Post on 15-Jun-2018
News from our Principal
May 2015 Volume 9, Issue 8
Center School Times
Monday, June 1, 2015
Spring Book Fair and
Art Show sponsored by the
HPTA 5pm-7:30pm GYM
Monday, June 8, 2015
Kindergarten Field Day
Wear your colors!
Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Rain date - K Field Day
Friday, June 12, 2015
Flag Day Celebration
Wear your red, white and
blue to school!
Monday, June 15, 2015
First Grade Field Day
Wear your colors!
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
Rain Date– 1st Field Day
Monday, June 22, 2015
Kindergarten Picnic on the
Common - see your teacher
invitation
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
Last Day of School for
All Kindergarteners
Friday, June 26, 2015
Last Day of School for
First Grade-12:05pm
Early Dismissal-no lunch
Transitions: Change
June is a month full of mixed emotions. We celebrate the growth, tre-
mendous for our students, made over the last 180 days. We relish ac-
complishments and the smiles that accompany them. While excited
about the prospect of moving on to a different class and different
teacher, students often feel a sense of loss...the familiar routines will
change. For many, students and parents (teachers too), this can be un-
settling.
Children respond differently to this transition. To support a positive
school year end, acknowledge your child’s feelings. Discuss but don't
dwell. Plan a summer get-together while school is still in session.
Knowing that you’ll see a friend that you currently see most everyday is
comforting for a young child who is developing the concept of time and
“next year” seems so very far away.
We, educators and families, share a common goal: supporting whole
child growth. We facilitate multiple areas of development including
academic, physical, and social emotional. You experienced that this
year with the staff that supported your child and will again “next year”
which is mere months away Lauren Dubeau
Early Childhood Education Plan
and Building Design Direction
Middle School Library June 15, 2015 7:00-8:30 pm
Learn about the Center Elementary School Building Project and where w
e are in the process. Hear about the Education Program, what we do instruction-
ally preschool through first grade. See renderings of physical space that sup-
ports this early childhood programming.
The solution to the challenges of Center School is taking shape. Be informed,
be an active member of the next community forum on June 15, 2015.
LIBRARY HAPPENINGS Kindergarten—The month of May brought book celebrations and many different activities. All Center School students heard
“Hooray for Hat!”as we celebrated Children’s Book Week (May 4th-8th). The celebration culminated with hat day on May 8th.
The month began reading and celebrating the works of Jan Brett. Most students were familiar with “The Mitten and The Hat”.
However, we read “Hedgie’s Surprise”. The students loved hearing about a hedgehog as a character. We even had a chance to see a video of Ms. Brett drawing a hedgehog. Some of the other classic children’s authors we’ve included in our book celebra-
tion are Kevin Henkes, Leo Lionni, Don Freeman, Tomie Depaolo, Eric Carle, Patricia Polacco, and Laura Numeroff. I know that sounds very ambitious. It will be time well invested because the students will understand and appreciate quality children’s
authors and literature.
During our discussion of Don Freeman and subsequent reading of Corduroy, the students created button art by attempting to
“hide” a button somewhere on their paper. This artwork will be on display for all to see during our up coming book fair.
The first week of June will be spent on the creations of Eric Carle. Did you know that Mr. Carle paints sheets of tissue paper
(sometimes using the artistic technique called… finger-painting) and then creates his characters and scenery as a collage?
Just a FYI for parents, the students will stop checking out books on June 4th. We are attempting to collect all checked out books and assessing our collection of books for next year. Any student with an overdue book will receive a notice with the
title, author, and replacement cost (if the book absolutely cannot be found). Thank you in advance for helping us make this
process go smoothly. I look forward to seeing your children as first graders.
First Grade—In early May the students had a scavenger hunt in the library. It seemed like a game to the students but it
really was an assessment to measure how successful the students are at finding specific types of books. They worked in pairs
and tried to find books after reading a clue. The students were very successful finding the call number, title, and the physical
book on the shelf. Great Job!
We read “Library Mouse” by Daniel Kirk. It is a story about a well-read mouse named Sam that lives in a hole in the wall of a
public library. After filling his mind with thoughts, ideas, and images of far off lands, Sam decides to write a book of his own.
