The Thursday Owl - December 1

ALCOTT NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

We hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving and enjoyed the 4 day weekend!

Turkey Trot Update: Our deadline for pledges to be turned in is Monday, December 5th. Thank you to all the families who have either sent their pledges into school or used the paypal link on the PTG website to electronically donate. Just a reminder that this is NOT a PTG fundraiser. Thank you for all of your support, the checks will be sent to the charities before the Winter break. Tim Gaudreau, Alcott PE Teacher

"Help support the Alcott Student Garden! For each 5 dollar donation, Alcott Student Garden Volunteers will plant 6 daffodil bulbs on school grounds. All proceeds support educational materials and opportunities for the students. Help us grow while we wait for spring! Donate through the PTG website and note that it's for the Student Garden or use this link directly.

Coffee with Principal: After a several year hiatus due to COVID, I would like to invite you to join me for coffee or tea (compliments of the PTG) on Friday, December 2nd at 9:30am at Alcott. This is a casual, informal meeting and a great time to ask questions, listen and get to know more about Alcott. If you can't attend this one, I will be hosting several more (both in person and remote) throughout the year (Please see below). Alcott Principal, Naomi Krakow

  • December 2nd at 9:30 - in person at Alcott

  • January 19th at 9:30 - remote

  • March 16th at 9:30 - in person at Alcott

  • May 4th at 9:30 - remote

Thoreau Elementary Toy Swap: Saturday, December 10 Just in time for the upcoming holidays - Thoreau is excited for our 2nd annual Toy Swap Shop! One of our primary goals at Thoreau is reducing waste and encouraging re-use... this is a fantastic place to pick up some excellent toys at a fraction of what they cost new (think gifting for the year without the financial stress). We are accepting toys in good condition (no big sports equipment or books please) on Friday, December 9th from 3-6pm (we are asking a nominal donation for drop off). Come SHOP on Saturday, December 10th from 9-12 for some new-to-you toys and gifts. Thoreau Elementary - 29 Prairie Street, Concord MA 01742. For questions please reach out to Evy Alloway (alloway42@yahoo.com), Lauran Barbosa (ellecbarbosa@gmail.com) or Colleen Bixby (colleen.bixby@gmail.com)

Holiday Cards? Minted TinyPrints Fundraiser: We are partnering once again with Minted and TinyPrints to fundraise for Alcott. Shop on minted.com using the code FUNDRAISEALCOTT to give 15% back to the Alcott while enjoying 20% OFF your order! Shop Minted and TinyPrints through our storefront - AlcottElementarySchool.ShutterflyStorefront.com - and they will donate 8% of your order back to Alcott. Share the code and storefront link with friends and family, local or far, to help make our fundraiser a success!

Alcott Twitter - Follow Alcott on its new Twitter account!

Update on the Middle School Project: Join the Middle School Building Committee for a Forum or Coffee Hour! There will be a Special Town Meeting January 19 at 7PM and a Special Election February 24 for Concord residents to decide whether to approve increased funding for the middle school building project due to extreme inflationary factors. Before then, please join a Public Forum or informal Coffee to learn the details of the options. The full schedule is here.

Calendar and important dates

***Every Wednesday is now a half-day***

December 2: Principal’s Coffee

December 16: Alcott Spirit Day - Sweatshirt Day

December 23: Half Day

December 24-January 1: Winter Recess


CPS/CCRSD 22-23 School Calendar can be found here

IN THE COMMUNITY

Help Raise Awareness for the Middle School Project! This Sunday, December 4th at 4:30 pm at the Concord Annual Tree Lighting Parade. Help spread the word about the upcoming January 19th Town Meeting and Feb 16th town ballot vote on the Middle School Project by marching in Concord's annual Tree Lighting Parade. Kids of all ages and their caregivers are encouraged to participate! While marchers will not express individual opinions about how to vote, please come to celebrate the importance of civic engagement and the democratic process. The parade is this Sunday, December 4th at 4:30pm with more event details and ability to RSVP here.
"The Concord Free Public Library is extending its hours at the Main Library to include Sundays from 1pm to 5pm beginning Sunday, December 4th. The Fowler Branch Library remains closed on Sundays."

Concord Tree Lighting – Sunday, December 4th from 2:30-5:00pm Concord’s Annual Tree Lighting is Here! Starting at 2:30pm singers and performers will be in the downtown area. Parade will step off from Hunt building at 4:50pm. After the tree is lit, Santa will go to Monument Hall for photographs.

Festival String Orchestra before school program is for students who have been studying basic skills since September and can play Twinkle Twinkle (#43 in the book) by January. The program is suitable for 4th year beginner students or second year + players (5th) graders.  Join to further develop your ensemble playing skills on your string instrument. It's fun to make music all together! The final product will be sound recorded and emailed to the parents.

