Photo Credit: Krystle Fleming via Compfight

The title of this blog entry is a play on Hamlet’s famous soliloquey, “To be or not to be…”  With Halloween fast approaching, I’m getting more questions about the “no sweets” rule at MBS for birthdays and celebrations.  Those of you who attend the Monster Mash (Friday, November 1st) will find plenty of sweets for sale in the PTO “snack bar” at this annual party.  You’ll see cupcakes at Girl Scout meetings and Yearbook Club.  Is this inconsistent? Why is it okay to have cupcakes and brownies at the Monster Mash but not during the school day?

I’d like to explain my thinking.  Schooling in our nation is compulsory.  The first U.S. state to require all children to attend school was Massachusetts, beginning in 1852.  Mississippi became the last state to require compulsory school attendance in 1917.  The fact is, all children in our country must attend school, either private, public, or in an approved home school program.  In our increasingly diverse country, our public schools have an obligation to create learning environments that are welcoming to a wide variety of cultures, religions, beliefs, habits, and parenting styles.  In addition, our schools grapple with public health issues plaguing our nation such as asthma, diabetes, and obesity.

Imagine you are a parent whose child has diabetes.  Imagine your family is working hard to instill healthy eating habits and you strictly limit sweets in your home.  Imagine that your child is sensitive to gluten, nuts, food dyes, or other elements that are part of the treats often brought to school to celebrate birthdays and holidays.  You have no choice about sending your child to school – the law compels you to do so.  If the school then exposes your child to foods and/or rituals that are contrary to your beliefs or bad for your child’s health, you are in a difficult situation.  This is the main reason we have restricted our classroom celebrations to include non-food or very limited, healthy food options.  Our schools need to be welcoming and inclusive for everyone, since everyone is compelled by law to be there.

On the other hand, joining Girl Scouts or attending The Monster Mash are completely optional activities.  These are community sponsored events being held in the school building.  No one is forced to go.  Offering an array of foods at these community events is up to the organizers and sponsors of the event, not up to the school administration. Student’s own lunchboxes are similar.  You choose what to send to school or purchase for snack for your child.  That is not my decision, and I’ve had to explain to teachers that parents certainly have individual rights to feed their children however they wish!

I hope this helps clear up what might seem like inconsistency on my part.  In my personal life, I enjoy occasional sweets.  My own two children fondly remember making chocolate chip cookies together, or the specially decorated cakes for their birthdays.  Part of my  job as your principal is to design and enforce procedures that create a welcoming and inclusive learning environment for our diverse community.  I have to balance personal liberty with public responsibility.

I appreciate the supportive comments I received when this new rule was first announced, and I also appreciate the questions because they challenge me to clarify and communicate my thinking.

I hope all the Ospreys who participate in the holiday of Halloween will have a fun and safe experience.  I look forward to seeing many of you at the Monster Mash this Friday night!

Julie

 

Spring is here, and along with spring we generally see an increase in some of our Ospreys engaging in early “dating” behavior.  We hear about secret attempts to kiss on the playground, numerous whispers about who “likes” whom, or who is “going out” with whom, and fights over rumors being spread.  As our students gain increased access to texting and social media, this “dating” behavior seems to have spread further throughout the school, particularly in fourth and fifth grades.  However, our third graders are not immune to this trend as they hear rumors on the bus and from older siblings.

 

MBS administration, guidance counselors, and teachers have a firm and clear stance on this topic.  “Dating,” “going out,” or any type of romantic relationships are simply not allowed in elementary school.  We realize some parents may disagree with this stance, and let our students know that what they do outside of school is not our business, as long as it STAYS outside of school.  When text messages or Facebook posts become topics of whispers and arguments in school, the problem becomes one we have to face, and students will be held accountable for their behavior.

 

Why are we so adamant in this stance?  After all, who doesn’t remember getting “crushes” in elementary school?  Isn’t this just a harmless part of growing up?  Not so fast.  A recent study at the University of Georgia (http://bit.ly/10dMEQ2) examined the early dating behavior of 624 children between sixth and twelfth grades.  The study was recently reported in Newsweek magazine (http://thebea.st/Zv2SRm).

 

The study found a distinct link between early “dating” behavior and other risk-taking behaviors such as drug and alcohol use.  Furthermore, students who engaged in early “dating” behaviors had weaker study skills and work habits than those who avoided romantic entanglements.   Students are distracted from the business of learning when they engage in “dating” behaviors before they are emotionally or intellectually prepared to handle the outcomes.  As stated by the authors of the study, “Dating a classmate may have the same emotional complications of dating a co-worker,” Orpinas said. “When the couple splits, they have to continue to see each other in class and perhaps witness the ex-partner dating someone else. It is reasonable to think this scenario could be linked to depression and divert attention from studying.”

