Save your shopping for Thursday, December 10th from 4pm-8pm. Our wonderful local store owners are donating 10% of their sales during that time period to the Curley! Participating stores include: Streetcar, Boing, On Centre, Stella and Dot and Kitchenwitch (more may be added so stay tuned for updates. Please spread the word: invite your friends and ask them to mention they’re shopping for the Curley. Any questions, please contact Leah Barcan: (617) 599-0592/lbarcan@gmail.com.

It’s school preview time again when prospective families come to tour the Curley.

For many years, parents have played a significant part in showing the school to other parents, and the Curley is noted for our level of parent participation at these tours. Many of you may remember your own tour of the Curley. Now as a member of the Curley community we would love your help as tour guides.

If you are able to help out leading tours please sign up on the doodle poll:
http://doodle.com/poll/wbpw7yie4xmvm433. Please include your email address on the poll next to your name so we can contact you.

New families are encouraged to participate as you give the most valuable feedback to incoming parents. Don’t worry if you feel like you don’t know the school yet – we’ll pair you up with a parent who has done tours in the past.

BPS is kicking off the preview season with a School Showcase THIS Saturday, December 5th from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.

During this time the Curley school, as well as all other elementary schools will be open for families to tour. We could use your help on this day, even if you can only come for part of the four hours. This is when lots of families will be visiting.

In addition this year’s preview tour times are:

• Friday, December 11th 9am-10am
• Friday, December 18th 9am-10am
• Thursday, January 14th 3pm-4pm

So, please help out by leading tours. Sign up on the doodle poll:
http://doodle.com/poll/wbpw7yie4xmvm433, and again, please remember to include your email address on the poll next to your name so we can contact you.

You can also contact me directly, Arusha Hollister, at Arusha Hollister to give me your e-mail or to get more information about leading tours.

We greatly appreciate any help you can give.

The next School Parent Council (SPC) meeting is tomorrow!

Wednesday, December 2nd, 6pm, Upper School Library.

The SPC is a parent volunteer organization that supports academic/community building programs at the Curley.

We will be discussing many things, including:

• discussing the idea of a mission statement;
• getting a follow up from the AWC expansion team;
• brainstorming about how we can look at being more inclusive with the arts both in classroom setting and events;
• update on the library/technology initiative;
• updates from the School Site Council (SSC) and the Citywide Parent Council (CPC);
• highlighting upcoming events including the Open House for prospective families, the holiday shopping night, and the Museum of Science night!

Bring your kids. We will have a bingo game with prizes staffed by our child care providers!

Questions? Contact SPC C0-Chair Molly Brigham at mollykbrigham@gmail.com or at 617-519-0167.

********************

El Consejo Escolar de Padres de diciembre (SPC) reunión es mañana!

El Consejo Escolar de Padres! Miércoles, December 2nd, 6pm, la biblioteca de la escuela superior.

El Consejo Escolar de Padres es una organización de padres voluntarios que apoya los programas académicos y la creación comunitaria en la escuela Curley K-8.

Lleve a sus hijos! Lo haremos tener un juego de bingo com premios atendidos pos proveedores de cuidado infantil!

Preguantas? Contacto SPC C0-Chair Molly Brigham – mollykbrigham@gmail.com o 617-519-0167.

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• School Parent Council: The December School Parent Council meeting will be this Wednesday, December 2nd from 6pm-8pm in the Upper School Library. All families are welcome to attend.
• Principal Breakfast: Please join us on Friday, December 4th from 8:45am-9:45am for the Principal Breakfast. We will review our instructional focus as well as share some important data points from PARCC testing last year. We will be taking PARCC again this year so reflection on the process last year is important.
• School Showcase: On Saturday from 9am-1pm we will host a school showcase for potential families starting in SY 2016-2017. We need family volunteers to share their experience with perspective families. Please email Arusha Hollister if you are interested arusha_h@yahoo.com.
• SY2016-2017: Our school is one of several schools selected to implement Expanded Learning Time (ELT) as a part of a commitment the district, in partnership with the Mayor and the Boston Teachers Union, has made to extend the school day by forty (40) minutes. The school day will be expanded to 6 hours and 40 minutes, providing more time for students to learn and participate in enrichment and intervention programs. Our new school day will begin at 8:30am and end at 3:10pm. There are many benefits for students and families including:
  • More time for students to learn
  • Increased opportunities for enrichment
  • More time for small group interventions or accelerations
  • More time for teachers to collaborate and improve the quality of instruction

  Families are critical to the success of Expanded Learning Time at our school. We will keep you informed about Expanded Learning Time through community meetings, calls and letters home, school website, and social media.