Concord Recreation Announcement: Mark your calendars - Winter Program Registration opens Wednesday, December 7th at 7:30am! Be sure to check our program options on our website at www.concordrec.com.

IMSCC Music Lessons - Winter-Spring enrollment is open! Registration is open for the Winter-Spring session that starts in January. We have instructors for all band and orchestra instruments as well as voice, piano, guitar, bass guitar, banjo, and ukulele. Lessons are one-on-one and open to students of all levels and all ages including adults. Lessons take place at CCHS and the Carlisle school campus. Click here to learn more about IMSCC; click here to submit a lesson inquiry and begin the enrollment process. Email Debbie Levine with questions. Join us!

Concord AMP Auction to support the music programs! The Concord Association of Music Parents (Concord AMP) has launched its annual online auction at www.concordamp.org/auction.  Concord AMP is a parent-led volunteer organization that raises money to support the music performing programs in the Concord Public Schools. The auction includes homemade treats, exclusive gifts, and sought-after services.  We are especially thrilled that Heart Orthodontics, located on Main Street in West Concord, has donated a complete orthodontic treatment (value $7000). Other items include a stay at the Black Bear Lodge in Waterville Valley, NH; Boston Bruins tickets; bread from Nashoba Brook Bakery; a week of Concord Recreation summer camp; Thoreau Club adult fitness and group fitness membership; Beede Center family membership; BSO tickets; Radius Ensemble tickets; Concord Museum tickets; Nosh gift certificate; homemade pies; foreign language classes and ASL lessons from Concord Scholars, private music lessons; and more!  Please bid and support our student musicians! The auction runs through December 16, so please bid by then!

Only a few days remain in Concord's Ukrainian Quilt Raffle, supporting Ukrainian Children’s Hospitals. Buy tickets here: A $250 donation funds one bed (and buys 400 raffle tickets), and any donation is helpful. Please consider funding a bed - on your own or with friends, family, and neighbors. The raffle winner will be announced this Sunday evening at the December 4 Concord Tree Lighting, and all donors will be notified by email of the result. The War in Ukraine continues to rage, and hospitals desperately need beds for children's and maternity wards. Please join us in funding hospital beds for children suffering in this war. Donate or Buy tickets today!

West Concord is celebrating the season with a Holiday Stroll from 1-5. on Dec. 10th. Stop by Fowler to warm up, make a citrus garland, and get decorated with henna (while supplies last). All are welcome.

Gingerbread House Kits through the Concord Free Public Library - The Concord Free Public Library Children's Department is offering children gingerbread house kits for the holiday season beginning Monday, December 12! Stop by the Main Library Children’s Department or the Fowler Branch Library to pick up your free kit. The kits will be provided on a first come, first served basis. One kit per family. Please note: these kits contain small pieces. We recommend adult supervision for our youngest participants. Thank you to The Concord Free Public Library Corporation for generously sponsoring this program!

In the Pale Morning Light – A Festival of Hope on Sunday, December 4th from 1:30 – 2:30 pm - The Concord Conservatory of Music presents the 2nd Community Sing on Sunday, December 4th. Here’s the opportunity for singing enthusiasts of all ages and levels to gather and enjoy making music together. Each one-hour singing session provides an opportunity to learn new repertoire and sing in a family-friendly gathering. There’s no cost to participate, just a love of singing! Led by CCM voice faculty Gray Leiper, this unique multi-generational chorus will sing musical selections that celebrate the seasons. Join us for our second of a 3-part Series, In the Pale Morning Light – A Festival of Hope on Sunday, December 4th from 1:30 – 2:30 pm. Then, cherish the rare gift of light in our winter months and sing with us at Concord’s annual Tree Lighting on December 4th immediately following the session. Sign-up for sessions in advance at ConcordConservatory.org and bring the entire family!

Free Public Speaking & Debate Workshop During Vacation Break! Sign up for a free Public Speaking and Debate Workshop on December 27, 28, 29 (Lexington, Newton and Online), hosted by Lumos Debate! Your child will love Lumos's friendly instructors and fun activities as they learn about: Speaking Confidence, Impromptu Speaking, Debate Fundamentals, Argumentation and Reasoning. This workshop is free for all Alcott students. Please make sure to use code ALCOTT when you register. Please do not share this code with families that are not from Alcott. Email info@lumosdebate.com or call 781-474-3359 with any questions. Register now at: lumosdebate.com/workshop

Open Table's Help Fill the Sleigh Food Drive @ The Concord Tree Lighting & Holiday Parade, Sunday, December 4, 3-6pm - Bring Food & Have Fun! Find us near the Main St. roundabout on the same side as Helen's. Start your afternoon with Open Table: Drop-off a shelf-stable donation, get a picture with Rudolph, make reindeer food, and play some reindeer games before enjoying all the other festivities on offer. For Kids 0-99! Spread the word & donate: Help us make this our biggest food drive ever! Hungry to Help Open Table? Follow us @opentablema on Instagram and Facebook to stay in-the-know!

