Boyden Weekly Update

Dear Boyden Famiies

This week, we surpassed $30,000 in our Fun Run fundraiser—amazing! As one of our incentives, students enjoyed a Mad Science assembly for all grades (see pictures below). Next week, weather permitting, we’ll have an inflatable recess and our Fun Run on Friday.

Thank you once again to all our Boyden families for your incredible support and teamwork in raising these funds for our students!

Please see all the information below.

Have a nice weekend!

Brendan

Walpole Community Food Pantry

The Walpole Food Pantry continues to support local families in need throughout the year. Donations of non-perishable food items, household essentials, and grocery store gift cards are always appreciated. You can help by dropping off contributions at the pantry during open hours or at one of the collection boxes located around town. Every donation—big or small—makes a meaningful difference for our neighbors in need.

If you are in need of support please click the link below and/or reach out to us here at Boyden to provide additional resources.

CLICK HERE

Conferences (The link will close Sunday)

This year parent-teacher conferences will be held on

Wednesday, November 12th (5:00 - 7:00 PM)
Friday, November 14th (12:45 - 2:45 PM)
Tuesday, November 18th (5:00 - 7:00 PM)

Please note that the Wednesday, November 12th conference date was changed due to a home Patriots game on November 13th. We understand this now overlaps with the WMS conferences; however, two additional conference days are available for families. If this presents a conflict, please let us know, and we will do our best to accommodate you.

If you are a parent with more than one child at Boyden, please allow for at least 10 minutes between your conferences. We have found that back-to-back conferences do not allow for travel from classroom to classroom.

If you have a Grade 4 or Grade 5 student please sign up with their CLASSROOM TEACHER ONLY.

Please locate the teachers name, click on the link on the right and sign up for the day/time you would like. All our classroom teachers and specialists are listed.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP

Media/STEM Update

We've been very busy with exciting projects that combine reading, research, and technology!

Grade 5: Animal Adaptations

Fifth graders are diving into an animal project where they are learning about prosthetics and animal adaptations.
This week, they're playing "Create a Species" and will soon be researching, designing, and building their final projects.

Grade 4: Insect Engineers

No fear here! Our fourth graders are taking on an engineering challenge to design and build containers for spiders..
They are focusing on important skills like teamwork and understanding the specific rules (criteria and constraints) of their design project.

Grade 3: Bat Research & Coding

Third graders have started a fun mini-research project all about bats!
They learned how to take effective notes and use our online databases to find information.
Now, they're using Scratch Jr. to code and share the bat facts they learned.

Grade 2: Typing Superstars

Second graders took on a big challenge: learning to type!
They were introduced to Typing Club and showed incredible perseverance as they worked hard to keep their hands on the home keys.

Kindergarten & Grade 1: Media Center Masters

Our youngest students are doing a wonderful job learning the important routines of the Media Center, including self-checkout and our expectations for group work and rug time.
We've shared so many wonderful read-alouds this fall, including Millie Fleur's Poison Garden, Fly Guy, Here are the Seeds, Mama Squirrel, and Gato Guapo.

Our students are reading up a storm! Since the start of school, students have checked out a whopping 1,827 books!

AI Steering Committee

Over the past few years, there has been a surge in national conversation about new AI technologies in our society. Like many new tech tools, AI has the potential to dramatically change how we work, learn, and play. This year, WPS is beginning a process of intentional, thoughtful study of AI’s opportunities and challenges, with an eye toward adopting the most beneficial AI practices while avoiding pitfalls.

We are seeking interested parents/guardians to join our new WPS AI Steering Team. The AI Steering Team will be made up of a representative sampling of teachers, administrators, parents, students, office staff, and other stakeholders. Members of the team need not be “AI experts” and may be anywhere on the spectrum between “excited” and “skeptical,” as long as they can approach the work with an open mind. This team will meet approximately once a month after school via Google Meet.

Parents/guardians who are interested in joining the WPS AI Steering Team can fill out this form to apply. Please note that there are a limited number of seats available on this team and selections will be made to ensure a wide range of perspectives. Questions can be directed to Tom Reeve at TReeve@walpole.k12.ma.us.

Apply to join the WPS AI Steering Team!