a letter from mrs. bright & mrs. benabdallah...• on thursday, november 10th, stapleton held an...

November/December2016

THEGOLDENEAGLE

StapletonElementarySchool’sNewsletter

PublishedbytheStapletonPTO

ALETTERFROMMRS.BRIGHT&MRS.BENABDALLAHHappyHolidays!Atthistimeofyearindividualsoftenreflectonthemanypartsoftheirlivestheyarethankfulfor.HereatStapleton,wereflecteachdayaboutourgoodfortuneinhavingyourchildrenasourstudentsandhavingyoursupportasstakeholders.Asasmallschool,weprideourselvesonhavingpositiverelationshipswitheachandeverystudent.Weareabletocelebratetheirsuccessesandsupportthemastheystrengthenareasoffocus.Moreimportantly,wearefortunatethatweareabletobeapartoftheirgrowth-academically,socially,andemotionally.Partofthisgrowthistheirabilitytorecognizethattheyarepartofalarger,diversecommunityandacknowledgetheirimportantrolewithinthatcommunity. Thisseasonaswerecognizeandarethankfulforthewonderfulpartsofourlives,wealsorecognizethatsomeindividualsarenotsofortunate.HereatStapleton,wehaveputmanythingsinplacetosupportmembersofourcommunitywhoareinneedofoursupport:• Wecontinuetocollectgentlyusedcoatsforthoseinneedandhavecollectedatotalof42todate.

• Additionally,wesupportourlocalfoodpantry,APlacetoTurn,bycollectingboxesofstuffinginNovemberandcannedvegetablesinDecember.

• AformerstudenthassetupaTimothy’sToyBoxcollectioninthemainofficethatwillacceptdonationsthroughDecember8th.

• Furthermore,wecontinuetocollectsodabottlesandcanstosupportourveterans-lastyearweraisedover$250throughtheseefforts.Thisyearwehavealreadyraisedmorethan$100.

TheGoldenEagleNewsletter-November/December2016 2

• Ms.BiasellaandMs.PricehavecreatedaLendingLibraryonthelowerlevelforstudentswhodonothavebooksathome.

• TwostudentstookituponthemselvestocreateKindnessRocksfortheschooltoinspireotherstocompleterandomactsofkindness(http://thekindnessrocksproject.com).

• TheseaforementionedcommitmentstoourcommunityhaverecentlysparkedaselectnumberofFourthGraderstoorganizeamittenandglovedrivethroughDecember,aswell!

• OnThursday,November10th,Stapletonheldanall-schoolVeteransDayAssemblyledbymusicteachers,LauraBeckandDianeThomas.Theassemblywasfilledwithpatrioticsongs,readings,poems,andaslideshow.VeteranswereinvitedtoattendandwererecognizedfortheirservicewiththehelpofMr.McElearney.CheckouttheslideshowaccessibleontheStapletonwebsitebyclickingon"QuickLinks".

Socially,studentsatStapletonunderstandthatacceptance,responsibility,andrespectarepillarsofourschoolaswearereadytohelpthoseinneed! Academically,weareexcitedandthankfulfortheimplementationoftheiReadyprograminbothMathandReadinghereatStapleton.Thedatacollectedfromthediagnosticandindividualizedinstructionalpathshelpsustofurthersupportandextendthelearningofourstudents.Wearealsofortunatethatthisprogramcanbeaccessedfromhome!Althoughlog-ininformationhasbeensenthome,pleasefeelfreetoreachouttoyourchild’steacherifyoushouldneedadditionalinformation. Recently,studentsparticipatedinaprogramcalledTheNEDShow.Thepurposeofthepresentationistomotivateandencouragestudentstobecomechampionsatschoolandinlife.TheNEDShowdoesthisbysharingthestoryofthecharacterNED®,whosenameisalsoanacronym:NeverGiveUp,EncourageOthers,DoYourBest®.Theimportanceofkindness,settinggoals,makinggoodchoices,andpayingattentiontoteacherswasreinforcedinafunwayusinghumor,audienceparticipation,storytelling,andevenyo-yotricks.Theshowwasverywell-receivedbyboththeK-2and3-5audiences.


