Celebrating Writing at Home

"Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart."

William Wordsworth

• READ, READ, READ great books aloud
• Be a great audience-show interest in what your child writes.
• Build on strengths-find something specific to celebrate in your child's writing
• Provide a place and tools for writing
• Look for easy, low-pressure opportunities for writing (e-mails, postcards, thank notes, etc.)
• Give your child a diary, book, notebook, magazine subscription.
• Play story-telling and word games(Scrabble, Boggle, Scattergories)
• Write something personal and share it with your child. Let them see you writing.
• ****Make a scrapbook of family stories and events.

Veteran's Day Assembly

Our Assemblies to honor our Veterans were held at 9:30 a.m. and at 2:00 p.m. The picture above shows our wonderful Music teachers, Melina Arcano, Karen Mattera and Jennifer Judge-Thiemann singing the Stat Spangled Banner in Harmony. The beautiful voices of these outstanding young musicians quieted the students and touched the hearts of all the teachers. Our Instructional Leader for Social Studies Salvatore Giaimo planned the assemblies in collaboration with our Music teachers.

The entire assembly fervently said, the Pledge of Allegiance and the children sang; "Grand Old Flag," "This Land is Your Land", "Yankee Doodle" and a rousing "United We Stand." The highlight of the show was the message that Sergeant Ray Roche of the U.S Marines gave to the students. Sergeant Roche had many medals but he told the students that he was most proud of his GOOD CONDUCT medal. We were honored to hear Sergeant Roche and gratefully show our appreciation for his service to our country.

Thank you to Beverly Iannucci for the great pictures.

Daily Wilton/BETTER SCHOOL BONANZA

Photography by Bev Iannucci

Tiffany Tecce and Jeffrey Busch represented the parents of the Miller-Driscoll PTA as they accepted a generous check from the President of Mainstreet Connect (A National Community News Company) and Thomas Cain, the Director of Communications. The Co-Presidents were thrilled that the Miller-Driscoll community gained over 100 votes to win the $500.00 prize from the Daily Wilton. T.J. Buzzeo was on hand to congratulate the school. Cheryl Jensen-Gerner, Leslie Pearson, and Sheelah Brown are grateful for all the community support of our Wilton school children.

Grade 2 PARENTS AS PARTNERS

Our third annual "Parents as Reading Partners," was held on October 20 and 21 for our Second Grade students. The Administration, the Language Arts Team comprised of Reading Specialists; Nancy Bernasek, Sandy Little, Susan Schroeder and Barbara Quist, as well as our Library-Media Specialists: Barbara Clancy and Joyce Torres and our Writing Language Arts Resource teacher Erica Tucker gave a short presentation about reading. Parents were reminded that reading is a gift and making reading enjoyable is KEY and will promote a love of reading.

Parents were invited to join their child in his or her classroom and have the fun of reading together in school. Seeing the parents and students reading together was a joy for the teachers and forged one more link in our parent-teacher partnership.

Pumpkin Carving Nights

Photography by Bev Iannucci

All Miller-Driscoll students will find a beautiful warm WELCOME to our Pumpkin Carving Nights as they walk past the window of the Outdoor Learning Center. The children are so excited when they are walking past the cheerful exhibit to their classes. Pam Nobumoto brought the wreath, mums, cornstalks, haystack, pumpkins, and boots to decorate the stage of the OLC. As always, the Key Club assisted the Tiffany Tecce Family and the PTA in cleaning out the pumpkins which some parents had ordered and were ready to be carved. Our families were asked to bring a cleaned out pumpkin, carving tools, flashlight , and a donation for the Wilton Food Pantry to replenish the Food Pantry shelves.

Debbie Lynch, Stephanie Gordon, Mimi Fredericks and Sarah Simmons planned the evening activities and represented the PTA. The PTA team of mothers planned to supervise each evening and orchestrate the serving of the Popcorn and Apple Cider.