Brighten the Night with WBYC: December 20, 2022 Brighten the night with green luminary kits from William's Be Yourself Challenge (WBYC) Organization as we come together to shine a light on mental health and grief awareness and remember a beloved community member. On February 19, 2019, William Shaw died in a tragic ski accident. He was 9 years old, in 3rd grade at Carlisle Public School. Every year since, the Carlisle and Concord communities have lit luminaries on his birthday, Dec. 20.  This year, WBYC is selling luminary kits with 14 lights - 13 for William's 13th birthday, plus 1 light for you to use in memory of a loved one you have lost. For more information or to purchase a kit online, visit our website at www.williamsbeyourselfchallenge.org

Call for K-12 Artists: The 11th Annual Cool Science Artwork Competition - This year’s deadline is January 13, 2023 - Cool Science is a free and public art competition held each fall for all K-12 artists. Cool Science is a collaboration between the UMass Lowell, UMass Boston, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, University of Kansas, and Kansas City Art Institute. In 2019, Cool Science received a National Science Foundation grant that helped it expand the project beyond Massachusetts to Kansas, Missouri, and Southern New Hampshire. Challenge Questions - This year, we are asking young artists to answer one of the following challenge questions with a visual work of art: How might your experience with extreme temperatures be different from kids in other places around the world? Draw someone who is getting ready for flooding where you live. Draw a public transportation system (like buses & trains) that keeps working in a severe storm. Competition Winners - During this winter, we will select the best entries for display on public buses in 2023. The honorees will be recognized at our art exhibit celebrations next year. To Learn More - For further information about the contest, please visit: https://www.coolscience.net/artwork-guidelines-rules - You can also join our community on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

Please visit this space for updates on sports, music and theater registration dates, seminars, and more events throughout town. 

 
 

PTG online volunteer information and sign-up: Please visit our website to discover all the ways both working and non-working parents and guardians are needed to support our wonderful staff, students, and families. Have something to offer that you don’t see listed there? There’s a place for you to submit that info as well! We hope to hear from you!

The Thursday Owl - November 24 2022

ALCOTT NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Happy Thanksgiving from the Alcott PTG!

Concord-Carlisle Community Buddy Program Leadership announcement: We are continuing the Concord-Carlisle Community Buddy Program. Your elementary school student will be matched with a CCHS student to meet regularly over zoom. The meetings would be at least once a month for about 45 minutes until the end of the school year. The buddies can write back and forth, talk, play virtual games, help with school work, or just be a friend at a time when kids might feel like they do not always have someone there for them. Spots are limited, so once we reach max capacity, there will be a waitlist. We will pair buddies based on the order in which the sign-up occurred and interest. If you are notified you are on a waitlist, don’t worry, we will work to pair your student up with a buddy as soon as possible! If your child is interested in being paired up with a High School buddy, fill out the the Google Form! click here Thanks, Concord-Carlisle Community Buddy Program Leadership. If you have any questions please contact: kgarcia23@concordcarlisle.org, jlu23@concordcarlisle.org

From the Art Room - Green Art Bags: Many classes have been getting to the end of their collage units, and bringing their collage portfolios home in green Art Bags. Thank you to so many families for returning those reusable bags to the Art Room! If you can help your child remember to put the bag into their backpack to return, that would be great.

From the Art Room - K-2 Painting is next: Over the next couple of weeks, all of the K-2 classes will be starting a Painting unit in Art class. We do not have Art Room smocks for health reasons, as we don't want kids sharing clothing. The tempera paint that we use will wash out of clothing, although sometimes it needs a little help with stain remover before washing. Occasionally, some of the paint can stain some fabrics. So, please try to remind your children to wear clothes that can get dirty on their Art day!

Help shape the future of our schools! The Concord Public School District is building its Strategic Plan for the next five years and we need your help! Parents, teachers, students, and staff from our community are sharing their ideas about what matters most to them to help shape the district's plan. Parents Kate Grandbois and Hilary Drake are gathering feedback from our Alcott community. Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts in the survey here. Your voice matters, and this is your chance to use it! Please respond by November 30, and encourage other Alcott families to do the same!

Holiday Cards? Minted TinyPrints Fundraiser: We are partnering once again with Minted and TinyPrints to fundraise for Alcott. Shop on minted.com using the code FUNDRAISEALCOTT to give 15% back to the Alcott while enjoying 20% OFF your order! Shop Minted and TinyPrints through our storefront - AlcottElementarySchool.ShutterflyStorefront.com - and they will donate 8% of your order back to Alcott. Share the code and storefront link with friends and family, local or far, to help make our fundraiser a success!