Wehopethatyouareabletotakepartinanyofourcommunitysupportinitiativeslistedabovethatalsoreinforceourmonthlycharactertraits.Thisyear,wearethrilledtohavepurchasedschool-widebooksforeachmonththatalignwiththesetraits.DuringthemonthofNovember,studentsK-5hadtheopportunitytodiscussAllTheColorsoftheEarth,whichexploredtheconceptofrespect.InDecemberallstudentsK-5willdiscussresponsibilityusingthebookOfficerBuckleandGloria.MysteryreadersfromthesupportteamhereatStapletonvisitclassroomseachmonthtoreadanddiscussthetopicsaddressedineachtext.Wehopethatyouareabletodiscussthisbookathomeandfindoutwhoyourchild’smysteryreaderiseachmonth!

WehopethatyouareasproudofthestudentshereatStapletonasweare!Theycontinuetoexceedexpectations-academically,socially,andemotionally!Weknowthatthiswouldnotbepossiblewithoutyourcontinuedsupport.WewouldliketothankyouforallthatyoudotosupportthemissionofStapletonandwouldliketotakethisopportunitytowishyouahealthyandhappyholidayseason!

Sincerely,Mrs.BrightandMrs.Benabdallah

ViewandbookmarkStapleton’sWebPage:http://www.framingham.k12.ma.us/Domain/21


MARKYOURCALENDARS

DECEMBER

5-9 SpiritWeek

Monday:FavoriteBookCharacterDay

Tuesday:Hat&SillyHairDay

Wednesday:SportsDay

Thursday:BackwardsDay

Friday:SchoolSpiritDay

6 Principal’sPartytoCelebrateNovemberStudentsoftheWeek9:30am

6-9 BookFair

Tuesday:9:30am-2:30pm

Wednesday:8:50am-2:30pm

Thursday:8:50am-2:30pm

Friday:8:50am-noon

9 FamilyReadingNight6-8pm

14 BookSwapduringschoollunches

23 HALFDAYDismissalat12pm(NOLUNCHSERVED)

26-30 NOSCHOOL(HolidayRecess)

SchoolResumesonTuesday,January3rdaftertheHolidayRecess

EveryFridayis“SpiritDay”atStapleton.ShowyourschoolspiritbywearingStapletongearorblueandyellowtobepartofthefun.GoStapleton!


StapletonElementarySchool

SpiritWeek!Showyourschoolspiritandhavesomefun

bydressingupforourthemedays!

Monday,December5th:FavoriteBookCharacterDay! Getexcitedforthisweek’sBookFair.Please,nomasksandnotoyweapons.Tuesday,December6th:Hat&SillyHairDay! Wearhatstoschooltodayorstyleyourhairinafunkyway.Wednesday,December7th:SportsDay! Wearashirt/jerseythatsupportsyourfavoriteteamorwearitsteamcolors.

Thursday,December8th:BackwardsDay! Wearyourclothesbackwards.Friday,December9th:SchoolSpiritDay! Wearaschoolshirtorblueandyellow.

THANKYOU!

ThankyoutotheanonymousdonorwhoismakingrecessatStapletonmorefun!Studentsareputtingthesportsequipmentyoupurchasedforthemtogoodusedaily!


AMESSAGEABOUTDROPOFF&PICKUPSAFETY

RollingDropOff–Studentscanbedroppedoffonthesidewalkbytheflagpolestartingat8:50eachmorning.AstaffmemberwillbewaitingtogreetthemonElmStreet;parentsdonotgetoutoftheircars.Fromthere,studentswilllineupbygradeinfrontofthemainentrancetotheschool.

ParentDropOff–ParentsmaychoosetoparktheircarselsewhereonElmStreetandwalktheirchildrentothemainentranceoftheschool.Ifdoingso,pleasebesuretousethecrosswalk.

