From the Principal’s Office

It is hard to believe we are in March already!  This next stretch is some of our most uninterrupted academic time of the year, with no holidays and only one professional development day (March 8th) and one early release day (March 13th).  It will be a good time for students to make progress in their learning.  We ask that student attendance be as consistent as possible so we can really utilize the time for learning.

The 2nd trimester ends March 7th.  Spring conferences will be the week of March 18th. Conferences will take place either in person or over Zoom.  Teachers will send home information to schedule your child’s conference.  Report cards will be handed out at in-person conferences or sent home before a Zoom conference.  

Literacy Night: Kevin Hawkes, Maine illustrator, will be at Dunn School on April 4th during the day to meet with students and discuss his process for illustrating children’s books. That evening we will be hosting a family Literacy Night from 5:30-7:00. Pizza & other snacks will be served during the interactive stations that will be around the room.We hope your family can join us as we look forward to a fun filled evening celebrating literacy!

Ms. Lindsay’s Counseling Corner

Spread The Word Campaign At Dunn School: This week, Dunn’s functional life skills (FLS) program teacher, Susan Carr, provided staff with resources to use with students around inclusion via the Spread The Word To End The Word campaign, founded by the Special Olympics organization, which kicks off every year in March. The Spread the Word campaign was initially created 15 years ago to end the use of the R-Word (retard(ed)) and we believe we should stick to the core reason why this campaign was created —  to commit to acknowledging the hurt caused by disparaging words towards people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, but really anyone- anywhere! This year, the Spread The Word campaign’s goal is reflecting on the incredible journey and the impact this campaign has had in fostering inclusion.  Inclusion is making everyone feel included and welcome.  Change starts small. We must all do our part to foster an inclusive community for all.  Let’s start today within ourselves, in our classrooms and at Dunn School.

After watching this short video, staff talked with students about ways to include others by inviting them to play, sitting with others at lunch, smiling at others, saying hello, etc.  Students then made a pledge by signing their first name to our Inclusion bulletin board, located on the mid-level of Dunn School, to not say mean words to others and to always be working to promote inclusion. Our Pre-K students watched this short video on inclusion, which explained the concept to them in a developmentally appropriate way. We encourage you to have ongoing conversations with your child about the importance of inclusion!

Ms. Lindsay will be visiting all 3rd and 4th grade classrooms later this month to continue discussions around inclusion and diversity. More on that in the next Dunn Deal! In the meantime, some books around the topics of inclusion and diversity that families may want to check-out include: The Family Book by Todd Parr; Just Ask by Sonia Sotomayor, Same, Same But Different by Jenny Sue Kostecki Shaw and The Sandwich Swap by Queen Rania. Click on the book titles to watch a “read aloud” video of each book with your child. 

Have a great weekend!  ~  Lindsay Friberg, Dunn School Counselor, lfriberg@sad15.org

District Wide Science Fair 2024

The District-Wide Science Fair will be on Thursday, April 25th at the High School.  The year’s Science Fair theme is Robo Expo! There will be robotics demos and interactive stations.

Any MSAD 15 student can enter the Fair.  Student projects can be experiments or research-based and can be on any science-related topic.  All students will receive feedback from the judges.  Any student who enters the Fair will be entered in a raffle to win science-themed prizes!  Participants will also get a certificate and a medal!  Registration for the Fair is open through April 1st (link and QR code on flyer).

We will also have exciting events for Fair spectators, and all are invited to visit the Fair.

Family Phys. Ed. at the Middle School

Back by popular demand:  Family Phys. Ed. is a fun and inexpensive activity for your family!  Families will play games and sports while getting valuable exercise. Activities include kickball, parachute, floor hockey, four square, dodgeball, capture the flag and more. Kindergarten through adults – parents and kids play together.

Wednesdays, 6:00pm to 7:30pm

Dates: 3/6, 3/13, 3/20, 3/27, 4/3 (snow date: 4/10)

Location: GNG Middle School Gym

Cost: $10 per week per family or $40 for 5 weeks per family – $10 savings!

Please pay with cash or check made out to GNG Adult Ed – FMI contact Dana Welch at dwelch@sad15.org

From the Music Room

Our Spring Concerts are coming up!  Students should gather in the library 10 minutes prior to their time:

  • April 8, 5:00 PM – Keepes, Murray, Rausch
  • April 8, 5:30 PM – Gamage, Robash, Skilling
  • April 9, 5:00 PM – Fecteau, Marzilli, Sinclair
  • April 9, 5:30 PM – Gillis, Raymond, Audette

Please see the attached flyer for full details.

From the Office

If your student will be late or absent, please let us know: email jsouthard@sad15.org or call 657-5050.  Please be sure to include your student’s full name, as we sometimes have multiple students with the same first name.  Please also let us know if you will be picking up your student at the end of the day instead of having them take the bus – we want to have them downstairs and ready for you when you arrive.

PreK registration is open!  Residents of Gray and New Gloucester who have a child age 4 as of October 15, 2024 are invited to fill out our registration form:  2024-25 PreK registration.  Children who will be 5 by that date are eligible to enroll in kindergarten at Russell School (Gray) or Memorial School (New Gloucester).

Dates to Remember 

March 8 Records Day:  no school

March 13 Early release:  grades 3 & 4 dismissed at 1:00 PM, no preK classes

April 4 Literacy Night in the Dunn gym, 5:30 to 7:00 PM – all ages welcome!

April 8 & 9 Spring concerts in the Dunn gym, 5:00 and 5:30 (see schedule above and attached flyer)

April 10 Early release:  grades 3 & 4 dismissed at 1:00 PM, no preK classes

April 12-19 Spring break:  no school

April 25 District Science Fair at the High School, 5:30 – 7:00 PM (see attached flyer for full details)

Page Updated March 8, 2024