OPR Weekly Update
October 27, 2023
Dear OPR Families,
Parent Teacher Conferences are underway and will continue next week. Thank you for your partnership to enable every student to experience success. I hope you will be able to join us for Tuesday's Halloween Parade which will take place in front of the school, weather permitting.
Please see below for more school and community information.
Watch today's OPR Video News: OPR Video News Link
Have a great weekend!
David N. Barner, Principal
Email: dbarner@walpole.k12.ma.us
Instagram: OLDPOSTROADSCHOOL_WALPOLE
Twitter: @oprschool
Dates to Remember
OCTOBER
31 OPR Annual Halloween Parade! 8:45 AM Families are welcome to watch the parade out front, weather permitting.
NOVEMBER
2 Grade 4 Field Trip to Patriots Hall of Fame for Raytheon Tech/STEM Program
2 Parent-Teacher Conferences, 6:00-8:00 PM by Appointment
3 Student Picture Retake Day
8 PAC Meeting, STEM Lab/Media Center at 7:00 PM. All are welcome!
10 No School - Veteran's Day Observed
22 Early Release at 11:55 AM. Dismissal begins at 11:49
23 No School - Happy Thanksgiving!
24 No School
28 School Council Meeting in the STEM Lab at 3:05
OPR SCHOOL HOURS
Arrival: 8:15-8:25 AM
Tardy Bell is at 8:25 AM. (Students must be signed in at the office by an adult if tardy.)
Early Release Dismissal: 11:55 (Dismissal begins at 11:49)
Dismissal: 2:55 PM (Dismissal begins at 2:49)
If your child is going to be absent or tardy, please call the OPR office before school (508-660-7219) and press 1 for the absence line. The automated attendance verification system is in use. Those students marked absent and who have not called in will receive an automated phone call.
STEM with Mrs. Morris
Coding has begun in STEM and will continue for the next few months. For those new to the STEM world, coding is using a set of instructions to communicate with computers, or in our case these last few weeks…ROBOTS! There are many different coding languages and many different robots students use at school. We have continued book checkouts too and OPR students have checked out over 2,000 books in October.
Kindergarten was introduced to coding through our robot, Bee-Bot. Bee-Bot is an easy-to-operate robot that is the perfect first robot to help teach counting, sequencing, directionality, and problem-solving! The students have been working to code their Bee-Bots around different mats. Next week, they will be creating a mask for their Bee-Bot and coding on a mat they created themselves.
First grade has also been using the Bee-Bot robots to review coding before beginning with the more challenging robots. Next week, the students will be using the Ozobot robot!
Second grade students have been working with the Ozobot. This robot receives code through two different methods, the Ozoblockly app and through color codes with markers. This week they used color coding and next week they will be using the Ozoblockly app to code the robot around a town to “Trick or Treat”.
Third, fourth, and fifth grade students have been using the Dash robots and have been working on a few different activities this month. Third and fourth graders reviewed the Dash robots by completing puzzles in the Blockly app. Fifth graders got to compete in a soccer tournament with the robots. Now, students are working on coding a dance routine for the robots!
Something new in STEM this year is the engineering project of the month. Because we are on a 4-day special rotation, each Friday a different class comes to STEM. When this happens, students will be doing an engineering project that celebrates the month or holidays happening. This month we did different pumpkin and Halloween themed engineering projects.
I look forward to another great month of STEM in November!
Digital Learning with Mrs. Milnamow
Our OPR students have been working hard throughout the building to learn and practice new technology!
Kindergarten- Our youngest Hawks are becoming experts with logging into their devices and completing puzzles with Jiji in ST Math! Many have even earned a Bravo Badge and learned to scan the QR code with the Chromebook to see their reward!
Grade One- These budding authors have been hard at work creating digital autobiographies in BookCreator. They have learned how to design backgrounds, add and edit text, add audio, pictures, and videos! They are also using their keyboard helpers to practice typing using uppercase letters (where appropriate), spaces between words, and proper punctuation!
