Communities Helping Haiti By Lisa Moore 2011 On January 12, 2010 most of us woke up to a typical day. As the day unfolded for us living here in Massachusetts, news would come of a devastating earthquake that struck The Republic of Haiti. The Capital of that Caribbean country, Port-au-Prince, was devastated by the magnitude 7.0 quake. Over 220,000 people were killed, over a million were left homeless, and the center of the Haitian government was in ruins. Many people responded to the crisis in Haiti, donating to the Red Cross and various relief organizations, but for one Wellesley family, simply writing a check would not be enough. John Cator lives in Wellesley with his wife Stephanie and two children Ella and Chloe. For them the disaster in Haiti was more personal. John was born in Port-au-Prince, and he and his family, have a home in Marigot, where their adult son lives. The Cators were among the fortunate, their home was left undamaged by the earthquake, and their family members were safe. While relieved that his home and family were safe, John Cator was compelled to see the destruction to his home town of Port-au-Prince first hand, to see what help was needed. “Being Haitian born I felt the need to do more then just my original donation to the Red Cross.” A month and a half after the earthquake hit, John returned to Haiti. The devastation in front of his eyes showed him a magnitude of damage the television news programs could not. While his home and family were safe in Marigot, only 40 minutes away in a town called Jacmel, the fault line tore through that town leaving approximately 5000 people homeless. As John surveyed the devastation he would see, many lost more than their belongings. The number of amputees is estimated at 15,000 from injuries sustained by the quake. The last major quake to strike Haiti was over 200 years ago. “They build in Haiti to protect against hurricanes, not earthquakes. A month and a half after the quake, and it’s just total devastation, people were still walking around in shock.” When John returned home he had decided on a way to help the people of Jacmel. Knowing it could take years for relief money to reach these people, he wanted to provide the people of that town with a basic human need, shelter. This has become his personal mission, to provide 100 families with a tent, something to help them start over with. One of the first people to contact him about doing something to help the people of Haiti was Polly Tsai. John credits her with giving him the push to make his relief efforts reach a larger number of people. Together with Kristen Atwood who runs Ripples of Hope, a non profit that helps in relief efforts like that in Haiti, they raised over $8000 to purchase tents and supplies. As momentum for the relief efforts grew, the next logical step was to involve the school and community to help. John’s daughters attend Sprague Elementary School and Polly Tsai and Kristen Atwood have children attending the Park School in Needham. The children from both schools rose to the challenge and helped raise money to buy tents for the homeless people in Jacmel. At Sprague school, kids brought in “Coins for Haiti”, at their monthly walk to school days, donated money from sales at the school store and sold student made necklaces. They also painted a large box truck that John bought and is donating to the cause. “One problem I encountered on my many trips to Haiti since the earthquake is how much luggage or packages you can bring.” The idea for the truck grew from that, the truck will be packed with the supplies like tents, tarps, baby clothes, and other donations and shipped by boat to Haiti. John will meet the truck in Haiti, where with the help of volunteers, he will deliver the tents and other donations to families in Jacmel. John has taken several trips to Haiti. Each time he has gone to deliver supplies to the people of Jacmel, he comes home lighter in the pocket, often giving the money in his wallet to a family in need, lighter in the luggage, leaving behind his clothes to those with none, and heavier in the heart. “Every time I go to Haiti and bring supplies, as I am delivering a tent to one family, I see so many more people who need help. I wish I could help them all.” John would like to thank friends like Terry and Colleen Conroy, the Wellesley Police Department, the College Heights community, Dr. Goodwin and members of the Sprague community, members of the Park School community, Polly Tsai and Kristen Atwood. Due to everyone’s tremendous efforts, over fifty families have received a tent and supplies. Hopes are high to reach the goal of 100 tents. John plans to pack the truck to capacity and donate the remaining supplies to two orphanages, one hospital in Port –au—Prince and one in Marigot, and as many families as he can help in Jacmel. The truck will be shipped on May 29th, and takes about three weeks to arrive. John plans to be delivering the