Outdoor Learning Center

Kindergarten Students studying the Five Senses at the Outdoor Learning Center

Photography by Bev Iannucci

Our award winning Outdoor Learning Center was recently visited by a team of Ridgefield teachers and parents interested in developing an Outdoor Learning Center. The team was eager to see how curriculum lessons can be supported in a natural habitat, promoting authentic learning experiences. Our wonderful OLC volunteers; Jennifer Hulse, Laura Martins, Pam Nobumoto, Laurie Pierro, Janet Siegel and Nicole Thornbough spent a rainy day preparing for the visit by raking, planting and placing pumpkins and mums to welcome our visitors. Jen, Pam and Nicole then graciously participated in the presentation and tour of the OLC.
The OLC has been honored by being named as the BEST outdoor schoolyard habitat in Connecticut by the National Wildlife Federation. The OLC notably incorporates nature and the environment into the Miller-Driscoll curricula. Our Science Instructional Leader Jane Giresi uses the OLC when teaching Kindergarten students in experiments exploring the Five Senses.
We were all privileged when Erin Woolard, the original designer of the OLC, gave a presentation to the group describing the vision and early beginnings of the OLC. Erin beautifully detailed the purpose and the dream of providing a natural environment for learning for all our Miller-Driscoll students.
Our entire Miller-Driscoll community sincerely appreciates that this beautiful resource for our students is maintained all year by our generous OLC volunteers.

Volunteer Science Parents

The PTA is once again responsible for a great initiative at Miller-Driscoll. The Science Volunteer Parent Program is funded by our PTA. Our goal is to continue to deliver Science instruction to ensure our success as a district in Science exploration. The Miller-Driscoll Science PTA representative is Leigh Anne Floyd. Thank you to Leigh Anne who contacted room mothers who recruited about three volunteers for each class. PTA funds provide in-house class trips for our Grades Kindergarten, One and Two. The parents provide enrichment activities directed by each classroom teacher according to the design of the Science Units at each grade level. Jane Giresi our Instructional Leader for Science developed and mapped the Science curriculum according to the Connecticut State Standards. Nancy Peters and Pat Snayd will happily assist the parents with supplies and guidance. The children also have an opportunity to engage in hands-on Science studies with the additional classroom help of the parents. In kindergarten, students have a rigorous curriculum. The students will study the characteristics of several divisions of the animal kingdom: birds, fish, insects and mammals. They will also study the five senses, rocks, seeds and plants, the weather and sea life. The classroom teachers sincerely appreciate the help from the parent volunteers who model a love of science inquiry and enthusiastically engage in all the experiments.

Exciting Open Houses

Our Miller-Driscoll Open Houses this week had a new and innovative dimension. Teachers used Smart Boards and Power Point presentations to add polish to their friendly "Getting To Know You" talks. The teacher collaboration at each grade level was so powerful that all parents received a consistent, integrated message of hope and high expectations for the year ahead--as well as all the essential information about school and classroom operations. One teacher expressed her appreciation for the opportunity to work in close proximity to her colleagues as enabling her to share on a level the teachers had never come close to in the past. All the teachers were very proud of the appearance of their classrooms.

Mrs. Jensen-Gerner, Mrs. Pearson and I loved meeting all the parents. We enjoyed the Open Houses as much as the teachers and parents. Each Open house night was uplifting, happy and cheerful.

I asked the teachers to give me one word to describe their impression of Open House from the faculty perspective. One teacher described the happy hum of excited parents while another thought the evening was calm and lovely. Some teacher comments:
Wonderful
Hopeful
Enthusiastic
Exciting
Interested
Smiles
Cooperative
Smooth
Successful
Energizing
Informative
Enlightening
Curious
Inspiring
Supportive
A couple of additional comments:
The BEST
Supportive parents
Technologically advanced
Parents played with Smart boards
Nodding heads in agreement
A GOOD night
Rare opportunity to meet parents
Parents vested in education
Shared Message

The phrase I thought described Open House most succinctly was written by one teacher, who said that Open House is "The Doorway to our Parent Partnership."
Thank you to the Tecce Family, Deb Bucklan and Jeff Busch, who welcomed all our parents with smiles, distributed our new Handbooks and sold our great Spirit Gear.