• Lost and Found: A lost and found bin has been established outside of the nurse’s office. If your child has lost or misplaced an item please have them check the bin. Starting in November the bin will be emptied on the first of the month. Unclaimed items will be donated to Good Will or washed and kept in the Nurse’s Office as extra clothing for Curley students. Thanks in advance for your support!
• Arrival: Please keep in mind that the doors open at 8:15am and the official school day begins promptly at 8:30am. Please make sure to have your child arrive on time for the start of the day. Families are welcome to accompany their child to the class each morning between 8:15-8:35. After 8:35am all students will be marked tardy and cannot be escorted by families members to class.
• Dismissal: Dismissal begins at 2:25pm. We are asking all families to remain outside at dismissal. We are also asking families to not release students after 1:45pm. It makes for a hectic dismissal and is disruptive to classroom learning. Also to assure the safety of the 300+ students who participate in afterschool activities we will not be able to allow families back into the building to use the facilities after dismissal. There are not staff on duty to supervise this past 2:45pm.
• Social Media: For up to date information about the Curley K-8 School please sign up for email alerts by joining the Mailing List. You can also follow Principal Grassa on Twitter @principalgrassa and be sure to always use the hashtag #curleycares when sharing/posting/tweeting information about our school.

It’s school preview time again when prospective families come to tour the Curley.

For many years, parents have played a significant part in showing the school to other parents, and the Curley is noted for our level of parent participation at these tours. Many of you may remember your own tour of the Curley. Now as a member of the Curley community we would love your help as tour guides.

New families are encouraged to participate as you give the most valuable feedback to incoming parents. Don’t worry if you feel like you don’t know the school yet – we’ll pair you up with a parent who has done tours in the past.

BPS is kicking off the preview season with a School Showcase on Saturday, December 5th from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.

During this time the Curley school, as well as all other elementary schools will be open for families to tour. We could use your help on this day, even if you can only come for part of the four hours. This is when lots of families will be visiting.

In addition this year’s preview tour times are:

• Friday, December 11th 9am-10am
• Friday, December 18th 9am-10am
• Thursday, January 14th 3pm-4pm

If you are able to help out leading tours please sign up on the doodle poll:
http://doodle.com/poll/wbpw7yie4xmvm433. Please include your email address on the poll next to your name so we can contact you.

You can also contact me directly, Arusha Hollister, at Arusha Hollister to give me your e-mail or to get more information about leading tours.

We greatly appreciate any help you can give.

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• Thanksgiving Recess: Students and staff will have an early release on Wednesday, November 25th with dismissal occurring at 12:30pm. There will be no CASP or afterschool programming on this day. Please make sure your child is picked up on time so we can all begin our Thanksgiving recess. There will also be no school on Thursday, November 26th or Friday, November 27th. We hope you all have an enjoyable holiday with friends and family!
• International Week: International Week is a celebration of our community’s cultural diversity and an exploration of countries around the world. Homeroom classes will learn about a particular country from November 16-20, and students will “travel the world” by hosting and visiting one another’s countries (passports in hand) on Monday, Nov. 23, &/or Tuesday, Nov. 24. Families are encouraged to join us for International Week activities; please share YOUR culture with our students during this special week and throughout the school year!!
• SY2016-2017: Our school is one of several schools selected to implement Expanded Learning Time (ELT) as a part of a commitment the district, in partnership with the Mayor and Boston Teachers Union, has made to extend the school day by forty (40) minutes. The school day will be expanded to 6 hours and 40 minutes, providing more time for students to learn and participate in enrichment and intervention programs. Our new school day will begin at 8:30am and end at 3:10pm. There are many benefits for students and families including:
  • More time for students to learn
  • Increased opportunities for enrichment
  • More time for small group interventions or accelerations
  • More time for teachers to collaborate and improve the quality of instruction

  Families are critical to the success of Expanded Learning Time at our school. We will keep you informed about Expanded Learning Time through community meetings, calls and letters home, school website, and social media.