Alcott Twitter - Follow Alcott on its new Twitter account!

Update on the Middle School Project: Join the Middle School Building Committee for a Forum or Coffee Hour! There will be a Special Town Meeting January 19 at 7PM and a Special Election February 24 for Concord residents to decide whether to approve increased funding for the middle school building project due to extreme inflationary factors. Before then, please join a Public Forum or informal Coffee to learn the details of the options. The full schedule is here.


***Every Wednesday is now a half-day***

November 18: Alcott Spirit Day - Funky Friday

November 23: Half Day

November 24-25: Thanksgiving Recess

December 16: Alcott Spirit Day - Sweatshirt Day


CPS/CCRSD 22-23 School Calendar can be found here

IN THE COMMUNITY


Gingerbread House Kits through the Concord Free Public Library - The Concord Free Public Library Children's Department is offering children gingerbread house kits for the holiday season beginning Monday, December 12! Stop by the Main Library Children’s Department or the Fowler Branch Library to pick up your free kit. The kits will be provided on a first come, first served basis. One kit per family. Please note: these kits contain small pieces. We recommend adult supervision for our youngest participants. Thank you to The Concord Free Public Library Corporation for generously sponsoring this program!

In the Pale Morning Light – A Festival of Hope on Sunday, December 4th from 1:30 – 2:30 pm - The Concord Conservatory of Music presents the 2nd Community Sing on Sunday, December 4th. Here’s the opportunity for singing enthusiasts of all ages and levels to gather and enjoy making music together. Each one-hour singing session provides an opportunity to learn new repertoire and sing in a family-friendly gathering. There’s no cost to participate, just a love of singing! Led by CCM voice faculty Gray Leiper, this unique multi-generational chorus will sing musical selections that celebrate the seasons. Join us for our second of a 3-part Series, In the Pale Morning Light – A Festival of Hope on Sunday, December 4th from 1:30 – 2:30 pm. Then, cherish the rare gift of light in our winter months and sing with us at Concord’s annual Tree Lighting on December 4th immediately following the session. Sign-up for sessions in advance at ConcordConservatory.org and bring the entire family!

Free Public Speaking & Debate Workshop During Vacation Break! Sign up for a free Public Speaking and Debate Workshop on December 27, 28, 29 (Lexington, Newton and Online), hosted by Lumos Debate! Your child will love Lumos's friendly instructors and fun activities as they learn about: Speaking Confidence, Impromptu Speaking, Debate Fundamentals, Argumentation and Reasoning. This workshop is free for all Alcott students. Please make sure to use code ALCOTT when you register. Please do not share this code with families that are not from Alcott. Email info@lumosdebate.com or call 781-474-3359 with any questions. Register now at: lumosdebate.com/workshop

Open Table's Help Fill the Sleigh Food Drive @ The Concord Tree Lighting & Holiday Parade, Sunday, December 4, 3-6pm - Bring Food & Have Fun! Find us near the Main St. roundabout on the same side as Helen's. Start your afternoon with Open Table: Drop-off a shelf-stable donation, get a picture with Rudolph, make reindeer food, and play some reindeer games before enjoying all the other festivities on offer. For Kids 0-99! Spread the word & donate: Help us make this our biggest food drive ever! Hungry to Help Open Table? Follow us @opentablema on Instagram and Facebook to stay in-the-know!

Brighten the Night with WBYC: December 20, 2022 Brighten the night with green luminary kits from William's Be Yourself Challenge (WBYC) Organization as we come together to shine a light on mental health and grief awareness and remember a beloved community member. On February 19, 2019, William Shaw died in a tragic ski accident. He was 9 years old, in 3rd grade at Carlisle Public School. Every year since, the Carlisle and Concord communities have lit luminaries on his birthday, Dec. 20.  This year, WBYC is selling luminary kits with 14 lights - 13 for William's 13th birthday, plus 1 light for you to use in memory of a loved one you have lost. For more information or to purchase a kit online, visit our website at www.williamsbeyourselfchallenge.org

Join the Middle School Building Committee for a Forum or Coffee Hour! There will be a Special Town Meeting January 19 at 7PM and a Special Election February 24 for Concord residents to decide whether to approve increased funding for the middle school building project due to extreme inflationary factors. Before then, please join a Public Forum or informal Coffee to learn the details of the options. The full schedule is here.