Thank you to our Library Volunteers

We like to think of the library as the "heart" of the school. Our educational goal is to teach every student in Miller-Driscoll to love to read and read and read. The library is the perfect place to find great books and to expand that love of reading. The Library is so actively used by our students that our librarians love to have assistance from our parents. Every year we ask for volunteers from our PTA. This year Laurie Eidt and Erica Kurtz, the co-organizers of the Library Volunteer group recruited so many wonderful women. We were so pleased to welcome 42 volunteers to our first Library Planning Meeting. Our volunteers give generously of their time throughout the school year to help check books in and out, shelve books and ensure the cheerful atmosphere of children enjoying reading in our library. They also transfer their own enthusiasm for reading to the children. The volunteers are role models for our students who recognize that reading is important to all of us. The Librarians also try to accommodate every one's preferences to honor each person's schedule. As our "United We Stand" motto indicates, parents working together with teachers can make significant educational change for the future of our students.


Here are the titles of some books selected by our librarians, Barbara Clancy and Joyce Torres to read aloud to your children along the theme of "United We Stand":

Burns -------Spaghetti and Meatballs for All

Choi --------The Name Jar

Cronin -----Click,Clack, Moo Cows That Type

Hoberman-- You Read to Me, I'll Read to You

Jeffers ------The Way Back Home

Keats------- Pet Show

Lionni -----Swimmy


Munsinger -The Wizard the Fairy and the Magic Chicken

Kellogg -----The Island Of The Skog


Rylant -----The Relatives Came

Scanlon ---All the World (my favorite)

Wells----- Yoko Writes Her Name

Thank you to Laurie and Erica and ALL our Library Volunteers

What a Beautiful Week !

The hum in the halls this past week as the children walked to their new classrooms and traveled to their special area teachers is a reflection of the positive sense of belonging imbued by all members of our M-D staff. The children seem to be as comfortable in their school as they are in their own homes. In fact, school is their home for a large part of the day and it is vital that they feel that confident sense of belonging.

The Master Schedule developed so accurately by our Principal, Cheryl Jensen-Gerner, is a tribute to her outstanding ability to fit all the parts into a well-designed school day. Watching all the kindergarten students board buses at noontime is a marvelous thing to see. Students and teachers walking precisely to each designated bus is just a small example of the organization it takes to move the school day along with these very young children. Lunch and recess schedules are adjusted as needs arise and reading blocks are incorporated into the school day. Thirty-five buses are called at the end of each day and students know to fasten their seat belts for a safe ride home.

There is an air of happy accomplishment surrounding the school and the children. Everyone worked hard to ensure this positive new beginning and we are feeling very grateful for all the help we have received from parents, teachers, support staff and administration. Mrs. Jensen-Gerner, Mrs. Pearson and I are especially appreciative of the tireless work of our secretarial staff, Mrs.Marie Jarboe, Mrs. Joyce Healey, Mrs. Sondra Breeland and Mrs. Dianne Thulin. Mrs. Dianne Thulin has multi-tasked all summer with registrations, purchase orders, phone requests and inquiries of all kinds. Dianne has smiled through it all and we are deeply thankful. This week has been the culmination of the efforts of so many people. It is up to all of us to keep the momentum positive and strong to provide a great new school year for our students.

Meet the Teacher Day August 26, 2010

Thank you to our amazing teachers:


Our teachers arrived at school in early August and renovated; rejuvenated and rearranged their classrooms to insure that they were prepared for students and parents alike on Meet the Teacher Day. The school looks terrific, thanks to those efforts - each and every room is beautifully decorated and when the students arrived, they were thrilled with the fresh changes. The teachers matched the enthusiasm of the children as they warmly greeted all their new students.