KindergartenDropoff–Kindergartenerswillbemetbytheirteachersand5thgradesafetypatrolbuddieseachmorningeitherwheretheirbusdisembarksoratdoor#13bytheflagpole,facingElmStreet.

KindergartenPickUp–Parentsmaypickuptheirkindergartenstudentsatdoor#12,aroundthecornerofthebuilding,betweentheschoolandthechurch.PleasehaveIDreadytoshowtostaff.

ParentPickUp–Parentscanmeettheir1st-5thgradersoutsidebytheflagpole.Teacherswillwaitwithstudentsuntiltheyhaveidentifiedanadultwhoistheretopickthemup.Ifnoadultispresent,studentswillbebroughttotheoffice.

PleasedonotevermakeUturnsonElmStreetduringdropofforpickup.

Donotentertheparkinglotorbuszonebetween8:45am-9:05amand3:00pm-3:20pm.

AlwaysusethecrosswalkwhencrossingElmStreettogettoandfromStapletonElementarySchool.

TheLost&FoundisFULL!Pleaseaskyourchildtocheckthelostandfound.

Itemsleftbehindwillbedonatedsoon.


Coach’sCorner:Literacy

Stapletonteachershavecertainlyworkedhardthesepastfewmonthsonbuildingacommunityofreadersandwriters!InKindergarten,studentshavebeenexploringtheworldofbooksandworkingonstorytelling.Firstgradershavebeenworkingonbuildinggoodreadinghabits,tacklingtrickywords,andwritingsmallmomentstories.Insecondgrade,studentshavelearnedtotakechargeoftheirreading,usereadingstrategies,andwriteaboutsmallmomentsintheirlives.Intheuppergrades,studentshavefinishedtheirpersonalnarrativestoriesaswellastheirreadinguniton“buildingareadinglife.”Third,fourth,andfifthgraderswillfocusonstudyingthecharactersintheirbooksduringtheirnextunitthismonth.Thirdgradersarenowlearninghowtowriteinformationalbooks.Infourthgrade,studentswillbewritingtheirownrealisticfiction.Ourfifthgradewriterswillbecraftingliteraryessaysbasedonthebookstheyhavebeenreading.Inordertocontinuethereadingstrategieslearnedintheclassroom,studentsshouldbereadingandpracticingtheirstrategiesathome.Wewouldlovetogetmorebooksintothehandsofstudents,sowearecreatingourfirstlendinglibrary!Ourgoalisforeverystudenttohavebookstoreadathomeandenjoywiththeirfamily.TheFraminghamPublicLibraryhasgraciouslydonatedhundredsofbooks.Onceallofthebooksareorganizedintobins,ourlibrarywillbereadyforstudents.Wearehopingtohaveitupandrunningbytheendofthemonth.Additionally,wewillbehostingourannualFamilyReadingNightonFriday,December9th.Theeventwillrun6-8pm,butpleasejoinuswheneveryoucanthatevening.Seetheflyerinthenewsletterfordetailsortosignuptovolunteer.

Ifyouhaveanyquestionsaboutcurriculum,assessments,orstrategiesonhowtohelpyourreaderandwriterathome,pleasefeelfreetocontactme.Youcanfindresourcesonmywebsite:https://sites.google.com/a/framingham.k12.ma.us/mrs-biasella/

Sincerely,Mrs.MichelleBiasella,[email protected]


PleaseHelptheStapletonCommunitySupportandHonorourLocalVeterans!

DonaterecyclableCANSandPLASTICBOTTLEStoStapleton.Thereisacollectionareaacrossfromthemainofficeoftheschool.

Thiseffortwillcontinuethroughouttheschoolyear.Todate,Stapletonhascollected$102forlocalveterans!

Thankyou!

