Burr Bulletin - May 3, 2010

Dear Families,

I hope that many of you were able to spend time at our school art show last week. Atlantis came alive for its grade K-5 creators and for its appreciative visitors.

Ms. Jaquith employs the philosophy and practice of "choice-based art" in order to help students create the very individualized work that you saw. In this milieu, the job of the artist is to have an art idea and find the best medium to express it, or, to use a material which leads to an idea. Ms. Jaquith has said, "Teaching art through choice-based centers enables every student to work from his/her strengths and to develop confidence in art class. Our philosophy is simple: The child is the artist. This results in very personalized learning which, I believe, is among the many fine goals of the Newton Public Schools." It is this approach that inspires Burr students and results in the fine work that you saw in our art show this year. Students are so fortunate to be able to choose among such varied media to create their artwork: they may paint, draw, weave, work with metal, work with clay, do photography, or make I-movies. And it is so important that the children have an opportunity to explore, create and collaborate, regularly, in art; these are truly 21st century skills at work. Thank you for this wonderful event, Ms. Jaquith!

We sent "Parent Information Forms" home to you on April 26 to use if you have information you would like to give us as we begin student placement into classes for next year. The due date for these is today, May 3. At my parent-principal coffee this Friday, May 7, I will review the process that we follow as we do placement later in May and in June.

Lunch Shift: As you know we are experimenting with having the students go out to recess first at lunchtime and then come in to eat their lunches. We have only been trying this for 2 days, so it is too early to tell if this shift is preferable to our former schedule. We have already made some adjustments to the plan, and we will continue to monitor the lunches to make sure that the students have time to eat. So far we have noticed that the lunchtimes in the cafeteria are quieter, and the students are hungrier when they are eating, so they seem to be eating more. The staff and school council will review this experiment at their meetings in May.

Grade 3 parents: You are invited to a presentation on the Instrumental Music Program that begins in grade 4 on Tuesday, May 18, at 8:30 AM in the cafeteria. The presentation will last 45 minutes to an hour. Mr. Richard King, Newton's K-8 Fine Arts Coordinator will be the presenter.

Teacher Appreciation Week: This week is Teacher Appreciation Week. The PTO and room parents are organizing events for this week. Children and families will be encouraged to make cards or drawings or to write notes or poems for their teachers as a way to thank and acknowledge them; teachers truly appreciate these words of thanks.

Teachers' jobs have become increasingly complex and demanding over the last several years. We now have standards-based education and progress reports, state testing, the No Child Left Behind Act, new district initiatives such as developing Professional Learning Communities and teaching students 21st Century Skills, as well as full inclusion and the charge of meeting all students' needs. Teachers spend a great deal of time planning thoughtfully, conferring regularly with assistants and specialists, then teaching each lesson skillfully, with each student's achievement level, strengths, weaknesses and learning style in mind. This happens daily. I join you in acknowledging and thanking our very talented, dedicated teaching staff. I feel very fortunate to work with a group of people who care so much about the growth and development of the "whole" child and who teach with skill, creativity, intelligence, reflection, and compassion.

Warm weather and clothing: As the warm weather approaches, we ask that you please support our expectations for appropriate student dress at school. Spaghetti straps/ tank tops, bare midriffs, low cut pants, very short skirts and bare feet are not appropriate dress for school. Even many styles of sandals and flip flops can be dangerous on the playground. If your child is not dressed appropriately, please know that we will contact you. We appreciate your support in reminding your child of these expectations.

Please remember that the 3rd, 4th and 5th graders will be taking math MCAS tests in May. The fifth grade will also take science MCAS tests. The schedule is:

Grade 5: May 10, May 12, May 14, May 17.
Grade 3 and Grade 4: May 19, May 21 from May 14 through June 1.

Thank you to our Blue Zone Safety Week parent volunteers who did a nice job of reviewing the rules and expectations we have for drop off in the morning and pick up in the afternoon. These rules and expectations are in place to make sure that all children are as safe as possible at the start and close of school. Thank you for following the correct procedures and for reviewing these with your children and with any friends and family members who use the blue zones.

The School Committee determined that the last day of school for students for this year will be Monday, June 21. The last day is a half-day; dismissal on the last day will be at 12:00 noon for elementary schools. The Burr School grade 5 graduation will be on Friday, June 18 at 9:00 AM.

Please remember that Thursday, May 6 is an early release day. All elementary students are dismissed at 12:30 on May 6. I hope to see many of you at the last principal/parent coffee of the year on Friday, May 7, at our May 19 PTO meeting or at other end-of-the-year fundraisers or community celebrations.

Sincerely,
Cindy Bencal