Good afternoon,
A parent at this morning’s drop-off asked me if I was outside, everyday, helping drivers make their way through our parking lots. My answer was “yes,” and “it’s the easiest part of my day!” While this is true and it is something I can do without much thought, the most enjoyable part of my day is when I can be in classrooms, seeing your students interacting with each other and their teachers. This week, I saw Novice French II students practicing telling time. The trick was that the teacher was using an analog clock, which I bet was also a complicating factor for some students! I’ve seen a Spanish teacher working with Novice Spanish I students on greetings and expressions that we use when interacting with others for the first time. And I saw an 8th grade science teacher working on calculating velocity with her students. In all three of these examples, the students were engaged, connecting with their classmates, and their teacher.
Our counselors are stepping into the classrooms this week and next week to deliver the first of a series of lessons on bullying prevention. I observed a lesson this morning that helped students recognize and identify the terms peer conflict, harassment, and bullying. The students were able to think of scenarios from real life, or from TV and movies, and were able to give examples of how to handle bullying if they see it or experience it. And they also talked about how to act as an ally to others who might be targeted. Future lessons on this topic this year will be connected to our Health curriculum and our Advisory program.
Many of you may have received a message or two from your child’s teachers this week. And if you haven’t yet, you will. At RJ Grey, we believe that it is important to connect with our families early on in the year. If you’ve been asked a question in one of these communications, and time is available to you, please respond! When our teachers ask, “how’s the transition going for your son?” or “what is your daughter most proud of?,” we ask those questions to get to know more about your student. When we have strong relationships with our students, and you’ve provided some insight into what’s important to them, we know that our teaching and their learning will be stronger. This early connection from our teachers is intended to open to the door to future communications throughout the year. Please be in touch with with our teachers and counselors if you have questions or want to share information about your child. The more we know about what’s going on for them, the better off we are.
Each public school in Massachusetts has a School Council. While the composition of each School Council may vary, the RJ Grey School Council is made up of the principal, two 7th grade parents/guardians, two 8th grade parents/guardians, and two RJG staff members. We are looking to elect two new parent/guardian reps - both from the 7th grade (our 8th grade reps are continuing from last year). The role of the School Council is to review and discuss various aspects of the school's activities and goals, and offer advice and guidance about different topics that may emerge during the year. The Council will meet seven times this year, on Tuesday evenings at RJ Grey (October 3 being the first meeting). If you are a parent/guardian interested in serving on the Council, please submit a short (4-6 sentences) paragraph about yourself by noon on Monday, September 25th. Write-ups can be sent to me at [email protected]. Once I have any interested candidate’s info, we’ll do a virtual election, allowing our family community to vote via Google Form.
As the construction continues in the area of Kelley’s Corner and Rte 111, we have been asked to share some news with our families. We are requesting that families no longer use the former Kmart parking lot as a cut-through to our campus or to drop off students. We have been informed that this is private property owned by Stop & Shop and they have requested that it not be used by the public. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation with this shift in practice.
The following updates have been approved by our Superintendent’s office for distribution:
Upcoming Dates
-
Monday, September 25: No School, Yom Kippur
-
Wednesday, September 27: iReady Math Diagnostic Assessment
-
Thursday, September 28: RJ Grey Back to School Night: 7 - 8:40 pm
-
Monday, October 2: Early Release at 1 pm
-
Tuesday, October 3: iReady ELA Diagnostic (postponed from 9/20)
-
Tuesday, October 3: School Council Meeting, 7 pm, RJ Grey Library
-
Monday, October 9: No School, Indigenous Peoples’ Day
Take care and have a great weekend!
Jim