Technology In School

I am very excited about our pursuit of technology in Chariho Schools!
Above: Maya and Jeremy use the new interactive white board during a science lesson on circuits. Right now, we only have one, and it is in the library. We hope to be able to change that quickly!

We are aggressively pursuing acquiring technology hardware, software, and firmware to use in academic lessons. Children are being likened to "technology natives," while most of those of us who are teaching them are "technology immigrants." We are having to learn the "language" of technology, while they seem to come out of the womb knowing it! I observed a 14-month old child advancing Power Point slides because she wanted to see a particular one. Her father had walked away from the computer for a few minutes, so she went over, and, although she could barely reach the keyboard, knew exactly which key to press to advance the slides! When she reached the one she wanted, she stopped, turned around, clapped her hands and called the name of the person on the slide! We have no choice but to catch up to these kids if we want to keep them interested in learning! Some researchers even say they learn differently than we did because their brains are "wired" differently than ours!

Calling All Girls! (And Their Parents)

February and March are going to be great months for the girls of Charlestown School! February 26 is the Father-Daughter Dance and March 19 is the Mother-Daughter event, which won't be a Fashion Show and Tea this year!

We will be having a Mother-Daughter Pajama Party! Girls in pre-K through fourth grade and their mothers (or other female adult chaperone) will come for a fun evening of girl stuff! Look for more to come on this new addition to our calendar.

Mrs. Terluk's class is getting ready for the Winter Olympics! They put on their own olympic contest called, "Shape Olympics" to show how much they have learned about shapes! Thanks to all the parents who came in to help! She could not have done it without you!
Miakoda crawls through the circular tunnel and Lauren builds a pyramid of colored plastic cups.Michael practices keeping his balance on a triangular balance beam while playing a triangle rhythm instrument!


Kyle and Cady model their gold medals!

Spelling Bee Winner and Runner'up!

Congratulations to Maya and Nate, the 2009-2010 Spelling Bee winner (Maya) and runner up (Nate) for Charlestown School!

Teaching Learner Qualities

The School Improvement Team has been looking at Charlestown School data for the past several months. We are working with the staff to determine what data we have available and how best to interpret it. One of the pieces we noticed was the correlation between behaviors that support school success and whether or not students who exhibit those behaviors meet or exceed standard. Since there is a high correlation between these two sets of data, we determined, as a staff, to spend time in Morning Meetings teaching the specific behaviors that support school success. We are teaching one specific set of behaviors each week. The schedule we have set for teaching these behaviors is:

1. January 11-15: Respectful learners
2. January 19-22: Follow Directions, Actively Listen and Respond
3. January 25-29: Organize Time, Tasks, and Materials
4. February 1-5: Work Independently
5. February 8-12: Invest Time, Effort, and Pride
6. February 22-26: Collaborative Learners
7. March 1-5: Produce Work that is Neat and Organized, Write Legibly
8. March 8-12: Think, Question, and Show Curiosity
9. March 15-19: Self-Assess

These behaviors are all found on the back side of the Trimester Report Cards. You may wish to discuss them with your child as well as whether he or she is scored as exhibiting them consistently (C), often (O), sometimes (S), or not at this time (N), and how your child can improve in these areas. Remember, there is a strong correlation between students who exhibit these Learner Qualities consistently and students who meet or achieve the standard!

Spaghetti Supper!

If you missed the spaghetti supper, you missed not only a great meal, but also a wonderful opportunity to enjoy getting to know other Charlestown School families!The faces above are testament to the fun and delicious food!


Some of our stalwart PTO officers actually got to sit down and enjoy the event with their families!

Our fourth grade students look forward to taking on the responsibility of serving at the dinner!

Lots of Things Going On at Charlestown School!

The PTO is again sponsoring a Fourth Grade Play:

THE ISLAND OF THE SKOG
Auditions for the play will be held on
Thursday, January 21, 2010, right after school until 4:30 p.m.
Rehearsals will take place every Tuesday and Thursday, starting January 26
with the exception of the February vacation week and FLASH dates,
and will end on March 11.
Performances are scheduled for
Friday, March 12 and
Saturday, March 13
(Evening performances only)
Contact Kathy Hayes at hayes 6@cox.net
for additional information.
A flyer will be sent home on Tuesday, January 19.

* * * * * * *

Aramark is having a special "Rainbow Lunch Day" on Tuesday, January 26.

Featured Menu:
Rainbow Roasted Veggies and Chicken over Rice
Sweet 'n Sour Coleslaw
RI Healthy Food Bar
Assorted Milk

(Featured Menu will replace crunchy beef taco, cheeseburger, and BBQ beans that day.)

A flyer will be coming home so that parents may sign up to eat with their children that day.
Adult meals cost $3.00

BLUE HAIRED PRINCIPAL!

This is what I looked like this morning before Ms. Botham did my hair and makeup...

During the "make-over"...

And after!

Serving the students lunch!