Dale Street Blog

Friday, December 6, 2024

December 6, 2024 - Week 14

Hello Dale Street Community,

I hope that you all had a fantastic and fulfilling Thanksgiving holiday surrounded by loved ones and delicious food. It was a great week back at #beproudbedale. Please take a few moments to check out this week's blog. It's a fantastic way to stay connected and informed.

Congratulations to this week's Positive Referrals!

Holiday Celebrations - Enjoy a “Party in a Bag!” Have your child decorate a brown paper lunch bag with a holiday theme. Once decorated, fill it with a few of your child’s favorite food items. Some examples are: juice box or mini water bottle, small salty snack, fun sweet snack (cupcake, cookie), additional items could be a piece of fruit, a small yogurt, or any additional healthy snack. Adding a little note to your child's bag will definitely make them happy! Students will be able to enjoy their “Party in a Bag” snacks at their designated snack time on either December 19th or December 20th. Be on the lookout for specific information from your child's classroom teacher.

Congratulations to Dale Street's Artist of the Month, Layla from Ms. Condon's class.

Students in Ms. Isaacson's fourth-grade class collaborated this week in small groups, using narrative nonfiction picture books to locate the main idea and theme. Great teamwork!

Monday, December 16th - Wear something that shows off a winter character (Grinch, Santa, elf, Olaf, snowman, reindeer…).

Tuesday, December 17th - Merry & Bright - wear something bright, sparkly, or shiny.

Wednesday, December 18th - Wear a festive holiday sweater!

Thursday, December 19th - Mad About Plaid! Wear your favorite plaid shirt, plaid scarf, and/or plaid hat and blue jeans!

Friday, December 20th - Students and staff are encouraged to wear PJs (or comfy clothes) on the last Friday before winter break.

December Lunch Menu

Recess Reminders

As colder temperatures and the winter weather approach, please be sure to send your child with appropriate clothing/boots. We go outside for recess as long as temperatures are 20 degrees or above (including windchill). Additionally, when snow is on the ground, children need boots and snow pants to play in the snow. Please be sure to label your child’s items.

Term 1 report cards will be available in Aspen on Friday, December 13th at 1 PM. An email was sent to all Dale Street families yesterday email highlighting our Standards Based report cards as well as information for the process of setting up an Aspen account.

Dale Street will host a Holiday Flea Market on Tuesday, December 17th. Classes will visit Mr. Douglas' and Mrs. Flynn's classrooms at a designated time and have the opportunity to purchase a trinket for themselves or someone else. All proceeds will benefit the Medfield Home Committee.

This week in Makerspace students in Mrs. Scott's 4th grade class did some holiday party planning—with a budget! 💡 Great discussions about priorities, decision-making, and collaboration.

Attention Dale St. School!

A Food Drive is being held from December 2nd to December 13th to help the Medfield community during the Holiday Season. You can put your donation in the box located outside the main office for easy convenience. The Medfield Food Cupboard is asking for Protein Shakes(bottled) Mayo, Ketchup, Pasta Sauce, Taco Kits, and Spices but donations of any non-perishable foods are appreciated. Start to gather some items and start to bring them in on Monday.

Although it was on the colder side this week, students (and Ms. MacDonnell) enjoyed getting outside to play in the fresh air!

Absent/Tardy Letters

The elementary principals will be sending out letters to those students with excessive absences or tardies. The Department of Early Childhood and Secondary Education accountability system measures performance against targets for chronic absenteeism indicators. According to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, “A student is considered chronically absent if they miss 10% or more of their days in membership. In a typical 180-day school year, that is equivalent to missing 18 or more days of school.” If you receive a letter and would like to discuss it further, please do not hesitate to reach out.

As a reminder, there will be no school for students on Tuesday, December 10th. Staff will be involved in a district-wide Professional Development Day.

Click here for the link to Community Postings

That’s all for now. Thank you for your continued support.

Steve

Inclusivity * Respect * Responsibility * Continuous Growth

Friday, November 22, 2024

November 22, 2024 - Week 13

Dear Dale Street Families,

What an amazing week we've had! Please take a minute to read this week's blog so you can stay connected and informed. Next week, I will not be publishing the Dale Street Blog due to the short week. However, all of us at #beproudbedale would like to take this moment to express our deep appreciation for all our families. Thank you for trusting us with your children and for the incredible support you provide us every day. We are truly grateful! We hope you have a fantastic Thanksgiving and enjoy the quality time spent with your loved ones.

Congratulations to this week's Positive Referral!

This week in Tech Time with Mr. Ahern students in Grade 4 worked together coding our MCPE-funded Ozobots. It is wonderful to see students working so creatively!

Thanks to our Friday DJs who kept the lunchroom rockin' today.

Medfield Special Education Parents Advisory Council (SEPAC). SEPAC is run by a group of parent & caregiver volunteers who work for the understanding of, respect for, and support of all children with special needs in the community.

