Thompson School News : February 5, 2018

Save The Date

* New *

  • February 8, Thursday – Arlington EATS Community Dinner sponsored by the Thompson PTO
  • February 12, Monday – 5th grade Museum of Science Traveling Workshop “States of Matter”
  • February 14, Wednesday, 7-9PM – PTO Meeting, Parents only
  • February 16, Friday – Spirit Day – Mismatch Day
  • February 17-25 – No School
  • February 20, 21, 22, 23 – Arlington EATS Lunches

School Calendar

Click http://tinyurl.com/ndp8spb for Thompson’s Google Calendar to get school holidays, early release days, and PTO events on your own calendar. Click http://tinyurl.com/y7u5k2on for a printable version of this month’s calendar.

Thompson News & Events

Financial Assistance Available

The PTO would like to continue to support families who need assistance for the remainder of the 2017- 2018 school year. To help with this process, if your child/children would like financial assistance for any PTO related programs, please print and fill out the form found here and return it to Ms. Vicki or Karen Donato. All information provided will be kept confidential. It is the mission of the Thomson PTO to ensure that all students have the opportunity to participate alongside their peers in all Thompson events and initiatives. By filling out this form, you are helping the PTO make this possible.

 

School Yearbook Deadline Extended to February 9th

Did you forget to order a yearbook? Good news!! The Thompson school-wide yearbook ordering has been extended to Friday February 9th – so if ordering one slipped your mind – now’s your second chance!

Please note: with the extended deadline – yearbook personalization is no longer an available option. In addition, extra copies of the yearbook have been ordered in past years and made available for purchase at the end of the year for those who missed the ordering window. That will not be the case this year – the February 9th deadline is the final chance to purchase a 2017-2018 yearbook!

For easy online ordering until Feb. 9th, go to: Coffeepond.com

Under Order Central, select: Yearbooks
Enter School Password: Thompson2018

The price is $13.00

If you have any questions please direct them to: Lisa: lisaslomba@gmail.com

Arlington EATS Community Meal Sponsored by the Thompson PTO

Arlington EATSFebruary 8th from 6 -7pm @ Thompson Cafeteria

The Thompson PTO will sponsor the February Community Meal, which will be held on Thursday, February 8th from 6-7pm. Thompson families can participate in this evening of community service by:

  1. Volunteering to help during the meal. Please sign-up http://www. signupgenius.com/go/ 10c0549a9a62fa4ff2-eats1 to volunteer. Children are welcome to join!
  2. Making a financial contribution to help put together this event, click https://thompsonschoolpto.org/fundraising/help-the-pto-sponsor-arlington-eats/ to make an online donation or send in your contribution (check or cash) in an envelope marked Thompson PTO/Community Meal in your child’s backpack. Checks should be made out to the Thompson PTO.

 

Game Night is back!

Game NightFriday, March 2, 6 – 8 pm

Have you been purging your house after the New Year?

Well, this is your chance to get rid of all the games and puzzles that your kids have outgrown. Donate them to the PTO to be sold at Game Night. A designated box will be located in the school’s front lobby during the whole month of February. Thanks in advance for your contribution.

Enrichment News: 4th Grade Field Trip to the MFA

MFA 2018 02Thompson students from 4th grade had a wonderful visit to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. They explored Greek works that highlight Gods and Goddesses from Greek Mythology, including sculptures, bowls and vases.
They learned about the Olympic Games, the armor used in battle and how to identify important characters such as Poseidon, Athena and Zeus. They also participated in a pottery workshop where each student produced a piece inspired by the visit.

Mass Cultural Council 00This field trip was partially funded by a grant awarded to the Thompson PTO by the Arlington Cultural Council. Thanks for supporting enrichment programs in our community.

Community

Arlington EATS

Arlington EATS Beats 2018Arlington EATS Beats 2018 Purchase TicketsArlington EATS Beats 2018 Register

Come join us for February Vacation Lunches! Tuesday, February 20- Friday, February 23.

Upcoming School Committee Chats

When: 11 am to 12 noon on Saturday, on the first Saturday of each month

Why: Stop by and say hi to two School Committee members (look for the sign) to answer questions, collect concerns, listen to your ideas, and generally talk about the Arlington Public Schools.

Where:

  • March 3 at Whole Foods
  • April 7 at Caffe Nero
  • May 5 at Whole Foods
  • June 2 at Caffe Nero

    No appointment necessary, simply stop by!

Sing @ Kickstand Cafe

Community Sing 2018 02Family Folk Chorale is putting on a Community Sing on Sunday Feb 11th at 5:00pm at Kickstand Cafe. Musicians will lead us through soul-satisfying popular and folk songs. No experience necessary. It is free and open to all. Kickstand is located at 594 Mass Ave in Arlington Center. See you there!

