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Be Kind. Be Curious. Be Courageous.
Welcome to the Martha Jones School. We want students at the Martha Jones School to Be Kind to themselves and to others; We hope that they will Be Curious about learning and the world and people around them; and we ask that they Be Courageous when called upon to do the right thing, to stand up for themselves and others, to take risks and be adventurous, even when it is hard and to not be afraid to fail. I am delighted to welcome you to Martha Jones.
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Message from the Principal’s Office
April 6, 2020
Good Morning Martha Jones Families,
Happy Monday - Today we start phase 2 of our distance learning. This week we are transitioning into new learning with two ELA lessons and two Math lessons as well as some fun activities. Teachers may add or adjust to meet the needs of their individual classrooms. You should have received an email from your child’s teacher regarding his/her own Google Classroom and/or Seesaw account, which will lead you to his/her plans for the week or you can link to their information and classrooms on the WPS Continuation of Learning Website.
Please know that we are still in a learning curve and there have been a few technical issues as we’ve tried to load items to individual classrooms, etc. Our goal is to allow teachers greater flexibility in working with their students during this time because they know their students and families best. If you encounter any glitches, please let your child's classroom teacher and Mark Goguen (grades 2 - 5) and Mary Comer (grades K and 1) know right away so the issue(s) can be resolved. If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s teacher. WE APPRECIATE YOUR PATIENCE AND KINDNESS DURING THIS TIME.
Principal Coffee Hour - If you would like to participate in a virtual Principal Coffee this Thursday, April 9th, please complete this short survey.
Now for the fun stuff:
Pledge of Allegiance - Today we have Mrs. Pasquan (mpasquan@westwood.k12.ma.us) introducing Ronan Donahue, grade 2, who will lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance (remember, if you get the spinning wheel, just click on the play arrow and the video will start).
Mrs. Pasquan and Ronan 4:6:2020.mov
Meet the Specialists - I’ll be sharing specialist profiles and some fun activities from each specialist this week. Today we have Mrs. Pickering, one of our music teachers.
Message from Mrs. Pickering
Dear Martha Jones Families,
I have enjoyed popping into some of the virtual class meetings to visit students and engage them in a musical activity! Click on the link below to see a video I created for the students to view and play along.
Cup Song If any family would like to send a video email of their child trying it out, please do! Videos can be sent via email to kpickering@westwood.k12.ma.us
Musically Yours,
Mrs. Pickering
April 3, 2020
I am reaching out with some details about our transition to a new phase of distance learning. On Monday, April 6, we will move beyond review and enrichment and start introducing new concepts and skills. While we all know that distance learning cannot replace the experience of in-person classes, our staff have been working hard to maintain the sense of joy and connectedness that characterizes our elementary classroom communities.
We will be “learning from home” until at least May 4, and during that time, here are some of the structures that will be in place:
Attendance
We will be recording attendance daily based on student participation. Our expectation is that students engage in lessons with some support from their families. We understand that each household faces challenges. Many parents are balancing the demands of working from home and supervising kids’ learning activities and some are dealing with illness.
- If your child is struggling to participate in lessons, please reach out to the classroom teacher, special educator or principal.
- If your child is unable to participate due to sickness or another family reason, please email Diane Santangelo at dsantangelo@westwood.k12.ma.us and your child’s classroom teacher, as you normally would.
Daily Instruction
Guidance from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education released Friday suggests that students engage in distance learning for about half the amount of time they would typically be in school. For Westwood elementary students, that means about 2 - 2.5 hours of core academic learning per day and another 1 - 1.5 hours of physical and creative activity. Core academic learning is likely to include many of the following each day:
- Watching video instruction
- Reading, either online or in a book at home
- Completing written assignments for math, literacy, science and social studies
- Working with teachers and instructional support staff in small group video sessions
- Engaging in hands-on activities that support learning
- Conducting internet or book-based research
In order to help students focus on a few key concepts and skills per day, teachers will alternate between core subjects Monday - Thursday. On Fridays, students will have the chance to review, practice, and apply their learning from earlier in the week and engage in explicit SEL lessons. A template for a child’s week will typically look like this: click here)
This model will also give students the chance to continue to participate in “specials” activities (art, library, music, physical education and grade 3 coding). For Week 3 our specialists will continue to offer choice based activities as part of the district learning plan. In the future, we anticipate offering special classes throughout the week. Finally, it will continue to promote classroom connection and opportunities to practice SEL competencies through morning meeting and other check in activities
Student Support
As we move toward a more academically challenging version of remote learning, we want to make sure that all students receive the sup
WEEKEND MJS BOREDOM BUSTER CONTEST
Friday, March 27 @ 3:10pm - Sunday, March 29 @ 10pm
As parents and students navigate remote learning and search for creative ways to stay engaged, we want to know: What is your family doing to keep busy on the weekend?