In fact he writes three books that are soon discovered by the young patrons of the library. The children (and curious librarian) want to meet this now “famous author” but Sam convinces them that books can be written by anyone and everyone. This book
is a wonderful introduction to writing for children. There is a natural progression from reading about Sam to wanting to share their ideas in a book. The student are planning (storyboarding) a book and will work the rest of May and into June on creating
these stories. We will have an entire class period spent sharing and celebrating our students as authors. Please watch for the
book that your child has created and have he/she read the story to you. These books will be going home during the last week of
school.
We hope the children have developed the habit of reading every night. In fact, I encourage you to keep a journal or log of your child’s reading times throughout the summer. Simply by writing down the time it keeps the student accountable to the habit of
reading. Maybe you can build in some incentives for your child if he/she reaches certain milestones. Please remember the more a child reads (or is read to) the more proficient he/she becomes at reading. Now is the time to concentrate on learning to
read but soon your child will need to read to learn.
Beginning this week, the students will not be checking out books during library time. Mrs. Jennings and I will be concentrat-
ing on getting all books back and working on inventorying our collection. Any students with overdue books will receive a no-
tice with the title, author, and replacement cost (if it absolutely cannot be found). Thank you in advance for helping this proc-
ess go smoothly.
We have many fun lessons planned for the students to fill our last few weeks. We will have a center type format with a listen-
ing station, games, and computers. We are also planning a library review in the form of a baseball game.
LIBRARY HAPPENINGS—cont.
I cannot tell you how grateful I am to have had this opportunity with your children. I hope I have planted a seed that will blos-
som into a healthy voracious love of reading.
Mrs. Susan Mello
Center School Librarian
Thank Your Child’s Teacher for a Great Year through the Thank-A-Teacher Program! The Thank-A-Teacher program is a great way to tell your child’s teachers how much you appreciate the work that they do! Each educator honored by a donation receives a personalized card from your child and the Edu-cation Foundation thanking them for their work. Last spring, 235 educators received Thank-A-Teacher ac-
knowledgements from families. It's a popular program that recognizes teachers for their dedication, and helps to support their efforts to give students the tools and motivation to become lifelong learners. All pro-ceeds fund Hopkinton Education Foundation grants in the schools. To participate, complete and return the backpack flyer or e-flyer that will be distributed on Friday, May 29, or
go to the Hopkinton Education Foundation website (www.HopkintonEducationFoundation.org) and download the form. Any questions, please contact Christine Coffman atcddcoffman@comcast.net.
In First Grade Health classes, students have been learning how to be safe around medicines
and poisons. Students learned that medicines can be helpful or harmful depending on how
they are used. Students learned the Medicine Safety Rule: Only take medicine if it is given to
you by a doctor, parent, or other trusted adult. In a recent lesson, students successfully ap-
plied and practiced the medicine safety rule in role-play situations!
We have also been learning about poison safety in Health classes. First graders have learned
how to recognize and avoid common household poisons, along with learning the Poison Safety
Rule: If you aren’t sure something is safe, don’t sniff, taste, swallow, or play with it. Students
also learned to look for warning labels and to ask an adult for information if they are unsure
about a product.
Family Tips: Medicine Safety: As you give medicines to your child, talk about the amount of
medicine the doctor has prescribed or the amount that is printed on the bottle. Poison Safety:
Help your child by playing “detective” with him or her. Search for poisonous products in your
home, then put them out of reach of young children and pets.
For more information: Go to the National Capital Poison Center: www.poison.org or visit Safe
Kids Worldwide: www.usa.safekids.org.
Mrs. Lewinsky wants to thank all first grade students for a great year, and wish all students
and their families a safe and happy summer! Kathy Lewinsky
HEF THANK-A-TEACHER PROGRAM
HEALTHY NEWS UPDATE
MILESTONE—FIRST GRADERS VISIT ELMWOOD
ARITHMETICKLES K-3 FAMILY PROGRAM WITH
CENTER SCHOOL VOLUNTEERS
Kindergarten Field Day Colors
Wear a shirt and/or shorts in your class color.
