Due to today’s rain, Photo Day for grades 6-8 will be held next Tuesday, October 28th rain or shine. Any children in grades K-5 who missed Monday, October 20th will also have a chance to get their picture taken.

Photos will take place in front of the middle school building on the right, or in case of rain, in the auditorium.

Please bring your order forms. If a child does not return a form, he or she will not be able to have a picture taken.

Contact Jennifer Connolly at Photo Charm directly with questions or concerns at www.photocharm.org.

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• 8th Annual Fall Fling: Thank you to all the families who attended the Fall Fling on Friday evening! It was an amazing event! I want to give a special thank you to all the parents who organized, volunteered and made donations. On behalf of the 876 students at the Curley K-8 School I would like to thank you for showing that You Care About Our School!
• Picture Day SY 14-15: Picture Day for grades K-5 is Monday, October 20th and for Middle School grades 6-8th is Thursday, October 23, 2014. The rain date is Tuesday, October 28. If it’s raining on October 28th, photos will be taken at the Upper School Auditorium.
  • Sibling photos will take place in front of the Lower School on October 20th from 8:40 to 9:10 am.
  • Students in grades K-5 will have their individual and class photo taken at the Lower School playground area.
  • Students in grades 6-8th will gather at the upper school auditorium and proceed to the front of the Upper School to have their picture taken at the corner of Pershing Rd. and Centre St.

Students who return their forms are eligible to take an individual photo. Grades 6-8th do not have a class photo taken and will not have the opportunity to purchase one. Grades K-5, do get class photos done and all the teachers get a free copy. Let David Diaz know if you have any question or conflict with the schedule.

• Thompson Island: A group of 7th grade students will be spending two nights and three days on Thompson Island. This is an amazing opportunity for our students and we are lucky to have amazing teachers to coordinate an event such as this!
• ANET 1 Testing: All students in Grades 2-8 will be taking the ANet assessment in ELA and Math next week. This is the first paced interim of the school year and will be used to guide planning moving forward.
• Schoolyard Clean Up: Join us on Sunday, October 26th for a schoolyard clean up as we prepare for our ribbon cutting ceremony. We will meet on Centre St from 10am-12pm. Feel free to bring some yard tools. Please contact Jessica Ormsby for more details.
• Playing Field Ribbon Cutting: We will be celebrating the opening of our new playing field on Tuesday, October 28th at 11:00am, all community members are welcome to attend. We are working out the logistics for having students participate. Thank you to all who have donated money and time to make this dream a reality.
• Old iPhones: Do you have an old iPhone or iPod Touch hanging around your house? Grade 7 is looking for old iPhones or iPods to use with students. They are working to incorporate technology into their classroom and have found some helpful apps to engage students. Please contact Olivia Peters for details at opeters@bostonpublicschools.org.
• Halloween: The Curley K-8 will not have a Halloween celebration during the school day. As a community we are focused on health and wellness and therefore we ask that all candy remain at home. We are also asking that students leave all costumes, masks and face painting at home as well. Thank you in advance for your support around this matter.
• Social Media: If you are on Twitter be sure to follow me @principalgrassa. This is a great way to share up to date information about the Curley.

Photography by 5th grade student, Angel Garcia Guzman.

Harrowing tales of hurricane survival, talking spiders, magic, and the sometimes funny, occasionally sad, and always tricky business of growing up.  Grade 3-5 students and teachers can’t wait to get in and read all about it!

The opening of the grade 3-5 guided-level book room is a big deal to 5th grade student, Preshus Princess Aloha Elliot who told me, “I like guided reading because we get to learn about things like WWII,” and classmate Xavier Lopez who said, “We get to learn more things together.  That’s really cool to me.”