supplies at the end of June. Donations are still needed, each 6 ½ foot tent costs $280, and John hopes to get at least 50 more. Anyone who would like to purchase a tent for the relief efforts can order one at http://www.hiltonstentcity.com/library/eu-equinox.htm; mention it is for Haiti, the model is the Eureka Equinox 6. There is also a large need for baby and children’s clothes, crutches and wheelchairs, tarps, and rope. John is also looking for volunteers to travel to Haiti to help him distribute the donations to the people. If you would like to help the people of Haiti and make a donation or volunteer you can contact John Cator at John@webctel.com. Monetary donations in the form of checks made out to Adopt A Community In Haiti can be sent to 946 Great Plain Ave Suite 237, Needham Massachusetts, 02492. Tents, crutches, wheelchairs, baby clothes and other donated supplies can be dropped off at 44 Curve Street, Wellesley. Sprague Elementary School Celebrates Reading By Lisa Moore 2011 As children progress through elementary school, one challenge parents and teachers have is maintaining their enthusiasm for reading. As a way to encourage students in the intermediate grades to continue reading quality literary works, Dr. Helen Constant, a Professor Emeritus at Salem State University, founded the Massachusetts Children’s Book Award program in 1975. After her retirement in 1993, Dr. Diane Bushner took over running of the program at Salem State University. The MCBA program is designed for Massachusetts school children in grades 4-6. The students receive a master list of 25 book titles. After reading five books a student is eligible to vote for their favorite book from the list. Each year the list is compiled from nominations made by participating teachers, librarians, and interested publishers. A selection committee works with the list of nominations and chooses the twenty five titles to appear on the master list. Criteria for a book to appear on the master list include literary quality, genre variety, representation of diverse cultural groups, and reader appeal. The titles must also have been published within five years of the award year to be considered. All titles on the master list are available in paperback form and the winning author receives a plaque to commemorate the award which is sponsored by Salem State University. This year was the 8th year Sprague Elementary School has participated in this exciting event. Sprague students joined readers across Massachusetts, as over 175 schools participated in this year’s MCBA. Sprague school librarian Ellen Mandel, in conjunction with the 4th and 5th grade teachers, encouraged the students to read and review at least 5 books from the master list. Sprague students “brought their A game” and rose to the challenge. Over 130 4th and 5th grade students participated and wrote over 850 book reviews. Sixty two students read and reviewed ten or more books and an amazing twenty two students read and reviewed all 25 titles! All 4th and 5th grade students attended the MCBA voting party on March 11, 2011 sponsored by the Sprague PTO. At the event Principal Dr. Stephen Goodwin and Ellen Mandel presented those who read and reviewed 10 or more books certificates to recognize their wonderful achievement. For more information about the MCBA program or for a copy of this year’s master list or previous years lists and winners, visit www.salemstate.edu under the heading MCBA. Sprague School Welcomes New Principal Dr. Stephen Goodwin By Lisa Moore September 2010 The first day of school is always filled with new things; new classrooms, new friends, new teachers and in the case of Sprague Elementary School, a new Principal. Dr. Stephen Goodwin walked through the throngs as he greeted the students and parents on September first, the first day of school. For many it was the first time getting a glimpse of the new incoming Principal. After the children were brought inside to begin the year, many parents mingled, enjoyed coffee and tasty treats provided by the PTO, and caught up with old friends and met new families. Dr. Goodwin took the opportunity to meet the parents and spoke briefly to the assembled group as a means of introducing himself, and passing on a bit of his philosophy for the school year ahead. Dr. Goodwin grew up in Waltham with his family, whom he speaks of with obvious affection and respect. He credits his father who is a teacher for 41 years and mother who is a function coordinator for the Robert Treat Paine Estate, for instilling in him a love for public service and strives to emulate his parent’s example. After receiving an Under Graduate degree in History from Bates College in Maine, Dr. Goodwin completed two Masters Degree programs, one in Intensive Special Education and the other in Educational Leadership. Additionally, Dr. Goodwin has completed his Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Boston College. Embarking on