• Lost and Found: A lost and found bin has been established outside of the nurse’s office. If your child has lost or misplaced an item please have them check the bin. Starting in November the bin will be emptied on the first of the month. Unclaimed items will be donated to Good Will or washed and kept in the Nurse’s Office as extra clothing for Curley students. Thanks in advance for your support!
• Arrival: Please keep in mind that the doors open at 8:15am and the official school day begins promptly at 8:30am. Please make sure to have your child arrive on time for the start of the day. Families are welcome to accompany their child to the class each morning between 8:15-8:35. After 8:35am all students will be marked tardy and cannot be escorted by families members to class.
• Dismissal: Dismissal begins at 2:25pm. We are asking all families to remain outside at dismissal. We are also asking families to not release students after 1:45pm. It makes for a hectic dismissal and is disruptive to classroom learning. Also to assure the safety of the 300+ students who participate in afterschool activities we will not be able to allow families back into the building to use the facilities after dismissal. There are not staff on duty to supervise this past 2:45pm.
• Social Media: For up to date information about the Curley K-8 School please sign up for email alerts by joining the Mailing List. You can also follow Principal Grassa on Twitter @principalgrassa and be sure to always use the hashtag #curleycares when sharing/posting/tweeting information about our school.

DonorsChoose.org, a fundraising site many teachers use to raise resources for specific classroom projects, has been used by many Curley teachers to improve instruction for our students.

There are SEVEN Curley projects currently in need of funding:

Ms. Mundo would like to help her SIFE students (Students With Interrupted Formal Education) build their learning through chromebooks, a printer and a document camera. If you donate today, any donation will be doubled up to $100!

Ms. Baldwin seeks a projector to help her English Language Learner 6-8th grade students practice their presentation skills for their debate class.

Mr. Bertoni has two projects currently, one to fund materials for health class including CPR training materials, and replica muscle and fat models, and a second project to fund two goals and badminton equipment.

Ms. Ferro would like to raise funding for iPod touch devices to meet the diverse learning needs for her 7th and 8th graders.

Ms. Silverstein would like to fund the cost of 9 more Chromebooks to add to the 3 she has now to help her pre-k through 2nd graders practice reading and math skills, and to learn to type so they can practice their writing as well.

Ms. Griffiths needs books, a projectors to view videos, and a document camera for her Wild About Science class for her 3rd-5th graders.

Please help if you can, the link is below:

http://www.donorschoose.org/school/curley-k-8-school/62879/?active=true

The general DonorsChoose page that lists all our teachers is also here (a number next to their name shows an active project):
http://www.donorschoose.org/school/curley-k-8-school/62879/?teachers=true

Many thanks to you all for helping our teachers help our kids.

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• Middle School: Report cards will be sent home with all students in grades 6-8 on Monday. Please be sure to ask your child to see their grades and sign and return the report card to your child’s teacher. If there are any questions about grades please email your child’s teacher.
• Parent Forums on AWC, MassCore, and Central Office Redesign: Together with the Superintendent’s Office, the Citywide Parent Council and Boston SpedPac are co-sponsoring 2 more forums for all BPS parents. One of them addresses Advanced Work Class (AWC) and MassCore High School curricula as part of Superintendent Chang’s 100 Day Plan. Another meeting will address ideas about central office reorganization. Please attend:
  • Thursday, November 19th 7:00pm-8:30pm
    Topics: Advanced Work Class (AWC) and Mass Core/ BPS Graduation Requirements
    Location: Murphy K-8 School
  • Monday, November 23rd 6:30-8:30pm
    Topic: Redesigning Central Offices to better support school communities
    Location: Bolling Building, 2nd floor School Committee Chambers

  For more information, here is the flyer for all the events.

• International Week: International Week is a celebration of our community’s cultural diversity and an exploration of countries around the world. Homeroom classes will learn about a particular country from November 16-20, and students will “travel the world” by hosting and visiting one another’s countries (passports in hand) on Monday, Nov. 23, &/or Tuesday, Nov. 24. Families are encouraged to join us for International Week activities; please share YOUR culture with our students during this special week and throughout the school year!!
• Thanksgiving Recess: Students and staff will have an early release on Wednesday, November 25th with dismissal occurring at 12:30pm. There will be no CASP or afterschool programming on this day. Please make sure your child is picked up on time so we can all begin our Thanksgiving recess. There will also be no school on Thursday, November 26th or Friday, November 27th.
• Lost and Found: A lost and found bin has been established outside of the nurse’s office. If your child has lost or misplaced an item please have them check the bin. Starting in November the bin will be emptied on the first of the month. Unclaimed items will be donated to Good Will or washed and kept in the Nurse’s Office as extra clothing for Curley students. Thanks in advance for your support!
• Arrival: Please keep in mind that the doors open at 8:15am and the official school day begins promptly at 8:30am. Please make sure to have your child arrive on time for the start of the day. Families are welcome to accompany their child to the class each morning between 8:15-8:35. After 8:35am all students will be marked tardy and cannot be escorted by families members to class.
• Dismissal: Dismissal begins at 2:25pm. We are asking all families to remain outside at dismissal. We are also asking families to not release students after 1:45pm. It makes for a hectic dismissal and is disruptive to classroom learning. Also to assure the safety of the 300+ students who participate in afterschool activities we will not be able to allow families back into the building to use the facilities after dismissal. There are not staff on duty to supervise this past 2:45pm.
• Social Media: For up to date information about the Curley K-8 School please sign up for email alerts by joining the Mailing List. You can also follow Principal Grassa on Twitter @principalgrassa and be sure to always use the hashtag #curleycares when sharing/posting/tweeting information about our school.