How did a closet become an amazing book room for teachers to check out multiple copies of the same book to read with groups of students?  5th Grade teacher Kim Daly used DonorsChoose to fund the project, adding over 100 new books to those existing titles that were inventoried last year by parent volunteers: Noreen Powers, Arusha Hollister, Leah Barcan, and Kristin Shapiro.  Ms. Daly and a group of current 6th graders then cleaned up the space and moved boxes of books from the lower school over into their new digs at the end of last year, which is where City Year Corps member, Rosie Clarke and myself found them at the start of the 2014 school year.  With assistance from 5th Grade teacher Kate Davis, and a nifty ISBN scanner, we entered those 4,000+ books into a searchable database at Booksource and organized the books on the shelves.  We could still use a hand labeling the individual books, so if you have time to lend to the project, get in touch with Ms. Daly.

A fan of the “Diary of the Wimpy Kid” series, 5th grade student Michael Polanco Colon wonders what he might read as he looks over the new books.  With over 400 titles (representing over 4,000 individual books), the question isn’t “What are you reading together?” but “What are you reading next?”

Curley teachers  Ms. Ferro and Ms. Peters both currently have their own DonorChoose projects they could use help with, so check them out and watch for more Curley teachers’ projects in the coming year.

As you know, the Playing Field ribbon cutting is on Tuesday, October 28th at 11 am. Please enter using the Centre Street entrance.

Parents – we ask that you NOT take your student out of school to join you for the ceremony. Because it is not possible for all the students to be out on the playing field for the ribbon cutting, a competition was held recently throughout the school to see which classes would be the first to get on the field. Those classes are:

• Ms. Quarterson’s 6th-8th PACE class;
• Ms. daSilva’s 2nd grade class;
• The entire 5th grade, made up of the classes of Ms. Moran, Ms. Daly, Ms. Davis and Ms. Quatrale.
• There will also be other upper school students who will help during the ceremony.

Each and every class in the school, however, will each have a special 30 minute recess period of their own on the field that same week following the ribbon cutting. Each student will then be able to enjoy the field with their friends. Schedules for these recess periods are being worked out now.

We hope to be joined at the ribbon-cutting by many other people who’ve helped along the way, including the Mayor, the Superintendent, Councilor Matt O’Malley, and other members of our Curley community.

Schoolyard Cleanup Help Needed, Sunday, October 26th, 10 am-12 pm

But we also need your help one final time! We would like to have a schoolyard cleanup on Sunday, October 26th from 10 am-12 pm. The whole schoolyard could do with a good rake, trash pickup, and sweep to get ready for Tuesday.

Please bring rakes, brooms, gloves, wheelbarrows, and large contractor-size trash and yardwaste bags with you.

Contact Jess Ormsby for more details.

The Fall Fling is this Friday and we still need raffle basket donations! So far Curley families have donated some beautiful baskets including: Kitchen & Cooking Basket, Tea Lovers, TWO Halloween Baskets, Children’s Graphic Novels Basket, Boing Toys Basket, Kids Crafts, Homework Caddy Basket, Art Supplies Basket, Pokemon/Magic Cards

If you were considering making a basket donation, please do! It’s a fun and easy way to contribute to one of our biggest fundraising events. Plus the kids love it!

We would love to round out our selection of raffle baskets with some of these themes:

• Legos
• Cars &/or Train Set Stuff
• Science/Nature
• Family Game Night
• Nerf Guns
• Learning Materials
• Sports Equipment
• Dress Up
• Gardening Basket (kids or Adults)
• Children’s Books, K1-3rd grade
• Or a theme of your choice!

Please go to http://www.wejoinin.com/sheets/qrove to sign up.

You can bring your finished basket to the Fall Fling Event Friday October 17th at 5pm, or just email Flo Zimmerman at flozimk@gmail.com to arrange a pickup.

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• Curley Cares Video: Please check out our Curley Cares Video below. This video was shared with all staff on the first day of school and with all students at our first assembly in September. This is the first of many steps leading to building a culture of caring.
  
