OAKE National Children's Choir
Kudos to Avery for being accepted into the Organization of American Kodaly Educators (OAKE) National Children's Choir! We're incredibly proud! Hear more >> 

Here's Katie Sullivan, Our Full Time Art Teacher!

Dear Tobin Families,

These first few weeks have flown by! I’ve been working on getting to know your children, but neglected to introduce myself to you. So here’s a little about me, but I’ll try to keep it short. From third to eighth grade, I had the privilege to attend a Montessori school in Columbus, Ohio. I can’t tell you how excited I am to be back in a Montessori setting. I truly feel that the Montessori philosophy and art making go hand in hand. I attended MassArt and received my BFA in Art Education in 2010. For four years, I was the art teacher at Valley Collaborative, a school for students with autism and emotional behavioral disorders. I feel that all of my experiences have led me to where I am now, and I can’t wait to blend all of my knowledge and training into a new philosophy and practice with the help of your children.

At this stage, I can confidently say my philosophy is strongly rooted in art making, self-directed choice, and interpersonal skills. I want my students, your children, to create art that means something to them. Most of my lessons allow for room for interpretation. There are essential art skills, which must be taught and practiced, but through those careful exercises, we can branch out as a class and investigate and create through our learned skills. These skills lend to my interpretation of choice-based art, and I am excited and confident that your children are capable of achieving these goals.

I feel it’s vital that my students learn essential art skills while also engaging in activities that are interesting to them. To do so, I’d love some help in gathering materials. On the back of this letter is a list of items that are needed and wanted for the art room. If you could donate something from this list, it would mean a lot to me, the art room and, of course, the students.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns. My email is [email protected].

Best,

Katie Sullivan

P.S. We will definitely be getting messy! Most art materials are washable, but in the chances that our projects direct us towards bigger messes, please think about clothing. I suggest providing your child with an old shirt. I do have aprons, but they don’t cover clothes completely.

Art Supply Wish List (Needs/Wants)
Baby wipes; Old Calendars; Magazines; Newspapers; Paper Towel/Toilet Paper Rolls; Cardboard Egg Cartons; Maps; Globes; Fabric; Ribbon; Pipe Cleaners; Felt; Yarn; Plastic bags; Dry Erase Markers; Art books (how to’s, recourse images, inspiration)

Scholar's Day
Last Friday at the Lesley University Community of Scholars Conference, our Upper Elementary teaching team of Susan Grassey, Stefanie Gambino-Carter, and Stacey Desimone, with our Montessori Resource Teacher Erin Gutierrez, presented some of the work they have been doing in Upper El with the support of our collaborating team from the Lesley STEAM Lab, Professor Sue Cusack and Jacy Edelman. The team shared about how they have created interactive, hands-on experiences to further engage students in understanding the concept of waves. Participants, including many of our own Tobin families and students got to try out many activities, including: a Candy Wave, a Chlandni Plate, Morse Code with MaKeyMaKey and Scratch, Morse Code Art, and a Telegraph using littleBits. It was a full house, and a fun and educational time was had by all! Stay tuned for more of the exciting work the Lesley STEAM Lab will be doing with our Tobin Teachers!



Read Across America
Have you seen the large map of the USA on the ramp? Have you been wondering what those bright green stickers represent? Tobin students are reading their way across America! All students are invited to read or listen to a book or story that features one of our states and add a sticker to the map. Record slips to let me know when a book has been read are outside the main office and in the library. Just complete a slip with the title of the book and state it takes place in and every Fri. I will add stickers to the map. Can we read something from all 50 states? Last stickers will go on the map April 28th. Don't miss out!!

Naw-Ruz
Taraneh Ahmadi, Kabir's mother, came to Room 283 to tell us about the Baha'i New Year, or Naw-Ruz. Naw-Ruz is celebrated on or around March 21 and corresponds with the spring equinox, a time when the sun shines equally over the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. With its association with spring, Naw-Ruz is a time of renewal, festivity, and celebration. Families traditionally set up a 'Half-Seen', that is a tabletop arrangement of seven symbolic items for the New Year. Taraneh set up such table for the Room 283 students. All the children and teachers enjoyed the presentation. Thank you, Taraneh!  



Self-Portrait
Here's a self portrait by very talented former student Havana!

Language Days
Do you like Language Days at Tobin, our new tradition that began December 2015? Here’s a chance to spread this idea further in Cambridge on April 13th. Details are below.

TELL THE CITY’s CIVIC UNITY COMMITTEE WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT TOBIN LANGUAGE DAYS: APRIL 13

Cambridge Celebrates Languages and Tobin Celebrates Languages is to be discussed by a citywide committee. We will be first on the agenda at the Committee on Civic Unity of the City of Cambridge at its meeting on Thursday, April 13th.

Please consider coming to address the committee at this event, so that other schools and organizations in the city can learn how this home language practice strengthens community at our school. You can write some remarks and read them aloud. If you cannot attend, consider writing something that will be read by me or someone else you know who can attend. Kids can come!

Date: Thurs., April 13
Time: 5:30-6PM
Place: Citywide Senior Center, 806 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139 

The room is not large and though it is a public meeting the audience will be small. It is fine for any oral, written, or artistic (kids' drawings) testimony to be anonymous. Ideas to consider addressing in your brief testimony (written or otherwise) (--but of course, feel free to say whatever you like):

For kids/parents:
How does it make you feel when you hear the pledge spoken in your Home language in the morning?
How does it make you feel to hear your classmate's languages when the pledge is read in those languages?
What are *all* the things that make you feel safe and comfortable and welcome in your school?
If a principal at another school was thinking about whether or not to have language days, what would you tell them to help them make a decision?
Have you learned anything new because of Tobin's language days?

For parents/staff:
What are the things you like about language days? 
Do you have any concerns about this home language practice or how could it be improved?

RSVP:
Please let Julie Croston (parent of Hima Saini, room 204) know if you will attend or if you would like testimony to be read on your behalf, by April 12th: [email protected] or 508.737.7458.