BookPicksoftheMonthfromMrs.Biasella,K-5LiteracyCoach

OctopusesOnetoTenbyEllenJackson

(ages2-8)

Diveintothisfascinatingcountingjourneythroughtheamazingandmysteriousworldofoctopuses.Everyoneknowsoctopuseshaveeightarms.Butdidyouknowthattheyhavethreeheartsandninebrains?Thisintriguingexplorationofoctopusesgoesthroughnumbersonetoten,withasnappyrhymeandfascinatingoctopusfactsforeachnumber.Thebookalsoincludesoctopuscraftsandactivitiesformorelearningfun!(Amazon)

VespersRisingbyRickRiordan(ages8-12)

TheCahillsaren'ttheonlyfamilysearchingfortheClues....TheCahillsthoughttheywerethemostpowerfulfamilytheworldhadeverknown.TheythoughttheyweretheonlyoneswhoknewaboutGideonCahillandhisClues.TheCahillswerewrong.Powerfulenemies—theVespers—havebeenwaitingintheshadows.Nowit’stheirtimetoriseandtheworldwillneverbethesame.(Amazon)Checkoutmorebooksinthisseries!


BOKSBOKSisafun,free,before-schoolphysicalactivityprogramaimedtogetchildrenmovinginthemorningandtheirbrainsreadyforadayoflearning.

AtypicalBOKSmorningbeginswithstudentdrop-offandcheckin,followedbyagroupmeetingandwarmup.Studentsarethenengagedinarunningactivityandlearntheirskilloftheweek.Skillsmightincludesuchthingsassit-ups,push-ups,orsquatsandarethenincorporatedintofunrelaysorobstaclecourses.Classesendwithagamepromotingteam-workandcooldown,wherestudentsstretchandlearnaboutanutritiontipoftheweek.

WeareaskingforvolunteerstohelpusrunourWinterSession2016-2017andmakeitasuccess.ThissessionwillrunonMondayandThursdaymorningsforsix(6)weeksbeginningonMonday,December5,2016.WewouldneedyourhelponMondaymorningsforaboutanhour,startingat7:45a.m.Ifyoucansignupforafewmornings,we'dgreatlyappreciateyourhelp!

WhilethissessionisforStapletonstudentsinGradesK-2,ifyouareinterestedinvolunteeringandhaveolderstudents/siblings,wewillgladlyincludetheminthefun.Pleaseusethelinkbelowtosignup.Welookforwardtoseeingyou!http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0b4ba8ae28a2fa7-boks

ThankyoutoMutualOneCharitableFoundationofFraminghamforyourdonationof$2,500forourschool’slendinglibrary!Thiswillallowforallstudentstohaveaccesstobrandnewleveledtextstoborrowandreadathomewiththeirfamilies.


Coach’sCorner:Math

Ourstudentsareusingmanydifferentmanipulativesandtoolsintheirmathwork.InKindergarten,thestudentshavebeenworkingwithnumbersto10andarestartingtoworkwithshapes.Grade1isworkingwithplacevaluethroughadditionandsubtractionwithin20.Grade2hasbeenworkingonplacevalue,counting,andcomparisonofnumbersto1,000.Theywillbestartingtheirworkwithadditionandsubtractionwithin200withwordproblemsto100.

Intheuppergrades,3rdgradeisstartingtheirworkwithmultiplicationanddivision.Grade4isworkingwithmulti-digitmultiplicationanddivisionusingplacevaluestrategies.Thestudentswillalsobesolvingmulti-stepwordproblems.Grade5ismovingfromworkingwithdecimalsintoadditionandsubtractionoffractions.

Studentsarealwaysworkingontheirnumbersensethroughoutall6grades.Thiscanbepracticedathomewithcardanddicegames.DirectionsforsomeofthesegameswillbeaddedtotheMathMindswebsite.Youcanalsofindlinkstowebsitesthathelptopromotenumbersenseaswellastheskillsyourstudentsarepracticinginclass.Toaccessthewebsitevisit:https://sites.google.com/a/framingham.k12.ma.us/math-minds/