• 8th Annual Fall Fling: Save the date for the first SPC fundraiser of the year, the 8th Annual FALL FLING! This is a fabulous family event that will take place on Friday, October 17th from 5:30pm-8:00pm. All families and staff are welcome! This was last year’s event. Want to know how to help? Click here.
• Picture Day SY 14-15: Picture Day for grades K-5 is Monday, October 20th and for Middle School grades 6-8th is Thursday, October 23, 2014. The rain date is Tuesday, October 28. If it’s raining on October 28th, photos will be taken at the Upper School Auditorium. 
• Sibling photos will take place in front of the Lower School on October 20th from 8:40 to 9:10 am.
• Students in grades K-5 will have their individual and class photo taken at the Lower School playground area.
• Students in grades 6-8th will gather at the upper school auditorium and proceed to the front of the Upper School to have their picture taken at the corner of Pershing Rd. and Centre St.

Students who return their forms are eligible to take an individual photo. Grades 6-8th do not have a class photo taken and will not have the opportunity to purchase one. Grades K-5, do get class photos done and all the teachers get a free copy. Let David Diaz know if you have any question or conflict with the schedule.

• Sole Train 5K: Sole Train is a fantastic partner to the Curley K-8 School and is hosting a road race on Saturday, October 18th right here in Jamaica Plain. Please come our and support our partners who do so much each day for our students. Register here: http://www.soletrain5k.com/register.html
• Playing Field Ribbon Cutting: We will be celebrating the opening of our new playing field on Tuesday, October 28th at 11:00am, all community members are welcome to attend. We are working out the logistics for having students participate. Thank you to all who have donated money and time to make this dream a reality.
• Old iPhones: Do you have an old iPhone or iPod Touch hanging around your house? Grade 7 is looking for old iPhones or iPods to use with students. They are working to incorporate technology into their classroom and have found some helpful apps to engage students. Please contact Olivia Peters for details at opeters@bostonpublicschools.org.
• Halloween: The Curley K-8 will not have a Halloween celebration during the school day. As a community we are focused on health and wellness and therefore we ask that all candy remain at home. We are also asking that students leave all costumes, masks and face painting at home as well. Thank you in advance for your support around this matter.
• Social Media: If you are on Twitter be sure to follow me @principalgrassa. This is a great way to share up to date information about the Curley.

Picture Day is fast approaching! Read on for details about returning your forms, getting sibling photos, what kids can wear, and more. Also, please consider volunteering – we especially need parents to help out in the morning, when the younger children have their pictures taken.

Pictures will be taken on Monday, October 20 (Grades K-5) and Thursday, October 23 (Grades 6-8). The rain date for both groups is Tuesday, October 28. Order forms were sent home in the backpacks; if you need another form, you can download it here.

You must return the order form on or before picture day! If a child does not return a form, he or she will not be able to have a picture taken.

Parent Volunteers Needed: Our fabulous photographer will again be Curley parent Jenny Connelly of Photo Charm – and she needs parent volunteers to assist starting on Monday at 8:45 a.m. There are many ways to help, and it’s fun! If you can volunteer on picture day, please contact Jenny directly via email or at 781-696-1138.

Additional Info:

• Class Photos: All students in K-5th will be in a class photo. Grades 6-8 will not have a class photos.
• Order forms. All children must have an order form to have photos taken.
• Sibling Photos. Photo Charm would love to photograph children together. For sibling photos, parents should fill out a separate order form for siblings (in addition to any individual order forms). Parents should let teachers know if a child will be in a sibling photo.
• Attire: Pictures are taken outdoors. Please have your child dress accordingly. Children do not need to wear uniforms on picture day.