 

We understand that our students who are “dating” are playing at relationships, just our as preschoolers play “house” during free play.  In the case of ten and eleven year olds, however, the situation is not at all harmless.  We encounter hurt feelings, bullying behaviors, and even behaviors that fall under the legal definition of sexual harassment.  We want elementary school to be a safe, fun and productive experience for our Ospreys.  To that end, we do not allow them to play at “dating.”

This will be a challenging week for many families, as our children ask questions and express fears over the recent tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School.  Other mass murders have been incredibly horrible, but the similarity between Sandy Hook and our own school somehow brings this event closer to home.

At MBS, we will follow the advice of psychologists and respond only to questions from our students.  For our age group, the advice is to start by asking what they already know, and what their fears or concerns are.  We’ll keep our routines as normal as possible this week, and pay attention to any signs of stress our Ospreys exhibit.  Finally, we will focus on what is right in our world, and remain positive.

One of the most hopeful things we can celebrate this week is the culmination of “Project Giving Tree.” We had an absolutely amazing outpouring of love and hope from our little community.  We gathered 160 wrapped, specific gifts for the children in NYC affected by Hurricane Sandy.  I was completely amazed at the success of this project!  Taking this kind of positive action can absolutely help to alleviate tension and stress over all the bad news we hear so much about in the world.

This week I know we will all hold our children a little tighter (my 21 year old is home from college and wasn’t all that sure he wanted my hugs, but he got them anyway!) and send prayers and maybe even contributions to that little town in Connecticut that will never be the same.

Thank you to everyone for helping with Project Giving Tree, giving us all a way to focus on what is right in our world.

 

Our “Oscar the Osprey” costume has been a wonderful addition to our school.  Every class at MBS works hard to develop a sense of belonging.  One of the ways we do this is by selecting a class name.  When the class shares a name (for example, the Neon Green Peacocks), then we ALL belong to this group, even the teacher.  Some teachers like to vote on a name (thus this year’s Lightning McBacons); others have the same name annually (Taylor’s Travelers or Hunt’s Heroes).  In addition, classes set a goal for safe, respectful, and responsible behavior.  When they meet their goal, they display a special banner on their door.

Now that Oscar has joined our community, HE has been delivering the banner! It is so much fun to observe the students as Oscar “flies” down the hall on his way to a banner ceremony.  Some are rather casual, saying “Hi Oscar!” and giving him a “high five.”  A few are slightly nervous or shy about seeing him out and about.  Some eagerly run up for a hug from Oscar.  Many fourth and fifth graders work hard to try to peek inside the mascot costume and wager a guess as to which faculty member is being “Oscar.”  So far, though, we’ve managed to keep that a deep secret (even from me!).

Although I maintain ignorance regarding Oscar’s secret identity, most of the students still see me as a possible link for communicating with their special mascot.  I have received a few letters written to Oscar.  I hang them on my office door and let the kids know that I think Oscar might see it there.  Here are a couple of samples:

“Dear Oscar,

You are such a cute bird that I wish there were thousands of you.  Thank you for giving us the banner.  Every time I see you, you make my day.  I like your white feathers.  I hope I see you soon.  p.s. You are so cute.”

“Dear Oscar,

Where are you?  I love you Osprey.  I’ve been looking for you every day at recess!! Maybe you can come visit Mrs. Ellingson’s class.”

There is a special magic in experiencing this kind of belief.  As our “Ospreys” go through MBS, they develop through the “magical” early childhood years and settle into being pre-adolescents before moving on to CMS.  Right now, most of the students at least WANT to believe that “Oscar” is real! I cherish their excitement and relish the mornings when we make a “banner” announcement about a class meeting their goal, because I know it means that “Oscar” will be visiting MBS, spreading his magic and helping us all to believe, if only just a little.

 

 

 

The Federal Law that guides all U.S. schools was last updated in 2002.  That year, the law gained the moniker “No Child Left Behind (NCLB).”  The law has been due for review since 2007.  While the law helped schools around the country make improvements, there are still significant flaws.  President Obama allowed states the opportunity to apply for waivers; Vermont worked on a waiver but eventually withdrew from the process.  Thus, Vermont schools are still accountable for all aspects of this legislation.