WeareexcitedtobeparticipatinginTheHourofCodethisyear.TheHourofCodeisofficiallycelebratedeachyearduringComputerScienceEducationWeek(December5th-11th).TheHourofCodechallengesstudentsofallages(andlanguages)tolearnandparticipateinthebasicsofcoding,engineering,computerscience,andgaming.Thisweek,thestudentsatStapletonElementarywillbetakingpartintheHourofCodeduringtheirscheduled

computerlabtimes.Theywillbeaccessingprogramsthathelpstudentstolearnsomeofthebasicsofcodingandhowcodingisusedinvideogamesandcomputerprograms.Theseprogramsaredesignedforpre-readersupthroughhighschool.Trysomeactivitiesathomewithyourstudent!Goto:https://code.org https://www.lego.com https://www.tynker.com/

Sincerely,Mrs.HeatherAllen,[email protected]


BOOKSWAP

WEDNESDAY,December14thduringlunchperiods

Pleasehaveyourstudentbringinupto3gentlyusedbooksonWednesdaymorning.

1Book=1Ticket

Eachstudentmaytradeupto3books.Everystudentmayselectabook.

Weneedvolunteers!BookSwaprunsfrom9:30am–1:30pm,onceeveryothermonth.

PleasecontactRebeccaReiner([email protected])ifyouareinterestedinvolunteeringandletusknowifyouwanttohelpforallorpartofthe

time.

Thankyouforyoursupport.The“BookSwapCrew”


Stapleton’s Family Reading Night

Friday, December 9, 2016

Please join us in your pj’s for a night of stories read-aloud by Stapleton Staff.

Refreshments will be provided. Don’t miss this chance to shop at the book fair.

Schedule of Events 6:00-6:30pm Sign-in, raffles, and cookies in the cafeteria 6:30-7:30pm Read-alouds by Stapleton staff 7:30-8:00pm Final chance to shop at the Book Fair

If you can volunteer to help with this event or the book fair,

please sign up at the URL below:

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0b4aa5aa23a57-2016


HelpToKeepSomeoneWarmThisWinter

Ifyouhaveawarmwintercoattodonatetosomeoneinneed,youcandropitoffatStapletonbetweennowandJanuary6th.Ifit’seasiertodropifoffdirectlytoAnton’sCleaners,pleasedo–justmentionthatyouarerepresentingStapleton.TODATE,STAPLETONHASCOLLECTED42COATS!

Thisdriveisacceptingcoatsingoodconditionforchildrenandadults.Please,nosweatshirts,vests,orspringjackets.Seeflyer.


Non-PerishableFood&SuppliesCollectionAPlacetoTurnisafoodpantryinNatickwhosemissionistoprovideemergencyfoodandclothingtoourMetroWestneighbors.Theyassistover225familieseachmonthandalmost70%ofthoseassistedareFraminghamresidents.TheStapletonCommunityServiceprogramcollectsonenon-perishablefoodorsupplyforAPlacetoTurn(pertheirwishes)monthlyfromSeptemberthroughJune.

ForthemonthofDECEMBERtheyhaveasked foranykindofCANNEDVEGETABLES(anybrand,anysize,anykind).Studentswillfindaboxwiththefoodpantry’slogoonitinthehallwayneartheoffice.Donationsareacceptedthroughouttheentiremonthandtakentothepantryweekly.IfyourfamilyisinneedandcouldbenefitfromtheservicesofAPlacetoTurn,therearereferralformsintheStapletonOfficethatcanbefilledoutandbroughttothepantryforimmediateassistance.Pleasedon’thesitatetoask!

Thankyouforyoursupport!

PleasecontactRachelWeinrachelwein@gmail.comifyouareinterestedinhelpingtopickupitemsfromStapletonanddropthemoffatthepantry,evenifjustonetime.


PleasesupportStapleton’son-goingfundraisers.

AmazonSmile

SupporttheStapletonPTOeverytimeyoushopatAmazon.

WhenyoushopatAmazonviasmile.amazon.com,AmazonwilldonatemoneytotheMaryE.StapletonElementaryPTO.DesignateStapletonasyourcharityjustONETIMEandthenbookmarksmile.amazon.comtoshopasyoualwaysdo.Easy!

Togetstarted,gotosmile.amazon.comandtypein04-2578507orusethesearchoptiontofind“MaryEStapletonElementaryPTO.”