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• School Parent Council (SPC): The first School Parent Council meeting will take place in the Lower School Gym on Tuesday, October 7th from 6:00pm-8:00pm. All families are encouraged to attend!
• Fall Fling: Save the date for the first SPC fundraiser of the year, the 8th Annual FALL FLING! This is a fabulous family event that will take place on Friday, October 17th from 5:30pm-8:00pm. All families and staff are welcome! To volunteer, please sign up here. To help sell tickets outside JP Licks on the weekends before the event, please click here.
• Playing Field Ribbon Cutting: We will be celebrating the opening of our new playing field on Tuesday, October 28th from 11am, all community members are welcome to attend. We are working out the logistics for having students participate in the event either through a competition or raffle. Thank you to all who have donated money and time to make this dream a reality.
• Old iPhones: Do you have an old iPhone or iPod Touch hanging around your house? Grade 7 is looking for old iPhones or iPods to use with students. They are working to incorporate technology into their classroom and have found some helpful apps to engage students. Please contact Olivia Peters for details at opeters@bostonpublicschools.org.
• Columbus Day: There is no school on Monday, October 13th since it is Columbus Day.
• Halloween: The Curley K-8 will not have a Halloween celebration during the school day. As a community we are focused on health and wellness and therefore we ask that all candy remain at home. We are also asking that students leave all costumes, masks and face painting at home as well. Thank you in advance for your support around this matter.
• 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. All families can now walk their child to class as long as they enter the building by 8:35am. After 8:35am students will be considered tardy.
• Dismissal: Dismissal begins at 2:25pm. We are asking all families to remain outside at dismissal and not to release their child from school after 1:45pm.
• Social Media: If you are on Twitter be sure to follow me @principalgrassa. This is a great way to share up to date information about the Curley.

“The future belongs to young people with an education and the imagination to create.”

–President Barack Obama

Did you observe Ms. Taylor-Knight’s class when you toured the school, marveling at how she kept the focus of 24 first graders despite large numbers of strangers observing?  Maybe you’ve been lucky enough to be in the audience when your own child or children danced in past performances. Or have you  just noticed that it’s easier to get your child to go to school on Dance days? (If that’s not the case for your family, see below for why theater arts may still be so important for your child!)

This school year over 530 Curley students will take to the stage in 4 major dramatic performances led by Ms. Taylor-Knight.  It’s a HUGE undertaking and one that doesn’t happen without whole school involvement.

If you are able to help make costumes, props, sets or want other ways to get involved, please contact parent, Dana Willeke.  We are also in need of any of the following items which can be brought to the first SPC meeting, this coming Tuesday, October 7th at 6 PM.

elastic (any width or length)
solid white sheets or other large scraps of white material
white thread
knee length solid white socks (size 1 youth – adult)
red yarn
black felt (smaller pieces fine)
yellow or orange felt or fleece (10 in or 22cm squares or larger)
bangle/circle bracelets – metal/plastic/wood
gold buttons (larger the better)
solid red material (ideally larger pieces)
vests (sized for 5th grade students – adult)
thin cardboard (cereal boxes work great)
white or blue cloth handkerchiefs

Check out  how Dramatic Arts in schools is improving attendance, graduation rates, test scores, and reading comprehension.

“The arts significantly boost student achievement, reduce discipline problems, and increase the odds students will go on to graduate from college.’”

–Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education

Mark Your Calendar! SPC Meeting

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 7TH, 6 PM
Lower School cafeteria — use Pershing Road entrance

The School Parent Council (SPC) is a parent run volunteer organization that supports academic and community building programs at the Curley K-8. Throughout the year you will have the opportunity to help organize FUN-raising events that support our children’s art, music, and science programs. We need all families to help in any way you can!

Our first meeting is a potluck, bring a dish: Tuesday, October 7th at 6pm.

For the rest of the year, we will meet the first Thursday of the month in the upper school library. We provide a light breakfast for 8:45am meetings and dinner/childcare for 6pm meetings. Can’t come to a meeting? No problem! There are many ways to be involved.

Any questions? Contact SPC Chair Molly Brigham: mollykbrigham@gmail.com, (617)-519-0167.

Supplies for the Dramatic Arts

Curley parent, Dana Willeke (dwilleke@gmail.com) will be collecting materials for dramatic arts at the meeting.  Please check your closets and bring to the Potluck any of the following supplies you may have at home to donate.