Not to be forgotten, the support staff, who went way beyond the call of duty over the summer to make sure the teachers accomplished their goal - including painting the classrooms and moving thousands of boxes! A special thank you to Ernest Cullinan, the neatest painter in the world.



Thank you to our amazing PTA:



Tiffany Tecce, Maggie Kelly, Kim Lynn, Julie Jarvie and Laraine McCormack sweetly kicked off our new school year by providing a delectable luncheon for the staff on Opening Day. It was a wonderful and genuinely appreciated welcome back to school for all of us.

Continuing with their fantastic efforts; on Meet the Teacher day, our PTA was represented by Tiffany Tecce , Kelsey Tecce, Jeffrey Busch, Elijah Busch, Laurie Musilli and David Crays. Tiffany Tecce designed a brilliant new Miller-Driscoll T-shirt. A red, white and blue tie-dye with a cheerful message that everyone loves - be sure to check them out. The Miller-Driscoll Handbook, along with other neat accessories were available for the children and parents.

A special thank you to Tiffany Tecce who has been with us throughout the summer and then delivered the bus tags for the children to school this morning. Tiffany has helped us in developing the school calendar as well as being an integral partner in our school re-organization.

We are grateful to all the parents of the PTA who collegially partner with us to enrich the educational experience of all our Miller-Driscoll students. Thank you to all the parents who came to our school today contributing to the rich beginning of this new school year. Please continue to visit, volunteer, and share in the family activities offered throughout the year because embracing the theme of "United We Stand" is sure to greatly benefit our students and our community.

Congratulations

We are proud to join Dr. Gary Richards in recognizing three members of our Support Staff for 100% Perfect Attendance.

Juan Carvajal

Jose Castro

William Fry

We appreciate and thank them for their hard work and dedication to our schools

Planning Ahead for Student Success

Our Miller-Driscoll Leadership Team gathered for a two day Leadership Academy in the new central core of Miller-Driscoll on August 17 and 18. It was an exciting opportunity for the leadership team as this was the first opportunity in this new year to share their unified vision of student needs and how the combination of their experience and ideas could be used to improve student achievement. The goal for the two days of study and collaboration was to examine our Strategic Action Plan for 2010-2011 as a spring-board for school improvement.

The members of the team included Cheryl Jensen-Gerner, Leslie Pearson, Dr. Sheelah Brown and Instructional Leaders: Language Arts- Susan Schroeder and Barbara Quist; Writing- Erica Tucker; Math- Lauren Feltz; Technology-Bryan Ennis; Social Studies-Sal Giaimo and Jen Simeonidis; Science-Jane Giresi; Library/Media- Barbara Clancy; Special Education Ellen Giannino and Erica Mueller. Our Grade Level Team Leaders: Kindergarten- Maryann Mougin and Pam Sullivan; Grade One-Jeanine Hussey and Kim Gallagher; Grade Two-Lauren Jankowski and Leigh-Ann Solottolo.

Arlene Gottesman, our Assistant Superintendent of Schools, and Lynn Driver, our District Testing Coordinator, presented Wilton's results on the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) to the group. An examination of these assessments showed that our students scored above the mastery goals set by the state. Together we were proud of our accomplishments - our students - and felt fortunate that now we can utilize all the resources that Miller-Driscoll has to offer for further improvement. As a group, the team determined that one area for refinement is our students ability to comprehend connections to self, other texts and the world in their reading.

Also discussed - professional development for teachers which was folded into our academic school calendar to ensure that all staff members are apprised of new curriculum initiatives. The summer curriculum work was developed by the Leadership team members across the disciplines. It is critical that goal-setting, planning, standards, and assessment is guided by student needs and must be coordinated with the corresponding professional development opportunities for teachers.

At the close of the Leadership Academy, the team was proud of its accomplishments - the collaborative planning of what is sure to be an energized and successful school year for Miller-Driscoll school.

