Peterborough Elementary School

May 17, 2024

Dear Families,

I hope this newsletter finds you well.

Congratulations goes out to the Girls' on the Run Team! On Tuesday the team ran their practice 5k along Union Street to the cheers of staff and family members. Thanks goes out to the staff who supported them and to all the coaches, including PES' own Ms. Morris and Ms. Aldrich, for leading the team.

The Children and the Arts Festival is happening tomorrow. This is a great family event sponsored by the Children and the Arts. It is NOT a school event, however.

The theme is "Birds of a Feather". PES students have created pieces of art that they can carry in the parade if they are attending. Their artwork can be picked up at PES tomorrow morning starting at 11:30. If your children are attending this event, it is important for parents to know that you are responsible for your children, the school is not. The parade starts at 12:00 and ends at Putnam Park, but their are events scheduled all day (before and after the parade).

The festival attracts large numbers of visitors, so if your child is walking in the parade, you are responsible for walking with them and/or have eyes on them at all times. There is no parking at PES on this day, and this is not a “drop your children off” type of event. Some teachers and school staff may be attending, but they are not required to so thte school and school staff are not responsible for your children on this day.

Have a great weekend,

Larry Pimental

Updated Spring Calendar

May 18- Children and the Arts (not a Conval/school event)

May 24- No School- Professional Development Day

May 27- No School- Memorial Day

June 7- Field Day- 9:15-11:30

June 12- Reading with Ribby in Keene

June 13- 4th Grader Celebration (1:00).

June 14- Last day of school- Dismissal 12:15

No School on Friday, May 24, 2024

From Our Assistant Principal, Mrs. Lee- Unstructured Play

With summer around the corner, I would like to revisit the importance of unstructured play. Play-dates, time at the playground meeting new kids, or going to the beach creating sand structures have tremendous benefits for children.

Encourage regulation strategies

When kids play without adult structure, they learn how to regulate their emotions in a way that works for them. For example, during a recess soccer game recently, arguing ensued regarding cheating and game rules (which the kids chose without adult interference). I watched to see how the group would move through their issue. Interestingly, a couple of the players couldn’t lower their voice or move on until the issue was resolved; other students wanted to continue to play and talk about it later; one student didn’t engage at all but brought it up the next day, and one student left the game to go play on the swings. There were four different ways of regulating emotions and moving on. Had I intervened in their problem solving, every child would have applied the same resolution strategy—and that is perfectly fine some of the time. In this case, the kids were finding what works for them.

Increases social skills

Elementary aged children learn most of their social skills from adults. When kids participate in unstructured play, they practice the social skills adults taught them, and learn new ways of socializing from their friends. Unstructured play requires them to use skills they have been taught, apply them in unique social settings or possibly modify their skills to meet the situation. It is expected that they will not always get it right and feelings will get hurt, punishments may be delivered and good decisions celebrated. The more play time kids have with each other, the faster learning will occur.

Learning to Plan and Reflect

Lastly, and most interesting, the brain needs opportunities to exert environmental control, to encourage planning, and give kids the chance to reflect on their decisions. For children this is achieved through play. Most parents can recall a time (or many times) when they have said to

their child, “What were you thinking?” The truth is until kids experience the downside of thinking through their actions and words, they won’t be thinking about the consequences. Unstructured social experiences are what builds the pathways in the brain to give kids the tools to be reflective and plan for a better outcome next time. There is truth to the notion that you learn by doing and that the most beneficial learning happens though experiencing mistakes. When children have an opportunity to control their environment, they make mistakes that naturally causes them to reflect and modify their thinking for next time.

Field Day is Coming....June 7th

Mrs. Morris is looking to see if family members are interested in volunteering. If so, please fill out her survey: Field Day Volunteer

Reading With Ribby Update

Thanks to all the students who participated in the Reading With Ribby Challenge. Over 100 students completed the challenge and will be receiving a T-shirt and a family pass to a Keene Swampbats baseball game. The game is scheduled for Wednesday, June 12th at Aulmni Field in Keene. We ask parents to arrive by 5:15pm at the latest. Parking lots fill up fast, and the parade will start promptly at 5:50pm. We don't want anyone to miss the parade! Students will meet their schools behind the big green grandstands. Look for the PES sign and banner!