A key feature of NCLB is the use of one time, “high stakes” tests to determine whether or not schools are making “adequate yearly progress.”  Schools are held to an artificially determined standard for all students, including those with disabilities and those with fewer advantages.  While we strongly support accountability and growth, many of the “sanctions” imposed by the law make little sense in a rural state.

At MBS, our students exceed the state standard in reading, writing, math and science as measured by the annual New England Common Assessment Program.  Still, we have significant achievement gaps between “all” students and those with disabilities or those from lower income homes.  Under the law, a school needs to have at least 40 students in these subgroups before the data is used to “identify” a school.  Thus, PPS and UMS are not “identified,” because they do not have 40 students in these subgroups.  However, when the populations merge at MBS and on to CMS, the subgroup size increases.

This year, MBS is one of the “identified” schools to undertake a process called “restructuring.”  A team of MBS teachers is examining 81 indicators of effective schools that have been drawn from  research.  Through this examination, we will identify 3 – 5 priorities that will be approached through a “restructuring” plan aimed at closing the aforementioned achievement gap.  The District is going through a similar process.

Several of the indicators are related to parent and family involvement and engagement.  In order to fully assess our status in relation to these indicators, I need to get input from YOU!  I will be talking about this at the next PTO meeting on November 8th at 6 p.m. in the MBS library.  We have free childcare available.  I hope to see many of you there!

I actually teared up on the first day when I saw my Ospreys walking up the hill from the bus loop.  They all seem to have grown inches over the summer!  We had a great opening of school.  All the teachers have been working to build community in their classrooms with various fun activities.  Ms. Millham and I met with the kids to remind them how to be safe, respectful, and responsible Ospreys.  We also did our annual reminder of bus rules and practiced a bus evacuation.

A friend of mine shared a link to a very interesting blog called “Momastery” (www.momastery.com).  The link had a letter that the blog author wrote to her third grade son, Chase.  I loved it, and have copied it below for your enjoyment.

Our first PTO meeting is coming up on 9/13 at 6 p.m. in the library, with childcare provided.  I hope to see many of you there!

Sincerely,

Julie

 

From “Momastery:”

Chase – When I was in third grade, there was a little boy in my class named Adam.

 Adam looked a little different and he wore funny clothes and sometimes he even smelled a little bit. Adam didn’t smile. He hung his head low and he never looked at anyone at all. Adam never did his homework. I don’t think his parents reminded him like yours do. The other kids teased Adam a lot. Whenever they did, his head hung lower and lower and lower. I never teased him, but I never told the other kids to stop, either.

 And I never talked to Adam, not once. I never invited him to sit next to me at lunch, or to play with me at recess. Instead, he sat and played by himself. He must have been very lonely.

I still think about Adam every day. I wonder if Adam remembers me? Probably not. I bet if I’d asked him to play, just once, he’d still remember me.

I think that God puts people in our lives as gifts to us. The children in your class this year, they are some of God’s gifts to you.

So please treat each one like a gift from God. Every single one.

 Baby, if you see a child being left out, or hurt, or teased, a part of your heart will hurt a little. Your daddy and I want you to trust that heart- ache. Your whole life, we want you to notice and trust your heart-ache. That heart ache is called compassion, and it is God’s signal to you to do something. It is God saying, Chase! Wake up! One of my babies is hurting! Do something to help! Whenever you feel compassion – be thrilled! It means God is speaking to you, and that is magic. It means He trusts you and needs you.

 Sometimes the magic of compassion will make you step into the middle of a bad situation right away.

 Compassion might lead you to tell a teaser to stop it and then ask the teased kid to play. You might invite a left-out kid to sit next to you at lunch. You might choose a kid for your team first who usually gets chosen last. These things will be hard to do, but you can do hard things.

 Sometimes you will feel compassion but you won’t step in right away. That’s okay, too. You might choose instead to tell your teacher and then tell us. We are on your team – we are on your whole class’s team. Asking for help for someone who is hurting is not tattling, it is doing the right thing. If someone in your class needs help, please tell me, baby. We will make a plan to help together.

When God speaks to you by making your heart hurt for another, by giving you compassion, just do something. Please do not ignore God whispering to you. I so wish I had not ignored God when He spoke to me about Adam. I remember Him trying, I remember feeling compassion, but I chose fear over compassion. I wish I hadn’t. Adam could have used a friend and I could have, too.