Be sure to apply sunscreen on your child before school.
Sneakers and water bottles required.
9:15-11:00
Lori Cowell—White
Rebecca Leary—Blue
Alaina Chagnon—Neon Green
Meredith Beauregard—Red
Stephanie Fernandez—Orange
1:00-2:45
Cathy Robinson/Kristen Pearson—Green
Stacey Homan—Orange
Sue Ferguson—Yellow
Karen McCaw—Red
Kaitlin Barry/Nancy Fiorentino—Blue
First Grade Field Day
Monday, June 15th Rain Date June 16th
Wear a tshirt and/or shirts in your class color
Make sure to apply sunscreen on your child before school.
Sneakers and water bottles required.
9:15-11:00
Mrs. Farrell—Blue
Mrs. Anderson and Mrs. Denault—Red
Mr. Sanford—Orange
Mrs. Cullen—Yellow
Mrs. Katragjini—Green
Mrs. Allen—White
1:00-2:45
Mrs. Farquharson and Mrs. Kane—Blue
Mrs. Kahn—Yellow
Mrs. Davis—Red
Ms. Williamson—White
Mr. Boisvert—Green
Volume 1, Issue 1 Page 7
Center School musicians have been busy singing, saying, dancing and playing. Each forty-minute session is a
combination of interrelated activities. Some favorite Grade One songs, which welcome spring, are ‘Sir Cat-
erpillar’ with a lovely tune, based upon one of Mozart’s famous melodies. Your children are intrigued by the
Japanese words of ‘Haru Ga Kita’ (Spring has come) as well as the German words in ‘Alle Meine
Entchen’ (All my Little Ducklings). They love to sing songs from other countries!
With our variety of enjoyable vocal warm-ups, First Grade musicians are learning how to use their singing
voices while becoming familiar with their wide range of pitches. They are learning how to match scale
pitches following and using the Kodaly hand symbols. Many of your children are able to sing a tune, just by
watching and ‘reading’ my hand signals. (Their favorite singing pattern is ‘Sol’ ‘La’ ‘Mi’ which sounds like
‘salami’ when sung fast.)
‘Fuzzy Wuzzy Was a Bear’ is a poem that the Grade One Musicians learned to play on the pentatonic scale.
They have all had a chance to play this on the glockenspiels in the classroom. Each First Grade student was
assigned a partner ‘teacher’ to help his or her ‘student’ play the song. The ‘Judges’ then decided if they
were ready to perform for the classroom. Perhaps you have seen and heard them try this out on the black keys
(pentatonic scale) of a keyboard or piano at home.
Kindergarten singers are delighted with the upbeat, cheerful song, ‘Spring Has Sprung’. They especially
love to add the bell-like sound of the tone bars to the very end (on mi, re do) during our classroom ‘concert’.
Your Kindergarten children also loved the chant: “One two three, Mama caught a Flea….” First they prac-
ticed it using a variety of voices (high, low, whispering, no voice, etc). They then they challenged them-
selves with a movement activity by which they all had to move away – and then return to their exact spot in
the room by the end of the chant. Later they learned how to walk /run to the rhythm of the chant with their
feet moving in eighth notes or quarter notes. Kindergarteners have all had their chance to play on the glocken-
spiels (‘Up the Ladder We must Go’.) Now they are learning how to play, ‘The Pussy Willow Song’. They
are most delighted with the ending, when they swoop down the scale with a glissando.
In May we are enjoying numerous creative movement activities and singing games. Some favorites include
‘How Do you Dootie Day?’ ‘Tideo’, ‘Miss Mary Mack’, ‘Bluebird’, ‘Bow-Wow Wow’, and ‘Jump Jim
Joe’. Many of these involve dancing and moving with a partner; often they switch and change partners dur-
ing the dance. This is a fine way for children to mix together and work on their social skills.
With Flag Day coming up soon, Center School singers are working hard on all their patriotic songs. First
Grade students love to be “Music Teacher Helpers” as they work with Kindergarten students to make sure
they know the songs.
Happy Spring!
Musically Yours,
Mrs. Moran
MUSICAL NOTES