Need this newsletter translated? Please contact the Bilingual/World Languages Department at 617.349.6468. Questions about the G&P newsletter? Please contact Lauren Morse.

G&P Steering Committee

Please join us this Thursday, February 13th at 5:30-7:30PM for our next Steering Committee. We will have two special presentations, in addition to our regular school updates. We will hear from Karen Haglund and Beverly Gordon, G&P School Social Workers, about the Social-Emotional Curriculum in G&P as well as from Candyce Dostert, Grant Specialist for Cambridge Public Schools about potential grant opportunities to support learning at G&P. Here is the agenda. Pizza and Childcare provided - please email Lauren if you need children at [email protected]. 

All families are welcome at each of our meetings. Steering Committee meetings are co-facilitated by a G&P parent and a teacher and are a great way to learn more about our school and what we are working on. As a reminder, here are your Parent Reps on the Steering Committee! If you have questions about the Steering Committee, please email Lauren at the address above or G&P Parent Rep Kris Dickson at [email protected].

G&P Equity Task Force Update

The Equity Task Force is made up of staff from each G&P Grade Level Team including Special Educators, Specials and the Administration of G&P. We build trust and dialogue around issues of race and equity, and we discuss how to center issues of equity during our Grade Level Team meetings. To enhance our own understanding and ability to lead, and prepare for district-wide Professional Development next year, the Taskforce has decided to read and respond to a common text during our meetings. We are researching options, including the books, Courageous Conversations and How to be an Antiracist.

Save the Dates:
Wee the People is Coming to G&P!

G&P is excited to host an incredible social justice organization Wee the People for TWO events for families, thanks to the support of the Friends of G&P. Both events will focus on understanding and combating racism. G&P Families and staff are also meeting to design a short series of events to discuss Race and Equity to happen after the Wee the People events. If anyone is interested in getting involved, please let Lauren know at [email protected].

Friday, March 27th, 8:30-10:30AM
Family Coffee Talk: ABCs of Racism with Wee the People
This interactive workshop will explore the barriers that prevent adults from talking about race and racism with kids, examine the social science of race awareness in children, and identify strategies to start the conversation with kids about the complexities of race, racism, and racial differences.

Wednesday, April 1st, 5:30-7:30PM
Family Event: What is Racism?
Join Wee The People for a workshop that asks a question many parents struggle to answer: What Is Racism? Together we will explore how racism isn’t just one thing, but a system with many parts working together. Through activities, kids will learn how to notice, name, and challenge these systems. This workshop is for caregivers and children aged 5-10.

Book Joy

By Ann Niederkorn, G&P Librarian

I love sharing book recommendations with staff and families. Here are a few highlights from the American Library Association Youth Media Awards, which were announced recently. In conjunction with the ALA program, G&P second graders held their own Mock Caldecott vote. The G&P Library already has some of the award-winning books and we encourage you to look for these books and others at your local Cambridge Public Library!

Learn more >>

Happy 100th Day of School!!

The Kindergarten classrooms celebrated their 100th day by decorating crowns, reading stories, counting by 10's up to 100, and making a special 100 days snack out of pretzels and Oreos!

Third graders from Rooms 213 and 218 and Kindergarteners from Room 115 have been sharing morning meetings together. On Monday, they celebrated the 100th day of school!

Honoring Rosa Parks' Birthday

Tuesday, February 4th was Rosa Parks's Birthday. As a school named after Rosa Parks, this is an important day in our school. In honor of her birthday, Music Teacher Debbie Sullivan prepared several 4th and 5th graders to sing Sister Rosa over the PA for the morning announcements. Here is a copy of the lyrics. Many fifth graders knew the song and the chorus was pretty easy to sing. Some teachers also projected the lyrics so students could follow along. Also, there are two pictures at the end of the lyrics from when Rosa Parks visited Graham and Parks (with a thank you to Kindergarten teacher MiMi Rosa for sending digital copies).

Also, this week was Black Lives Matter at School week. Many thanks to Kate Baldwin for sharing this link to the NEA with many resources: https://neaedjustice.org/black-lives-matter-at-school/.

Black History Month at G&P

By Claudie Jean-Baptiste, G&P Assistant Principal

February is Black History Month. At Graham & Parks, there is a display in the Main Lobby that will include 29 different Black Americans who shook up the world. This idea is based on the book The Fierce 44: Black Americans who Shook up the World written by the Staff of the Undefeated with portraits by Robert Ball. One Black American has been added every day. We have been sharing it with the whole school during morning announcements and teachers have been sharing it during each classes Morning Meeting. This way, the whole school will be able to be on the same page during Black History Month.

We would like to communicate this to families so you could also share it with your children. Every Friday during February (not during February vacation), an email will be sent home letting everyone know what Black Americans shook the world. Please see here to learn about the Black Americans we discussed last week. Remember to look in the Main Lobby if you come to the school. More info >>

Grades 3 & 4 Music Concert

Congratulations to all of the 3rd and 4th grade students and the G&P Music Teacher, Debbie Sullivan on an amazing music concert in January! The Auditorium was FULL of proud families and excited students in a wonderful celebration of music. The 3rd graders sang a beautiful song about speaking many different languages that celebrated the many different languages and cultures of our diverse school community. Please see the lyrics and listen to the MP3 file here.

The Next Music Concert will be for 1st and 2nd graders on Friday, March 13th at 8:45AM. And Save the Date for the Kindergarten Concert on Friday, May 8th at 8:45AM!

Another Fun Movie Night!

Thank you to everyone who attended the G&P Movie Night to enjoy a fun community evening while supporting the 5th grade overnight trip. Thanks to 4th grade families who donated their time, effort and money to help ensure that our January Movie Night was a success. We raised a total of $959 to put towards next year's overnight trip. And a particular thanks to Ashley Owens-Wood, Rachel (and Henry) Kelsey, Suzannah McFerran and Rob Wood for all their hard work that evening selling baked goods, picking up pizzas and ensuring the video actually played! We had quite a good turnout and sold out of all 25 pizzas and all the popcorn! It was a fun evening for all.

G&P Events and Reminders

In Our District & Community