Roderick Review Week 13 (11/23/15 - 11/25/15) and Week 14 (11/30/15-12/4/15)

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving recess last week!  With such a short week last week, I am sharing some news from last week as well as some news from this week.  

Thankful Hearts from Caring Kids
This year, our Fourth Grade team planned a new event with a twist on the former Thanksgiving Feast.  While in previous years the students and families gathered to indulge in a great feast for Thanksgiving on the Wednesday before the holiday, this year, the students and their families embarked on a new type of "Thanks-giving."  Students and their families donated items for care packages for those currently serving in the military.  In addition to personal care items such as toothbrushes and toothpaste, there were also other items such as books, puzzles, cards, and touching drawings and cards with messages of peace and thankfulness.  Students, teachers, with the help of MANY parent volunteers, assembled the care packages and each class recited a special poem or song to share.  This community project ended as all present sang "This Land is Your Land" together.  I am including some pictures below:

Thank you to the fourth grade students, their families, and their teachers for all of their efforts!

(Check out the following link to the article in the Wrentham Times! http://alturl.com/i7z8p )

Parent Meetings with Dr. Beauchaine

This week, there were two "sense-making" meetings scheduled for me to share the trends I had seen through the various meetings held with staff and parents since I came to Wrentham in July.  A special thank you to the parents who came to meet with me!  It was helpful to hear that the general trends I had noticed matched not only the staff's experience, but also the varied experiences of the families.  The general trends that emerged included:

*Celebration of a strong, well-respected faculty

*Celebration of our positive community

*Desire to be connected across schools, within Wrentham as well as regionally.

*Desire to challenge all students.

*Questions about the placement process (how students are assigned to classes)

*Celebration of a new focus on writing instruction (with the hope to revisit the math curriculum/program soon as well)

*Desire to keep all community members informed and involved.

The next step in my entry plan is to spend time over the next month or so crafting a few goals based upon all of the information I am collecting from students, staff, and parents.  In February, I will then share these goals with the School Council for their feedback as well. 

Thank you to everyone who has been helping through this information gathering stage!  I have appreciated everyone's willingness to share their experiences and suggestions!