Mabel’sLabels

KeepallofyourgoodstuffoutoftheLost&Found!Yourfavoritehoodies,waterbottles,andjacketscancomehomeagain!

LabelallofyourfavoriteitemswithpersonalizedlabelsfromMabel’sLabels.

Clickonourspeciallinktoshopandbrowse:http://tinyurl.com/StapletonMabelsLabels

20%ofallsalesgotoStapletonandallordersgetfreeshippingPleasesharethelinkwithfriendsandfamily!


MaryE.StapletonSchool(SCHOOLID#06822)hastheopportunitytoparticipateinandearnCASHfromA+SchoolRewards,agreatfundraisingprogramfromStop&Shop!

Toparticipate,visitwww.stopandshop.com/aplusandscrolldowntothecenterofthepagetoREGISTERYOURCARDintheredboxmarked“ForCustomers.”Ifyouhaveregisteredyourcardinpreviousyears,youdonotneedtoregisterit,butdochecktoconfirmthatStapletonisstillyourdesignatedschoolforrewards.

YoucanalsocalltheA+SchoolRewardshotlineat1-877-275-2758forassistanceoryoucanemailyourinformationtotheA+SchoolRewardsemail.PleaseincludethelastnameassociatedwithyourSTOP&SHOPCARD,your13-digitSTOP&SHOPCARDnumber,andStapleton’sSchoolIDnumber#[email protected].

Toearnpoints,useyourSTOP&SHOPCARDeachtimeyoushopatStop&Shop,andyouwillearnCASHforourschool.Youcantrackthenumberofpointsyouareearningforourschoolbycheckingyourgroceryreceipt.OurschoolwillreceiveoneCASHawardcheckattheendoftheprogram(March2017),andweusethiscashtosupportourPTOprogramsandevents.

Pleaseencourageyourfamilyandfriendstosupportourschool.

WeacceptBoxTopsallyearlong.Pleasesendthemintoschoolwithyourchild.Thereisacollectionboxinthehallwayjustpasttheoffice.


AfterSchoolClubs

Doyouhaveaninterestortalent?PleaseconsidervolunteeringyourtimetoStapletonbycreatinganafterschoolclub.It’seasy!

Typically,afterschoolclubsrunonedayaweekforabout1.5hoursafterschoolandlastfourweeks.Youpicktheclub’stheme.Youpickthedayandtime.Youpicktheappropriateagegroup(grades).Youpickthesizeoftheclub.

• Areyoucrafty?• Wouldyouliketoorganizeasmallbookclub?• Doyouknowasecondlanguage?• Doyouwanttoshareyourloveofboardgames?• Canyouteachasmallgrouptoknit?• Doyouwanttoshareyourloveofmusicandget

thekidssinging?Composing?Makinginstruments?

ContactamemberofthePTOBoardtogetstarted.It’seasyandwewillhandlealloftheflyersandregistrations.Afterschoolclubsareonlyofferedwhensomeonestepsupandmakestheoffer.

Pleaseconsidervolunteering.

WeareveryappreciativeofthemanyvolunteerswhohavesteppeduptohelpdeliverourunusedmorningmilktodonationcentersaroundFramingham.Thankstothem,ourunusedmilkishelpingothersandnotgoingtowaste.


StapletonPTOBoard

Co-Presidents

ChristianGentry

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LaciGentry

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Co-VicePresidents

ChristineFinn

[email protected]

RachelWein

[email protected]

Co-Secretaries

JennyLandsiedel

[email protected]

MonicaSwain

[email protected]

Co-Treasurers

JenMcAuliffe

[email protected]

RickLaMonica

[email protected]

Foryourcopytoappearinnextmonth’snewsletter,pleaseemail

allsubmissionsto

[email protected]

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bynolaterthanDecember30,2016.

StapletonPTOisonFacebook!

Joinusthere!

https://www.facebook.com/marystapletonPTO

Oureventscannotrunwithoutvolunteers.PleasetakeaturnvolunteeringataPTOevent.

a letter from mrs. bright & mrs. benabdallah...• on thursday, november 10th, stapleton held an...

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