Concord Conservatory’s Music (CCM) Education Program for Kids with Developmental Needs—CCM is deeply committed to providing educational opportunities for all learners, working with the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts to bring Tones of Fun Developmental Music Class to our community. The winter session begins on Wednesday, January 4th, and the 45-minute class will meet on Wednesdays at 4:30 pm for ages 3 – 6 and 5:15 pm for ages 7 – 9. Music and its creative interactions make Tones of Fun the perfect teaching tool for children with developmental needs. Physical, language, social, cognitive, and musical development are stimulated through musical play in a celebratory social group of all ages and skill levels. Each class will incorporate simple percussion instruments, creative movement, improvisation, and playful props. A highly trained instructor from the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts leads the class and ensures that each student receives the attention they need in a safe and welcoming environment. No previous musical experience is necessary to participate. However, students must be accompanied by an adult to every class, participate effectively in classes, and maintain a safe environment for themselves and others. Parents/Caregivers can apply through CCM at: https://concordconservatory.org/programs/tones-of-fun-developmental-music-class/

Concord Conservatory’s Registration for Winter Group Classes—Feel the energy and power of music in 2023. Give the gift of music this holiday season! From newborn through adult, there’s a class for every age and ability. Register by December 16th to secure your spot. Balancing rigor with the joy and fun of creating music, CCM group classes provide excellence in music education. New classes include Ukulele Crash Course for Kids and The Hootenanny and the Folk Heritage for adults. Our Early childhood program includes Music Makers and Family Notes for the youngest musicians while adults can try ukulele, banjo, or guitar classes. Love bluegrass, sign up for the Bluegrass Solo Workshop. ConcordConservatory.org, info@concordconservatory.org, (978) 369-0010

Concord Rec: Mark your calendars - Winter Program Registration opens Wednesday, December 7th at 7:30am! Be sure to check our program options on our website at www.concordrec.com.

Sewing Workshops During the Concord Scholars sewing workshops, participants will learn to trace and cut patterns, measure fabric, hand stitch and (depending on the project) to sew using machines.

Festival String Orchestra Festival String Orchestra before school program is for students who have been studying basic skills since September and can play Twinkle Twinkle (#43 in the book) by January. The program is suitable for 4th year beginner students or second year + players (5th) graders.  Join to further develop your ensemble playing skills on your string instrument. It's fun to make music all together! The final product will be sound recorded and emailed to the parents.

Concord Recreation Youth Basketball League Age-appropriate levels for everyone!  Concord Rec basketball league will resume in January 2023! This 12 week season will consist of 6 games and 6 practice/scrimmage weeks mixed in for continuous growth and development.

CCYL Spring Lacrosee - 1st-8th grade registration is now open for the 2023 Spring lacrosse season. At a glance info: Girls Grades 1st + 2nd meet Sundays 10:00-11:15AM on the CCHS Upper Grass Fields. Girls Grades 3rd - 8th practice Tuesday/Thursday 6:00-7:00/7:30PM (depending on age group) on the CCHS Upper Grass Fields/Turf 2/Memorial; games are Sundays. Boys Grades 1st + 2nd meet Fridays 6:00-7:15PM on the CCHS Upper Grass Fields. Boys Grades 3rd - 8th practice Monday/Wednesday 6:00-7:00/8:00PM (depending on age group) on the CCHS Upper Grass Fields/Turf 1/Memorial; games are Sundays. Practices for 3rd-8th are projected to begin the the last week in March (weather dependent). For grades 3rd-8th there is a registration deadline of December 31st. We need to report the number of teams per grade to the Girls/Boys leagues months in advance of the Spring!

PJ Storytime and Treats at Fowler for West Concord Early Birds! Sat., Nov 19 9:30-10:15AM Fowler Meeting Room Fowler Branch Library 1322 Main Street, Concord, MA. Today's the day for Early Birds in West Concord! It's Pajama Day at many local businesses! They're opening early and offering sales from 6 am - 9 am. Come unwind at Fowler after your whirlwind morning with a storytime, muffins from Debra's Natural Gourmet and coffee and hot chocolate from Equal Exchange! This is a family storytime; all ages are welcome. No registration required. 

Craft Fair – Saturday November 19th from 10:00am-3:00pm: Looking to buy from local vendors for the holidays? Check out our craft fair hosted by Concord Recreation at the Hunt Recreation Center.

FREE Lifeguard Classes at the Beede Center! The Beede Center is offering free Lifeguard classes in November and December. Register with the link above to reserve your spot.

Fund hospital beds for Ukrainian children’s hospitals. The War in Ukraine continues to rage, and hospitals desperately need beds for children's and maternity wards. Buy tickets for Concord's Ukrainian Quilt Raffle to raise money for hospital beds. A $250 donation funds one bed, and any donation is helpful. Our Concord fall goal is $25,000 for 100 beds! Please consider funding a bed - on your own or with friends and family. Raffle winner will be announced at the 12/4 Concord Tree Lighting - all donors will be notified by email of the result. Buy tickets here. For ore information please click here.