Menotomy Concert Series Family Concert!

Featuring the Solar Winds Woodwind Quintet
When: Sunday, February 11, 2018, 3 PM
Where: Arlington Town Hall
Free and open to the public

Solar Winds’ family concerts are an ideal way to introduce children to the joy and excitement of live classical performances! Music and storytelling in a fun and informal concert setting.

Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf features the delicate Bird, the fussy Duck, the sly Cat, the stern Grandfather, and Peter.

Mussorgsky’s Ballet of the Chickens in their Shells will delight! Amusing and informative introductions to each of the instruments, interactive musical games, and instrument “Petting Zoos.”

Mindfulness for Parents and their Children

A Presentation By Renowned Author & Psychologist Dr. Christopher Willard

When: TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 13 AT 6:30 P.M.

Where: Everett High School, Frederick F. Foresteire Center for the Performing Arts

Join author, psychologist and consultant Dr. Christopher Willard for an evening presentation about stress in children’s lives and bringing mindfulness to kids, teens and families. Dr. Willard will be sharing practices for caregivers to use themselves and take home to their families. We will explore the importance of our own practice, starting or deepening your own self-care, as well as fun ways to share with your kids.

Volunteer Opportunities

The Thompson PTO has many volunteer needs both small and big. If you’re looking for a way to give back to Thompson, here’s a list of ways you can help.

Thompson Parent Handbook Volunteer

The PTO is looking for a parent volunteer to put together an updated electronic Parent Handbook. There is a paper version from a few years back that needs updating with current information. This will be the place where parents can find useful information such as drop-off and pick-up procedures, contact information for teachers, field trip information and all the things you wish you knew as a new parent to Thompson. If you’d like to volunteer from the comfort of your own home doing some typing and copying and pasting – this is the project for you.

Interested? Contact: Kate Murphy, thompsonschoolvolunteers@gmail.com

Help Throughout the Year

To check all current volunteer opportunities: http://tinyurl.com/ThompsonPTOVolunteers

Connect with Us

THOMPSON PTO BOARD

Nandana Mewada, Co-President
Diana Trudell, Co-President
Yael Beals, Vice-President
Danielle Gottesman, Communications Chair

If you have news to share with the community, please email ThompsonPTOevents@gmail.com by Thursday at 12 noon to be included in the next newsletter.

Please note that we will only include news from the Thompson School and Town of Arlington. Announcements of interest to the Thompson community from other non-profit organizations may be included at our discretion.

Thompson School News : January 29, 2018

Save The Date

* New *

  • January 31, Wednesday – Deadline for ordering Thompson Yearbooks
  • January 31, Wednesday – Talk by Sara Fernandes Burd, Arlington’s new Director of Guidance & Social Emotional Learning
  • February 2, Friday – Green Team Meeting
  • February 8, Thursday – Arlington EATS Community Dinner sponsored by the Thompson PTO
  • February 14, Wednesday, 7-9PM – PTO Meeting, Parents only
  • February 16, Friday – Spirit Day – Mismatch Day
  • February 17-25 – No School
  • February 20, 21, 22, 23 – Arlington EATS Lunches

School Calendar

Click http://tinyurl.com/ndp8spb for Thompson’s Google Calendar to get school holidays, early release days, and PTO events on your own calendar. Click http://tinyurl.com/y7u5k2on for a printable version of this month’s calendar.

Thompson News & Events

Traveling Science Workshop

1st graders became meteorologists when the Discovery Science Museums visited on January 22, 2018.  In addition to creating three types of clouds using shaving cream, students watched thermometers at work, learned about the water cycle, and saw a suspended cloud made with dry ice.  Thanks PTO!

Flu Vaccine Still Available

Flu ShotThe CDC is reporting an increase in flu activity and predicts there will be weeks more to come. It is not too late to receive the flu vaccine. The Arlington Board of Health still has a supply of both adult and child vaccine. If you are interested in receiving the vaccine please contact Jessica Kerr, Public Health Nurse at 781-316- 3140.

Talk by Sara Fernandes Burd

Director of Guidance and Social-Emotional Learning for the Arlington Schools

Wednesday, January 31st, 7-8 pm at Thompson School

Join us for a conversation with Sara Fernandes Burd, Arlington’s new Director of Guidance and Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and learn about SEL. Discover what SEL actually looks like for your student!

Mrs. Burd will share information about the field of SEL, discuss how Arlington is supporting the SEL skills of all their students and provide tips and resources on how families can support their students in and out of school. Q & A to follow.

Socks Please!

Socks 01Nurse Christina would appreciate sock donations as many children are coming in from recess with wet feet – thank you!

