The Lawrence Elementary School

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Principal's Corner   

Newsletter for April 2021

Lawrence School has been a very busy place this spring. Please join me in celebrating all of our volunteers, families, and teachers who participated. 

Read Across America Night was a huge success, as Mayor Ben Florsheim and Jennifer Billingsley from the Russell Library read stories to our students and families. Both were engaging readers who shared their love of reading with our students. Thank you to Parent Kristen Jensen for arranging the guest readers and for helping to plan and organize the creative reading games we played. Thank you to Parent Tarah Jarda for helping to facilitate the games and troubleshooting as needed. I also want to thank Teacher Shannon Johnson for organizing the arts and crafts projects (we all loved seeing the creative book marks and puppets that students designed) and to School Librarian Kerry Darby for helping with all aspects of this fun night. Our goal is for students to find joy in pleasure reading, so thank you to everyone who participated.

Parent Conferences: WOW, over 92% of all families participated in our school conferences either by phone or in person! If you want to examine one piece of data that shows the strength of a school community, this high percent is one of the most important! Our families and community clearly value education and supporting their children and our teachers.

THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR FAMILIES & TEACHERS FOR BEING CARING PARTNERS IN HELPING EVERY CHILD SUCCEED!  

District Art Showcase: Truly amazing! Highly original! Unbelievably talented! Those are just a few of many phrases that leap to my mind to describe the talent shown at the digital art show in March! Please join in applauding our students for their efforts! Also, please join in thanking Mrs. Kaye for her organization of the showcase and in supporting our students as they continue to blossom in art. 

April Events:

Tuesday, April 20           6-7 pm zoom     Kindergarten Information Night for New Kindergarten Families

Thursday, April 22          EARTH DAY (continue reading for some creative ideas)

Thursday, April 22          5-6 pm zoom     School Governance Council

Monday, April 26              PICTURE DAY for students (see flyer in Tuesday folder, 4/20)

Tuesday, April 27            ONE SCHOOL, ONE BOOK   

Children will come home with a new picture book  The Word Collector by Peter H. Reynolds.

 Activities and discussion stems will be distribute.   Focus on inquiry and curiosity connects with IB philosophy.

One School, One Book: Our goal is for all Lawrence students to have a shared experience using a wonderful book that helps to reinforce the use of words in our daily lives. There will be optional activities for families that allow them to further explore words in their home environment. Encouraging curiosity around words and the joy of learning are the priorities.

A detailed description of those activities will be in Tuesday folders on 4/27.

Please join in thanking the PTA for purchasing the books for all students. We appreciate you!!!

               CELEBRATE EARTH DAY WITH CREATIVE FAMILY PROJECTS 

Below are some creative activities for you and your families around EARTH DAY! Enjoy and take pictures of what you have done. You can share them with your child’s teachers on Class Dojo.    

ARTS AND CRAFTS ACTIVITY

1. Nature Exploration: Go around your yard and neighborhood and collect as many different types of nature as you can find (leaves, twigs, grass, etc). Try and find examples that represent different shapes (triangles, squares), textures (smooth, rough), and patterns. 
2. Nature Posters: Take one piece of construction paper and some glue and stick the items you found on your nature exploration onto the paper. Try and be creative as you move the items around the paper. You can make a pattern or arrange the items to make a shape.
3. Turn Trash into Art: Take a look around your house for recyclable materials. After you collect a bunch of objects, use glue or tape to connect the objects in order to make something. You can make an animal, flower, or person, or try to make something very tall. Try to turn your trash or recyclables into something creative and wonderful.

1. Making Collages: once you collect a lot of recyclable materials, peel off or cut off the food labels or pictures on the recyclable boxes or bottles. Use all of these words, designs, and pictures to create a collage.
2. Growing your own Garden: Start your own garden and watch the flowers/veggies grow.
3. Turn Seeds into Art: use extra seeds you may have at home as art. You can take construction paper and make a design. Using glue, you can attach the seeds to the paper in any shape or design you wish. The 3-D element of the seeds will add a lot of creativity to your designs. Acorns are also a great substitute.                                    

Creative Writing & Poetry

              Sensory Poem: Go outside and find a nice place to sit or lie down. While outside, make a list of everything you sense (see, hear, taste, touch, and smell). Try closing your eyes and feel the nature around you. After you make your list, write a poem about all of the things you sense; be as detailed as possible.

Example:            As I am sitting in my backyard, I can feel the wind blowing my hair.

                           I see two squirrels running around the yard after an acorn.

                           Flowers give a fresh smell to the yard, reminding me of grandma’s hand lotion.

