Submitted by Janet Delmar, Principal of Mount Vernon & Wayne Elementary Schools in RSU #38.
On Monday, December 10th, the families of students who work with Deb Hatt, Mt. Vernon’s K-5 Math Interventionist, were invited to Family Math Night! We had a great turnout, with over 50 people including students, siblings, parents, and grandparents. Our special guest was Christopher Danielson, author of the math picture books, Which One Doesn’t Belong and How Many? and creator of amazing math manipulatives like 21st Century Pattern Blocks and Tiling Turtles, who joined us via video chat from Minnesota!
Students interviewed Mr. Danielson about his inventions and books, and he then led the entire group in a Which One Doesn’t Belong routine. Mrs. Hatt talked to families about ways that they can incorporate conversations about math with their children into everyday life. Each family left with a set of 21st Century Pattern Blocks and a coupon for the family-friendly version of the book Which One Doesn’t Belong? that will be released next month.
Wayne was scheduled to have their Family Math Night on February 27th.
Volunteers are the heartbeat of Maine and it is volunteer recognition season. Nominations are currently being accepted for the Governor’s Service Awards, Maine Volunteer Roll of Honor and Young Maine Volunteer Roll of Honor.
Since 1987, the Governor’s Awards for Service and Volunteerism have celebrated and recognized the role of citizen volunteers in the success and vitality of Maine communities. At the same time, the awards seek to inspire others to be active in civic life and follow in the footsteps of those recognized.
Maine Volunteer Roll of Honor nominees must be 19 years of age or older and have volunteered at least 500 documented hours in the prior calendar year.
Teachers and coaches are encouraged to submit nominations for student groups if each member of the group meets the 50-hour minimum requirement. Please note that any hours of volunteer time completed for graduation can also be counted towards the minimum obligation for this award program.
Awardees will be honored at the statewide Roll of Honor Recognition Ceremony that will be held at the Messalonskee High School in the J. Duke Albanese Performing Arts Center on Sunday, April 14, 2019.
Nomination submissions must be sent electronically by or before the deadline date of Friday, March 15, 2019. For information on how to submit nominations, visit the Volunteer Maine website.
This program is administered by the Maine Commission for Community Service, which strives to build capacity and sustainability in Maine’s volunteer and service communities by funding programs, developing managers of volunteers and service-learning practitioners, raising awareness of sector issues, and promoting service as a strategy. For more information about the Maine Commission for Community Service, visit their website.
The Maine Department of Education would like to acknowledge the hard work of school districts in ensuring that the data they submit to the Department is as accurate as possible. Each year there are a handful of data errors that districts notice after the release of the ED 279 printouts and these can have a significant impact on subsidy. | More
Because our schools must provide safe, inclusive, and respectful learning environments, and because schools teach many lessons by example, DOE urges schools to refrain from using mascots and logos that depict Native American tribes, individuals, customs, or traditions.| More
As Maine districts have experienced increasing numbers of students and parents who speak languages other than English, there has also been an increase in the availability of machine or automated translation/interpretation software and apps. | More
The Maine Department of of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry has put together the resources and information below to help Maine schools eliminate Browntail Moth nests | More
The National Congress on School Transportation (NCST) is accepting change requests from any interested party on the National School Transportation Specifications and Procedures. | More
The purpose of this award is to recognize the contributions of Maine School Nurses by honoring one school nurse who has demonstrated leadership and excellence in the practice of school nursing. | More
The Tobacco and Substance Use Prevention and Control Program with the Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (MECDC), in partnership with the Maine Department of Education (Maine DOE), is seeking additional schools that would like to implement the social emotional learning (SEL) program, Second Step, funded by a grant through MECDC. | More
Somerset Valley Middle School is located in Hartland, Maine. It is currently grades 3-8. The district is in the process of consolidating due to a new high school/middle school construction project. | More
Submitted by Jennifer McKay, Principal Dike-Newell School in RSU 1
Dike-Newell School is a Pre-Kindergarten through Second Grade elementary school of 250 students, located in Bath, Maine. Part of RSU 1, Dike-Newell School embraces the philosophy of being a community of engaged learners where everyone matters. The staff at the school are involved in committee work, and explore ways to enrich the student experience. One recent initiative supports literacy as well as connecting students through building community – Classroom Buddy Reading.
While not a novel concept, it can be challenging logistically at times to set up buddy classroom projects. The Dike-Newell Whole-School Activities Committee put together a once-a-month, whole school system pairing up classrooms for 30-45 minutes on a Tuesday morning. Non-classroom staff were assigned to help facilitate and work with students with support needs, and the efforts kicked off in February.