Ready, Get Set ,Go

• Meet the Teacher /August 26, 2010 /All K-2

A-L 9-9:45am M-Z 10-10:45am

• School Starts /August 30, 2010



• Labor Day /September 6, 2010 NO School

• Photo days/September 7 and 8, 2010



• Library Volunteers /September 8, 2010 9:30am



• Rosh Hashanah /September 9, 2010 NO School



• Grade 2 Open House /September 13, 2010



• Kindergarten Open House /September 14, 2010



• Grade One Open House /September 16, 2010



• Kindergarten Extended Day /September 16-17, 2010



• First PTA Meeting /September 20, 2010 9:30 am

Welcome Back to School - Mrs. Jensen-Gerner

Parent letter - back to school -

A Sign of Things to Come

Please drive by Miller-Driscoll School to see our cheerful new signs welcoming our students back to school. The signs, in our school colors of red, white and blue, are located at the Belden Hill and Wolfpit Road entrances. Our new logo celebrates the union of Tilford W. Miller and Ina Driscoll Schools. The triangle has three sides to honor the past accomplishments and traditions of Miller and Driscoll Schools, and the future success we will share together. The joining of these two excellent schools will only enhance and strengthen our outstanding reputations as the foundation of the Wilton Pubic Schools.

Thank you Sean O'Toole

Thank you to the leadership of Sean O'Toole and his team of custodians, painters, electricians and carpenters, who are magically transforming our Miller-Driscoll School into a beautiful and cheerful school building. The South End of the building encompassing the Kindergarten Ladybug, Caterpillar and Firefly cottages have inviting new yellow door frames. As we walk through the center of the building, we are greeted by red door frames that welcome us to our Grade Two cottages. Painting is progressing smoothly as every classroom is receiving a fresh coat of paint. We are so appreciative of the hard work of Willie Hostos (Head Custodian) , Jesus Martinez, Bruno Miglietta, Rodnez Thoby, Jose Torres, Marcus Castro and Juan Carvajal.

Introducing Our New Assistant Principal

We are happy to welcome Mrs. Leslie Pearson as our new Assistant Principal. Mrs. Pearson comes to us from the Danbury School system where she was a Literacy Specialist. Before becoming a teacher, Mrs. Pearson was an International Banker for ten years. She is a graduate of Cornell University, Johns Hopkins University and Manhatanville College.

aesop origin of "United We Stand"

AEsop Fables

The Harvard Classics. 1909-14

The Bundle of Sticks

An old man on the point of death summoned his sons around him to give them some parting advice. He ordered his servants to bring in a faggot of sticks, and said to his eldest son: "Break it." The son strained and strained, but with all his efforts was unable to break the Bundle. The other sons also tried, but none of them were successful. "Untie the faggots," said the father, "and each of you take a stick." When they had done so, he called out to them: "Now, break," and each stick was easily broken. "You see my meaning," said their father.

"UNION GIVES STRENGTH."

The Four Oxen and the Lion

A Lion used to prowl about a field in which Four Oxen used to dwell. Many a time he tried to attack them; but whenever he came near they turned their tails to one another, so that whichever way he approached them he was met by the horns of one of them. At last, however, they fell a-quarrelling among themselves, and each went off to pasture alone in a separate corner of the field. Then the Lion attacked them one by one and soon made an end of all four.

"UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL."

Thank you First Selectman Bill Brennan

In the letter below, our First Selectman Bill Brennan kindly took the time to thank the youngest citizens of Wilton for their contribution to the Veterans Memorial Green Project. Our Social Studies Instructional Leaders, Jennifer Simeonidis and Maryann Mougin, composed the letter, which was sent to our Miller-Driscoll parents as an authentic way to teach good citizenship to our young students. Ken Dartley also came to our school as a representative of the Memorial Committee to accept the gift from our students. It was our privilege to be included in this tribute to recognize our Wilton heroes.