Dramatic Arts is in great need of the following for this year’s performances:

• elastic (any width or length)
• solid white sheets or other large scraps of white material
• white thread
• knee length solid white socks (size 1 youth and up, adult sized socks work well)
• red yarn
• black felt (smaller pieces fine)
• yellow or orange felt or fleece (10 in or 22cm squares or larger)
• bangle/circle bracelets – metal/plastic/wood
• gold buttons (larger the better)
• solid red material (ideally larger pieces)
• vests (sized for 5th grade students – adult)
• thin cardboard (cereal boxes work great)
• white or blue cloth handkerchiefs

___________________

¡MARQUE SU CALENDARIO! REUNION DEL SPC

MARTES, 07 DE OCTUBRE A LAS 6 PM
Cafetería de la escuela primaria – use la entrada de la Pershing Road

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. Durante todo el año usted tendrá la oportunidad de ayudar a organizar eventos de recaudación de fondos que apoyan los programas de arte, música, y ciencia de nuestros hijos. ¡Necesitamos a todas las familias para ayudar en cualquier manera posible!

Nuestra primera reunión es una cena, traiga un platillo para compartir: Martes, 07 de octubre a las 6 pm.

Para el resto del año, nos reuniremos el primer jueves de cada mes en la biblioteca de la escuela superior. Ofrecemos un desayuno ligero para reuniones de las 8:45 am y cena / cuidado de niños para las reuniones de las 6 p.m. ¿No puede venir a una reunión? ¡No hay problema! Hay muchas formas de involucrarse.

¿Alguna pregunta? Contacte a la Presidente del SPC Molly Brigham: mollykbrigham@gmail.com, (617)519-0167.

This week’s Paw Prints from Principal Katie Grassa:

• 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. All families can now walk their child to class as long as they enter the building by 8:35am. After 8:35am students will be considered tardy.
• Dismissal: Dismissal begins at 2:25pm. We are asking all families to remain outside at dismissal and not to release their child from school after 1:45pm.
• Social Media: If you are on Twitter be sure to follow me @principalgrassa. This is a great way to share up to date information about the Curley.
• School Parent Council (SPC): The first School Parent Council meeting will take place in the Lower School Gym on Tuesday, October 7th from 6:00pm-8:00pm. All families are encouraged to attend!
• TerraNova Testing:The TerraNova 3 Test will be administered during the period of September 30 – October 2, 2014 to students in grades 3, 4 and 5. The TerraNova 3 Reading and Mathematics tests determine AWC eligibility for SY 2015-2016. Please make sure your student gets a good night’s sleep the night before, and a good breakfast on the days of the tests.
• Fall Fling: Save the date for the first SPC fundraiser of the year, the 8th Annual FALL FLING! This is a fabulous family event that will take place on Friday, October 17th from 5:30pm-8:00pm. All families and staff are welcome! To volunteer, please sign up here. To help sell tickets outside JP Licks on the weekends before the event, please click here.
• Congrats: Congrats to Ms. Adrian Ward-Jackson who will begin her new role at the Curley K-8 School on Monday, September 29th as the Director of Professional Development and Inquiry. Ms. Ward-Jackson has been the 8th grade math teacher for the last few years and we are thrilled to have her on the administrative team for the rest of the year. I would also like to welcome Mr. Quinn Soto who is our new 8th grade math teacher. We are thrilled to have Mr. Soto on our team!
• Playing Field Ribbon Cutting: We will be celebrating the opening of our new playing field on Tuesday, October 28th from 9:00am-10:00am, all community members are welcome to attend. We are working out the logistics for having students participate in the event either through a competition or raffle. Thank you to all who have donated money and time to make this dream a reality.
• Boston Green Apple Day of Service: Thank you to all students, staff and families who participated in the Green Apple Day of Service on Friday, September 26th. A special thank you to science teacher, Stephanie Selznick, who received the grant for this event. The outdoor grounds look great and it was wonderful to see a mix of grade levels showing how “We Care About Our School.”