Good afternoon,
I heard from one teacher earlier this week (Monday), who was excitedly talking about her trip to the Caribbean next week. As of Monday, she already fully packed her suitcase! If that doesn’t tell you that some of us are ready for vacation, I’m not sure what will. If you are headed away on a trip, or if you’re staying close to home, like my family, I hope you have a great week.
Tomorrow (Friday) is our annual Blue and Gold Day at RJ Grey! Many years ago, this day coincided with the last home basketball game, and the school would wear blue and gold to support the teams. Our basketball season wrapped up last week, and has done so for the entire 11 years I’ve been at RJ Grey. However, the day has remained as one of the more fun, school-spirit oriented days in our year. Each grade level will have an assembly, complete with performances from our band, orchestra, and chorus, and cheerleaders. And we’ll have a game of musical chairs, too. I’m anticipating fun assemblies tomorrow leading into a good week away! Please encourage your students to wear some blue and gold tomorrow…maybe they’ll wear their Revolution t-shirts we distributed in the fall.
Earlier this week, our assistant principal, Mr. Zhang asked if he could use one of our bulletin boards in the cafe annex area. Not having a complete picture of why, I said sure! Turns out, he wanted to find a way for our students to offer thoughts on what they view as “What’s Awesome about RJ Grey.” His Advisory group helped him assemble the board this week.
I zeroed in on some of the answers and wanted to share a few with you here:
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The teachers at RJ Grey are really nice, helpful, and encouraging.
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I love RJ Grey because most of the time I have a lot of fun.
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I love RJ Grey because all my friends are here.
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I like RJ Grey because I get to see my friends everyday. It is a comfortable space and I feel safe in this school. Learning at RJ Grey I would say is a privilege.
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RJ Grey is amazing as there are so many kind people and they are willing to be your friend.
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I like my teachers because they ask me if I’m okay when I’m not doing well, and they help me with my work and they are very kind to me.
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I love that my teachers are great and always smiling.
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Thank you for putting up with us, even though we are hard to handle.
Hearing from our kids about some of the simple and positive things they think about RJ Grey is refreshing and serve as a reminder that RJ Grey is a great place to learn and work.
If you joined us for the first in the series of Cartwheel webinars, we are pleased to announced the second session: Positive Relationships with Screen-based Technology. Through our partnership with Cartwheel Care, the Acton-Boxborough Regional School District invites you to join us as we explore research-based strategies to support healthy media use for yourself and the young people you care for and work with. Media educator and researcher, Sarah Krongard, Ph.D. will review a framework for mindful media literacy, strategies for integrating media and technology to support prosocial development, and a Q & A session on media challenges and concerns. The webinar will take place on Wednesday, March 1 at 7 pm. Please see this flyer for info on how to register.
Finally, our Superintendent’s Office has asked us to share information about Open Door Theater’s production of The Spongebob Musical. Please see this flyer for performance dates and ticket information.
Here are some dates to be aware of:
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Monday, 2/20 - Friday, 2/24: Schools Closed for February Vacation
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Monday, 2/27: Early Release at 1 pm
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Wednesday, 3/1: Webinar: Positive Relationships with Screen-Based Technology
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Thursday, 3/2: ABRHS info session for 8th graders (during the school day)
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Monday, 3/6: Library closed after school for staff meeting
Take care and have a great week,
Jim