Veterans Green Memorial Contribution Letter

COTTAGE NAMES

To enhance a sense of community and to promote friendships among the children, the Kindergarten, Grade One and Grade Two classrooms, in close proximity to each other have been designated as "cottages." The concept of a cottage at each level mirrors best practice to provide students with a personal identity and a sense of belonging. The team concept will give teachers opportunities for collaboration, collegial scheduling and curriculum sharing. Teachers in Kindergarten and Grade Two selected the names of the cottages referencing authors of children's books by Eric Carle and Jan Brett. The Grade One teachers chose titles of children's books around themes they intend to explore.

Kindergarten:

Ladybug Cottage-S-1

S. Reed,K. McGee, M. Mougin, M. Burdick, M. Dec, M. Margolin

Caterpillar Cottage-S-2

C. Maxwell, M. Horowitz, P. Sullivan, M. Dentice

Firefly Cottage -S-3

S. Giamio, B. Iannucci, C. Lyons, R. Reeves, TBA


Grade One:

Wonderful Happens Cottage-N-1

K. Gallagher, J. Rider, B. Ennis, L. McCormick

Curious Kids Cottage -N-2

A. Badolato, L. Feltz, A. Young, D. Sanzone, E. Slavinsky, T. Cook, D. Nelson

Mulberry Cottage-N-3


J.Hussey, S. Arbucci, A.Packard, E. Racz


Grade Two:

Hedgie's Cottage-C-1

J. Scholz, A. Sweeney, L. Connell, K. Constantino, S. Margid, L. Salottolo

Comet's Cottage-C-2

C. Vickrey, D. Miller, J. Simeonidis, K. Adams

Daisy's Cottage-C-3

R. Casl, L. Malat, J, Giresi/TBA, J. Bisceglie, M. McGann, L. Jankowski

Quick Tips for Summer Reading

Notes from our Reading Teachers and Librarians

TO SUSTAIN READING SUCCESS

SUMMER READING IS VITALLY IMPORTANT

1. Have your child select library books they would like YOU to read aloud to them.

2. Visit a bookstore and the library to help your son or daughter select books.

3. Encourage your child to read in bed. Some parents even allow their children to stay up later if they are reading in bed.

4. Purchase an inexpensive camera and notebook. Have your youngster create a picture journal of summer experiences.

5. Lead by example. Show your children that you too, love to read books, magazines, and newspapers.

6. Enjoy the rich programs at the Wilton Library.

Fun Summer Resources

http://www.readwritethink.org/

http://www.readingrockets.org/

www.scholastic.com/summerreading/index.htm

http://www.summerlearning.org/

Remember to return your Summer Reading Journals on the first day of school.

Meet the Teacher Day

Exciting News

"Meet the Teacher Day"
Thursday
August 26, 2010

We are delighted to announce that our new school design at

Miller-Driscoll will allow us to accommodate families to come to "Meet the Teacher Day" according to the first initial of their last name. Please come and enjoy this opportunity to see your child's classroom and meet the teacher.

ALL Kindergarten, First and Second Grade students will visit school during one of 2(two) sessions depending on the first letter of their last name.

9-9:45 am

ALL Kindergarten, Grade One and Two Students

Initials A-L

Please arrange your visit to ensure that parking will be available in consideration of all students for each session. Adhering to the schedule will ensure that parking spaces will be accessible to all our families for each time period.

10-10:45am

ALL Kindergarten, Grade One and Two Students

Initials M-Z

We are looking forward to meeting all our students on "Meet the Teacher Day."

Unity Celebration

Miller-Driscoll School
June 16, 2010

Our Miller-Driscoll students formed a circle and joined hands today in celebration of the unification of our schools. The Red, White, and Blue balloons, the Unity banner, and the Miller-Driscoll bracelets all contributed to the Last Day Celebration. It was a celebration of what has been and what will be. All Kindergarten and First Grade students and teachers, Para-professionals and Special area teachers took part in the festivities. The Administrators, Cheryl Jensen-Gerner, Mary Skowronski, Sheelah Brown, Gary Richards, Superintendent of Schools, Arlene Gottesman, Assistant Superintendent and First Selectman Bill Brennan completed the circle.