Medfield SEPAC now offers Parent Connection Groups. A SEPAC parent volunteer will coordinate each, focusing on a different diagnosis. These informal groups will connect parents and caregivers of children of all ages with the specific diagnosis to share experiences and resources. Our parent groups include:

- ADHD

- Autism Spectrum (ASD)

- Down Syndrome

- Anxiety, Depression & Mental Health

- Intellectual & Developmental Disability

- Allergy

- Dyslexia

- Language-based Learning Disabilities

If you want to join any of these groups, please email sepac@email.medfield.net to connect with our parent volunteers for more information. Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter now by sending an email to SEPAC@email.medfield.netand don't forget to follow us on IG (@medfieldsepac) or FB for updates!

Congratulations to our Lucky Plate winners! These students were all smiles as they received a special token for the book vending machine.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) is issuing a reminder about the third annual “Name A Snowplow” contest for statewide elementary school students in Massachusetts. The contest seeks to solicit names for 12 MassDOT snow plows that will be in service for the upcoming 2024/2025 winter season. The purpose of the contest is to celebrate the snow and ice season and to help recognize the hard work and dedication shown by public works employees and contractors during the winter season. Winning selections will be announced by Monday, December 23.

Applications for the Snowplow Naming Contest are due by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, December 6, and can be submitted by using an online portal: https://www.mass.gov/forms/name-a-snowplow-contest-submission. The contest winners will be invited to participate in a scheduled snowplow unveiling event.

This week Grade 4 students in Mrs. Flynn's class discussed bullying in their SEL block. Discussion topics for this lesson: How can 4th Graders stand up to bullies? What are the 3 roles in a bullying situation? What are bullying behaviors? Students had great discussions!

December Lunch Menu

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This week, students in Mrs. Skinner's fifth-grade class collaborated to determine which text structure the author used in an article using evidence to support their reasoning.

The Great Lunch Menu Challenge

We need your help to create the next amazing school lunch! Your mission? Come up with a tasty, healthy lunch idea that includes all the food groups below:

Fruits: At least ½ cup

Vegetables: At least ¾ cup

Grains: At least 1 ounce (whole grains are best!)

Protein: At least 1 ounce (like chicken, beans, eggs, or plant-based options)

Get Creative!

Give your meal a fun name.

Write down your idea and tell us what makes it special!

You can even draw a picture of your meal if you want!

Important Dates:

All entries must be dropped off in the main office by December 6th.

The winner will be announced on December 11th during morning announcements!

The Prize:

The student whose meal is chosen will:

🎉 Help serve their meal at all lunches on a date TBD!

👯 Get to choose a friend to help them.

We can’t wait to see your delicious ideas! 🥦🍎🍞🍗

Click here for the entry form

4th-grade Spanish students in Señora Spittel’s classes played charades in small groups this week, acting out common school activities. They also wrote a paragraph talking about a favorite school subject, what items they need for it, and what they do in that class. They should be very proud of the great work they’ve accomplished so far this year!

Click here for the link to Community Postings

Your continued support is appreciated and valued - have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

Steve

Inclusivity * Respect * Responsibility * Continuous Growth

Friday, November 15, 2024

November 15, 2024 - Week 12

Hello Dale Street Communities

On behalf of the Dale Street staff, thank you to everyone who took the time to participate in teacher conferences this week. We believe the home-school partnership is paramount for student success and these discussions are important opportunities to help improve a child’s achievement and happiness, inside and outside the classroom. Please note that Term 1 closes on November 25th. Report cards will be issued on December 8th and include information from classroom teachers and specialists.

This week was School Psychologist Week. Please join me in thanking Dale Street's amazing School Psychologist, Mrs. Strekalovsky for the wonderful work she does each day.

This week there was lots of 4th-grade student engagement playing “charadas” with Senora LeVangie during World Language. Students did great practicing with what they do in their school subjects

Mark Your Calendars

As a reminder, next Thursday (11/21) is an early release day. Students will be dismissed at 11:40 AM, and staff will participate in professional development in the afternoon.

Congratulations to this week's Positive Referrals!

Math Challenge is designed to give elementary students opportunities to sharpen their mathematical problem-solving skills at home. There will be sets of challenges posted every other week throughout the school year.

Throughout the challenges, the program covers problem-solving strategies such as drawing a picture or model, making an organized list, looking for a pattern, working backward, and guessing and checking.

More information, including a calendar of important dates and a link to download and print the challenges and solutions, is available here. Any questions regarding the math challenge program can be directed to Dale Street math specialist, Ms. Perachi.

The first Challenge is due on 11/20

MCPE Fall Ball Auction LIVE until Friday!

In celebration of this year's Fall Ball, MCPE is featuring an amazing auction with 60+ items including vacation home getaways, kids’ and family activities, a landscape design master plan, sports tickets, autographed memorabilia, local attractions, and more. Get your holiday shopping done early and support Medfield Public Schools!

Anyone can bid, whether or not you attend Fall Ball! Bidding closes at 11pm on Friday, November 15.

All proceeds benefit Medfield Public Schools.

Click here to bid!

Students in Mrs. Flynn's fourth-grade class have been working really hard on their opinion essays! Taking time to do some peer editing...they are almost complete.

The Dale Street lunch menu is updated and complete for November (subject to change).

Click here for the link to Community Postings

That’s all for now. Thank you for your continued support.

Steve

Inclusivity * Respect * Responsibility * Continuous Growth