page background

Panda Press

February 25, 2024

Panda PressFebruary 25, 2024

Dear Thacher Families:


I hope you had a nice week off and were able to spend quality time as families. We are entering the longest stretch of uninterrupted school that we will experience for the remainder of the school year. For our 3rd and 4th graders, this time will be crucial in preparing to take MCAS. We have worked hard over the last few years to try to reduce the stress that students feel about this endeavor by trying to treat it like "any other Monday." However, there are aspects of it that we cannot do so for without some targeted practice, specifically in working with the online platform to ensure the very first time they engage with it is not on test day. Between now and the beginning of April, teachers will go through a couple of rounds of practice tests (in much shorter chunks than testing day) to help familiarize students with the tools they will be using those days.


Also, we'll ease back into school by starting off with a Pajama/Cozy Day tomorrow.


Sincerely,


Frank W. Rich

Principal

Whitson's Space Lunch Day

This Month in Health & Wellness 🍎

Hello Thacher Families,


After a few months of nutrition, affirmations, goal setting, and learning how to deal with stress, our students have now moved on to learning about the heart and the circulatory system. February is American Heart Month, so our students have learned how to find their pulse, take their heart rate, and completed an experiment to see which exercises yielded the highest heart rates. We have also reviewed best practices for a healthy heart, so apologies if any students came home saying, “Ms. Hanson said I can’t have bacon/soda/pizza!” Moderating and limiting these ‘sometimes’ foods were encouraged, rather than thinking that we should never eat them.


Insights classrooms are exposed to a variety of fine motor, gross motor, pre-writing, and literacy activities. We’ve been working on taking turns, drawing and writing, striking, rolling, and so much more! Our focus over the past few months has been on recognizing public safety personnel, like firefighters and police officers.


February is also National Children’s Dental Health month, so after the break we will shift gears and learn how to best take care of our teeth!


Wishing you all a fun and restful February vacation!

Ms. Ashley Hanson

ahanson@attleborops.net

Meet the Staff

Introducing Ms. Hirsch and Ms. Dennis!

Do you know anyone with school age children ready for Kindergarten for next year? The Attleboro Public Schools is pleased to host Kindergarten Information Night on March 7, 2024. This evening provides families with information on how to enroll a student in Kindergarten for the 2024-2025 school year. Early Learning Center parents should also plan to attend this evening to receive information for the next steps in the ELC to Kindergarten process. More information can be found here: https://attleboropsma.sites.thrillshare.com/o/apswc/page/kindergarten-registration-2023-024
Event Information

Monthly Meeting

This meeting will be virtual. Here is the LINK to the meeting.

When?

Monday, Feb 26, 2024, 06:30 PM

Any resident of Attleboro or student attending the Attleboro Public Schools (through a guardian) can access the William James College INTERFACE Referral Service. The INTERFACE Helpline helps individuals in subscribing communities become connected with outpatient mental health and wellness resources.

Through the Helpline that operates from 9 AM- 5 PM on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and 8 AM- 6 PM on Tuesday and Thursday, callers will complete an intake which takes about 15-20 minutes and then within a day or so of their call will be assigned to work with a Resource and Referral Counselor who will help them navigate the challenges of finding mental health services, including obtaining a referral match to an outpatient provider, as well as information and resources related to mental health and wellness. Please see What to Expect When You Call the Helpline or visit interface.williamjames.edu for more information.

The INTERFACE Helpline is not an emergency service. If you or the person you are seeking to assist requires a crisis response to meet immediate safety needs, please call 988, 911, go to your local emergency room, or find your local crisis services by calling 833-773-2445 and asking for crisis support.

Click the image above to view Project Connect's Newsletter


The following parent workshops are FREE and open to all. Training certificates are NOT available. Please contact: jcapitanio@attleboroschools.com to register and receive the zoom link.


https://www.smore.com/r7gfz Nurturing Your Kid’s Big Emotions, Wednesday, February 27, 6:30-7:30 p.m. on Zoom

Upcoming Important Information & Dates

Save the date!

A Night to Discover: APS Student Learning and Community Partnership Showcase

On March 14, 2024, from 6:00-7:30 PM, Attleboro Public Schools (APS) will host A Night to Discover: APS Student Learning and Community Partnership Showcase. Now in the second year of this annual event, this evening is an opportunity for APS staff, students, families, and community organizations to come together as students throughout the district display their learning experiences and local community resources share information about their services and programs. The goal of this event is to bring all stakeholders from the community together to celebrate student successes and share resources. More information to come soon. We look forward to seeing you there!

February 26: Cozy/Pajama Day

February 26: School Council Meeting

February 26: PTO Meeting

Februrary 27: Space Lunch Day

March 4 - 8: Read Across Thacher Week

March 7: Kindergarten Information Night

Frank Rich
Frank is using Smore to create beautiful newsletters