School Yearbook

2018 Thompson School Wide Yearbook
Ordering

Don’t forget: Yearbook orders for the school wide yearbook are due on Wednesday January 31st!! If you’d like to take a look at last year’s yearbook it’s available to view at the front desk.

For easy online ordering until Jan. 31st, go to: Coffeepond.com, Under Order Central, select: Yearbooks, Enter School Password: Thompson2018
The price is $13.00

If you have any questions please direct them to: Lisa: lisaslomba@gmail.com

Arlington EATS Community Meal Sponsored by the Thompson PTO

Arlington EATSFebruary 8th from 6 -7pm @ Thompson Cafeteria

Arlington EATS is a local organization whose mission is to address childhood hunger in our community. Through its various programs, the organization has been working in the Arlington Schools since 2014. Did you know that EATS started its work at Thompson and its founding members include a Thompson teacher, a staff member, and parents? One of its programs is the monthly Community Meal. Launched in 2017, the meal provides community members an opportunity for a freshly prepared, sit-down dinner. The Thompson cafeteria is transformed into a pop-up restaurant and resonates with camaraderie and communal goodwill. Approximately 80-100 number of meals are served during the dinner.

As a host school for this program, the Thompson PTO will sponsor the February Community Meal, which will be held on Thursday, February 8th from 6-7pm. Thompson families can participate in this evening of community service by volunteering to help during the meal. Please sign-up http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0549a9a62fa4ff2-eats1 to volunteer. Children are welcome to join!

If you would like to help sponsor the meal, click https://thompsonschoolpto.org/fundraising/help-the-pto-sponsor-arlington-eats/ to make an online donation or send in your contribution (check or cash) in an envelope marked Thompson PTO/Community Meal in your child’s backpack by February 5th. Checks should be made out to the Thompson PTO.

Arlington Ecofest Trashformations

On Friday Feb 2 and March 2, the Green Team will be working on ideas for the March 24 Arlington Ecofest Trashformations.

      
This year’s theme is “Ecosystem Superheroes.” Thompson will focus on decomposers, nature’s recyclers!

Thompson classrooms and families will have an opportunity to submit a 100% non-recyclable trash sculpture of their “Ecosytem Decomposer Superheroes.”  Students can study the “superpower” adaptations of these decomposers: fungi, bacteria or animals, such as mushrooms, earth worms, bacteria or scavengers.  Along with their superhero trashformation, students can include a comic strip about their animal, fungi or bacteria superhero.  Trashformation entries should be no bigger than 5 x 5 x 5″. Comic strips should be no longer than one side of 8.5 x 11″ paper and (ideally on the back of reused paper.)
The Arlington Ecofest happens March 24th at Town Hall.

Green Team meets on the first Friday of the month 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm in the Conference Room. Please Contact Elizabeth Rocco at egrocco@gmail if you are interested in being a Green Team parent volunteer!

Game Night is back!

Game NightFriday, March 2, 6 – 8 pm

Have you been purging your house after the New Year?

Well, this is your chance to get rid of all the games and puzzles that your kids have outgrown. Donate them to the PTO to be sold at Game Night. A designated box will be located in the school’s front lobby during the whole month of February. Thanks in advance for your contribution.

Gibbs Parent Advisory Committee Thompson Representative Update

Hello everyone,

I am the Thompson parent representative on the Gibbs Parent Advisory Committee. We sent the following to Superintendent Bodie and Principal DeFrancisco on January 24, 2108 and we want to share it with the community. If you have further questions or concerns please let me know.

Juliet Moir, juliet.moir@gmail.com

**********
The Gibbs Parent Advisory Committee aims to be a resource to the district by offering the perspectives and feedback of parents prior to decisions, announcements, and public meetings. To this end, we met to outline agenda items for our next meeting with APS leadership and a future Community Forum. This list includes both our questions and ones we have received from the community.

Items/Questions for APS:

We recommend that you lead the next public meeting with a presentation of the educational vision and mission for Gibbs. Can we discuss the next iteration of this vision and mission before the next public meeting?

