December 21, 2012

Hello Roderick Families,

I want to commend your children and the staff here at the Roderick School for their resiliency after last week's horrible tragedy.  Our community continues to keep the people of Newtown in our thoughts and prayers. 

It was certainly a busy week here at the Roderick.  I wanted to share with you some of the great things that had happened.

On Monday, our sixth grade students headed out to the Hanover Theatre in Worcester to attend the play A Christmas Carol.  Students in Grade 6 had the opportunity to compare and contrast the play after reading the play in class and viewing the play at the theatre.  The students looked great heading out to see the play!

Students in Mrs. Coleman's class did a masterful job presenting the play Everywhere Holidays by Alice Very.  The students worked really hard preparing for Tuesday's show.  Thank you to all the family members who attended the play.

The entire fourth grade celebrated Polar Express day on Thursday.  Students listened to the Caldecott Medal book written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg and participated in many integrated activities throughout the day.  I am thankful I was able to take part in this wonderful experience.

 

As a reminder, winter break will begin on Monday, December 24th.  Students will return to school on Wednesday, January 2nd.   

I want to wish all Roderick families every happiness this Holiday Season and prosperity in the New Year!

Warm regards,
Stephen S. Grenham, Principal

December 17, 2012

December 17, 2012

Dear Roderick Families,

In the wake of Friday's tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, I know you join me in a huge sense of grief for the innocent victims of this terrible tragedy.  As a follow-up to Dr. Marsden’s e-mail and Connect Ed message, I wanted to communicate how things are being handled at the Roderick School today.

This morning, I met with the Roderick staff prior to the children's arrival. At this meeting, the school psychologists and I shared that our job as a staff is to maintain as much normalcy as possible for the students in grades four through six. We also discussed ways to handle student conversations should they arise. Our school observed a moment of silence this morning in respect of all who were affected by this tragedy.  I did communicate with students that the adults here at school will continue to do everything we can to ensure they will remain safe.

In coming days, our staff will be working as hard as possible to assist any child who may be having difficulty dealing with this tragedy. Open home-school communication is vital during situations like this. Please let us know by e-mail, phone call, or letter of anything which you believe we should know/do as we educate your children this week.

Respectfully,

Stephen S. Grenham

Additional Resources:

• A National Tragedy: Helping Children Cope
• Talking to Children About Violence: Tips for Parents and Teachers
• Coping with Violence and Traumatic Events: Tips for Talking with Children (by age group)
• Coping with Crisis--Helping Children With Special Needs
• Tips for School Administrators for Reinforcing School Safety

December 14, 2012

Greetings Roderick Community,

I once worked with a man who said, "Time waits for no man."  His words certainly seem to be ringing true as we incredibly only have one school week left before the winter break begins.  Here are some of the happenings at the Roderick School this week:

Dianne Mahoney (pictured above) retired from the Wrentham Public Schools on Wednesday, December 12th (her birthday).  Dianne worked at the Wrentham Public Schools for 32 years.  During that time, Mrs. Mahoney worked as a fifth grade teacher, a sixth grade teacher, and a Title I teacher.  In each capacity, she was a true professional.  May the blessing and joy you have brought to so many, along with the contentment of a job well done, fill your life with happiness.     

This week, all Grade 6 classrooms participated in a holiday math activity.  Students in each classroom created a set of holiday lights to model ordering fractions.  Each student was given a light bulb on which they had to write a fraction and order it correctly on a string of lights (representing a number line).  Students had the opportunity to collaborate to accurately order their light bulbs. 

Congratulations to this week's Positive Referrals.  These two students exhibited caring and kind attitudes in and around our school.  Way to go! Thank you for showing such great character! 

In preparation for their trip to see the Christmas Carol, Ms. Maloney's students were busy researching and making connections.  Students collaboratively worked to locate characteristics of fashion, history, etiquette, and entertainment during the Victorian era.  

 

Students in Mrs. Curtin's class are shown using math manipulatives to add and subtract mixed numbers.  Students were charged with the task to add and subtract mixed numbers with like and unlike denominators.  

As always thanks for reading!

Have a wonderful weekend,

Stephen S. Grenham, Principal 

December 7, 2012

Dear Roderick Community,

Please take a minute to see the great things that took place at the Roderick School this past week. 

Students in Mrs. Moon's sixth grade classroom recently visited King Philip High School.  Students interviewed members of the K.P. Boys' Varsity Basketball team.  Mrs. Moon's students will take information gathered at the interviews and create the 2012-2013 team program.

Congratulations to this week's Positive Referrals! The students shown below demonstrated great character in a variety of ways.  Assisting other students, assisting Roderick staff members, and displaying respect and responsibility were all demonstrated by these individuals.  Congratulations and keep up the great work!

  

Today, Mrs. Kane's fifth grade class hosted a Culinary Tasting Expo.  This was a culminating activity for students' recipe writing using steps in a process.  The students brought in samples of their recipe and shared them with special visitors and classmates. 

As I mentioned in my November 16th posting, many of our classes at the Roderick School became involved in a community service project initiated by students from the King Philip DECA program.  Students at the Roderick wrote letters of thanks to individuals serving in our military.  These letters were included in care packages assembled by DECA students.  I wanted to share a note that I received from the students who organized this project:

Dear Mr. Grenham and faculty of the Roderick Elementary School,

Megan and I received the letters the students created Thursday afternoon and we would just like to say how awe-struck we are by the effort, time and creativity put into what must be hundreds of letters! Megan and I are emotionally moved by the support we received from your school through these letters. The letters and illustrations are incredible pieces of art that we are honored and proud to send to soldiers overseas and for that we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Please give a tremendous thank you to your students and faculty for us!

Sincerely,

Rachel Palumbo

Students in Grade 4 celebrated Grinch Day today.  Teachers and students dressed "Grinchy", but were reminded that their hearts should be two sizes too big during during this season, rather than two sizes too small!  Students integrated Grinch characters into problem solving, measuring, comparing, and contrasting.  It was a great day for all!

 

I recently received a letter of thanks from the Wrentham Food Pantry.  They informed us that through our generous contribution 1,036 pounds of food was donated!  Thank you to all who donated items for our Term I Spirit Day.

The Wrentham Public Schools will host a SEPAC meeting on Wednesday, December 12th at 7:00 PM.  Director of Student Services, Mrs. Karen McNamara will present an overview of the Massachusetts Special Education Program Review.

A special thanks to our extraordinary PTO and all the volunteers for providing a delicious staff appreciation breakfast this morning.  The staff and I are very grateful and appreciative for your amazing efforts!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Warm regards,

Stephen S. Grenham, Principal