Welcome to the New School Year Elm Street School Families and Friends!
As summer break is winding down things are really picking up over here at the Nest! We have been busy finalizing hiring, unpacking boxes, sorting and distributing materials, and getting everything ready for our opening days of school in just one more week.
In this edition of our weekly newsletter you will find information about:
- upcoming dates and celebrations
- welcome to our new Elm staff members
- arrival and dismissal procedures at Elm
- Welcome Tour for families in grades 1-5 that are new to Elm Street School
- monthly coffee and conversation information and topic survey
- Kindergarten "Sneak Peek" information and schedule
- Night Before School read aloud
- Elm on Instagram
Our new educators have been busy this week attending orientation sessions and getting up to speed on some technical aspects of their roles, as well as diving into learning more about what makes Walpole Public Schools and the Elm Street School such an amazing place to work and learn. The full Elm team officially returns back from their summer breaks on Monday when we will dive right into to some opening days of professional development and final back to school preparations.
These first few days of school are some of my absolute favorite in the arc of the school year. The anticipation for the opening of a new year and all it's potential for learning, growth, and connection can elicit feelings of excitement, nervousness, and joy. All of that energy comes bursting through the doors on those first days of school, lights up our hallways and spaces, and breathes life again into our dormant school building. As you are helping your child(ren) prepare for the new school year remind them of all the transitions they've navigated successfully, set academic and social goals together, and let them know that all their teachers here at Elm and you will be there, working as a team, to help them each step of the way.
I can't wait to see our Nest full of Elm Street Eagles next week and hope to see you all at the many opening of school events we have planned!
Jen
Welcome New Elm Staff!
Please join me in welcoming our newest members of the Elm Street School team! Our amazing educators are engaged in new staff orientation for three full days this week as they get acclimated to Walpole Public Schools and the Elm community before they join up with the rest of our team on August 26th. We are still in the hiring process with a few other positions and I hope to share an update about those positions in my next newsletter.
Amanda Pond: Grade 5 educator
Andrea Renzi: Grade 5 educator
Labebe Sarkis: English Language educator
Tori Dore: School Adjustment Counselor
Caroline O’Shaughnessy: Partnership MSN
Alexis Shostek: BCBA
Heather DeLude: Physical Education educator
Kailey Mangion: ESP
Terri Brooks: Kindergarten Aide
Tiffany Inserra: ESP
Arrival and Dismissal Procedures at Elm
Arrival
car drop off in the morning
cars start arriving in the loop at 8:15a
please pay attention and follow all staff directions in order to keep everyone safe
students need to exit the car on the right (passenger) side of the car and walk directly to the side walk
students should be able to unbuckle themselves from their seats and open and close the door themselves
when exiting the loop please wait for the staff signal and car in front of you to start moving and use safe driving practices and speeds
arrival ends at 8:25a- after this time adults must park and come into the building to sign in your child(ren) as tardy
- bus drop off in the morning
- students will exit the buses safely and walk into the building from the bus loop
- there are adults stationed in the hallway to make sure all students make it to their classrooms safely
- for bus riders: please remind your child(ren) of expected bus behaviors- staying seated the whole way, using talking level voices, listening and following the driver's directions, and maintaining a respectful and helpful attitude toward each other and the driver. Students who are unable to follow our bus expectations may lose their privilege to ride the bus
Dismissal
- car pick up in the afternoon
- any change in dismissal procedure must be shared in writing to the classroom teacher who will share it with the main office
- cars may begin queueing in the loop at 2:35p
- a staff member will come to each vehicle and take last names of students being picked up
- students will be called down (10 cars at a time) to the main office starting at 2:50p and walked outside
- students need to enter vehicles on the right (passenger) side and should be able to buckle themselves and open and close vehicle doors
when exiting the loop please wait for the staff signal and car in front of you to start moving and use safe driving practices and speeds
- bus pick up in the afternoon
- any change in dismissal procedure must be shared in writing to the classroom teacher who will share it with the main office
- we start calling buses as soon as they arrive usually around 2:55p, the last bus usually leaves Elm by 3:10p
- students will be called down by bus to the bus loop
- for any student who misses their bus we will first attempt to have the bus return to Elm and if we are unable we will start calling contacts to pick up the student
- for bus riders: please remind your child(ren) of expected bus behaviors- staying seated the whole way, using talking level voices, listening and following the driver's directions, and maintaining a respectful and helpful attitude toward each other and the driver. Students who are unable to follow our bus expectations may lose their privilege to ride the bus
Monthly Coffee and Conversations: Topic Survey
In response to family feedback centered on a desire to know more about curriculum and what's happening around the Nest, I will be hosting monthly Coffee and Conversations this upcoming school year. Each month I will start with a brief overview of what's been happening around Elm and then the bulk of the rest of the meeting will focus on a specific theme/topic and occasionally have guest speakers (such as Mrs. Torigian, our math specialist, Shannon Findley, WPS literacy curriculum director, etc) that you can engage directly with to get your questions answered. Below are the dates to put into your calendars now as well as a list of tentative topics based on family feedback. If there are specific topics you would like to have presented/discussed, please email me directly.
Elm Coffee and Conversation Dates
All meetings are on Fridays and will begin at 8:30a after drop off. The cafeteria will be open beginning at 8:15a for connections and coffee/tea/snacks. Please enter through the MAIN ENTRANCE to avoid bus congestion in the bus loop by the cafeteria and help keep our community safe.
September 6th
October 4th
November 8th
December 13th
January 10th
February 7th
March 7th
April 4th
May 9th
Possible Elm Coffee and Conversations Topics (not in order)
- Literacy curriculum and learning at Elm
- Math curriculum and learning at Elm
- Elm School Improvement Plan
- Special Education at Elm
- Social Emotional Learning (SEL) at Elm
- The role of technology in 21st century education and online safety
- Data: what do we use/measure at Elm and how does it inform instruction
- Homework and supporting student learning at home
Please fill out this short survey to share your interest and recommendations for Coffee and Conversation topics.
Kindergarten Sneak Peek Information
The first day of school for our students in grades 1-5 is Wednesday August 28. On Thursday August 29th we invite our kindergarteners and their families to come in for a sneak peek to meet our kindergarten educators and see their kindergarten classroom before officially starting on Tuesday September 3rd. The schedule for this sneak peek is below:
Thursday August 29th 9:00 - 9:30a Kindergarteners with Last Names beginning with A - L
Thursday August 29th 9:45 - 10:15a Kindergarteners with Last Names beginning with M - Z
This is also the same day at the Feeney preschool visit day. Please leave plenty of time to secure parking and enter in at the Elm main entrance off the drop off loop at the end of the driveway.
Night Before School Read Aloud
Join me at 7:30p on Zoom on the night before school (Tuesday August 27th) to listen to a read aloud, see old and new friends, and have a shared experience as we all get ready for our first day of the new school year together. Come in your pajamas, with your family, while eating dinner or brushing your teeth, whatever makes you most comfortable. Hope to see you all there!
(a link to the online meeting will be emailed to all Elm families on Monday August 26th)
Nest Connections
Email: jbuller@walpole.k12.ma.us
Website: https://www.walpole.k12.ma.us/o/ess
Location: 415 Elm Street, Walpole, MA, USA
Phone: 508.660.7374