IMSCC Music Lessons - meet our new instructors! - The fall session is underway and enrollment is still open for new students to join us. Enrollment opens next month for the Winter-Spring session which begins in January - look for another announcement here soon. We are excited to introduce five new instructors this fall! Pianists Heekyung Michelle Lee and Eva Ostrovsky Kaminsky have joined our extensive piano studio and are accepting new students this fall. Liz Jewell, trumpet, and Soo Choi, flute, began teaching with IMSCC this summer and are currently working with students from the elementary schools, CMS and CCHS! Max Schwartz joined our faculty in September, teaching upright and electric bass as well as these new subjects: jazz piano, banjo and traditional fiddling! Students of all ages are welcome, including adults. You can browse our full faculty list here. Click here to learn more about IMSCC lessons. To begin the enrollment process please submit a lesson inquiry. If you have questions, email Debbie Levine.

Call for K-12 Artists: The 11th Annual Cool Science Artwork Competition - This year’s deadline is January 13, 2023 - Cool Science is a free and public art competition held each fall for all K-12 artists. Cool Science is a collaboration between the UMass Lowell, UMass Boston, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, University of Kansas, and Kansas City Art Institute. In 2019, Cool Science received a National Science Foundation grant that helped it expand the project beyond Massachusetts to Kansas, Missouri, and Southern New Hampshire. Challenge Questions - This year, we are asking young artists to answer one of the following challenge questions with a visual work of art: How might your experience with extreme temperatures be different from kids in other places around the world? Draw someone who is getting ready for flooding where you live. Draw a public transportation system (like buses & trains) that keeps working in a severe storm. Competition Winners - During this winter, we will select the best entries for display on public buses in 2023. The honorees will be recognized at our art exhibit celebrations next year. To Learn More - For further information about the contest, please visit: https://www.coolscience.net/artwork-guidelines-rules - You can also join our community on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

Please visit this space for updates on sports, music and theater registration dates, seminars, and more events throughout town. 

 
 

PTG online volunteer information and sign-up: Please visit our website to discover all the ways both working and non-working parents and guardians are needed to support our wonderful staff, students, and families. Have something to offer that you don’t see listed there? There’s a place for you to submit that info as well! We hope to hear from you!

The Thursday Owl - November 17, 2022

ALCOTT NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

This Friday, November 18 — Alcott Spirit Day - Funky Friday. Show your school spirit and wear stipes with polka dots or any other mismatched funky clothes.

Concord-Carlisle Community Buddy Program Leadership announcement: We are continuing the Concord-Carlisle Community Buddy Program. Your elementary school student will be matched with a CCHS student to meet regularly over zoom. The meetings would be at least once a month for about 45 minutes until the end of the school year. The buddies can write back and forth, talk, play virtual games, help with school work, or just be a friend at a time when kids might feel like they do not always have someone there for them. Spots are limited, so once we reach max capacity, there will be a waitlist. We will pair buddies based on the order in which the sign-up occurred and interest. If you are notified you are on a waitlist, don’t worry, we will work to pair your student up with a buddy as soon as possible! If your child is interested in being paired up with a High School buddy, fill out the the Google Form! click here Thanks, Concord-Carlisle Community Buddy Program Leadership. If you have any questions please contact: kgarcia23@concordcarlisle.org, jlu23@concordcarlisle.org

Please join SEPAC for an online presentation Thursday, November 17th, 7:00 pm. DCAP, 504, or IEP - What is the Difference? Confused about all the letters and numbers? Come learn about the difference between the DCAP, a 504 Plan, and an IEP. SEPAC will host the Concord Public Schools and Concord-Carlisle Regional School District Interim Director of Student Services, Debbie Dixson, CCHS Department Chair of Guidance and Counseling, Dr. Alison Nowicki, High School Special Education Administrator, Frances Wooff, and Concord Middle School Special Education Coordinator, Laura Brande, who will share information about eligibility for 504 Plans generally, what accommodations they might cover, when your student might be eligible, and how they differ from DCAPs and IEPs. We expect this to be an informative and interactive event.

From the Art Room - Green Art Bags: Many classes have been getting to the end of their collage units, and bringing their collage portfolios home in green Art Bags. Thank you to so many families for returning those reusable bags to the Art Room! If you can help your child remember to put the bag into their backpack to return, that would be great.

From the Art Room - K-2 Painting is next: Over the next couple of weeks, all of the K-2 classes will be starting a Painting unit in Art class. We do not have Art Room smocks for health reasons, as we don't want kids sharing clothing. The tempera paint that we use will wash out of clothing, although sometimes it needs a little help with stain remover before washing. Occasionally, some of the paint can stain some fabrics. So, please try to remind your children to wear clothes that can get dirty on their Art day!