his 19th year working in public education his past experience includes nine years teaching in the Lexington, Belmont and Danbury CT public school systems. Much of that time was spent working as a moderate and intensive special educator at the LABBB Collaborative, a school servicing the five towns of Lexington, Arlington, Burlington, Bedford, and Belmont. The school operated under a public school plan with services for special needs students including a vocational training component for High School students. The next five years were spent as the Assistant Principal and then Principal of the Carlisle Public schools (Pre K – 8). The past four years have been spent as the Principal of the Lynch Elementary School in Winchester MA. Although he officially started as Principal of Sprague School on July first, Dr. Goodwin, at the end of last year, was actively working with past Principal Donna Dankner and the staff to ensure a smooth transition into Sprague. For the students, some may recognize Dr. Goodwin as “Survivor Man Steve” who was featured in a summer reading send off video created by Sprague teachers Jen Stabnick, Margaret Flitch, Ellen Mandel and Kristen Taylor. A Spoof on “Survivor man”, Survivor Man Steve is seen on the search for books at various sites around Wellesley, even sliding down Devil’s Slide with a book in hand to promote summer reading fun. Having hit the ground running Dr. Goodwin has spent the summer months meeting the staff through staff entry interviews, meeting parents and new students and working with Lennie Becker, Sprague School secretary extraordinaire, to ensure a strong start to the school year. As part of his desire to get to know all things Sprague and to learn about the Wellesley community, Dr. Goodwin took two local tours. First he met with Kalise Jacobs, the Wellesley METCO director and Bill Craft the elementary METCO coordinator, who gave him a tour of the home towns of our METCO students. He also took a bike tour of Wellesley with former Sprague parent Cary Collins. After sharing various exciting projects and ideas for the upcoming school year, it is evident Dr. Goodwin brings enormous enthusiasm for his new position as Principal at Sprague. Dr. Goodwin understands that Sprague is one of nine schools in the district. He has said that he views his role to be an advocate for Sprague, its staff, students and community. “Two things I promise, I will work hard at all times on behalf of Sprague School and be a tireless advocate for all things Sprague”, he said. Promising to work with the staff to develop programs for the school that focus on the core HEART values, and understanding that good communication is a key to success, Dr. Goodwin looks to be the new leader that can bring Sprague School to the next level. He promises to “Bring his ‘A’ game” every day, which is what he expects of himself and all the students of the Sprague School. Sprague School Goes Green: Second Annual SEED Fest By Lisa Moore April 2010 On the heels of Earth Day the Sprague School’s Environmental Program will be hosting its second annual SEED Fest on Saturday May 1st from 1:30 – 4:00pm at Sprague School. Last year the Sprague’s Environmental Program, run by parent volunteers Phyllis Theermann, Jen Looper and Susan Clapham created the SEED Festival as a way to continue their efforts to educate children to become vigilant protectors of our environment, starting in their own school. There are many programs that are ongoing throughout the school year that reinforce this objective, including paper recycling in all the classrooms, monthly walk to school days and a new addition of waste free lunches on Thursdays. Every Thursday students are encouraged to bring snacks and lunches to school in recyclable containers to reduce the waste produced. SEED, which stands for Sprague Environmental and Energy Defenders, offers an opportunity for the Sprague community to gather together to celebrate science and the earth. The festival features a diverse range of eco-interactive activities for students and their families as well as a school wide science fair. For the past several months students have been encouraged to complete science projects to enter into the fair and have been supported in their efforts by their teachers and parent volunteers. Last year there were a wonderful array of projects submitted from students in all grades that ranged from constructing toys from trash to making a working water wheel, and model volcanoes. Students had an opportunity to present their projects to visitors as well as a panel of experts in the science field from the community. College professors, Physicians, and other science experts from the community donned their lab coats as they walked through the maze of presenters listening to the students explain their projects and then presenting them with certificates honoring their participation. This years festival promises to be “an interactive, educational