• PTO Meetings 2nd Tuesday of the month at 6:00
• 11/4--Early Release for Family Conferences
• 11/5--No School for Family Conferences
• 11/8 @ 6:30--Movie Night
• 11/11--No School for Veteran's Day
• 11/19--Early Release
• 11/27 to 11/29--Thanksgiving Break
• 12/12 – K-5 December Concert
• 2/7 @ 6:30--Movie Night
• 4/10 @ 6:30--School Musical
• 4/24--Spring Pictures
• 5/8 to 6/5--Walk and Ride
• 5/14--K to 2 Spring Concert
• 5/22--3 to 5 Spring Concert
• 6/13–Ice Cream Social

The PTO has partnered with Square 1 Art to run a fundraiser. Last month your

child created a picture of their favorite animal in art class. These have been

digitized and are now available for you to order printed on mementos. The artwork and order forms were sent home by most grades today.

They make great holiday gifts!

To order them, please find your child's artwork using the search at

https://shop.square1art.com/Shop/artwork/Search.

You can order mugs, pillows, ornaments, luggage tags, and

many other things. There is free shipping if you order by November 12th.

The PTO will receive a portion of all profits. If you have any questions please feel

free to email dbspto@gmail.com. Thanks!

Join us on Friday, November 8th for Movie Night! This fall's selection is Inside Out 2. It is an amazing movie.

This is a family movie night. All children must be accompanied by an adult. So everyone is able to enjoy the film, we ask that the gym is a quiet place during the show. Food and drinks are not allowed in the gym. Popcorn is provided in the cafeteria during intermission. Lastly, please bring blankets, chairs, pillows or whatever you need to feel cozy.

During the show, the PTO will host its monthly meeting. For those who want to attend, supervision will be provided.

We hope to see you on Friday.

Kindergarten and First grade having some cider!

November 1, 2024

Dear Parents, Guardians and our Staff:

The State of Vermont requires all schools and child care providers to test their drinking water for lead. Samples of water from every tap at the Dothan Brook School that is reasonably expected to be used for drinking or cooking were collected and sent to a certified drinking water lab for analysis.

Results for Dothan Brook School:

· One or more of the taps had a lead level AT OR ABOVE the 4 parts per billion (ppb) action level. The results are listed in the table at the end of this letter.

We take our responsibility to provide a safe and healthy environment for the children and staff seriously. Any tap that tested at or above 4 ppb was immediately taken out of service for drinking or cooking. We are working on fixes to permanently lower levels of lead in the water.

Lead exposure poses a special risk to children because they absorb lead into their systems more easily than adults do. Lead can slow down growth, impair development and learning, and can cause behavior problems. While the major source of lead poisoning in Vermont children is paint, lead in plumbing pipes and fixtures can add to a person’s overall exposure. Drinking water in schools and homes may contain lead from old pipes, plumbing fixtures (such as fountains and faucets), or the solder that joins pipe sections together.

More Information

· For questions about the water testing process, or about the law and its requirements, please call the Lead in School and Child Care Drinking Water Program at 802-863-7220 or 800-439-8550 (toll-free in Vermont).

· You can view school and child care results, remediation and any follow-up testing at LeadResults.vermont.gov. (NOTE: If your child’s preschool or after school program is located at a school, the results will be listed under the school’s name.)

· For more information visit: HealthVermont.gov/LeadTesting

· If you have questions or concerns about our facility and the actions we are taking, please contact Rick Dustin-Eichler.

To learn more about lead hazards and lead poisoning prevention, visit HealthVermont.gov/lead.

If you want to test your home drinking water for lead, find a list of certified drinking water labs at TinyURL.com/certified-lab.

Sincerely,

Rick Dustin-Eichler

dustineichlerg@hartfordschools.net

Thank you to everyone that volunteered and attended the festival. It was a huge success! Here are the class pumpkins!

Happy November! Each month, Dothan Brook School has a monthly focus, where all classes throughout the building are gaining knowledge on skills and information on important PBIS topics. November we are thinking about what it means to be thankful!

Our learning target is :

I can find something in my day to be thankful for.

We will show our learning by:

• Share people we are happy to have in our lives

• Tell friends we are grateful to be playing with them

• Practicing ways to show how we care about each other

• Creating a gratitude jar bulletin board

Being thankful and having gratitude is something that can be modeled and practiced! In Lodges and classrooms this month we will talk about how to show our gratitude and how to recognize the things and people you are thankful for.

At home you can practice these skills with books, activities or creating a routine about sharing one thing you are grateful for at dinner or before bed.

Books about Thankfulness for Ages 3-12

Whole-School Celebration:

Whole School Recess

Home Connection

Make a gratitude jar at home:

1. Get a jar

2. Get small pieces of paper

3. When you find something you are grateful for write it down and put it in the jar

4. At the end of the month read them

Thank you cards:

Work as a family to write thank you cards to people in your community.

Link to More Activities!

Unity Day 2024! This is the day that we come together to celebrate our community and commit to stopping bullying at DBS.

Bike riding and weather in Vermont. Two weeks ago we had frosty fingers and last week, summer-like weather. What a perfect couple of weeks to be on our bikes for PE, culminating with a bike ride with over 30 bikers down and around Wilder. It was wonderful to see how students that were on striders last year are now riding around with such confidence. Furthermore, during these two weeks we had several students start out on striders and end the week using pedals and breaks. I know what they might be getting for Christmas or Birthday. Thanks to Locomotion for enabling us to use these bikes for the past two weeks and to Mr. D for guiding us on our bike trip.

Cider pressing .

Thanks to a generous donation of apples, children in grades K/1 were able to navigate an obstacle course, grab apples and put them into the grinder to make them smaller so we could press the apples into cider. After pressing the cider, all students were able to celebrate all their hard work by toasting, drinking and sharing with faculty and staff what they had produced.

Orienteering

Again we had great weather this week and every class was able to get down to the outdoor classroom and participate in one of many scavenger hunts which is the beginning of our orienteering unit. Some students were searching for colored pencils, little red ducks or badges with letters and numbers. Whether they were using colors, letters or numbers, they all had to use these as clues to solve one of the many Autumn or halloween themed questions.

The Hartford School District is creating a vision of a graduate that is informed by the voices of our community to anchor the work we do as a district on behalf of our students. Please complete this survey to share your thoughts about your hopes and dreams for our town's graduates.

Week 8 - We need to talk about boys.

When we talk about gender inclusivity, people often think it’s about making space for transgender and other gender diverse folks. But the truth is, it’s essential for boys too. Let’s talk about why.

The facts are alarming: American boys and men are increasingly grappling with loneliness, isolation, and mental health challenges. A staggering 65% of young men say that "no one really knows me well." This emotional disconnection starts early, when boys are discouraged from showing vulnerability or empathy for others. This is costing lives—boys commit suicide at four times the rate of girls.

At the same time, rigid gender norms often fuels homophobia, transphobia, and violence against women. When boys are policed with phrases like "that’s so gay," they internalize harmful ideas that also drive bullying and sexual harassment. Studies show that boys who engage in homophobic behavior are more likely to sexually harass girls.

Check out this trailer for an excellent documentary, The Mask You Live In that follows boys and young men as they struggle to stay true to themselves while negotiating America’s narrow definition of masculinity.

In the past, each DBS class has donated a Gingerbread House to The Family Place's Gingerbread Festival. The Family Place supports many of our community's families and children. We are looking for a volunteer to organize the gingerbread house construction and creation. If you are interesting in organizing this undertaking, please contact Rick Dustin-Eichler.