Small Moments, a blog about school counseling at Armstrong Elementary School
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3rd Grade PARCC Assessment

3/18/2015

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Dear Third Grade Parents and Guardians,

Over the next two weeks, third grade students here at Armstrong will be taking English Language Arts and Math assessments for PARCC, the Partnership Assessing Readiness for College and Careers.  PARCC is a new assessment this year, replacing MCAS.   It gives us as educators a chance to see how we are doing in comparison to other schools not just in Massachusetts, but across the country. 

This week, I am going into third grade classes to discuss PARCC and answer student questions.  We are taking time to talk about ways to relax your body during the test, as well as the importance of getting a good night’s sleep and eating a healthy breakfast.  We are also reading the book, “The Biggest Test in the Universe,” by Nancy Poydar.  It talks about the fictional experience of a student going through his first state assessment. 

You can help your child be as prepared as possible for PARCC:

  • Ask your child about strategies they can use to relax their body during the test.  These strategies include:
    • Count slowly to 10
    • Take 3 deep breaths
    • Think of something that makes you happy
  • Make sure your child goes to bed at an appropriate time the night before the test.  If they are having trouble sleeping, encourage them to use some of the relaxation strategies we talked about in class. 
  • Make sure your child eats a healthy breakfast the morning of the test.  Because of state rules, students will not be eating snack until after the test.  Therefore, it is especially important that students eat a filling breakfast. 
  • Please make sure your child arrives to school on time.  The test will begin promptly at nine, and it is essential that all students are in their classrooms for the test to start.  Students arriving after nine will not be allowed to take the test with their class.

If you have any questions about PARCC, do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH:  508-836-7760, Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org  



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2nd Grade Bullying Awareness, Part 2

3/18/2015

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Dear Second Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are continuing our work on bullying awareness in second grade.  Last week, students reviewed the definition of bullying and learned that anyone, even usually kind people, can make a series of unexpected choices and that repeated mean behavior toward another person is bullying.

For this lesson, students watched a Brain Pop Jr. video on bullying.  It reviews the definition of bullying, what to do if you think you are being bullied, bullying on the internet, and how to help if you see someone else being bullied.  You can find the video by clicking on this link:  http://s4.brainpopjr.com/health/relationships/bullying/. 

Finally, students reviewed the different roles people can play in a bullying situation.  They include:

Bully:  Person dong the unexpected behaviors
Victim:  Target of the unexpected behaviors
Bystanders:  People who see the bullying happen
Eggers:  Bystanders who encourage the bullying by laughing,  making jokes, or even simply watching

Next time we meet, we will spend time thinking about safe choices a bystander can make to help stop bullying.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH:  508-836-7760     Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org



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First Grade Bullying Awareness Lesson

3/12/2015

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Dear First Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in first grade.  Given the continued goal of improving bullying prevention and response in schools, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students on bullying at an early age, but is also the law.

In our lesson, we defined bullying as repeated mean behaviors directed at another student.  Often, these actions make the target, or victim, feel scared, angry, upset, or powerless.

We read the book, “The Bully Blockers Club,” by Teresa Bateman.  In it, the main character tries a number of different strategies to get another student to stop bullying her.  In the end, asking for help from other students as well as her parents and teachers ends up being the best strategy to solve the problem.  We connected bullying to our discussion on dangerous and destructive behaviors from last week, and realized that when someone is hurting our feelings and we cannot solve the problem on our own, reaching out to friends and adults is an important next step.

If you have a moment, please take time to review the definition of bullying with your children and remind them that if someone is ever hurting their feelings and they cannot get them to stop, it is important to tell a friend or adult.

Thank you for your help supporting this important lesson.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH:  508-836-7760, Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org  

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Kindergarten Bullying Awareness Lesson

3/12/2015

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Dear Kindergarten Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in kindergarten.  Given the continued goal of improving bullying prevention and response in schools, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students about bullying at an early age, but is also the law.

In our lesson, we defined bullying as repeated mean behaviors directed at another person.  Often, these actions make the target, or victim, feel scared, angry, upset, or powerless.

We read the book “One,” by Kathryn Otoshi.  The book says that when it comes to resolving a bullying situation, everyone counts.  Bystanders play an important role.  They can be nice to the victim, help the victim get an adult, or even tell the student who is bullying to stop if they feel comfortable speaking up.   Students had a chance to write about and illustrate ways they could help someone who is being bullied.

If you have a moment, please review the definition of bullying with your children and encourage them to be active bystanders, people who do something to help those who are being bullied.

Thank you for your help reinforcing this important lesson.

Sincerely,

David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH:  508-836-7760, Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org  


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2nd Grade Lesson on Bullying

3/4/2015

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Dear Second Grade Parents and Guardians,

This week, we are discussing bullying in second grade.  Given the recent bullying legislation, it is not only incredibly important for us to begin to educate our students on bullying at an early age, but is also the law.

For this lesson, students watched an episode from the show Arthur, a cartoon about the experience of a group of students in elementary school.  In the episode, Arthur, the main character, who is usually nice to his peers, starts to make fun of a friend for the sweater she is wearing.  It takes the work of his teacher, friends, and the target of the bullying for him to realize that what he thought was a joke was actually bullying.

As part of the lesson, the students took time to consider what made Arthur’s actions bullying.  They learned that when a person continues to tease someone even after they have been told to stop, it’s bullying.  The students shared their surprise that Arthur, who is usually a nice character, could become a bully.  They learned that anyone can make the mistake of teasing someone repeatedly without realizing how hurtful it can be.  We also highlighted the importance of the bystanders, the other friends who saw what was happening and worked to help the target.  Students learned that bystanders have a lot of power in a bullying situation.  They can make things worse by laughing at the actions of the bullying student.  Or they can work to help resolve the situation. 

If you have a moment, ask your child what they remember from the cartoon we watched.  You can even review the questions we discussed.  The episode can be found online by searching for “Arthur, So Funny I Forgot to Laugh,” and the questions we reviewed are:

1.      What made Arthurs actions bullying?
2.      Were you surprised that a usually kind character like Arthur could become a bully, why or          why not?
3.      Why do you think he bullied the girl in the video?
4.      In the end, who helped him figure out that what he was doing was wrong?

Thank you for your work reviewing this important lesson.

Sincerely,


David Starr
School Counselor, Armstrong Elementary School
PH:  508-836-7760              Email:  starrd@westboroughk12.org



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    Author

    David Starr is the School Counselor at Armstrong Elementary School in Westborough, MA.

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