Cole Miners' Dig

It is hard to believe that we are approaching the month of October. Wow, that was fast! Students are doing well learning the routines and expectations in their classrooms and around the building. Thank you for reinforcing those expectations in conversations with your children at home.

On Monday, students will head to their Connections group for Morning Meeting for the first time this year. Each student is assigned to a group with about 15 other students in grades K-5 and a teacher. This group remains the same for the entire time at Cole School. These meetings encourage interactions and relationships between students in different grade levels and with the same adult. This year, we will be following the Morning Meeting routines (greeting, message, sharing, activity) while focusing on the Habits of Mind. The first habit that we will be discussing is PERSISTING.

Sounds like – “I think I can, hang in there, keep at it, you can do it!”

Looks like – Attending even with distractions. Trying again.

Feels like – Even though I’d like to quit, I have the strength to continue.

Some students give up when the answer is not immediately known. They crumble their paper, or say, “it’s too hard, I can’t do this!” Sometimes they write down any answer or hurry through their work, to “get it done”. Students with the habit of persisting have a method for analyzing the problem, they know how to begin. They consider the steps that must be performed and what data or information they need to accomplish the task. They are able to sustain a problem solving process over time. They are comfortable with new challenges.
(Information on Habits of Mind are taken from the book Habits of Mind by Costa and Kallick).

We have a few staffing updates to share. Ms. Anna Mullen will be in for school counselor,Mrs. Walsh, during her upcoming maternity leave. Ms. Mullen earned her master's degree in Social Work and Adjustment Counseling this past spring from Merrimack College and her bachelor's degree in Psychology from Assumption University. She completed her internship in the Quincy Schools. We are fortunate to have her join us until Mrs. Walsh returns later this spring. She is expected to begin her role here on Monday, October 20th. She will be accessible by phone and email at anna.mullen@norwellschools.org on that date.

Ms. Emma Carroll has been hired as the substitute for first grade teacher, Mrs. Sherburne, during her upcoming maternity leave. Ms. Carroll is a familiar face at Cole School as she completed her student teaching here last spring, worked at the Extended School Year program this past summer, and currently works as a special education aide. She earned her bachelor's degree this past spring from Stonehill College. We are thrilled to have her working in Mrs. Sherburne's classroom until her planned return in April. She will be accessible by phone and email at emma.carroll@norwellschools.org.

Norwell CARES Day took place today. We enjoyed having the NHS juniors here in our classrooms to help out and connect with students. We are so very appreciative of the NHS sophomores and parent volunteers that completed projects around Cole School and the town. It is days like these that remind us of the power of a community in bringing so many together to work towards common goals.

On October 2nd, we'll be celebrating National Custodian Appreciation Day to show gratitude for the hard work of our three custodians - Mr. Shedd, Mr. Ash, and Mr. Defaria. If your child would like to make a card for the custodians, they can do that and drop them off at the office before Thursday.

Congratulations to this week's Magnificent Meerkats! These Meerkats were recognized for their positive attitudes, consistently showing expected behaviors, helpfulness to others, and being leaders in the classroom. If your child was nominated, be sure to ask them the specific reason why they were nominated. Way to go, Meerkats!

September

September 29 - Connections Meeting - Persisting Habit of Mind

September 29 - Grade 5 Enrichment (Thank you, PTO!)

September 29 - Instrument Rental Night at Vinal School for Gr. 5 Band Students 6:30pm

Looking Ahead:

October 1 - Early Release Day (all students dismissed at 12:20pm)

October 2 - School Custodian Appreciation Day

October 3 - PTO Stay and Play (complete link at coleptonews.com)

October 6 - Fire Prevention and Safety Week

October 8 - PTO Meeting 7:00pm

October 13 - No School

October 15 - School Council Meeting 3:30pm

October 20 - Community Meeting 9:00am

October 23 - Early Release Day - Conferences (all students dismissed at 12:20pm)

October 27. - Occupational Therapist Appreciation Day

October 27 - Connections Meeting - Managing Impulsivity Habit of Mind

October 31 - Early Release Day (all students dismissed at 12:20pm)

This week, we did some important reminders in SEL time about expected behaviors in the bathrooms and at breakfast time. We focused on cleanliness, but also on being members of a community who leave common spaces clean as a way to show respect to each other. We continued with the Growth Mindset and Goal Setting unit from Second Step after that. Reminder that you can learn about our lessons and curricula on my website!

