Welcome Back to School
August 2019
Principal's Welcome Back
Summer, a time to refresh, a time to explore, and a time for being with family. With the calendar beginning to move towards September, the anticipation of the opening of school arrives. Although I thoroughly enjoyed the quiet pace of summer and was able to relax, I am very excited to get back to the routine of seeing smiling faces each morning ready to learn.
While many of the MRE staff also took time to rejuvenate, honestly, it is hard to keep staff out of the building during the summer. It has been a busy summer for teachers in various ways. Many teachers took classes at area colleges to learn new ways to use technology, how to engage students in mathematics and how to use social-emotional learning strategies in their classes. Teachers also served on state committees to help with the development of the MCAS assessments. Many teachers also enjoyed reading to students at the library this summer. Mary Rowlandson School partnered with the Thayer Memorial Library to encourage summer reading. Over 130 people attended the first reading night in July! The library reports a record amount of students accessing books there this summer. Over the past couple of weeks, the MRE staff has been coming back to school and preparing their rooms in eager anticipation of greeting their new classes.
I know we are all excited to start a new year with new possibilities. We are ready to come back and be fully committed to implementing our mission statement:
Imagine a school….
In which all children achieve at high levels,
regardless of their backgrounds…
That treats all children as gifted,
and builds on their talents
through enrichment strategies,
independent research,
problem solving,
science,
writing,
music
and
art
In which all members of the school community
collaborate to achieve that vision by making
major decisions about curriculum,
instructional strategies, and school organization…
Where ideas count…
Student Videos
I am looking for some help from our students. I would like to show teachers video clips of students expressing what they are looking forward to this year. I would greatly appreciate it if you were to send me a short (5 - 10 second) video clip or your child, children or groups of students saying what they are looking forward to this year. Clips can be emailed to me at soshea@nrsd.net or posted on Twitter to @MREschool , #MREhuskies
New Staff
There are four new staff members I would like to welcome to MRE. The first is Leah DiFrancesco. She will be the Special Educator for the fourth-grade this year. She has previous experience as a third-grade classroom teacher as well as a special educator. Lyndsey Kilduff will be our new MRE nurse. She comes with years of nursing experience and most recently was a school nurse in Hudson. Not new to Mary Rowlandson School but in a new role is Becky Wilson. She will be joining the second grade team as a classroom teacher. Erica Sheehan will be a full time Occupational Therapist at MRE and Sara Gladu will be a new O.T. for the district. Maria Bella will be the MRE English Language Teacher. Alison Rumbelow will be moving from special education department to the fourth grade classroom. Tatjana Firth will continue to be a special educator but in fifth grade this year. Lastly, Manuela Michele is returning to MRE as an Instructional Assistant. Most importantly, all these additions are passionate about student success and well-being.
Dates to Remember
August 29th - First full day for all students grades 1 to 5
August 29th and 30th - partial day for kindergarten students
September 2nd - No School Labor Day
September 3rd Regular Schedule for all Students
September 18th - Early Release Day
September 19th - Open House for Parents
September 23rd to 27th Nature’s Classroom for Fifth Grade Students
School Hours
Full Day K-5: 8:35-3:05 p.m. (students need to be in their classrooms by 8:35)
Half Day Kindergarten 8:35 – 12:00
Early Release: Dismissal time 12:15 p.m. (all students)