Swoop Scoop

Who is art for?

How can art change how people feel and how we treat one another?

Fourth graders considered these big questions as they began the year by exploring Street Art of the past and present. We thought about how Street Art is for everyone to see and how Street Art can change a community. Students learned that graffiti is a kind of Street Art in which the image or writing is created without permission. We explored works by artists who have made graffiti during their art careers such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, and Banksy. We debated how the artists’ aesthetics or intentions might impact whether their graffiti is okay or not. We agreed that getting permission is always best and that making graffiti to damage a place is never okay. We explored works by contemporary Street Artists in a variety of media including mosaics, chalk, sculpture installations, and spray paint. Students were inspired by Street Art styles to draw their name on paper as a signature tag as well as sketch proposals for Street Art that they would like to create for our community. As the culmination of this unit, we requested permission to paint a new mural from our principal Katie Barea and from the City of Montpelier.

This will be a new annual tradition for fourth grade artists to paint a new mural design on Loomis Street each fall as part of their learning about Street Art. Many thanks go out to: Ms. Barea for this idea and for supporting the project; to Ms. Tara, Mr. Jeff and Mr. Zak (our wonderful custodial team) for their time and energy; to Mrs. Lafleur for her help with the painting sessions; and above all to the fourth grade artists for their enthusiasm and creative work! We hope that everyone enjoys seeing the mural and that our artwork brings joy and kindness to our school and our community.

-Kristina Kane, UES Art Teacher

October 17th is school picture day! Your students should have received ordering information already. If they did not, please contact Jena in the Main Office. Retakes have been scheduled for November 30th.

We will be hosting our K-4 UES Fall Family Conferences on October 28th. Students will not have school on Conference Day but are invited to attend their conference.

Our Fall Conferences will have 3 Main Goals:

• Checking In & Continuing to Connect
• Sharing Beginning of the Year Glows
• Identifying a Grow & Discussing How We Nurture It-Together

K-4 teachers will be engaging in a reflective process with students, to support them in identifying their own glows and grows. These personal reflections will be embedded in the conversations during conferences. Conference sign-ups will go live Tomorrow, October 12th at 7:30am-LINK HERE.

On Conference Day, please visit your student's classroom during your scheduled conference time, as well as their Essential Arts classrooms (Library, Music, Art, PE). We look forward to seeing you all again soon!

The UES Community takes an “Out of Sight, Out of Mind” approach to all personal electronic devices for our students. If your child has a device and does not need it for emergency communication with you, they should keep it at home at all times. If your child has been given a phone for emergency contact with you, it will need to be turned off and in their backpack (or turned in to their teacher) upon arriving at school. You can all reach your child at school at any time by simply calling the front office. Please support us with this from your end!

The UES Caregivers Alliance (UESCA) is a collective of caregivers who support a welcoming, inclusive UES community. We provide support for all caregivers, educators, staff, and family-centered school activities. You can access UESCA materials and notes on our webpage, here. Have a question or need? Have an idea you want to share? Email us at ues.families@gmail.com.

Monthly UES Caregiver Alliance Coordinating Meetings Start Thursday, October 20, 7-8pm.

Mark your calendars for the first UESCA meeting of the year! This meeting will be hybrid (virtual via Zoom and in person at UES). These meetings allow us to plan activities and events throughout the year. Our October meeting will be focused on upcoming volunteer opportunities and planning for the school year Click Here for the proposed agenda. Location: UES, Room 111 (enter through front door on Park Ave). Virtual link to come.

Classroom Directories for Caregivers
UESCA is creating classroom directories so caregivers and students can connect with each other. Please use this form to include your contact info for your student's class directory. UESCA volunteers will create directories as quickly as the info comes in and make them available through each classroom teacher. This is one way we can build community here at UES! Participating in the classroom directories is completely optional.

"I've really enjoyed being a guest teacher. I've gotten to know so many kids...way beyond my child's friends. I've also gotten to learn how and why learning is done at the school. It's a really special and unique way of being part of the community and I love the flexibility it allows me. I strongly encourage any caregiver to to try it. Not only are you supporting the school in a time of need, you get a behind the scenes peek, all while getting paid." -Edisa Gonzalez Revilla

Interested in supporting our UES community, hanging out with awesome kids all day, and making some extra money when you have time? Consider becoming a substitute! On-call positions: contact Tracie Locke to apply to become an on-call substitute teachers: tracielocke@mpsvt.org

Email: katiebarea@mpsvt.org
Website: mpsvt.org/ues
Location: 1 Park Ave, Montpelier, VT, USA
Phone: (802)225-8200
Twitter: @bareakatie