Early Release Day - This Thursday is an EARLY RELEASE for ALL STUDENTS. Children will be dismissed from school at 12:30 for staff professional development. The plan for our staff for this afternoon will be the following:
- We will provide a review/recap of our equity work from the last few years, including redefining the idea of equity, looking at brain research, recapping activities we’ve conducted, and looking at the importance of building connections with students.
- We will re-engage with learning partners to talk about our efforts with students last year. We will then do some planning for our work this year.
- We will renew our commitment to our anti-bias curriculum, including providing time for grade levels to review and update lessons during the month of October.
Back to School/Curriculum Night - This Thursday, September 26th, we will host our annual Back To School/Curriculum Night sponsored by Title 1. This provides parents and caregivers with an opportunity to learn about the curriculum and the daily schedule, as well as see the classrooms and the work that has been going on so far this fall. Attendees will also be hear from the PTO and principal about our school-wide beliefs, programming and goals for the year.
Pizza will be available for all families beginning at 5:00pm Childcare will also be available for families and will be staffed by Rose and DAD teachers. We will have a movie and some smaller play areas available for the kids who stay.
5:00 Pizza available for all families in the cafeteria
5:15pm Kindergarten presentations
5:30-6:15pm Grade 1-2 Presentations
6:15-6:45pm PTO/Principal Presentations
6:45-7:30pm Grade 3-5 Presentations
7:30 Childcare Pickup
You can register by clicking here (this will help with estimating pizza and childcare): https://forms.gle/Wng5dgKpDpGnUyTh8
Flu Clinic - Our annual flu clinic will be held on Friday, October 4th beginning at the opening of school until late morning. Parents may sign up children to receive the flu shot at no charge by returning consent and screening forms to our school nurse. Forms are due October 2nd. Forms are available online at www.newtonma.gov/flu. We also have forms in the nurse’s office at school.
FORJ: Families Organizing for Racial Justice - FORJ is a group of diverse Newton families helping our children learn about issues of power and inequality and how to stand up for racial justice. We seek to generate understanding and curiosity about differences in our society, and to work together towards racial equity. We strive to achieve safe and welcoming environments that enhance the well-being of all people. We offer lectures on race and diversity, discussion groups, community events, and more. We follow the lead from our communities and help families foster inclusion in our city and schools. At Horace Mann, we want to support and build on the work being done by our principal and teachers to recognize privilege and develop an approach to diversity and inclusion that enables all HM students, staff and families to feel that they belong.
The first FORJ event will focus on bringing families together. Please see the flyer below for details. We hope you can join us!
Facilities Update - I would like to briefly respond to the concerns that have been shared by in letters that have gone out about the condition of our new location, both from the Superintendent as well as from some parents in the Horace Mann community. I will briefly address this at Back to School Night as well. First, I want to thank all of our families for your support. You’ve been amazing…encouraging, positive, and willing to support us in making our new location a great place for your children. Thank you!
With regard to the concerns that are out there, we’ve been practice in working with the city to make some improvements. Over the past few weeks, we’ve had School Committee members, the Mayor, and other city personnel tour the building to hear about things that can be done to support the best instructional environment for your children. Here is a sample of the things we are looking at:
- Classroom size
- Access to sinks/plumbing on the 2nd floor
- Increasing bathroom capacity
- Improving our playground area
- Looking at small breakout space capacity and related storage concerns
- Improving furnishings
As we go through the process of making improvements, we will have a plan for incorporating input from families, staff, and city officials. I will also provide regular updates on this topic.
LUNCH MONITORS - are needed at the Newton Elementary Schools listed below. These are great hours for a stay-at-home parent/grandparent or anyone who wants to work a couple of hours a day. The hours range from 2 ¼ – 2 ½ hours per day, 4 days a week, at $14.36 an hour. Please call the school directly to set up an interview.
Lincoln-Eliot - 617-559-9540
Underwood - 617-559-9660
Williams - 617-559-6480
Bowen - 617-559-9330
Angier - 617-559-9300
Thanks and have a great week!
Mark Nardelli
Principal
