Cheetah Pride Press

Families,

Happy April! This weekend includes two holidays! If you will be celebrating Easter or Passover, may your holiday be filled with love and hope. As a reminder, there will be no school tomorrow.

We’ll return on Monday for a full week of learning, before parting for spring break next Friday. When we return from spring break, our schedule of events really amps up; so please take a moment to review the Spring Events Calendar. It is linked in the Important Dates section below.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Joey & Andrea

Grade 3 Families,

As Spring and the end of the year approaches, we will reflect with our students on their growth both personally and academically. We have seen our students persist, persevere, and accomplish so much this year. In the coming months, we will also measure student performance formally through the Smarter Balanced Assessment in Mathematics and Literacy. This will be our grade 3 students’ first experience with the summative state assessments. However, students have had regular exposure throughout the school year to the content and skills specific to grade level standards measured by the assessments, the critical-thinking and problem-solving skills embedded in the assessments, and the technology and assessment platform on which they will be assessed. Assessment schedules are structured to limit the amount of time students are assessed on any given day. Students are given all of the time they need to complete the assessment to their satisfaction. As a result, testing schedules are flexible and responsive to student needs. Through our district assessments, we have been supporting students by cultivating a positive culture where students are encouraged to do their best and proudly show what they know. We will continue the same support as we prepare students for Smarter Balanced. The schedule for Smarter Balanced

Assessments are as follows:

• English Language Arts Computer Adaptive Test: April 28th-30th
• Mathematics Computer Adaptive Test: May 5th & 6th
• Mathematics Performance Task: May 7th

We anticipate that both the preparation for the assessment and the assessment schedule will help students feel comfortable and allow them to perform at their best. We have strategically planned the preparation and assessments across multiple weeks to avoid assessment fatigue and to best support our learners. We encourage strong attendance during the testing days along with healthy habits, including appropriate rest and daily breakfast. Please note that the use of smart phones and smart watches will not be permitted during the testing window. We encourage students to leave them at home. If students bring them to school, they will be asked to put them away in their backpacks.

This assessment information is only one measure of our students and their impressive efforts this year. We consider multiple data points when considering student progress and planning for instruction. This is a critical tool for this ongoing work and we appreciate your partnership as we gather information about our students at the conclusion of such an incredible school year.

As always, please contact me if you have any questions regarding this process. We appreciate your continued support.

Best,

Joey

The annual PreK Touch-A-Truck last Saturday was a huge success! The weather was chilly, but the children (and adults) had a blast; and money was raised for future PreK enrichment experiences. Thank you to everyone who donated their vehicles and their time. We appreciate you!

Fund for Teachers awards fellowship grants to educators to enable them to extend their professional growth. The goal is to provide them with experiences that will enhance their teaching and impact their students’ learning as well as strengthen the school community. This summer Beth will experience Icelandic food, culture and music while developing strategies integrating play, movement and well-being through workshops and school site visits focused on inclusive learning through play. The fellowship is being funded by the generosity of Dalio Education. This year 28 CT teachers are being awarded grants. Beth is a two time recipient of a Fund for Teachers grant.

Nicole joined the interventionist team at Memorial school in Summer of 2025 and immediately began making an impact with our students in the RISE program. She takes time out of her own personal day to engage in online courses that she feels would enhance her skill set, and has happily shared her new learning and resources along the way. Nicole brings a very positive and calming presence to Memorial School. She is constantly offering support and does not hesitate to ask questions so she can offer our students the very best! We are lucky to have Nicole at Memorial School.

A PAWsitive office referral is submitted when a staff member recognizes a student who is going above and beyond to exemplify one of our three school rules - taking care of others, taking care of self, & taking care of things.

Memorial Models are chosen weekly by their teacher. These students have excelled all week in taking care of themselves, others and things. The recipients will dine at a VIP table during lunch every Friday!

Meet Emily.

Her teacher is Mr. Frost.

She is special because she skateboards.

Cheer is one of her favorite things.

She wanted to be on Cheetah Council because it was a fun opportunity.

She loves her teacher best at school.

Jen Dupre is a member of the Memorial School team, who puts 110% into her role as an Occupational Therapist. She gives everything she has to each student with whom she works, and she supports staff by offering strategies and suggestions that make a difference in her students’ lives. Jen is always smiling, and brings a positive attitude to everything she does. We are lucky to have Jen in our school community!

April

4/3 Good Friday School is Closed

4/6 Board of ED

4/10 Cheetah Pride Day

4/13-4/17 Spring Break School Closed

4/20 PTO at Center School 5:30

4/22 Administrative Assistants Appreciation Day

4/27 Board of ED at 6:30

4/28 Smarter Balanced Assessments Begin

Spring Events Calendar:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DvL1o1X5PCiAjUaPzz5qmAzROXiyYBLFNyT7ZYA5yFM/edit?usp=sharing

Springtime brings warmer temperatures, longer days, and endless beauty to our world. But it is the tiny changes of nature that are worth paying close attention to! The sprouting flowers will be blooming soon, and in some places, they already have! This is the time in Spring where we can watch the slow transformation of the many browns and grays of the winter into endless rainbow colors! Artists across the world, and throughout time have loved painting and observing the springtime as inspiration for their works of art! And we are doing the same!

THANK YOU to the many Memorial School families who attended the Spring K-12 Art show last week, it was an incredible evening filled with so much talent, hard work, and artistic dedication from the amazing student artists from East Hampton!

PreK students are exploring paintbrush techniques in order to create springtime flowers! We are learning the different parts of different flowers, and how a paint brush can create different brush strokes to make different flower petals, a stem, and even leaves. We are using NEON paint, which is the brightest and boldest color family that artists can use! We love our paintings and can’t wait to take them home!

