a collaboration across Milton's PTOs, bringing together and updating the former Reading About Diversity and Meet the Artist programs. It blends both curricula, adds new books and artists, and will run throughout the school year. We’re looking for parent/caregiver volunteers!

Lessons are parent-led and designed to be easy to follow - no teaching experience necessary! You can volunteer solo or team up with one or two other parents. All materials will be provided at school. To preview what the lessons look like, check out the UNITY Project website here.

Thank you in advance for your support - it truly makes a difference at Cunningham!

As you know, we are using the Second Step program in your child’s classroom. The Second Step program teaches children important skills for getting along with others and doing well in school. It also helps our school be a safe, respectful place where everyone can learn.

To further help our school be a safe and respectful place, we will be using the Second Step Bullying Prevention Unit. In the lessons, your child will learn specific skills to help stop bullying.

Students will learn how to:

• Recognize when bullying is happening

• Report bullying to a caring adult

• Refuse to let bullying happen to themselves or others

• Be a bystander who stands up and is part of the solution to bullying

In addition, your child will bring home simple, fun activities called Home Links that will help you understand what your child is learning about bullying at school. They also give your child another chance to practice skills for handling bullying.

And we need your help, too! Get involved in making our school a safe and respectful place by letting us know if you hear about bullying at our school. Make sure your child knows to tell you or someone at school if he or she is being bullied. And give your child the clear message that it is never okay to bully others. Please reach out to your child's teacher if you have any questions about the Bullying Prevention Unit or the Second Step program.

Thank you for helping us make our school a safe, respectful place where everyone can learn!

P.S. Make sure to join SecondStep.org for family resources and to follow along on our Bullying Prevention Unit! Create a log in at the welcome page, and then use the grade level specific activation key:

• Kindergarten: BPUK FAMI LY00
• First Grade: BPUK FAMI LY01
• Second Grade: BPUK FAMI LY02
• Third Grade: BPUK FAMI LY03
• Fourth Grade: BPUK FAMI LY04
• Fifth Grade: BPUK FAMI LY05

Get ready for the 17th Annual Fruit Center Marketplace Fundraising Program for our schools, happening next month.

Over the past sixteen years, the Fruit Center has proudly donated, though this program, over $210,000 to schools in Milton and Hingham. The program is open to all K–12 schools in these towns, including both public and private schools.

Here’s how it works:

• Dates: The program runs from Monday, November 9 through Sunday, November 15, 2026.

• Vouchers: Each school has its own shopping vouchers, available here. Present the shopping voucher for your school when you shop during the fundraising week. You can use your vouchers for unlimited shopping trips during the week.

• Give Back: After the week ends, we’ll calculate 20% of the total purchases made using vouchers from each school and donate that amount back to the school. Some restrictions apply — see all details are on our website.

• Raffle: Parents who shop with a vouch can participate in our raffle to win a $100 Fruit Center gift card! Just fill out your name, email, and phone number on your shopping voucher to enter. One winner will be selected from each store.

Thank you to the Fruit Center for supporting our schools!

Each day that students are in school counts. While we understand that there are extenuating circumstances and illnesses that occasionally prevent children from attending school, it is extremely important that we build a partnership with our families that encourages regular and consistent school attendance. Please take a moment to review this important excerpt from the Student Handbook regarding student absences and excusals.

Please note: absences are excused only for the following reasons-

1. Illness or quarantine;

2. Bereavement or serious illness in family;

3. Weather so inclement as to endanger the health of the child; or

4. For observance of major religious holidays.

Absences for travel, sports commitments, and appointments that could otherwise be scheduled outside of the school day are not excused absences. The state tracks chronic absenteeism (missing 10% or more of the school year) and this year, families can expect to receive regular communication and requests for meetings with families if children demonstrate a pattern of absenteeism. We are here to partner with families in any way possible to ensure students regularly attend school.

Wednesday Addams has fallen in love with a perfectly normal boy, and for her delightfully creepy family, that's a nightmare! When the two families come together for one unforgettable dinner, secrets spill, chaos erupts, and the Addams family discovers that being normal might just be the strangest thing of all!

Catch The Addams Family at MHS on November 20, 21, 22. Tickets available now at this link.

At the School Committee meeting on Wednesday, October 28 (linked here, Superintendent search discussion begins at 1:55 into the meeting), HYA presented the Leadership Profile Report synthesizing the input gathered through the community engagement process that included focus groups, interviews, community forums and a survey. We thank the many members of the district and community who took time to engage in the process thus far. The School Committee approved the Superintendent Desired Characteristics based on the data and analysis presented in the Leadership Profile Report. These characteristics will support ongoing recruitment of candidates and inform HYA's screening of the applicant pool to identify the panel of semi-finalists. The following community members will participate in the Selection Committee that will interview semi-finalists in December, using the Desired Characteristics as criteria.

• Winston Daley, Select Board*
• Brendan Bonn, MEA President
• Karen Cahill, MHS Principal
• Danielle Wetmore, Director of Student Services
• Lateefah Franck, MARC/CDM*
• Kate Murphy, SEPAC*
• Marieke Goldman-Silva, Tucker PTO*
• Kelley Balestracci, Pierce PTO*
• MFE Current or Incoming President*
• Stevie Caldwell, School Committee*
• Lizzy Carroll, School Committee*
• Nathan Hutto, School Committee*

*The community members on this committee are also current and previous MPS parents at all six schools as well as out-of-district placement. Finalists will then be interviewed by the full School Committee.

All information on the Superintendent Search, including all communication from the School Committee will be posted on the Superintendent Search landing page.

Jon Redden, Principal, jredden@miltonps.org

Andy Young – Assistant Principal, ayoung@miltonps.org

• Superintendent John Phelan, jphelan@miltonps.org
• Asst. Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Karla Koza, kkoza@miltonps.org

• Director of Business and Finance James Malary - 617-696-5041, jmalary@miltonps.org

• Director of Student Services, Danielle Wetmore – 617-696-5040 ext 5572, dwetmore@miltonps.org
• Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB), jamele adams - 617- 696-5040 ext 5246

• Director of Human Resources Christine Lyons - 617 - 696 - 5040, clyons@miltonps.org

• Transportation – 617-696-5040 ext 5510, bus@miltonps.org
• Milton Community Schools Director, Martha Sandoval – 617-696-5040 ext 5544, mcs@miltonps.org
• Director of Food Services, Natalia Perez, 617-696-4470 ext 5514, nperez@miltonps.org
• Athletic Director, Mike Bierwirth – 617-696-4470 ext 5515, mbierwirth@miltonps.org
• Student Registrar, Sarina Burke – 617 696-5040 ext 5516, registration@miltonps.org

To help make calling out, picking up, and walking home as smooth as possible, we have created online forms available on our website. All forms are found on the top right hand side of the website under Cunningham Forms. Please bookmark these forms, as they are the most efficient way to communicate with our staff. When you use a form, you will always receive a response, so you will know your message has been received.

• Absent /Tardy Form
• Permission to Walk Home Form
• Dismissing Early/Change in Dismissal Form