We are reaching the end of the 1st half of the 2023-2024 school year! Isn't it crazy how time flies by! Second semester will be starting soon and just in case anyone is counting there are just 60 days left until spring! I'm sorry that may make some of you sad if you enjoy Maine's snow and winter fun. Me, I tolerate the cold winter in Maine and tend to utilize it as a mental note to remind myself why spring, summer and fall are so awesome!
Of course, our students seem not to mind whatever season it is! When one looks at and listens to the playground in September and in January across any of our schools - the sounds are the same. As an adult, I am thoroughly envious!
Below, are pictures showing our students doing what they do best - having fun while learning!
...and now on to the information!
KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION FOR 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR IS NOW OPEN IN GORHAM!
Parent information nights will be held at EACH of our three elementary schools on Thursday, March 7, 2024 at 5:30 p.m. Meetings will occur simultaneously at Great Falls Elementary School, Narragansett Elementary School and Village Elementary school. At these information nights, parents will meet school staff, learn about a day-in-the life of a Kindergarten student, and receive information about the enrollment process. This meeting is for parents/guardians only. You will pick up enrollment packets, receive information on how to schedule your student for a Kindergarten screening, and learn about a future date to bring your student in to see the school!
Remember, in order to be eligible to enter Kindergarten students must be 5 years old by October 15, 2024. If this describes your child - Please click on your neighborhood school below and PRE-REGISTER to attend a Parent information night using the Kindergarten registration link.
If you are unsure of your neighborhood school, please call any of the elementary schools directly and they can help. Links to pre-register are below as well as contact information for folks you can reach out to at each school if you need any assistance. We are so very much looking forward to your child becoming a "Little Ram" in the fall of 2024!
Great Falls Elementary School – Thursday, March 7th, 2024
PRE K REGISTRATION IS ALSO NOW OPEN FOR OUR 2nd YEAR OF PUBLIC PRE K PROGRAMMING IN GORHAM!
While we are on the topic of enrollments being open - I thought I'd remind folks that we are also currently enrolling students in our public Pre K program for the 2024-2025 School Year. If your child turns 4 years old on or before Oct. 15, 2024 they are eligible to attend our FREE public Pre K program.
Information is below on how to enroll! Call today as space is limited!
Applications for the Gorham's Pre-K Program will open on Monday, January 1st. Gorham families with children who will be 4 years old by October 15, 2024 are encouraged to apply for FREEhalf-day Pre-K!
Our Pre-K program is conducted at Narragansett School and is open to all Pre-K aged students in Gorham. (If you reside in the Great Falls or Village district, your student will attend Narragansett for Pre-K.)
Transportation will be provided for students enrolled in the program.
Click the following Pre-K Application Link to apply today! Please contact Theresa Connolly at 222-1295 if you have any questions or need assistance completing the application.
PUBLIC OVERVIEW OF SCHOOL SAFETY PLANNING FOR GORHAM SCHOOLS AVAILABLE TO VIEW!
At the January 4, 2024 School Committee meeting, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Dr. Brian Porter provided the School Committee with a public overview of our school safety planning. Please note this is the public version of our presentation to the School Committee on this important information. We also meet each year with the School Committee in an executive session to review our safety plans for our schools and to make sure that they are up to date and ready to implement if ever needed.
This public presentation provides an excellent overview for families and community members who may be curious about our overall planning process, our current strengths and areas of challenge, and where we see the focus of this work going next.
Please CLICK HERE and go to the 1 hour, 1 minute mark of the video to view this presentation and feel free to reach out with any questions you may have. The Gorham Schools takes its safety planning very seriously. We want to make sure that families feel safe and secure in sending their children to school knowing that if there ever were an emergency, we would know how to respond appropriately.
After watching the video - please feel free to reach out with questions you may have. My email is heather.perry@gorhamschools.org
UPCOMING FREE PARENT WEBINAR! TOPIC: SOCIAL MEDIA - PROTECTING YOUR FAMILY!
On Monday, January 22nd at 6:00 PM, the Gorham School Department will be partnering with the Cook Center For Human Connection to provide a virtual mental health training entitled: Social Media: Protecting Your Child By Staying Aware and Involved.
If you are a parent/guardian of a student at ANY AGE in our schools - this training is for you!
Check out the flyer below for more details and information on how you can sign up to attend this important training!
GORHAM ANTI-RACISM & EQUITY COMMITTEE EAT AND LEARN OPPORTUNITY COMING IN MARCH!
The Gorham Anti-Racism & Equity Committee continues to meet and work on several different projects to benefit our school community. One project I'd like to highlight before providing a brief summary of some of the other ongoing work of our equity groups, is a project that is being worked on by the Community Engagement equity group (which is a subgroup of the larger Anti-Racism & Equity Committee). This group is planning their 2nd annual "Eat and Learn" event. This year's event will be themed around the topic of advocacy through creative expression. Currently the group is working right now to solicit student input and assistance in providing artistic submissions that reflect an answer to the following overarching question:
"When did you need an advocate or what was your own experience of advocacy?
Student submissions can be visual art projects, poems, spoken word, or other artistic representations related to this overarching question.
The idea will be to solicit these pieces of art from students and then on the night of March 12, 2024 we would create a "gallery walk" for parent/guardians, community members, staff and other students to participate in and react to as a way of engaging in the important conversations around advocacy and equity.
If you are a student and wish to submit artwork for this event, please CLICK HERE.
If you are interested in attending the "Eat and Learn" event on March 12 - save the date on your calendar and CLICK HERE to sign up and RSVP so we know how many people to plan for!
Other things being worked on by Equity Committees:
* Professional Development Equity Group - Has worked to develop an activity that can be used in classrooms across all schools called the "What I Wish My Peer Knew" Project. This project would be differentiated for students in alignment with their developmental learning levels. Generally the idea is to engage students in a writing prompt that asks students to write about that very topic and then create structured protocols and supported methods through which these student stories could be shared.
* Policy Equity Group - This group continues to work on the development of a draft policy toolkit that can help policy makers ask critical questions when reviewing and developing school policies that will ensure alignment with our beliefs around educational equity.
*. Student Experience Equity Group - This group is developing a series of questions that can be asked of students in a focus group type of style in an attempt to gather real student voices to better understand how their community, and the issues within Gorham, are affecting, both positively and negatively, their learning within the school.
You can continue to follow the work of this Committee (and other subcommittees of the Gorham School Committee) via our website by CLICKING HERE.
GHS SOPHOMORES - TIME TO THINK ABOUT CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS!
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