Help shape the future of our schools! The Concord Public School District is building its Strategic Plan for the next five years and we need your help! Parents, teachers, students, and staff from our community are sharing their ideas about what matters most to them to help shape the district's plan. Parents Kate Grandbois and Hilary Drake are gathering feedback from our Alcott community. Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts in the survey here. Your voice matters, and this is your chance to use it! Please respond by November 30, and encourage other Alcott families to do the same!

Holiday Cards? Minted Shutterfly TinyPrints Fundraiser: We are partnering once again with Minted, Shutterfly and TinyPrints to fundraise for Alcott. Shop on minted.com using the code FUNDRAISEALCOTT to give 15% back to the Alcott while enjoying 20% OFF your order! Shop Shutterfly and TinyPrints through our storefront - AlcottElementarySchool.ShutterflyStorefront.com - and they will donate 8% of your order back to Alcott. Share the code and storefront link with friends and family, local or far, to help make our fundraiser a success!

Alcott Twitter - Follow Alcott on its new Twitter account!

Update on the Middle School Project: Join the Middle School Building Committee for a Forum or Coffee Hour! There will be a Special Town Meeting January 19 at 7PM and a Special Election February 24 for Concord residents to decide whether to approve increased funding for the middle school building project due to extreme inflationary factors. Before then, please join a Public Forum or informal Coffee to learn the details of the options. The full schedule is here.


***Every Wednesday is now a half-day***

November 18: Alcott Spirit Day - Funky Friday

November 23: Half Day

November 24-25: Thanksgiving Recess

December 16: Alcott Spirit Day - Sweatshirt Day


CPS/CCRSD 22-23 School Calendar can be found here

IN THE COMMUNITY


Free Public Speaking & Debate Workshop During Vacation Break! Sign up for a free Public Speaking and Debate Workshop on December 27, 28, 29 (Lexington, Newton and Online), hosted by Lumos Debate! Your child will love Lumos's friendly instructors and fun activities as they learn about: Speaking Confidence, Impromptu Speaking, Debate Fundamentals, Argumentation and Reasoning. This workshop is free for all Alcott students. Please make sure to use code ALCOTT when you register. Please do not share this code with families that are not from Alcott. Email info@lumosdebate.com or call 781-474-3359 with any questions. Register now at: lumosdebate.com/workshop

Open Table's Help Fill the Sleigh Food Drive @ The Concord Tree Lighting & Holiday Parade, Sunday, December 4, 3-6pm - Bring Food & Have Fun! Find us near the Main St. roundabout on the same side as Helen's. Start your afternoon with Open Table: Drop-off a shelf-stable donation, get a picture with Rudolph, make reindeer food, and play some reindeer games before enjoying all the other festivities on offer. For Kids 0-99! Spread the word & donate: Help us make this our biggest food drive ever! Hungry to Help Open Table? Follow us @opentablema on Instagram and Facebook to stay in-the-know!

Brighten the Night with WBYC: December 20, 2022 Brighten the night with green luminary kits from William's Be Yourself Challenge (WBYC) Organization as we come together to shine a light on mental health and grief awareness and remember a beloved community member. On February 19, 2019, William Shaw died in a tragic ski accident. He was 9 years old, in 3rd grade at Carlisle Public School. Every year since, the Carlisle and Concord communities have lit luminaries on his birthday, Dec. 20.  This year, WBYC is selling luminary kits with 14 lights - 13 for William's 13th birthday, plus 1 light for you to use in memory of a loved one you have lost. For more information or to purchase a kit online, visit our website at www.williamsbeyourselfchallenge.org

Join the Middle School Building Committee for a Forum or Coffee Hour! There will be a Special Town Meeting January 19 at 7PM and a Special Election February 24 for Concord residents to decide whether to approve increased funding for the middle school building project due to extreme inflationary factors. Before then, please join a Public Forum or informal Coffee to learn the details of the options. The full schedule is here.

Concord Rec: Mark your calendars - Winter Program Registration opens Wednesday, December 7th at 7:30am! Be sure to check our program options on our website at www.concordrec.com.

Sewing Workshops During the Concord Scholars sewing workshops, participants will learn to trace and cut patterns, measure fabric, hand stitch and (depending on the project) to sew using machines.

Festival String Orchestra Festival String Orchestra before school program is for students who have been studying basic skills since September and can play Twinkle Twinkle (#43 in the book) by January. The program is suitable for 4th year beginner students or second year + players (5th) graders.  Join to further develop your ensemble playing skills on your string instrument. It's fun to make music all together! The final product will be sound recorded and emailed to the parents.