              Acrostic Poems: write a key word or phrase related to Earth Day (SPRING, NATURE, EARTH DAY, etc.). Try and think of words or phrases related to your KEY WORD and write them next to each letter. EXAMPLE:

              Squirrels running in the yard

              Pretty flowers

              Rabbits

              Insects crawling on my leg

              Nature

              Green grass

                                 Learner Profile of the Month: Open-Minded

Open-minded learners “critically appreciate [their] own cultures and personal histories, as well as the values and traditions of others. [They] seek to evaluate a range of points of view, and [they] are willing to grow from the experience.”

Helping students understand the perspectives and opinions of others is the goal. When we talk about being open-minded, it is not just in relation to other people. We also want students to be open to new learning, possibilities, and activities.  There are many benefits to teaching perspectives and helping students to view their lives with an open mind. Open-mindedness gives students the ability to:

• understand new ideas and experiences to broaden their minds and challenge their thinking
• be eager to learn new things and build on existing knowledge, even if it challenges existing views
• be honest, understanding they don’t know everything and can admit it
• become active listeners
• become effective collaborators while working with classmates and teachers
• handle constructive feedback, understanding they learn from their mistakes.
• listen to and consider the perspectives of others before making a decision

Being Open-Minded also connects to our Recent Lessons on Solving Conflicts

Now that students have learned about the Mood Meter (recognizing their own emotions) and the Meta-Moment (learning strategies to stay calm once triggered and to self-regulate their reactions), students will be learning to solve conflicts with The Blueprint.  

Students will be guided to reflect on not only how they feel during a conflict, but to now try to understand the other person’s feelings as well. Examples of the questions we use to help students with learning about different perspectives are below. You can definitely use these questions at home too.

          Your Child                                                         Other Child or Person

          How did you feel?                                             How do you think __________ felt?

          What caused your feelings?                             What caused __________’s feelings?

          How did you express those feelings?               How did _____ express his/her feelings?

          What can you do now to solve the problem?  How can ____ help solve the problem?

Yearbook Pictures Needed! If you have taken any recent or older pictures at any of our school events and think they may be perfect for our school yearbook, please contact or send the pictures to Parent Coordinator Kelly Tuttle. Kelly can be reached at tuttlek@mpsct.org

Social-Emotional Strategies:

A focus at Lawrence School is in helping students to be able to recognize their feelings and to help them learn strategies to self-regulate and respond appropriately to triggers. Communicating their feelings in a constructive way is emphasized, and the Meta-Moment is shared with students.

We discuss that all of us – every student in the school, every teacher, every parent – we all have triggers, something that may get us angry or upset. Learning to recognize our triggers and the triggers of others helps us with our emotional responses. Taking the time to stop and think about the best way to respond to a peer or adult when one is triggered is emphasized.

Sample Strategies:     Take 3 deep breaths, Get a drink of water, Count to 10, Go to the Calming Corner [take a break], Draw, Write, Read a Book, Think of a Place/Person/Pet that makes you happy, Talk to someone you trust, Squeeze or hold a comfort object, Positive self-talk

VISION:

The Lawrence School is an inclusive community that supports and values the academic, social, physical, and emotional development of every student through an engaging and relevant transdisciplinary curriculum that fosters students as collaborators, communicators, thinkers, and global citizens.

MISSION STATEMENTS:

1. We foster students’ emotional intelligence because we believe social-emotional learning is key to the development of the whole child.

    

2. We cultivate a growth mindset among students, families, and staff because we believe in the value and importance of perseverance, varied learning dispositions, risk-taking, goal setting, and reflection.

    

3. We foster a safe and welcoming environment that promotes a mutually-supportive school community of empathetic and collaborative individuals who are globally responsible, curious, and action-oriented.

    

4. We engage learners by purposefully planning lessons that encourage inquiry and critical thinking, value student interest, and promote collaboration and discourse among all students.

    

5. We value a balanced and comprehensive arts and physical education program that enhances the core curriculum and allows students to explore, experience, and appreciate world cultures and language experiences while encouraging creativity, curiosity, and healthy movement.

    

6. We provide rigorous challenges so students take ownership of their learning as they use reasoning and thinking skills and academic risk-taking in order to develop creativity, perseverance, and recognition of their role in the global environment.

Statement of Non-Discrimination

The Middletown Board of Education is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer, and it does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religious creed, age, marital status, civil union, military or veteran status, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or past or present physical or mental disability in any of its education programs, activities, or employment policies.  All educational programs and offerings, including vocational education and extracurricular activities, subscribe to this policy. Marco Gaylord, Director of District Operations, has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the district non-discrimination policies and may be reached at 311 Hunting Hill Avenue, Middletown, CT  06457; phone (860) 638-1485.