Archive for 'Notes From Francie'
Note from Francie 5/18/12
On Monday William, the Ma’sai warrior, took us far away from the hills of Vermont as he talked to us about his life in Kenya showing us pictures and passing around artifacts such as a piece of lion fur. William told us about the scarcity of clean water and how he and his family drink from the same stream as the many animals who live on the Masai Mara Reserve. This sounded very familiar after our Art for Water project several weeks ago. And we are invited to help. A huge jug is waiting to receive your pennies and change on the table outside the office. Thank you to Linda, our art teacher, for arranging William’s visit and connecting us with people far away.
Read more »
Posted: May 18th, 2012 under Front Page, Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 5/11/12
We’re back! The Junior High’s trip to Costa Rica was amazing. The students were most amazing. They were open to and embraced every new experience – to speaking Spanish, to meeting new people, to eating new foods, to trying new activities, to helping out whenever it was needed. Traveling with this group was a pleasure. If you’d like more specifics and some photos, please take a look at our blog. It’s on the Junior High page of our website.
Posted: May 11th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 5/4/12
Buenos Dias from Costa Rica! The Junior High with Rachel, Tim, Elissa, and Yvonne arrived on Tuesday afternoon and we’ve been on the go ever since.
Posted: May 4th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 4/13/12
It was great to see so many of you at the Learning Fair! I hope it gave you a good sense of what’s going on in all the classrooms at Marlboro School. Thanks to the students and teachers for pulling together such interesting materials and demonstrations.
Posted: April 13th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 4/6/12
Come to the Learning Fair next Wednesday, April 11, 6:30-8. All of the classrooms are preparing exhibits and demonstrations of their learning. This is a good time to visit other classrooms and see what’s in store for your child or to revisit favorite times in Kindergarten and Primary. There will be lots to see and do!
Read more »
Posted: April 6th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 3/30/12
Looking for a parent for the Action Plan committee. If you’re interested in analyzing assessment data and helping to set goals for the year ahead, please consider joining the Action Plan committee. We will meet from 11:30-12:30 on Tuesday 4/3, 4/17, 5/15, 5/29, and 6/12. Call or e-mail if you can help out with this.
Posted: March 30th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 3/23/12
Student Led Conferences! My favorite day of the year as it puts students where they belong – at the center of the education process and with your full attention on them. Students have been preparing for these conferences by reflecting on what they’re learning, selecting what they want to share with you, organizing materials, and practicing their presentations. See you Monday!
Posted: March 26th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie, March 16th 2012
How’s the mud on your road? If you don’t live on one of Marlboro’s many dirt roads, you are lucky. Once again it’s time to cheer for our bus drivers, Jackie and Gail!
We’re getting so used to the mud that we didn’t even sing our favorite mud song this morning. We were treated to some other wonderful presentations. Jen’s class shared their staff carving skills – yes, that’s right, there were knives at All School Sing. Be assured there was close supervision – and their “upside down skills” which included tumbling and breakdancing. Lindsey and Charley, accompanied by Mia on the keyboard, sang “Don’t You Worry About a Thing”. Then Frida, Sequoyah, Brite, and Ellie read book reviews to keep all of us on track with our March Reading Challenge.
More and more students are asking to perform at Sing. This is such an excellent demonstration of competence and self-confidence. And this comes only with passion, practice, and commitment. Well done!
There are still many empty slots for Student Led Conferences. Please call Gail to reserve your time. The Junior High students will provide childcare for at least part of the day. Please let Gail know if you will need this.
Francie
Posted: March 16th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 3/9/12
How much have you read this week? How’s the March Reading Challenge playing out at your house? Earlier this week I was at a workshop with Ray McNulty, a former Vermont commissioner of education and currently a national education guru. He visits lots of schools and one thing he’s noticed is that, in schools that focus deeply on reading and writing, students do well in all areas. The March Reading Challenge is part of this. Enjoy a good book with your child!
Posted: March 9th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 3/2/12
What a beautiful snow. I hope you were able to stay home and play with your children! I’m sure we’ll have fun at recess today. Winter Sports are over for the year and we couldn’t have done it without you! Here are some student reviews from Erica’s class.
Posted: March 2nd, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 2/17/12
At Sing today Erica’s class had Open Mike and they entertained and educated us in a variety of ways. Leander, Shane, Daniel, and Cyrus presented a book review of Origami Yoda, a DCF book. We learned about beets, our veggie of the month, through a skit by Broden, Makenna, Siena, Sloan, Olivia, and Samantha. Forrest, Jordan, and Malachi showed us the huge ball of finger knitting that they are submitting to the book of records being put together by Matt’s class. Finally, Ben and Malachi explained that they have bottle cap collection and are hoping to gather 1,000 bottle caps to help them as they learn about big numbers. So, please send in your bottle caps!
Posted: February 17th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 2/10/12
What a fine concert! Please join me in congratulating Michael McKinney and David Tasgal for bringing our students so far and designing a performance that shows off all they’ve learned. There’s no doubt we have talented and committed musicians. I’m already looking forward to the Spring Concert and Art Show.
Posted: February 10th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 2/3/12
Report cards for Jen, Judy, and Erica’s classes go home this week. Classroom and specials teachers describe the activities of the first semester. Progress updates for each student are included in classroom teachers’ reports. Please give feedback to your child’s teacher. They put a lot of time into writing these reports and they want to know if you find them informative.
Posted: February 3rd, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 1/27/12
Two 2 hour delays in one week – this is hard on all of us. Several parents have let me know that it’s particularly difficult when there’s the possibility that the delay may be upgraded to a full cancellation. I understand. Here’s the deal – When I decide on a 2 hour delay, I base this on information suggesting that weather conditions are changing and the roads will be better later in the morning. There’s always the chance that this will turn out not to be the case. If at 8am it appears that the roads won’t be safe, I start the process of contacting everyone for a cancellation.
Posted: January 27th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 1/20/12
A short week, so a short note.
Last night Tom Hudak, our guidance counselor, hosted High School Night – an opportunity for 7th and 8th grade students and parents to learn about area high schools. High school choice is a huge benefit but it requires research and careful thinking about goodness of fit for students. Thank you to Mr. H for making this happen.
Posted: January 20th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 1/13/12
Last week’s note omitted our welcome to seven new students. I apologize! Please join me in welcoming Kashe and Skylar to Jen’s class, Merou, Waylund, and Jeremiah to Judy’s class, and Siena and Broden to Erica’s class. At last Friday’s Sing we sang Jambo! to them and the teachers are connecting them with classroom friends and routines. This gives all the students an opportunity to review their classroom guidelines and deepen their own understanding by “teaching” their new friends.
Posted: January 13th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note from Francie 1/6/12
Welcome to 2012 at Marlboro School! We’re glad to be back and we sure wish it would snow – I know, be careful what you wish for… I hear that the ice skating on South Pond is very good – an excellent alternative.
Posted: January 9th, 2012 under Notes From Francie.
Note From Francie 12/22/11
The New Year brings changes to Marlboro School.
We say good-bye to Brooke and Izzy in Matt’s room and Leah, who has been a teacher intern with David. We wish them all well in their new schools. And we welcome Skylar and Kashe in Jen’s room, Waylund and Jeremiah in Judy’s room, and Broden and Siena in Erica’s room.
When we return we also jump into winter mode with more basketball, Winter Sports, and a new round of Marlboro Ventures.
Until then, enjoy the holidays and time with friends and family. And think snow!
Francie
Posted: December 22nd, 2011 under Notes From Francie.