Sheehan School Core Four Values
Respect and Not Neglect ♦ Voice the Right Choice ♦ Listen, Learn, Try, Ask Why ♦ School Wide Pride
November 2022
Dear Sheehan Families,
Please see the letter below from the District's SEL Coordinator, Donna Tobin.
Dear Parents/Guardians of Elementary Students,
I hope the new school year is off to a great start for you and your child(ren). As many of you may know, after 10 years as the principal of the Martha Jones School, I’ve taken on a new role this year as the K-8 Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Coordinator. Part of my role is supporting teachers in identifying resources and materials to support students’ SEL skill development.
Currently, teachers use a variety of resources to support students in developing these critical life skills:
- Self-awareness: The ability to understand one’s own emotions, thoughts, and values and how they influence behavior across contexts.
- Self-management: The ability to manage one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors effectively in different situations and to achieve goals and aspirations.
- Social awareness: The ability to understand the perspectives of and empathize with others, including those from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and contexts.
- Relationship skills: The ability to establish and maintain healthy and supportive relationships and to effectively navigate settings with diverse individuals and groups.
- Responsible decision-making: The ability to make caring and constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions across diverse situations.
Our current resources include Open Circle, Anti-Bullying Lessons, and the Same and Different Like Me program. More information about these resources can be found on our website under Social Emotional Learning on the Elementary Curriculum page, linked here. Over the past few years, we have also trained a number of our teachers in Responsive Classroom, a program consisting of a set of research, and evidence-based practices designed to create safe, joyful, and engaging classrooms and school communities for both students and teachers.
In June 2021, Open Circle, one of our primary social competency resources, discontinued its curriculum and professional development training. Teachers will continue to use Open Circle as we determine new programs or lessons to incorporate these skills into classroom learning. In order to do this work, I am collaborating with a group of teachers from each school to try out new lessons and programs to see what curriculums best meet our students' needs in developing SEL skills.
If your child’s teacher is part of the SEL team, he/she will be reaching out to you with more information about some new lessons and classroom activities. These lessons will continue to align with the Collaborative on Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) model that focuses on the five competencies: Self-awareness, Self-management, Social awareness, Relationship skills, and Responsible decision-making.
I look forward to working with staff and students across the district this year and also providing parents/caregivers opportunities to learn more about SEL and how to support our work in this area. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me via email, at dtobin@westwood.k12.ma.us.
Sincerely,
Donna Tobin
PTA Executive Board
Co-Presidents:
Sarah Herlihy - sheehanptapresident@gmail.com
Sarah Rodrigues - sheehanptapresident@gmail.com
Secretary
Kate Martucci
Treasurer
Suzanne Insler
Please feel free to contact any member with any questions or concerns.
PTA Meeting Dates
Thurs, Oct 6, 2022
Thurs, Dec 1, 2022
Thurs, March 2, 2022
Tues, May 9, 2022
PTA Newsletters
PTA Announcements
A to Z Connect - Important Update - ACTION REQUIRED
The Sheehan School PTA uses A to Z Connect as our membership platform.
Please log into the new system to confirm your information. Returning users can use the previous username/password. For new users, please create a new account. Only one account per family is needed. This website is where families will pay PTA dues, and purchase items such as apparel for the annual school apparel sale and tickets to the fall social. We also hope to utilize this site to coordinate other events throughout the year. Also, this website is where families can access the student directory. This directory is accessible for members who have paid membership dues. We anticipate that the directory will be available in early October. From the website, you can download the mobile app as well. Please contact Kate Martucci at sheehan.pta.secretary22@gmail.com with any questions or concerns.
https://sheehanpta.membershiptoolkit.com
Sheehan PTA Facebook Group
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