experience every child will love” according to Phyllis Theerman, a member of the SEED team. In addition to the science fair, attendees can enjoy a musical performance by Kids Can Music, a visit to an inflatable Planetarium and a visit with live chicks by Land’s Sake’s Chickens. There will be several activity areas, including a “magic bike” for grinding grain; eco-art tables such as the make your own pressed flower book mark, and an up-cycling activity. Up-cycling, is when an individual creates something new from recycled materials, for example, students can learn how to make a tote from recycled juice pouches. In addition there will be several booths to visit that concern various health topics and energy and water conservation. Presenters will include representatives from the Green Ribbon Committee, the Wellesley Recycling and Disposal Facility, Wellesley Conservation Council, and Bosch Home Appliances. Bosch is the proud winner of the Energy Star Partner of the Year award for its second consecutive year and will be on hand to educate children through fun, hands on demonstrations on conservation and parents on Massachusetts State tax and utility rebates available for converting to more environmentally friendly home appliances. Rounding out the event will be a bargain book sale, a bake sale and the extremely popular digging for worms’ activity along with a few other surprises. The entire Wellesley community is encouraged to come out and support this wonderful event. It is destined to be an exciting day filled with activities that support the exploration of science and the appreciation our community has for the earth. Sprague School Welcomes Author Rebecca Stead by Lisa Moore January 2010 On February ninth Sprague School will be rolling out the red carpet to welcome esteemed author Rebecca Stead. Ms. Stead, who is currently on tour promoting her second book “When You Reach Me” has graciously agreed to visit some local schools to talk to the young readers that her book targets. Alison Morris from The Wellesley Booksmith, in conjunction with Moe Henzel, an extraordinary 4th grade teacher and Principal Donna Dankner from Sprague School, coordinated the visit. An assembly for the 4th and 5th grade classes will take place at Sprague on February 9th in the afternoon. Ms. Stead is expected to share her experiences as an author, including her motivations for writing “When You Reach Me” and a discussion of the writing process. Author studies are an integral part of the Literacy programs at Sprague School. Ms. Stead’s visit offers an exciting opportunity for students to learn about the writing process from an author they have read and enjoyed. This should provide students with a greater understanding of the writing process as well as motivation for exploring and enhancing writing themselves. “When You Reach Me” is delightfully written. The story centers around a young girl named Miranda. As the story unfolds the reader watches as Miranda experiences the ups and downs of making friends, living in New York City, and navigating the sometimes harsh social environment of adolescence. Young readers will have little trouble seeing themselves in these characters. The novel, which takes place in the real world, has a twist that will allow its readers an opportunity to contemplate the fantastical. “When You Reach Me” has been extremely well reviewed and the general consensus is that it will be a strong contender for the prestigious Newbery Medal. The Newbery Medal is an award given by the Association for Library Service to Children. The award is given out once a year to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. Sprague School students are fortunate to be involved in this exciting opportunity. For others interested in hearing Ms. Stead and learning more about her work, there will be a meet the author event at The Wellesley Booksmith on February 9th at 6:00 pm. The Power of Inclusion – Examining Special Education Services at Sprague Elementary The Ellen Cuniff memorial library at Sprague school was full, the small chairs not occupied by elementary students, but by their parents. On October 21, 2009 the Sprague PTO held an evening meeting organized by co-PTO presidents Julia DePeyster and Charmaine Hartnett in addition to Lindsay Barrett, Christina Cooney and Patti Weismer, three of Sprague’s dedicated educators. The purpose of the meeting was to provide an opportunity for parents of typical and special needs students to learn about the benefits of inclusion programming as well as provide an understanding of the Special Education services offered at Sprague. To facilitate this discussion parents were encouraged to read the book “Widening the circle – the power of inclusion” by Mara Sapon-Shevin. The evening began with a short viewing of a documentary titled “Including Samuel” by Dan Habib. After the film Ms. Barrett, Ms. Cooney and Ms. Weismer led a book club discussion covering the