Karin Brooks, Jen Eyikan, and Hazel Usher, our Art teachers, helped students design white t-shirts imprinted with red and blue hands to signify the joining of the schools. Our Music teachers, Melina Arcano, Jennifer Judge, and Karen Mattera, led the children in songs they had learned throughout the year. First Grade teacher, Jeanine Hussey, set the tone for the ceremoney by singing an outstanding rendition of "America the Beautiful," while Erica Racz, another Grade One teacher, dressed as and symbolized the Statue of Liberty.

We are so appreciative of the work of our event planers. Marie Jarboe chaired the committee which was completed by PTA Co-Presidents Tiffany Tecce and Andrea Klancko, Driscoll Interim Assistant Principal Mary Skowronski, Miller parent Susan Salko, and Driscoll parent Maria Haljun. The Celebration and Calendar Committee made the logistical arrangements, and the PTA contributed the bracelets, the balloons, and the new red and blue pencils for our students.

Our school colors for the 2010-2011 School Year are red, white and blue. Our school theme for the 2010-2011 School Year is "United We Stand."

As we celebrate and honor what has gone before us, we look forward to that which lies ahead.

Happy Get Together

Our Miller-Driscoll Social commitees with the help of Kinderkids held a wonderful barbecue after the school day on Monday, June 14th. It was a happy time for all our staff members; teachers, para-professionals, and custodians. Teachers and staff members contributed delectable salads, desserts, fruit and beverages. Kinderkids staff members,secured the grill for a special Wilton Fireman, Stephen Czarnecki who made delicious hot dogs and hamburgers. Special thanks to Lynn Tyler, Gail Lilly, Dolores Tufariello, Emily Dowden and Patty Terravona who made all the arrangements.
The lunch was a welcome interlude from the hard work the staff has accomplished to provide a smooth transition to our new school organization.

A Letter to Parents: 3

M_D__Parent_Letter_-_6.2.10__final_ -

A Letter to Parents: 2

Below is a copy of the Letter to Parents from May 18th 2010.


Letter to Parents: 2 -

A Letter to Parents: 1

Below is a copy of the letter to parents from May 2nd 2010.



Letter to Parents: 1 -

Report from Subcommittee "Celebrations"

The Calendar and Celebrations Subcommittee has been meeting every week to plan some exciting and fun activities for our students. The members of the Celebrations Committee are: Maria Haljun, Andrea Klancko, Susan Safko, Mary Skowronski, Tiffany Tecce and Chairperson Marie Jarboe.

• On the last day of school, June 16, 2010, the current kindergarten and first grade students will gather on our front lawn to hold an End of the Year Unity Celebration.


• The music and art departments are assisting in the plans for the day.


• Our school colors will be red, white and blue.


• The Miller-Driscoll School theme for 2010-2011 is "United We Stand."


• A Unity Banner will be signed and displayed in our Library/Media Center at the beginning of the school year.

Miller-Driscoll Elementary School

Miller-Driscoll Administration

There will be a principal and two full-time Assistant Principals.

• 
  
  Cheryl Jensen-Gerner will continue as Principal.


• 
  


• 
  
  Dr. Sheelah Brown will become a full-time Assistant Principal


• 
  


• 
  
  We are in the process of interviewing candidates for the other Assistant Principal. We are fortunate to have many highly qualified candidates from which to choose.

Miller-Driscoll School

The April 27, 2010 Steering Committee meeting began with a review and a debriefing of Committee agreements. All questions and clarifications were welcomed and examined by the participants regarding the school design. Packets were distributed with maps that included the three potential grade level and multi-grade options. The potential options for the organizational models were reported and discussed by each group. The committee members reached consensus using a blind ballot resulting in a unanimous decision to organize Miller-Driscoll School by grade level.

Organization

• Miller-Driscoll will be organized by grade level and the entire building will be divided into North, South and Central.
• Kindergarten classrooms will be called the South Side (former Driscoll side).
• First Grade classrooms will be called the North Side (former Miller side).
• Second Grade classrooms will be in the middle, which will be called Central.
• The Pre-School will be self-contained and located on the North side of the building in the current Miller Cafeteria core.