Grade Two- After a unit on communities, our grade two students are working on collaborative slideshows in Canva creating their spooky or fall-themed paragraphs. They are experts at adding text and images and creating backgrounds! Their stories are so creative!
Grade Three- Some grade three classes are diving into the work of AI (Artificial Intelligence) and had the chance to “Magic Morph” their pumpkin names. Students are able to input a picture or text and tell Canva to add characteristics. For example, the Globekin has letters that look like the globe!
Grade Four- Podcasting is starting to take off! Some of our fourth graders recorded their autumn-themed Haikus for a class podcast. Others are creating Google Slides or pages in BookCreator with thematic pictures and fancy fonts to show off their published work! One class wrote Haunted Stories and are recording them on Flip using a teleprompter!
Grade Five- Students have begun their work on Road to the Revolution Digital Escape Rooms! We are learning how to find appropriate resources to teach about important events leading up to the American Revolution. Students are gathering research, setting objectives for what they want their viewers to learn about their assigned topic, and organizing it all in an efficient, clear way. We have also learned to attach links to pictures on our Canva slides. Next up is creating quizzes on Google Forms and linking those to our pages!
The sky is the limit for these Digital Designers!
News from the Nurse
Snack time: Please ask your child if they are feeling hungry in school. Some of our classes have their snack in the afternoon. Students In those classes often eat the snack you send in as part of their lunch. Please consider adding an extra snack for your child especially on days when they may be participating in after school activities. Please choose healthy snacks for your child to consume at school and refrain from sending in sugary snacks, such as candy or soda. Thank you for your assistance!.
Health Screenings: Health screenings are continuing through the end of the month.
Medications: Just a reminder that Massachusetts law requires that all medications which need to be given during the school day must have a doctor’s order, written parent/guardian permission, and MUST be brought to the school nurse by an adult. If you have any concerns regarding the medication drop off process, please contact me. If your child needs a short term medication such as an antibiotic that is given three times a day it can be given at breakfast, after school, and at bedtime. If your child is in the extended day program please contact me about giving the medication at the end of the school day prior to extended day.
Bonnie Kowalsky, M.ed. BSN RN
OPR School Nurse
99 Old Post Road
East Walpole, MA 02032
phone: 508-660-7219 ext 5804
fax: 866.809.6567
Here is a link to the WPS Health Services website. On this site you can find links to forms (i.e. medication administration, over the counter medication consent forms), medication policies, and information regarding illnesses, concussions and injuries.
Mabel's Labels
https://mabelslabels.com/en_US/fundraising/support/
Starting to lose those water bottles? Put a label on it! Please navigate to Support a Fundraiser and select Old Post Road Parent Advisory Committee.
Bay State Textiles Recycling
Massachusetts no longer allows clothing to be disposed of in the trash. Clothing must be donated or recycled. RECYCLE your clothing and textiles in the OPR Collection Bin and OPR receives money.
Thank you for donating your textiles in the Bay State Collection Bin in the OPR parking lot. The collections resulted in the following:
2022 Calendar Year Total - $907.50
January 2023 - $102.00
February 2023 - $83.25
March 2023 - $95.50
April 2023 - $93.00
May 2023 - $88.20
June 2023 - $126.90
July 2023 - $100.20
August 2023 - $92.40
September 2023 - $118.80
WPS Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC)
About Us
OPR Mission Statement
The Old Post Road School community educates all students to excel and become productive citizens.
OPR Vision
OPR students will be motivated to learn in a supportive and safe environment. The faculty will foster self-confidence in the students and encourage them to make positive choices. Students will learn to accept responsibility for their behavior and will mature into responsible citizens and lifelong learners. All students will appreciate that they are part of a diverse, global society.
Instagram: OLDPOSTROADSCHOOL_WALPOLE
Twitter: @oprschool
Email: dbarner@walpole.k12.ma.us
99 Old Post Road
East Walpole, MA 02032
508-660-7219