What staff and students have found is that the children really enjoyed being partnered with non-age group peers, and it has spurred a sense of community that was, at times, lacking. Second graders really enjoy being role models and literacy leaders with younger students, and younger students really enjoy having time to connect with older peers. For staff, as well, it has been a way to connect with previous and future students, build relationships with students not in their class, and allows everyone to have more familiar faces and names throughout the building.
Another benefit of the program is support for literacy and the love of books. In the first buddy read session, students brought book boxes filled with favorite texts to share with their buddies. Students were able to talk about why they enjoyed certain books or authors, and encouraged each other to try new books. In April, for Poetry Month and part of the school’s “Poem in My Pocket” event, students will be sharing poems during their buddy reading session, and in future sessions the committee is discussing having author studies, genre studies, and other focused literacy topics for students to buddy read.
Dike-Newell School is always working to bring students together in a meaningful way, and to build our community of engaged learners. The Buddy Reading program is one example of the work that is being done to support this vision.
Kathy Harris-Smedberg, Assistant Superintendent of Schools at Bangor School Department
Downeast School, Grades PreK-3, Bangor, Maine
The 21st Century Program provides a variety of afterschool activities. For the second quarter, students participated in Drama Club, Chess Club, Chinese, Latin Dance Fitness, Discovery Club, basketball, math, Book Club, Space Explorers, ballet, Rhythm Club, Science Club, and numerous other opportunities. The students pictured enjoyed designing and making pillows in Design Club.
On January 7th, two Downeast students were a bit nervous about being called to the principal’s office. After more than seven months deployed overseas, their father returned home and surprised the boys. It was a wonderful reunion. Staff and students at Downeast School are grateful for the all the members of our military who serve our country.
Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor the gloom of night stays this literacy coach from the swift completion of her appointed rounds. Mrs. Swett checks the little lending library and restocks books as needed.
These third-grade students had the opportunity to recite the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of the school day using the intercom system. As usual, the students did a great job.
William S. Cohen School, Grades 6-8, Bangor, ME
William S. Cohen School hosted its annual geography bee on January 16. Twenty-five students participated in the event, which took place in the school’s auditorium. The crowd of parents and guests were impressed with the students’ knowledge of geography! Josh Partel, a sixth- grade student, was the winner and will compete in the state competition. The runners-up were HenryPoulin and Austin Turner.
Cohen hosted the 14th Annual Crosstown Hoops event on January 25. Students from Cohen and Doughty competed on the basketball court in the four-game event. Congratulations to the A Girls, A Boys, B Girls, and B Boys on their competitive spirit during this great event.
The Cohen Math Counts team performed very well at the local competition this month. The team was highly competitive, and four individuals qualified for the state tournament. Congratulations to Beckett Mundell-Wood for finishing second overall. Beckett, Henry Poulin, Hannah Osmer and Cricket Eastman qualified and will complete in the state competition.
Students have been working on their individual fitness in PE classes. Students are learning about functional fitness exercises and have been accessing Cohen’s fitness room to increase their overall fitness. Coach Richards and Coach Mackenzie have been teaching students functional fitness exercises as part of this fun unit.
The Maine Department of Education will be holding off on this opportunity while we sort out a few remaining logistics. We have taken this notice down for the time being to minimize confusion.
We hope to offer it again very soon. Thank you for your patience.
As Maine districts have experienced increasing numbers of students and parents who speak languages other than English, there has also been an increase in the availability of machine or automated translation/interpretation software and apps. While these tools may seem like a convenient (and oftentimes free) way to meet a district’s civil rights obligations for communicating with parents, they have not yet reached the level of accuracy necessary to serve as a substitute for a qualified human translator/interpreter. Meaningful communication with parents, including parents whose children have an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), is not only a civil rights requirement, but it also serves to strengthen family engagement and promote positive relationships between families and schools.
A 2015 guidance document from the US Department of Justice and US Department of Education clarifies that even a bilingual person without appropriate training cannot be used by a school to translate/interpret for parents. Whether for the vital communications listed in this guidance document or for more casual interactions, best practice is always to utilize trained professionals, such as through a phone interpretation service or translation/interpretation agency.
For a list of translation/interpretation providers, please refer to the Maine Department of Education website. For parent notices required under the Every Student Succeeds Act, the Maine Department of Education has partnered with TransACT to give districts free access to notices in 17 languages.
For further information about translation/interpretation please contact April Perkins, Director of ESOL/Bilingual Programs & Title III at (207) 624-6627 or april.perkins@maine.gov. For further information about supporting students with an IEP, please contact Maine DOE’s Office of Special Services at (207) 624-6713.