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• Middle School: Marks close for quarter 1 in grades 6-8 on Friday, November 6th and report cards will be sent out before the Thanksgiving Recess.
• Parent Forums on AWC, MassCore, and Central Office Redesign: The With the Superintendent’s Office, the Citywide Parent Council and Boston SpedPac are co-sponsoring 3 forums for all BPS parents. Two of them address Advanced Work Class (AWC) and MassCore High School curricula as part of Superintendent Chang’s 100 Day Plan. A third meeting will address ideas about central office reorganization. Please attend:
  • Monday, November 9th 6:30pm-8:00pm
    Topics: Advanced Work Class (AWC) and Mass Core/ BPS Graduation Requirements
    Location: Bolling Building, 2nd floor School Committee Chambers
  • Thursday, November 19th 7:00pm-8:30pm
    Topics: Advanced Work Class (AWC) and Mass Core/ BPS Graduation Requirements
    Location: Murphy K-8 School
  • Monday, November 23rd 6:30-8:30pm
    Topic: Redesigning Central Offices to better support school communities
    Location: Bolling Building, 2nd floor School Committee Chambers

  For more information, here is the flyer for all three events.

• School Site Council: Our November meeting will take place on Tuesday, November 10th from 5:30pm-7:00pm in the Room 101 (Upper School). All attendees should enter through the CASP doors.
• Movie Night: PACE will be hosting a Family Movie Night on Tuesday, November 10th from 5pm-7pm in the Curley auditorium. (There is no school on Wednesday in observance of Veteran’s Day.) All proceeds will go towards field trips for students on the Autism Spectrum. These trips will provide important social and community experiences for students. Tickets will be $3 a person and will include the movie ticket, popcorn and water. All students must be accompanied by an adult for the duration of the event. Please email Ms. Mitchell with any further questions at kmitchell@bostonpublicschools.org.
• No School: There will be no school on Wednesday, November 11th in observance of Veteran’s Day.
• International Week: International Week is a celebration of our community’s cultural diversity and an exploration of countries around the world. Homeroom classes will learn about a particular country from November 16-20, and students will “travel the world” by hosting and visiting one another’s countries (passports in hand) on Monday, Nov. 23, &/or Tuesday, Nov. 24. Families are encouraged to join us for International Week activities; please share YOUR culture with our students during this special week and throughout the school year!!
• Thanksgiving Recess: Students and staff will have an early release on Wednesday, November 25th with dismissal occurring at 12:30pm. There will be no CASP or afterschool programming on this day. Please make sure your child is picked up on time so we can all begin our Thanksgiving recess. There will also be no school on Thursday, November 26th or Friday, November 27th.
• Lost and Found: A lost and found bin has been established outside of the nurse’s office. If your child has lost or misplaced an item please have them check the bin. Starting in November the bin will be emptied on the first of the month. Unclaimed items will be donated to Good Will or washed and kept in the Nurse’s Office as extra clothing for Curley students. Thanks in advance for your support!
• Arrival and Dismissal: Please keep in mind that the doors open at 8:15am and the official school day begins promptly at 8:30am. Please make sure to have your child arrive on time for the start of the day. Dismissal begins at 2:25pm. We are asking all families to remain outside at dismissal. We are also asking families to not release students after 1:45pm. It makes for a hectic dismissal and is disruptive to classroom learning.
• Social Media: For up to date information about the Curley K-8 School please sign up for email alerts by joining the Mailing List. You can also follow Principal Grassa on Twitter @principalgrassa and be sure to always use the hashtag #curleycares when sharing/posting/tweeting information about our school.

Please join us for our next Principal Breakfast tomorrow, Friday, November 6th from 8:45am-9:45am.

