Dear Upham Community,
We are excited to make the transition to full, in-person schedules for our K-5 students on April 5th. In preparation for this shift, we need to make an adjustment to our calendar next week. Because next Friday (4/2) is Good Friday and schools will be in recess, our regular half-day Wednesday was slated to be a full day for students as we have done during past weeks with holidays this year. However, due to the many logistics that need to be completed prior to April 5th, such as significant furniture moves, we would like to retain next Wednesday, March 31st, as a regular half-day of remote learning for elementary school students. (For consistency, this change will also apply to the RLS elementary school students as well.) This will allow our teachers to have time on-site to work with our custodians and each other to ensure we are ready to welcome all students back in person on Monday, April 5th. (Thursday, April 1st will still be a regular Cohort A day.) This change only applies to our elementary schools, and WMS and WHS will follow a full-day, in-person schedule next Wednesday. RLS students in grades 6-12 will also have a full-day schedule.
Virtual Wellesley Multicultural Festival 2021 April 10 (Saturday) at 5:30 PM
The Wellesley Multicultural Festival (WMCF) is a town-wide, annual event, organized in partnership with Wellesley Public Schools which raises important questions for citizens, public administrators, and political leaders by asking for recognition of and respect for cultural differences. The dimensions of multicultural awareness include the following: content integration, the knowledge construction process, prejudice reduction, and equity pedagogy, and empowering school culture and social structure. What do students, teachers, and the community learn and gain from the process of organizing and participating in this event? Growing and learning in a multicultural environment yields (in particular for K-12th grade children) a greater understanding of others’ beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. With this knowledge of others, we will have a higher level of interpersonal and social skills. Through understanding various cultures and social groups, students are able to make connections from their own lives to the lives of their peers and thrive in a diverse world. The Wellesley Multicultural Festival is town-wide, free registration, and inclusive of all Wellesley residents- multicultural and multigenerational. The WMCF is in keeping with the core values of Wellesley Public Schools and the World of Wellesley.
Registration for attendees will be up shortly on the World Of Wellesley website: https://worldofwellesley.org while we are looking for participants to help us create programs for the event. We are planning to incorporate pre-recorded videos as well as live, interactive programming such as storytelling, demonstrating an art or craft, presenting a PowerPoint along with a Q&A, for example. For more information please contact Rama K. Ramaswamy at silver0483@gmail.com. We rely on a community like you to sustain programming such as this. The Wellesley Multicultural Festival is brought to you by the World of Wellesley.
Picture Day
Picture Day for Upham is Thursday, April 15. There will only be individual photos. No class photos due to COVID-19 restrictions. If you have any questions please contact our awesome school secretary Ms. Robin.
Coffee Pond Online Ordering Guide 2020-21.pdf
Coffee Pond Photography 2021 COVID Protocol – Family Communication.pdf
As always, thank you so much for your support.
Dare to Dream,
Mr. Dees