Kindergarten students are beginning a collage unit, and are learning all about the artist Henri Matisse and his beautiful cut-outs masterpieces from the early to mid 1900’s. For our masterpieces, we are exploring these shapes; Oval, Raindrop, Crescent; and are using those as the main shapes while cutting out pieces of scrap paper. We will need a LOT of those shapes, in order to create a SPRING TIME GARDEN! We learned the secret strategy of folding paper two times in order to cut 4 shapes at the same time, this will make things much faster for creating countless petals for our flowers. We discussed how different flowers have different shaped petals, and are learning about tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, and daisies. Students can always make up their own types of flowers, but enjoy learning how to identify a particular type of flower by how it looks. Springtime is already showing itself with the many flowers that are blooming and bursting through the ground!

First Graders have begun a CLAY unit, and are learning different clay hand building techniques including rolling a ball and a coil, flattening a slab, and creating a pinch pot. As inspiration for our clay sculptures we are making, students have done some research, viewing countless animals from our world. When one of the animals stood out to each student as interesting and unique, the students had to sketch their own PINCH POT sketch, which also included the special features that their animal has. We began building our pinch pots this week, learning how to create a smooth, even, round cup-like form out of clay. We also began to create creature features out of clay, creating an “Animal Pinch Pot”. Please ask your child which animal they have chosen, there is such an incredible variety of species we will be representing!

Second Graders have begun their CLAY unit as well, and are currently exploring the process of creating SLABS to construct a ceramic sculpture. Slab-making is a very fun and effective hand building technique, and we are taking our prior knowledge of 3D forms to create clay 3D forms, such as cubes, rectangular prisms, cones, and more. These clay 3D forms require slabs, a smooth, flat, even clay form, that can be cut into particular shapes. When stood on their side, the cut, flat clay slabs can be connected together to create 3D forms (imagine clay working like a gingerbread house!). While cutting these slabs into specific shapes, the students are learning how to use a “fettling knife” which is a special clay knife that cuts slabs without ripping the clay or tattering the edges. We are learning first and foremost, knife safety, and are expected to treat these knives with great respect and care. These are not sharp knives, but any knife could injure someone if it isn’t being used with care. I am happy to hear that many students have learned at home already how to use a knife safely. And so far, the students have shown excellent “knife safety” in the art room. We will be turning our clay slabs into “Animal Houses”. We of course will also need to create an animal out of clay, to live in our very own animal houses! We will be finishing these up over the next few weeks, and the students already are excited to get to bring them home!

Third Graders are coming to the end of their choice art projects!!! I have had several students in each class already reach their goal of creating 6 works of art. Each work of art represented an art subject, and was made with 6 different types of art materials. Students who have successfully completed those 6 works of art will advance to the next round of projects, where they will challenge themselves to create art that represents two different subjects simultaneously! During the month of April, we will begin mounting and labeling our masterpieces to prepare all of our works of art for the 3rd grade art show!!!!! The third graders are beyond excited to share their artwork and all of their creative efforts with the Memorial School community!

3RD GRADE ART SHOW!!!!

SAVE THE DATE

On June 16th, at Memorial School (during the Step up Ceremony for 3rd graders) the entire 3rd grade will be hosting their very own 3rd Grade Art Show! Please make sure to view your child’s entire portfolio while you attend the Step Up Ceremony. Student artwork will be on display in the Main Lobby and cafeteria while you attend the Step up Ceremony!

ART MYSTERY INCENTIVE

Students in 2nd and 3rd grade were selected for showing cheetah pride this past month, and came to the art room for a special reward: Painting!!!

Art Collaboration!!

Mrs. Vigue’s and Mrs. Senerchia's classes did some collaborating with Mrs. Vining to create works of art connected to Wit and Wisdom! Mrs. Vigue’s class connected our giant collaborative flower to “Forces of Wind” and Mrs. Senerchia’s class collaborated with creating collages to represent Animal Features, like “The Snail” by Henri Matisse.

Stay at Home Guidelines:

Memorial School understands that deciding when a child or family member is too sick

to go to school or work can be a difficult decision. When trying to decide, use the guidelines

below and seek the advice of your health care provider. Anyone with the following symptoms should not attend school.

Symptoms can vary, but symptoms may include:

• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fever equal to or above 100.4 degrees
• Chills
• Body aches
• Sore throat
• Nausea, vomiting or diarrhea

If students or family members experience any of the above symptoms, please stay home and

contact your health care provider for further instructions. Sending sick children to school is not in

the best interest of the child or their classmates. Children should not be given any medications

such as: Tylenol, Motrin or Advil prior to school to reduce fever. Any child who has vomited or had diarrhea and/or a fever within 24 hours should not be sent to school.

When considering the number of absences your student has accrued, keep in mind that a student must be present for 195 minutes in order for the day to count! When bringing your student in late, or signing them out early if they have not been in school for a 195 minutes the day will be recorded as an absence.

Memorial School Attendance email:

memorial_attendance@easthamptonct.org * there is an _ between memorial and attendance!

Please Review This Important Information Below.

Students, parents, and community members have access to an anonymous tip line on the front page of the school district website to report self-concerns, mental health concerns of a friend, or concerns of violence. Simply click here or view on the website: https://www.easthamptonps.org/.

Email: jbauer@easthamptonct.org
Website: https://www.easthamptonps.org/o/memorial-school
Location: 20 Smith Street, East Hampton, CT, USA
Phone: 860-365-4020
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ehmemorialschool