  • What’s the current thinking on personalized/individualized learning at Gibbs?
  • Is this still part of the vision and if so how will it be implemented?
  • What is the plan for stocking the Gibbs school library?
  • What is your vision for the PTO at Gibbs?
  • Can you please create a sample 4 day/6 day schedule for us to review before the next public meeting?  Be explicit about the trade-offs to avoid “surprises.”
  • What educational philosophy and development considerations drove the decisions and choices?
  • Can you please create a definition/ explanation document for Gibbs courses/ schedule for review?
  • What (if any) bootcamps for students/parents do you intend to offer? Examples subjects might include S-E learning, RC, Technology, Project-based Learning, Personalized Learning. Many of these subjects will be new to parents who are not familiar with trends in curriculum and instruction, and information sessions will be a helpful means of parent orientation.
  • What is the plan for special education; what’s the plan for students with IEPs and their service providers?
  • What is the staffing plan for the Gibbs?
  • What is the timing for decisions?
  • What is the schedule for the remaining community forums leading up to the school opening? Can we get a schedule nailed down now?
  • What is the final transportation plan?
  • What is the after-school plan?
  • What is the communications plan for the Gibbs? (Facebook, Newsletter, Websites?)

We share your mission to make these forums and other community events successful. We also recognize the amount of work that goes into the planning and execution of these events. We encourage you to see us as a team willing to help craft your messaging around the plans for the Gibbs school. To that end, we ask that the Gibbs Parents Advisory Committee please have an opportunity to review and provide feedback on presentation materials in advance of the next public meeting. Our aim is to provide constructive feedback or highlight areas of potential confusion for community members who have not been as immersed in this process as we all have.

Signed,

The Parents of the Gibbs Parent Advisory Committee
(Marian Hanley, Jenny Cutraro, Emily Logan, Charles Toulmin, Juliet Moir, Rebecca Arnold, Jane P. Morgan, and Scott Lever)

 

Community

Kid Care Preschool 2018 – 2019

Arlington Recreation Kid Care Preschool 00The Arlington Recreation Department welcomes your preschooler (ages 2.9 – 5 years old) to join us in our licensed preschool program. The program is located at 352 Mass Avenue. Registration opens to NEW families on 2/1/2018. (Registration is currently open for EXISTING families.) Come visit during one of our OPEN HOUSES on January 17 & 18. Click HERE for more information and to register.

Arlington EATS

Arlington EATS Beats 2018Arlington EATS Beats 2018 Purchase TicketsArlington EATS Beats 2018 Register

Come join us for February Vacation Lunches! Tuesday, February 20- Friday, February 23.

Chess Lessons

Does your child play chess, or are they interested in learning?

Ari Marcovski, 5th grade parent and elementary school teacher, teaches group lessons in his home in East Arlington on Mondays between 3 and 4:30 and Tuesdays between 4:15 and 5:45, from September to May. Cost: $120 per 8-lesson session (or inquire about pro-rated partial sessions). 10 students maximum. “Not only is Chess fun, but it teaches many essential skills, like time management, peaceful conflict resolution, spatial reasoning, prioritization, and thinking ahead and blending strategy and creativity.”

617-953-6656, arimarcovski@gmail.com

Black Girls CODE Boston Chapter Presents: Sphero Workshop!

Saturday, March 10, 2018, 10am-4pm @ University of Massachusetts Boston, 100 William T. Morrissey Boulevard , Science Center (not the Integrated Science Complex), Boston MA 02125 Check-in begins at 9:15 AM.

Sign Up

Volunteer

No prior programming experience is required. All girls age 7-17 are welcome.
This workshop will teach participants to understand the motion sensors of a Sphero through drag & drop block learning and Javascript.

Participants do not need to bring their own laptops. Lunch will be provided.
Stay updated on all Black Girls CODE student and volunteer opportunities by visiting our website and joining our mailing list.

Volunteer Opportunities

The Thompson PTO has many volunteer needs both small and big. If you’re looking for a way to give back to Thompson, here’s a list of ways you can help.

Game Night

Looking for board game enthusiasts to help us with this year’s Game Night. Join the planning team!

Contact diana_lutz@yahoo.com.

Thompson Parent Handbook Volunteer

The PTO is looking for a parent volunteer to put together an updated electronic Parent Handbook. There is a paper version from a few years back that needs updating with current information. This will be the place where parents can find useful information such as drop-off and pick-up procedures, contact information for teachers, field trip information and all the things you wish you knew as a new parent to Thompson. If you’d like to volunteer from the comfort of your own home doing some typing and copying and pasting – this is the project for you.

Interested? Contact: Kate Murphy, thompsonschoolvolunteers@gmail.com

Help Throughout the Year

To check all current volunteer opportunities: http://tinyurl.com/ThompsonPTOVolunteers

Connect with Us

THOMPSON PTO BOARD

Nandana Mewada, Co-President
Diana Trudell, Co-President
Yael Beals, Vice-President
Danielle Gottesman, Communications Chair

If you have news to share with the community, please email ThompsonPTOevents@gmail.com by Thursday at 12 noon to be included in the next newsletter.

Please note that we will only include news from the Thompson School and Town of Arlington. Announcements of interest to the Thompson community from other non-profit organizations may be included at our discretion.