Spring Street Link

December 14, 2020

Good afternoon,

We’re looking forward to the potential for snow this week and all the fun that it brings including sledding down our back hill during recess, a highly anticipated event!  Your child’s teacher will let you know when to send in appropriate snow gear so that your child can participate.  Necessary gear includes boots, jackets, snow pants, a hat, and mittens/gloves.  We’ve got plenty of sleds for students to use, no need to send any sledding equipment to school.  Our protocol is a bit different this year with sanitization of sled handles between uses and, unfortunately, only one person to a sled...no toboggans or multiple students on a sled, hopefully next year.

Save the date...our first ever all elementary schools All School Meeting next Wednesday morning, December 23rd.  Our All School Meeting will be in place of our usual morning meetings in classrooms that day.  I will be sure to share the link with you in the Spring Street Link next week.  We’re looking forward to singing and celebrating all things winter with you and your family!

Terrific Tuesdays/Fabulous Fridays Is This Week!

Our December Spirit Days are Terrific Tuesday, December 15, and Fabulous Friday, December 18. Whether you are remote or in your classroom on those days, show your spirit by wearing fun, silly, appropriate, warm Winter Wonderful clothing and accessories! See the attached flyer for this school year’s schedule and mark your calendars!

From previous links:

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Connections

Here at Spring Street School, our School Psychologist, Laura Braun-Lush and School Adjustment Counselor, Kara Richardson, provide social and emotional lessons and support to our school. Both Laura and Kara support classroom teachers and students in developing an understanding of how they are feeling, what school expectations are, and ways to manage challenging times.  One tool commonly used, that can be adapted for at home use with remote learning is Whole Body Listening.  Whole Body Listening supports students to use all parts of their body to watch and listen to the speaker.

Whole Body Listening means:

Eyes looking at the speaker

Ears listening

Body facing the speaker

Hands still in your lap or by your sides  

Feet quiet and still

Brain thinking about what the speaker says 

Heart considering the speaker and others listening

Whole Body Listening on Zoom means: 

Eyes looking at the camera/screen and keep camera on 

Microphone on mute until it is your turn to talk

Listening to the speaker with or without headphones

Body facing the screen and quiet and still

Brain thinking about what the teacher or classmates say and ready to participate

You can learn more about Whole Body Listening at Home by watching "Whole Body Listening Larry at Home." We look forward to sharing additional SEL strategies and resources in the coming months.

December Vacation Week

We will be in school on December 21st, 22nd, and 23rd.  Our plan is:

Cohorts A1, A2, and B in person on Monday, December 21st

Cohorts A1, A2, and C in person on Tuesday, December 22nd

Cohort A1 in person on Wednesday, December 23rd

There is no school December 24th through January 1st.  School resumes on Monday, January 4th, 2021

SPS Monthly Community Meditation & Mindfulness Practice Group

Shrewsbury Public Schools will kick off our monthly community meditation and mindfulness practice group in December.  This is a support tool for parents and caregivers offered freely through our mindfulness partnership with the Mindfulness Director Initiative (MDI).  All adults caring for a child attending Shrewsbury Public Schools are welcome.  No registration or preparation is required, but it is helpful to have some basic experience with meditation to get the most out of these sessions (if you are new to mindfulness practices or want some additional practice, we are offering a free 4-week virtual workshop series this fall - register and get more info here).  Monthly meetings will take place on Zoom on the first Monday and Thursday - dates/times are listed below. You may download this flyer to your device to keep the dates + zoom link handy.  Each monthly meeting will include: time to check in with ourselves and as a community, a 20 minute guided meditation (with some periods of silence), and support through resources and reflections for living a life of resilience and wellbeing.

Flu Vaccine Requirement 

As you are probably aware, the state of Massachusetts is now requiring flu shots for all students by December 31, 2020.  This includes both hybrid and remote learners.  The flu can cause severe illness, and there is concern that illness from overlapping flu and COVID-19 seasons could overwhelm the healthcare system. Even with milder illness, the symptoms of the flu are similar to those of COVID-19 and often require medical appointments.  By getting a flu shot, you are reducing your child’s chances of getting the flu and thereby helping to conserve our healthcare resources.  Please forward documentation of your child’s flu shot to Mrs. Carle at rcarle@shrewsbury.k12.ma.us

Lunch Is Available

School lunch will be available for those students who wish to take a lunch home.  The USDA and the National School Lunch Program is allowing schools to provide free lunches to all students through June 2021.   Our school lunch menu is here.

Important Dates

Wednesday, December 16th, 1:30pm, School Photos Retakes, All Cohorts

December 24-January 1, December Vacation/New Year’s Day, No School
Friday, January 15th, Professional Development Day, No School

Monday, January 18th, M L King, Jr. Day, No School

February 15-19, Presidents Day/Winter Vacation

Have a good week.
Bryan Mabie