Falcon Family Flyer

Greetings, Forestdale families!

When I was a middle school classroom teacher, I used to hear colleagues tell students to “leave their baggage at the door,” or something of the sort. I always thought it was such an unrealistic expectation to have of students. They might have a lot going on outside of school that’s weighing heavily on their mind. They might have a fear of public speaking that keeps them anxious about getting called on in class. They might consider themselves a strong writer, but not yet a strong scientist or mathematician. They might still be thinking about the soccer game from the night before, and so on.

Who they are is always changing and growing, sometimes depending on the day. One of the many things that makes this place special is that our faculty gets to know our students, just as they are, and helps them develop to where they want to be. As I have made my way around the building over the past few weeks, both in classrooms and in hallways, I see the personal narrative writing that has been taking place. Students, introducing themselves to their teachers and their peers, and setting goals for their future: “I am funny, kind, helpful, grateful for my family, a good friend." "I hope to learn multiplication, to score a goal in soccer, to read more." "I love ballet, comic books, reading, basketball."

One thing that is evident in their writing, and their enthusiasm, is that students are bringing their authentic selves into school each and every day - and their classrooms would have it no other way.

Mr. Weldai

We have an amazing team of people supporting our students each and every day at the Forestdale School. Each newsletter, we'll try to showcase one or two of our amazing staff members here!

Ms. Sarah Hurtado is joining the team at Forestdale this year as our new nurse! Some of you may recognize Nurse Hurtado as she has been in the building in previous years, and is already a part of our Forestdale family. She is excited to take on her new role and is already bringing her joyful spirit to our health office. Along with our new Certified Medical Assistant Ms. Luzjaira Pool-Reyes, we look forward to seeing all that this new team will do this year! Welcome Sarah and Luzjaira!

The Malden Public Schools Title 1 department held their introductory breakfast and workshop for families on Tuesday, September 17th. Our Title 1 director Martha Jancaitis, and our family coordinators Patti Amirault and Lisa Hammersley outlined what Title 1 is, how it is utilized in the Malden Public Schools, and where the resources allocated to our district and school go. The family engagement event dates for the year are outlined in the link below!

The first PTO meeting of the year will be Wednesday, October 9th at 7pm! Come join this great group and hear about the upcoming events, ways to get involved, and more. The meeting will be held virtually on google meet, and the link can be found on the Forestdale PTO Facebook page.

Today, September 30th, is the last day for the PTO spirit wear sale! From cozy hoodies to cool tees, there's something for everyone! Make sure to get your order in today! Link is here: https://www.forestdalepto.com/form/m/294890

Join the PTO for our first Family Friday event of the year! This Friday, October 4th, from 5:30 - 7:00pm in the cafeteria, come meet other families, have some pizza, and enjoy some fall crafts! Link to RSVP is here: https://www.forestdalepto.com/form/m/308266

The City of Malden is looking to update their Open Space and Recreation Plan, and they need your help! The plan will establish a community vision, goals and objectives for the future of Malden’s parks and open space. Take the survey attached (you could win a prize!), and for more information please visit cityofmalden.org/osrp

Mr. Greg Waite, our band teacher extraordinaire, is seeking any donations of musical instruments that families might have at home and are willing to part with! Do you have an old saxaphone or clarinet in the attic? Do you (like Mr. Weldai, does!) have an old trumpet in the back of your car that could use a new life? Our school will happily accept any donations of musical instruments that you have! If you have any questions

Picture day is coming up on Wednesday, October 7th (retake day of November 13th). Information should have made its way home in a packet from Lifetouch, but for more information please feel free to reach out!

Superintendent Tim Sippel will be coming to Forestdale on Wednesday, October 16th at 6:00pm for his first event at our school with families - Listening to Learn: A Town Hall Meeting. We are looking forward to welcoming him into our building to engage with our families and community as he learns more about Malden, and solicits more feedback about your hopes and dreams for the Malden Public Schools. Stay tuned for more information!

The Malden Public Schools is able to offer a before school program this year (7am drop off), as soon as we have enough students registered to run the program. The link for the paid Before School Program for grades K-6 is now posted on the homepage of the district website as well as the Malden Out-of-School Time (MOST) page. Please register if you want to take advantage of this program. Forestdale still does not have enough students, we need 10 total, but we're getting closer! The cost to families is $50 per child, per week. If you have questions about the Before School program, please call the Malden Out-of-School Time office at 781-870-7684 or reach out via email at mpsafterschool@maldenps.org.