Submit a photo of your weekend activity for a chance to win a $50 Westwood Gear gift card!
To enter, share the photo on the Martha Jones PTO Facebook page, mention @MarthaJonesPTO on Insta or #MJSBoredomBusters. Not on social media? No worries, email the photo to Jamy Sesselman at jamypombo@yahoo.com
All photos must be submitted between Friday, March 27 at 3:10 p.m. and Sunday, March 29 at 10 p.m. The winner will be drawn live on the MJ PTO Facebook Page on Monday night!
Please be sure you are practicing social distancing and adhering to the state’s stay-at-home advisory.
MARTHA JONES FIELD DAY T-SHIRTS
Deadline extended - Wednesday, April 1 - 6pm
This year, the PTO is purchasing T-shirts (instead of the water bottles) for students to wear for Field Day, field trips and to show all around Martha Jones Spirit. Each parent can select the size for his/her child(ren); colors are set by grade and were chosen by the Student Council. You can select your preferred sizes via this Google Form: https://forms.gle/g7sHV97TGA6VXL7L8
Responses must be received by 6pm on April 1. If you do not respond, a T-shirt will be ordered for your child in the average size chosen for his/her grade.
VIRTUAL BIRTHDAY SHOUTOUTS
Martha Jones PTO Facebook Page
Did you know MJ announces kids’ birthdays on the loudspeaker in school every day? If your child has a birthday during this school closure, we want to make sure they are recognized. If you’d like a birthday shoutout on the Martha Jones PTO Facebook page, email your child’s name, birthday and grade along with a photo of the birthday boy/girl to jamypombo@yahoo.com. Please make requests at least 2 days in advance.
CARDS FOR SENIORS
The PTO has partnered with the Westwood Senior Center’s Meals on Wheels program to deliver letters or cards from the students of Martha Jones to seniors in our community.
If your child wants to participate, you can scan drawings or email letters and send to Rachel Lipton at rachelalyson@gmail.com. In order to maintain social distancing, you may also drop off finished letters or cards in the baskets at:
Rachel Lipton’s house: 5 Short Street or
Amy Amatangelo’s house: 111 Sycamore Drive
ONLINE SEPAC MEETING
Tuesday, March 31 @ 7:30-8:30
Please join us for the first in a series of virtual parent meetings using Zoom Video Conferencing. Our plan is to meet every other week on Tuesdays from 7:30-8:30 during the period of school closure.
The purpose of the group is to connect with other Westwood parents around topics related to raising a child with a disability, supporting each other during this difficult time and comparing notes on how remote learning is going for your family.
All Westwood parents are welcome and you can join as many sessions as you’d like. We ask that whatever parents share during a meeting is confidential, not to be discussed outside of the group
RSVP: westwoodsepac@gmail.com or on the Facebook Event
Instructions for joining the meeting will be emailed to you
SHOP AmazonSmile
Support Martha Jones with every purchase
Support the Martha Jones PTO while you do your Amazon shopping by using AmazonSmile. AmazonSmile is a simple, automatic way for you to support the Martha Jones PTO every time you shop, at no cost to you.
You will find the exact same prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to the Martha Jones PTO. Just log onto smile.amazon.com, choose Martha Jones PTO as your charity of choice and shop away!
Amazon shopping with an iPhone?
You can use AmazonSmile just like an App by following a few simple steps. Open smile.amazon.com in your browser, tap the “share/forward link” button then tap the “Add to Home Screen” icon (you may need to swipe left to see this). You will now have an AmazonSmile icon which can be used in exactly the same way as the Amazon App but now all of your purchases support the Martha Jones PTO.
BOX TOPS - COLLECTION ONGOING
Download the App and scan receipts within 14 days of purchase
Each Box Top is worth 10¢ for Martha Jones. This money will be used to help pay for school supplies, fund field trip expenses and other fun events! In addition to the Fall and Spring classroom competitions, we collect Box Tops year-round, so please feel free to send them in whenever you have them.
We recently sent home information about important changes to the Box Top program, please take note of these changes
