Hello Hardy Families,
Here are a few recent or upcoming happenings at Hardy or the larger Wellesley community:
Supporting children with processing the events that took place in Washington DC
I wanted to share with you how teachers at Hardy have approached discussing Wednesday’s disturbing events at the Capitol with students on Thursday and Friday. In order to prepare for meeting our students on Thursday morning, I met with the teachers before school so we could reflect on this horrific day in our nation’s history and calibrate our approach to supporting our students. Our approach with difficult news is to meet students where they are and reassure them that the adults at school will do all we can to keep them safe. In some classes, particularly in our youngest grades, Wednesday’s events didn’t come up at all, or only one or two students asked to share their concerns with the teacher. In these classrooms, teachers respected the students who did not know about the events by privately supporting those individuals who expressed concerns. In some of our older classrooms, where most or all of the students were aware of Wednesday’s events, teachers led whole class discussions that involved students sharing what they knew and how they felt, teachers providing clarifying information and students asking how they can help to make a difference. I am so proud of the Hardy teachers for the thoughtfulness with which they approached these important lessons and our students for their empathy, thoughtfulness and leadership.
Project Based Learning
Over the last few years, Wellesley teachers across all grade levels have been taking part in PBL (Project Based Learning) training and implementing PBL projects in their classrooms. Recently, the PBL steering committee met to discuss how PBL might look this year as part of our Hybrid model. There was much discussion around what options are available. Across the district, teachers are approaching the implementation of PBL in different ways. In our school, during the 2020-2021 school year, teachers will be applying the “dimmer switch,” method, which incorporates aspects of PBL into daily teaching. The steering committee plans to meet throughout the year and will continue thinking about the best ways to support teachers as they navigate hybrid teaching and PBL work. Both teachers and the district are looking forward to “getting back to normalcy” and integrating fully developed PBL projects into the curriculum in the future.
Honoring Martin Luther King Jr. – World of Wellesley
Next Monday, January 18th, we recognize the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. Please take note of a special virtual program being planned by World of Wellesley for this holiday. Events include:
8:30-10:00 AM- “Virtual Breakfast”- join in a community multi-generational and multi-racial discussion about Dr. King’s speech “The Other America”
12:30-1:30 PM– “Good Trouble Art Workshop” (Grade K-7) – join for a virtual art workshop to create art that will be displayed at the Wellesley Public Library.
2:30-3:30 PM– MLK Family Story Time – Families will listen to the story “Vitamin D and Me” by Michelle Chalmers.
For more information and to register, visit:
https://worldofwellesley.org/
Crossing Guard Openings
We have been notified by our School Resource Officer Kathy Poirier that there is a shortage of crossing guards in the town and the town is looking to hire additional crossing guards. If you, or someone you know, is interested in serving as a crossing guard, please contact Officer Kathy Poirier at kpoirier@wellesleyma.gov
Have a great week!
Respectfully yours,
Grant Smith
Principal