Submitted by Debra McIntyre, Assistant Superintendent for MSAD28/FiveTown CSD
This process began last summer when we convened a group of teachers representing K-12 staff to begin working on the idea. We researched what other school districts across the nation had implemented and tweaked some of their processes and procedures to work for our own specific learning communities. We had to plan for many different implementation aspects including specific grade spans, students’ access to technology, and how the Remote School Day would impact staff members and families. We also needed to determine which students did not have access to internet service in order to provide them with a hotspot device. After full board approval, we forged ahead to discuss the possibility with the MDOE. After contemplation and discussion, it was decided that we would be able to use a Remote School Day this winter, as we have more than the required 175 student days.
Finally, it looked like Mother Nature would assist us with a day that would have normally been a “No School Day” and we called a Remote School Day. Our younger students had individual work that had previously been sent home and our students in grades 7-12 participated via technology through either Google Classroom or Schoology. Staff members held office hours from 10:00 – 4:00 to assist and answer any questions that arose. Technology support was also available.
As you can imagine with anything new, there were successes, challenges, supporters and dissenters. There are still tweaks to be worked out and challenges to overcome, however, the attendance was excellent and the overall feedback was encouraging. Overall, the parent survey indicated 82% felt the Remote School Day was a success. Our next steps will be to review the specific feedback from parents, staff and students to refine our implementation in the hopes that we will be able to use Remote School Days as an option for making up some of our snow days in the future.
We received many pictures from families, sharing their experiences. We believe the picture below captures the spirit of the day.
Submitted by Christopher Howell, Assistant Superintendent in RSU 14, Windham Raymond Schools
RSU 14, Windham Raymond Schools, has been working very hard to help their students become responsible and safe in their digital lives. At the end of the 2017-2018 school year, RSU 14 committed to educating their staff with the Common Sense Digital Citizenship curriculum. Common Sense Digital Citizenship curriculum is a program that educates students, teachers, and the rest of the community in being safe and responsible while using online platforms. Common Sense uses research based digital citizenship resources, “which were created in collaboration with researchers from Project Zero, led by Howard Gardner at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.” (Common Sense)
Common Sense Education recently recognized Windham Middle School as a Common Sense School for the school’s commitment to digital citizenship. “We applaud the faculty and staff of Windham Middle School for embracing digital citizenship as an important part of their students’ education,” said Liz Kline, VP, Education Programs, Common Sense Education. “Windham Middle School deserves high praise for giving its students the foundational skills they need to compete and succeed in the 21st-century workplace and participate ethically in society at large.”
All RSU 14 students and staff, grades 3-8, initiated the learning process this year by completing 5 lessons per grade level. 1,509 students in RSU 14, received their first year of Digital Citizenship. Using the provided curriculum creates a platform for teachers to begin discussions on important topics such as online safety, reliable sources, online bullying, and many more. Teachers are very happy to have been given the time to learn alongside their students. Using the lessons provided by Common Sense Media, allows for some much needed discussions between all involved.
Written and Submitted by Marci Dionne and Amy Pichette, LearningWorks Afterschool Program Directors. Photos by Molly Haley Photography.
Senator Angus King visited the LearningWorks 21st Century Community Learning Center Afterschool program in Biddeford on Friday, February 8th.
Six student leaders, their grandparents and parents met with the Senator and explained what they enjoy most about the after school program. Dillyn said “The program gives us a leg up in school. We learn about engineering, science, and math.” Jayden explained the steps in the engineering design process to Senator King. Kendra said, “We get to choose which club we join, either drama, prop and set design, science experiments, mask making or coding.”
Afterschool staff touched upon some of their favorite aspects of the program: the social and emotional growth and development of the students as well as access to new experiences and opportunities they would not have without the program. These experiences build self-confidence, background knowledge, and help children aspire to learn and explore their world.
On Monday, December 10th, the families of students who work with Deb Hatt, Mt. Vernon’s K-5 Math Interventionist, were invited to Family Math Night! We had a great turnout, with over 50 people including students, siblings, parents, and grandparents. Our special guest was Christopher Danielson, author of the math picture books, Which One Doesn’t Belong and How Many? and creator of amazing math manipulatives like 21st Century Pattern Blocks and Tiling Turtles, who joined us via video chat from Minnesota!
Written and Submitted by Marci Dionne and Amy Pichette, LearningWorks Afterschool Program Directors. Photos by Molly Haley Photography.
Maine DOE Newsroom 