Concord Recreation Youth Basketball League Age-appropriate levels for everyone!  Concord Rec basketball league will resume in January 2023! This 12 week season will consist of 6 games and 6 practice/scrimmage weeks mixed in for continuous growth and development. 1st-8th grade registration is now open for the 2023 Spring lacrosse season. At a glance info: Girls Grades 1st + 2nd meet Sundays 10:00-11:15AM on the CCHS Upper Grass Fields. Girls Grades 3rd - 8th practice Tuesday/Thursday 6:00-7:00/7:30PM (depending on age group) on the CCHS Upper Grass Fields/Turf 2/Memorial; games are Sundays. Boys Grades 1st + 2nd meet Fridays 6:00-7:15PM on the CCHS Upper Grass Fields. Boys Grades 3rd - 8th practice Monday/Wednesday 6:00-7:00/8:00PM (depending on age group) on the CCHS Upper Grass Fields/Turf 1/Memorial; games are Sundays. Practices for 3rd-8th are projected to begin the the last week in March (weather dependent). For grades 3rd-8th there is a registration deadline of December 31st. We need to report the number of teams per grade to the Girls/Boys leagues months in advance of the Spring!

PJ Storytime and Treats at Fowler for West Concord Early Birds! Sat., Nov 19 9:30-10:15AM Fowler Meeting Room Fowler Branch Library 1322 Main Street, Concord, MA. Today's the day for Early Birds in West Concord! It's Pajama Day at many local businesses! They're opening early and offering sales from 6 am - 9 am. Come unwind at Fowler after your whirlwind morning with a storytime, muffins from Debra's Natural Gourmet and coffee and hot chocolate from Equal Exchange! This is a family storytime; all ages are welcome. No registration required. 

Craft Fair – Saturday November 19th from 10:00am-3:00pm: Looking to buy from local vendors for the holidays? Check out our craft fair hosted by Concord Recreation at the Hunt Recreation Center.

FREE Lifeguard Classes at the Beede Center! The Beede Center is offering free Lifeguard classes in November and December. Register with the link above to reserve your spot.

Fund hospital beds for Ukrainian children’s hospitals. The War in Ukraine continues to rage, and hospitals desperately need beds for children's and maternity wards. Buy tickets for Concord's Ukrainian Quilt Raffle to raise money for hospital beds. A $250 donation funds one bed, and any donation is helpful. Our Concord fall goal is $25,000 for 100 beds! Please consider funding a bed - on your own or with friends and family. Raffle winner will be announced at the 12/4 Concord Tree Lighting - all donors will be notified by email of the result. Buy tickets here. For ore information please click here.

IMSCC Music Lessons - meet our new instructors! - The fall session is underway and enrollment is still open for new students to join us. Enrollment opens next month for the Winter-Spring session which begins in January - look for another announcement here soon. We are excited to introduce five new instructors this fall! Pianists Heekyung Michelle Lee and Eva Ostrovsky Kaminsky have joined our extensive piano studio and are accepting new students this fall. Liz Jewell, trumpet, and Soo Choi, flute, began teaching with IMSCC this summer and are currently working with students from the elementary schools, CMS and CCHS! Max Schwartz joined our faculty in September, teaching upright and electric bass as well as these new subjects: jazz piano, banjo and traditional fiddling! Students of all ages are welcome, including adults. You can browse our full faculty list here. Click here to learn more about IMSCC lessons. To begin the enrollment process please submit a lesson inquiry. If you have questions, email Debbie Levine.

Call for K-12 Artists: The 11th Annual Cool Science Artwork Competition - This year’s deadline is January 13, 2023 - Cool Science is a free and public art competition held each fall for all K-12 artists. Cool Science is a collaboration between the UMass Lowell, UMass Boston, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, University of Kansas, and Kansas City Art Institute. In 2019, Cool Science received a National Science Foundation grant that helped it expand the project beyond Massachusetts to Kansas, Missouri, and Southern New Hampshire. Challenge Questions - This year, we are asking young artists to answer one of the following challenge questions with a visual work of art: How might your experience with extreme temperatures be different from kids in other places around the world? Draw someone who is getting ready for flooding where you live. Draw a public transportation system (like buses & trains) that keeps working in a severe storm. Competition Winners - During this winter, we will select the best entries for display on public buses in 2023. The honorees will be recognized at our art exhibit celebrations next year. To Learn More - For further information about the contest, please visit: https://www.coolscience.net/artwork-guidelines-rules - You can also join our community on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

Please visit this space for updates on sports, music and theater registration dates, seminars, and more events throughout town. 

 
 

PTG online volunteer information and sign-up: Please visit our website to discover all the ways both working and non-working parents and guardians are needed to support our wonderful staff, students, and families. Have something to offer that you don’t see listed there? There’s a place for you to submit that info as well! We hope to hear from you!