The meeting continued with small group discussions about the direction of the subcommittees.

It was decided that the subcommittees would meet every week.

The Subcommittee members began their weekly meeting on May 4, 2010. After this May 4 meeting, other staff members and parents not currently on our Steering Committee will be added to each of the subcommitees.



The subcommitte members will add tasks and develop a timeline for task completion.



Facilities-Group 1 ( Operational decisions)

a. Cafeteria and Playground schedules

b. Logistics of drop off, pick up and bus rooms



Facilities -Group 2 (Schedule for Room Movement)

a. Determine supplies needed such as boxes

b. Determine impact of specials that will be moving, (Music, Reading, SPED)

c. Cleaning and packing schedule

d. Movement and placement of computers

e. Extended School Year impact



Communications/Media

a. Information shared with parents, staff and community

b. Schedule for Communication updates

c. Newspapers

d. Signage



Calendar and Celebrations

a. End of the Year Celebration

b. Meet the Teacher

c. Open House

d. Beginning of the year celebrations

e. Halloween parades

Reorganization Steering Committee

At the second Reorganization meeting on April 13, 2010, Cheryl Jensen-Gerner distributed the packets containing the school design options. The three organizational options included: 1. Grade level model, 2. Multi-grade design 3. a combination model of Kindergarten all together and Multi grades for Grade One and Grade Two.



The teachers on the committee felt that collegiality, the extension of curriculum beyond the classroom, placement and the social needs of the children would be best served within the same peer framework. One parent surveyed some children and felt that the children would have a nurturing and safe environment with their peer age models. A parent and a teacher supported the Kindergarten/Multi-age model. One administrator spoke about the Multi-age model. Following an in-depth discussion and a question and answer period, the committee moved to determine and prioritize the next tasks to be implemented. Subgroups were assigned to study the future needs of the reorganization.



Subcommittees were formulated:

1. Communication/Media

2. Calendar and Celebrations

3. Facilities- Group 1

4. Facilities -Group 2

The Journey

The journey began on February 24, 2010, when the Board of Education voted to restructure Miller and Driscoll Schools into one school. Our building will be referred to as Miller-Driscoll School.



A steering committee was immediately formed of parents, administrators, paraprofessionals, and teacher volunteers in order to ensure that the reorganization would be designed with information generated from all members of our school community. This steering committee was asked to identify and prioritize key implementation tasks for the organizational approach. The first meeting was held April 6, 2010. Members from the Administration are: Heidi Carlin(SPED), Arlene Gottesman, Cheryl Jensen-Gerner, Fred Rapczynski(Pre-School), Ginny Rico, Mary Skowronski, and Sheelah Brown. Parent representatives are: Jeffrey Busch, Maria Haljun, Bernadette Hess, Andrea Klancko, Susan Safko, Tiffany Tece and Elizabeth Torkelsen. Teacher representatives are: Lauren Feltz, Jane Giresi, Jeanine Hussey, Beverly Iannucci, Carol Maxwell, and Leigh-Ann Salotollo. Mary Henwood, our School Psychologist, Marie Jarboe, our School Secretary and Kathy Franks, our Reading Paraprofessional.



At the April 6, 2010 meeting, the committee purpose was to :

a. Design an organizational approach

b. Identify key implementation tasks

c. Identify subcommittees/tasks/ establish the timeline

Reorganization Information

Welcome to the Miller and Driscoll School Reorganization Blog!  We have designed this blog to keep parents informed about the reorganization of Miller and Driscoll Schools.  We plan to  use this blog to post the most up-to-date information about the reorganization.  We plan on posting pictures, information, and answers to questions from the public.  If you have a question about the reorganization,  please click the link on the sidebar and your question will be sent to the committee.  If we receive a number of similar questions, we may consolidate them into one post.