There are a few options available to Malden Public Schools families for after school care.

1) The Malden Out-of-School Time (MOST) program runs at the Forestdale School every day. There is currently a waitlist running, but more information can be found here: https://maldenps.org/mpsbeforeafterschoolprograms/

2) The MAP Family Learning Center is an after school program that runs at a site directly across from the Beebe School every day. They do have transportation available to their site from Forestdale! They offer care, but also have daily enrichment activities for the kids in music, art, and programming, as well as STEM. All the activities are led by specialists in those respective fields. For more information and availability, please reach out to info@maldenlearning.com or register at https://online.mapflc.com/product/map-afterschool-classes-spring-and-fall/.

3) The Malden YWCA offers an after school program at their Washington Street location each day until 6pm. For more information, please visit https://www.ywcamalden.org

4) The Malden YMCA offers an after school program at their Mountain Ave location, with transportation available from the Forestdale School. To inquire about the program or availability, please visit https://mv-ymca.org

The main office has received a number of questions last year about excused vs. unexcused absences. If you are keeping your student home sick, have an appointment, etc. and would like to have the absence excused, please make sure to write a physical absent note and send it in, or write an email to your student's teacher. The phone call to the office line does not excuse your student's absence, it does however stop the automated absent phone call that comes home based on Aspen/X2. Any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out!

As we start the new year, please be aware that pick-up time in the afternoon outside in the circle was one of our biggest challenges last year and this year we are still looking for some ways to improve it for our grades 2, 3, and 4 students and families. Forestdale Park will continue to block the driveway so families can not cut through, and we would again request that people do not double park in front of parked cars, block handicap spaces, and/or stop in middle of the road to drop off or pick up children for the safety of all our kids. We are seeking parent volunteers to help with traffic during pick-up time, so if you are interested, please let us know!

Please make sure to check backpacks regularly for important notices from the nurse, and from your teachers. While most things are done electronically, a regular backpack check is always a good idea.

**Speaking of backpacks, if anyone still needs one for their student we have extras to give away in the main office. Please don't hesitate to reach out and let us know!**

Our lost and found is already going strong! For any students looking, the lost and found is in the cafeteria directly to the right when you walk in. If you're missing something, please encourage your student to come check it out. For a list of what's there so far, please check out this google doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rK0N_O9rfX86rsG1t2fpV2dG4mFw7PK9RKRTezANSt0/edit?usp=sharing

The October school lunch menu is pictured below, and the link to the monthly menu can be found here: https://malden.schooldish.com/SchoolMenus/Forestdale?fbclid=IwAR2ZJ0dwZiruvvYiJhtVAk1yngQak5OmO8hyTVKfUV_rzL5gzDOlwP540_k

Our Kindergarten students met their 8th grade buddies for the first time last Friday! They had a great time reading to each other, getting to know each other, and doing some fall craft activities. Throughout the course of the year our buddies will do a range of activities together, from literacy to STEM, while they have fun building towers, doing experiments and making memories.

Thank you all for coming to open house this month! We had a great turnout, and many parents and caregivers came in and out of the building to meet our fantastic Falcon staff, and our Superintendent Dr. Sippel!

Students in Ms. Valerie Grondin, Ms. Jill O'Brien and Ms. Renee Basteri's 1st grade class have been learning about the systems of the human body in their literacy block this month. As an extension activity on the skeletal system, they created "x-rays" of their hands using crayons and vegetable oil. The kids had a lot of fun extending their learning!

There are a lot of wonderful things happening in our classrooms each and every day - and many of those things get displayed around the building for students and staff to see! I'll try to share some of my favorite snapshots so you can get a chance to see them, too!

Among the many goal setting, personal narrative, and introductory writing assignments that are displayed around the building, I couldn't help but smile when I saw the crocs up in the Grade 6 hallway! As you walk around the halls and see the many different designs, it's hard not to stop and read them all!

If there's anything that we can do, please don't hesitate to reach out to any member of our main office team. Our phone number is (781) 397-7326, and each of our email addresses are listed below.

• Mr. Adam Weldai, Principal: aweldai@maldenps.org
• Mrs. Karie Carpenito, Assistant Principal: kcarpenito@maldenps.org
• Mr. Kenji Foster, Assistant Principal: kfoster@maldenps.org
• Mrs. Megan LoPilato, Administrative Assistant: mlopilato@maldenps.org