I wanted to take a minute to reiterate some things about head lice. In 2015, both the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the CDC advocate for the following practices to be discontinued:

-whole classroom screening,

-exclusion for nits or live lice,

-notification to others except for parents/guardians of students with head lice infestations

Due to the low risk of transmitting head lice at school and to maintain confidentiality, letters will not be sent to parents of classmates and whole classrooms will not be checked. Parents are encouraged to check their child periodically for head lice. If you are concerned your child may have head lice or need help identifying it, please contact a healthcare professional.

There are some best practices to keep in mind if your house is impacted by lice:

● Clean items that have been in contact with the head of a person with lice in the 48 hours before treatment. Machine wash and dry clothing, bed linens, and other items using hot water (130°F) and a high heat drying cycle. Clothing and items that are not washable can be dry-cleaned or sealed in a plastic bag and stored for two weeks.

● Disinfect combs and brushes used by a person with head lice by soaking them in hot water (at least 130°F) for 5 to 10 minutes. They can also be stored in the freezer for >24 hours.

● Do not lie on beds, couches, pillows, carpets, or stuffed animals that have recently been in contact with a person with head lice.

● Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the person with lice sat or laid. Head lice survive less than one or two days if they fall off the scalp and cannot feed.

● Many head lice products are not for use in children younger than 2. So read the label carefully before using a product to make sure it is safe to use on your child

● Education about lice is important when sports, dance, and sleepovers are a part of your family's activities.

Lice crawl — they do not jump, hop or fly — which means they typically spread through close, prolonged and head-to-head contact, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Lice can often spread from head-to head sports, dance, sleep overs- many of the things our Cole students enjoy. Remind your children not to share any hats, headbands, hair elastics, brushes,etc. You should be reaching out to any close playmates for any known or possible lice exposures. After finishing treatment with lice medication, check everyone in your family for lice after several weeks. If you find live lice, contact your health care professional or the school nurse for additional recommendations.

With spatial awareness, self control, listening and following directions as the objective, kindergarteners galloped, skipped, hopped, jumped, high kneed, butt kicked and ran around the gym. They also practiced tossing and catching using a beanbag underhand with a partner. Grades 1-5 started their Throwing and Catching Unit! Grades 1 & 2 were throwing and catching with partners using either a beanbag, foam baseball, fleece or wiffle ball. Grades 3-5 warmed up with a throwing, catching, and running game called Pickle/Rundown. Overhand throws for distance, underhand tosses when closer and lead passes were all done with partners and larger groups. All classes finished with a keep away game with defenders.

Tired of digging through old emails for links? Us too! That’s why we refreshed coleptonews.com — your one-stop hub for PTO news, sign-ups, events, and helpful resources. Check it out to make school life simpler!

Want updates delivered right to your inbox? Keep an eye out for our weekly emails from coleptonews@gmail.com. Not seeing them? Peek in your spam folder or drop us a note — we’ll happily add you to the list!

Room Parents:

A big THANK YOU to everyone who volunteered to be a room parent! Room parents help teachers communicate classroom needs such as class volunteers, You will be hearing from your assigned room parent(s) in the coming weeks so keep an eye out. We will be publishing the list of parents shortly.

Monster Mash:

Friday, 10/24! Get ready for a spooktacular night of music, dancing, crafts, and Halloween fun! We can’t pull off this new event without your help — sign up to volunteer and be part of the magic (link on coleptonews.com). Details on tickets and timing coming soon!

All sign up links can all be found on the PTO website.

Join us for the 1st Norwell SEPAC meeting of the year on Monday, 9/22 at 7:00 pm-8:00 pm in the Community Room at Norwell Middle School. Bring a friend and connect with other families who have students on 504s and IEPs!

Join us for the 2nd Annual Flannel Fest at The Tinker's Son! Get ready to show off your favorite flannel shirts while enjoying live music, delicious food, and great company. This 21+ event is the perfect way to kick off the fall season. Whether you're a flannel fanatic or just looking for a fun time, this fest is for you. Don't miss out on the opportunity to celebrate all things cozy and comfortable at Flannel Fest! Proceeds go to the four parent-led organizations at Norwell High School: Norwell Arts, Norwell Boosters, Norwell Education Foundation, and Norwell PTO. This is THE event of the season.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2nd-annual-flannel-fest-tickets-1592654345019