We will be focusing on school safety and we will have district representation to lead us in a discussion around Safe Mode. There will be a short presentation followed by Q & A as well as a discussion.

For more information, please contact Leah Barcan.

The School Parent Council (SPC) Meeting was THE place to be this morning.  If you missed today’s SPC meeting, don’t worry, here are the notes (if it takes a long time to download, you will have to wait due to high demand):

SPC Meeting Notes 11_04_15

As always, the notes are also posted under Parent -> School Parent Council -> Meeting Minutes

Some Important Dates to Note (for more details – read the notes):

• AWC Integration Strategy Meeting: Thu Nov 4 from 3:00 – 4:00: meet outside the upper school main office
• AWC Stakeholders Meeting Monday: Nov 9 from 6:30 – 8:30 at the The Bolling Building | 2300 Washington Street
• Arts Committee Meeting: Mon, Nov 16 at 8:00 in Ms. Youman’s room
• Boston Compact Meetings – try to make it to one:

Nov 5: 5:30 – 8:00 Grove Hall Center tomorrow

Nov 12: 6:30 – 9:00 First Baptist JP

Nov 17: 5:30 – 8:00 West End Boys and Girls club

• Next SPC meeting is: Dec 2 6:00 – 8:00 in the Upper School Library – featuring kids Bingo

Please join us for our monthly SPC meeting on Wednesday, November 4 at 8:45. This month we will be having a coffee hour meeting. Hope to see you there!

SPC_110515

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• Chelsea Clinton: Chelsea Clinton visited the Curley K-8 on Wednesday, October 21st. She connected with us through our City Year partnership and asked to do a service learning project with 6th & 8th grade students. City Year organized an amazing event for us and Chelsea donated 10 signed copies of her new book It’s Your World: Get Informed, Get Inspired & Get Going!
   
• Health & Wellness: Please join us for our next Health and Wellness Meeting on Tuesday, November 3rd from 7:30am-8:30am in room 208.
• Middle School: Marks close for quarter 1 in grades 6-8 on Friday, November 6th and report cards will be sent out before the Thanksgiving Recess.
• Curley Shares: Our November Assemblies will take place on Thursday, November 5th. Students will attend the event with their buddy classrooms (pairing of an upper and lower grade) all students who win awards will be given a certificate to go home and a one of a kind Curley tattoo! Be sure to ask your child about the event!
• Principal Breakfast: Please join us for our next Principal Breakfast on Friday, November 6th from 8:45am-9:45am. We will be focusing on school safety and we will have district representation to lead us in a discussion around Safe Mode. There will be a short presentation followed by Q & A as well as a discussion.
• Movie Night: PACE will be hosting a Family Movie Night on Tuesday, November 10th from 5pm-7pm in the Curley auditorium. (There is no school on Wednesday in observance of Veteran’s Day.) All proceeds will go towards field trips for students on the Autism Spectrum. These trips will provide important social and community experiences for students. Tickets will be $3 a person and will include the movie ticket, popcorn and water. All students must be accompanied by an adult for the duration of the event. Please email Ms. Mitchell with any further questions at kmitchell@bostonpublicschools.org.
• No School: There will be no school on Wednesday, November 11th in observance of Veteran’s Day.
• 7th Grade Trip To Boston Public Market: On Friday October 30th, 40 wonderful 7th graders their teachers Ms. Prieto, Ms. Amy-Moreno and Ms. Ennis to the Boston Public Market. Our thanks to parent Donald Wiest for his generous support. These young learners were able to taste the many flavors at the Boston Public Market, learn about nutrition as well as sampling locally sourced foods. It was a wonderful trip.
  
• Lost and Found: A lost and found bin has been established outside of the nurse’s office. If your child has lost or misplaced an item please have them check the bin. Starting in November the bin will be emptied on the first of the month. Unclaimed items will be donated to Good Will or washed and kept in the Nurse’s Office as extra clothing for Curley students. Thanks in advance for your support!
• Arrival and Dismissal: Please keep in mind that the doors open at 8:15am and the official school day begins promptly at 8:30am. Please make sure to have your child arrive on time for the start of the day. Dismissal begins at 2:25pm. We are asking all families to remain outside at dismissal. We are also asking families to not release students after 1:45pm. It makes for a hectic dismissal and is disruptive to classroom learning.
• Social Media: For up to date information about the Curley K-8 School please sign up for email alerts by joining the Mailing List. You can also follow Principal Grassa on Twitter @principalgrassa and be sure to always use the hashtag #curleycares when sharing/posting/tweeting information about our school.