All School Morning Meeting – Nov 15th
Our November All School Morning Meeting will take place on Friday, November 15th at 8:45 am. The third-graders will host the meeting this month! If you haven’t attended one of the morning meetings yet, we strongly recommend it! They are always lively, informative, fun and entertaining!
Winter Weather is Coming Soon…
Dr. Hedlund and Mrs. Rottman are looking to build up indoor recess options for those days it’s too cold or wet to go outside. If you have any new or gently used games or puzzles, please drop them off in the office.
PTA Holiday Wreath Sale and Bake Sale
Coming soon…the PTA will be selling winter holiday wreaths after Thanksgiving. More details will be shared soon – but make plans to buy your wreath from us to support Shepherd Elementary! Thanks to Alicia Williamson, Heather Holdridge and Kristin Baldwin for helping us with this effort.
Shepherd Gives Back!
We’ll also be hosting a bake sale in early December and will be looking for donated baked goods (NO NUTS OR NUT PRODUCTS, PLEASE!) as we aim to raise money to help our Shepherd community for the holidays.
We’re looking for cub/boy scout troops and daisy or brownie troops to help us
manage the sale. If your group is interested, please reach out to the PTA
at shepherdptapresident@gmail.com.
IB Corner with Ms. Mack – Mini Embassy Adoption
Program
Mini Embassy Adoption is a school-wide program we’re launching at Shepherd that
encourages teachers and students to think globally about their learning. Through this
program, teachers and students can make connections between the topics discussed in
class and their country partners. Students and homeroom teachers are “ambassadors”
for their countries. Not only will students get to be ambassadors for their homeroom
countries, but they will also get to learn about other countries when they attend other
classes.
How were the countries selected?
Many of the countries reflect the student demographics at Shepherd. We wanted to
create a learning environment where students are represented and empowered.
How can you support?
We are reaching out to parents to see if they can visit classrooms 2 to 3 times per year
to share stories, pictures, cultural wear, etc. It is our hope that each classroom have a
parent that can facilitate these visits and share their knowledge and culture. Please
confirm visits ahead of time with classroom teacher. If you are interested in supporting
this initiative, please contact Ms. Mack at avani.mack@k12.dc.gov.
Chopped Viewing Party – Nov 19th
Our own Shepherd 4th grade parent and baker extraordinaire, Kori Heyward, will be on
the Food Network’s Chopped on Tuesday, November 19th. She will be having a premier
party for her episode at Barcode, 1101 17th Street NW (entrance on L Street), which
will start at 7:45 and the episode airs at 9pm. She hopes to see you there! And if not,
please tune in!
Local Information of Interest
W3EdNet Tuesday, November 12th, 7pm, Chevy Chase Public Library
(5625 Connecticut Ave NW)
W3EdNet will welcome staff from DC Public Schools’ Office of Data Systems and
Technology to talk about technology use in DCPS, specifically the Empowered Learners
initiative and roll-out of the new devices in grades 3,6, and 9.
The Ward 3 – Wilson High School Feeder Pattern Education Network (W3EdNet) is a
group made up of PTO Board and LSAT members as well as other interested
community members. We aim to work together to support schools in the Wilson feeder
pattern, host community events of common interest, and advocate for better schools
across the city.
DCPS Parent University
DCPS is excited to launch their DCPS Parent University! Parent University is a fivesession
workshop series for middle and elementary school families.
• Families will learn and share strategies to support their child’s academic success across
five workshops:
• Communicating with Your Child’s Teacher and School
• All About Feeder Patterns, Strands and Specialized Programs
• Understanding Your Child’s Progress
• Building a Sense of Independence in Your Child
• Making Learning at Home Fun!
This year, we will be hosting Parent University at Brookland Middle School and Hart
Middle School.
Parent University is free and open to all DCPS elementary school and middle school
families. Childcare for children ages three and older will be provided as well as snacks.
Spanish Interpretation will be available at Brookland Middle School.
If you have questions, please email Taylor.Stanley@k12.dc.gov or call 202-478-1427.
Reminder of Upcoming Dates:
• Monday, November 11th – NO SCHOOL (Veteran’s Day)
• Tuesday, November 12th – Ward 3 Education Network meeting at 7 pm
• Friday, Nov 15th – All School Meeting at 8:45 am
• Tuesday, Nov. 19th – Chopped Viewing Party!
• Wednesday, November 20th – LSAT meeting (4:30 pm) and PTA meeting (6:30 pm)
• Wed, Nov 27th – Fri, Nov 29th – NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving break)