first two chapters from “Widening the circle”. The discussion focused on why and how inclusion benefits all students. During the evening the teachers and parents broke off into small groups for discussion. Many parents of both typical and special needs students felt they lacked a solid understanding of what Special Education services (SPED) were being provided at Sprague. There also seemed to be a great deal of confusion regarding common vernacular used when discussing the various Special Education programs. Ms. Barrett, Ms Cooney, and Ms. Weismer along with Sprague Principal Donna Dankner did a wonderful job of explaining the Special Education programs available at Sprague and helped to decode the confusing terminology. It is evident that the degree of SPED support an individual needs is as variable as children themselves. If a child is identified as needing special services he/she may have an IEP (Individualized Educational Program) – developed by a team of educators and specialists. The IEP is a written plan designed to meet the unique educational needs of one child as defined by the federal regulations outlined in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This document should describe how the student learns, how he/she best demonstrates that learning and what teachers and service providers will do to help the student learn more effectively. Modifications to assignments and lesson presentation, and a list of special services to be provided should also be included. Only certain classifications of disability qualify for an IEP. Special Education services are often delivered in the typical classroom, in a separate area, individually and in groups. Currently Sprague has two ISS programs. ISS stands for Inclusion Support Services. The groups differ by age. Currently, ISS1 supports individuals in K – 1st grade and ISS 2 supports individuals in 2nd-5th grade. Each child in the program has their own IEP and is working toward individual goals. Each student in the ISS program is in a typical classroom for a portion of their day and supported in an ISS classroom as needed throughout the day. The goal at Sprague is to provide meaningful opportunities for inclusion of children with special needs into the typical classroom with their typical peers. The amount of time a child spends in the typical classroom can range from the entire day to any portion of the day, depending on the individual. Other special education services available at Sprague include those provided by specialists such as speech and language, occupational or physical therapists. These services can be provided in an inclusion setting. If the service is provided in class, the student will work in the classroom with the specialist who may co-teach with the classroom teacher and/or support the student with a lesson or activity. If the service is provided in another setting, the student and specialist will work together or in a small group, outside of the regular education classroom. These specialized services are provided to help the student(s) reach their individual goals. Some students may require some form of assistive technology. This is any piece of equipment, or product system used to maintain, or improve functional capabilities of a child with a disability. These tools can range from a rubber grip on a pencil to customized computer software, or what ever tool the team feels will support that child’s learning. At Sprague many educators use a universal design for learning (UDL). This is a way of designing curriculum that will enable all individuals to gain knowledge, skills and enthusiasm for the material. Teachers use multiple modes of presenting instruction as well as multiple modes of expressing evidence of learning. This helps to reduce the barriers children with different learning types face while still maintaining high achievement standards. It has been shown that this approach helps both the typical and special needs student by addressing the varied learning styles exhibited by children. The focus of the Sprague PTO this year is inclusion. Currently, several options for developing more opportunities for socialization among special needs students and typical students are being examined. The possibility of creating social groups and a facilitated recess program are two ideas being explored. The PTO also has plans to continue the discussion of inclusion at a second book club meeting for the second half of the book “Widening the Circle” Watch for details on the date for that meeting and other upcoming events at the Sprague PTO website. Museum visits motivate Sprague students to learn about art by Sunny Young May 2007 pdf version Technology Enhances Learning by Sunny Young March 2007 pdf version Sprague students tune into music by Sunny Young December 2006 pdf version Experiencing math in constructive ways by Sunny Young October 2006 pdf version |
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