 Chase – We do not care if you are the smartest or fastest or coolest or funniest. There will be lots of contests at school, and we don’t care if you win a single one of them. We don’t care if you get straight As. We don’t care if the girls think you’re cute or whether you’re picked first or last for kickball at recess. We don’t care if you are your teacher’s favorite or not. We don’t care if you have the best clothes or most Pokemon cards or coolest gadgets. We just don’t care.

 We don’t send you to school to become the best at anything at all. We already love you as much as we possibly could. You do not have to earn our love or pride and you can’t lose it. That’s done.

 We send you to school to practice being brave and kind.

 Kind people are brave people. Brave is not a feeling that you should wait for. It is a decision. It is a decision that compassion is more important than fear, than fitting in, than following the crowd.

 Trust me, baby, it is. It is more important.

 Don’t try to be the best this year, honey.

 Just be grateful and kind and brave. That’s all you ever need to be.

 Take care of those classmates of yours, and your teacher, too. You Belong to Each Other. You are one lucky boy . . . with all of these new gifts to unwrap this year.

 I love you so much that my heart might explode.

 Enjoy and cherish your gifts.

 And thank you for being my favorite gift of all time.

I love this time of year!  Since my mother started a preschool in my home, and then became a college professor, my life has always included the thrill of “back to school.”  This will be an interesting and exciting year for Malletts Bay School.

We have six new teachers joining our faculty, with a range of experiences and backgrounds.  We are beginning to really dig into the Common Core State Standards (http://www.corestandards.org/), which give us an opportunity to examine what our curriculum needs to include in order for our students to be college and career ready in the 21st and 22nd centuries.  We have a new Technology Integration Specialist (Mrs. Aimee Boucher) who will support all teachers in using technology as an effective tool for delivering this curriculum.  We’ve updated to the new Everyday Math program, which includes the “deluxe e-suite,” offering families the opportunity to interact with the program from home and giving teachers new tools at their fingertips for teaching important math concepts and skills.  Finally, we will engage in an examination of our entire school structure with support from the Vermont Department of Education.  In spite of wonderful gains in all area of the annual NECAP assessment, our school remains “identified” for two subgroups: low-income and special education.  As such, we have been given the opportunity to engage in a research based process using a new program for “restructuring” our school.   The program is called “Green Mountain Star.”

As you can see, it has been a busy summer and will be a busy year for our MBS teachers!  They have all been coming in to set up their classrooms, network, and share resources.  School are great places to work, but they really come alive when the kids walk in the door.  I can’t wait!

Stay tuned to this blog for more information about the Common Core and the MBS restructuring efforts.  I am keenly aware of how involved families in this community are in their schools, and look forward to sharing with you and including you in decisions that will affect your children’s future.

 

Our Ospreys are growing up in a digital world.  As educators, we have the joy and the responsibility of introducing our students to this world.  Here at MBS, integrating technology into our curriculum is a primary goal.  Vermont recently published the “Vermont Technology Grade Expectations,” (http://vermonttges2010.pbworks.com), which outline the key areas we focus on.  These are creativity and innovation; communication and collaboration; research and information fluency; critical thinking, problem solving and decision making; digital citizenship; and technology operations and concepts.  Every classroom in our school has a projector and an interactive whiteboard.  We have one “fixed” computer lab and two mobile labs of netbooks.  In a few classrooms, we are piloting the use of individual devices such as ipods and ipads.  Our goal in the future is to increase the flexibility of the tools we use in order to enhance our instruction.

For technology is not the end itself; instead, we see technology as a powerful tool to engage our students, expose them to the world, increase communication opportunities, and help them work collaboratively to solve problems.  Our students are writing and commenting through our “Young Writer’s Project” digital classrooms or on their own blog sites.  They are researching on the Internet and using critical thinking to determine whether they have found a source of reliable information. They are collaborating to create glogs (interactive posters).  They are representing mathematical thought using spreadsheets and graphs.

With great power comes great responsibility.  We take this responsibility seriously, structuring lessons in a manner that teaches civility and responsible use of technology.  There are dangers – our students are still young, and not able to fully understand the implications of some technology such as texting and social networks.

We hope you will partner with us in teaching our young Ospreys about safe use of technology.  In November, we are offering a parent/educator workshop called “TECHNICOOL.”  Developed by Prevent Child Abuse VT, this is a very informative and useful workshop that will help you to keep your child safe while s/he explores technology.

The workshop will be on November 8th from 6:00-7:30 p.m.  Please call to register – 264-5900.  I hope to see you there!