Lighthouse School, Inc.
December 18, 2020
"Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most."
--Ruth Carter Stapleton (Christian evangelist and sister of former President Jimmy Carter)
"Never worry abut the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall."
--Larry Wilde (America's #1 bestselling humorist)
News & Announcements
Announcements:
- December's Bioeducational Theme of the Month is Relationships
- December's Monthly Newsletters will be available on December 23rd (after 2PM) in Google Classroom as well as on the Lighthouse School website
- Vacation: Christmas vacation begins Thursday, December 24th and runs through Friday, January 1st, 2021
- School resumes on Monday, January 4th, 2021. Please note that for the week of January 4th through the 8th, Lighthouse School will pivot to a fully Remote Learning Model. Hybrid Services will resume on Monday, January 11th.
- There will be no school on Monday, January 18th, 2021 in observance of Martin Luther King Day
Program Update: Hybrid Services
The pivot to a Hybrid Learning Model began on Monday, November 30th. Behind the scenes everyone worked hard on logistics, training and planning to successfully launch this endeavor to in-person learning. Staff and students were both anxious and excited to begin this phase of in-person treatment.
Everyone had those first day jitters but it did not take long to feel like we were “home” again. Many happy (masked) faces were seen on those first days. The building has come to life with students and staff enjoying time together again.
We are learning so much from this phase, that we hope to apply to future phases of in-person services. We continue to provide all of the IEP services both in-person and remotely.
While the emphasis for onsite services is on interpersonal experience, technology allows us to connect with remote services and to remain “one school”. Chromebooks, Clear Touch screens, microphones and cameras allow friends and staff to see each other and join together in activities, whether sitting at a desk or in their own home.
We look forward to the day we can all be together again. Until then, take good care and Happy Holidays!
A Message from Peter Lang, Associate Director of Program Services / Principal:
Holiday greetings to all!
This newsletter is being written as we (eagerly) anticipate the first major snow storm of the season. This mutual anticipation serves as another reminder of just how much we are united in shared experience. Indeed, the idea of shared experience is an apt theme for the last 9 months. Collectively, we were surprised and confused when schools shut down last March. Soon, however, we began to experience the shared resilience that developed as we adapted to our new circumstances.
Summer challenged all of us to redefine our notions of vacations and time off. As September approached, we all felt that nervous anticipation of what the new school year would mean. The fall found us settling into something that wasn’t quite normal, but which was becoming strangely familiar. Today, the excitement of the holidays is mixed with deep concerns about our health as well as an uneasy sense that so many of the traditions that give meaning to this time of year will be changed or, even worse, simply not practical.
So, what can we do? What should we do: for ourselves, for our students and children, for each other? No easy answers, no quick fixes, but maybe this idea of shared experience offers a chance for peace and comfort.
Consider the famous words from The Grinch: “Christmas Day will always be, just as long as we have we.” “Welcome Christmas while we stand, heart to heart and hand to hand”. These words speak not just to Christmas, they speak to the best of our nature and to the bonds that unite us regardless of circumstances, and they speak directly and powerfully to the experiences that we have shared these past 9 months. So yes, much will be different this year, but today we stand together, heart to heart and hand to hand, united more closely than ever before, celebrating the wonder of we, and looking to a brighter tomorrow.
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
Bioeducation
You can find the November Cluster Notes by clicking the image of the folder!
Holiday Traditions
Well, another year is coming to an end. It is so hard to believe that Christmas is just a week away and that 2021 is on the horizon. This year, the most important thing we can do is keep ourselves and our loved ones safe and healthy, although this may mean that holiday celebrations will look a little different than in past years. At Lighthouse, we have a number of holiday traditions that will look different this year as well, but we could not miss the opportunity to celebrate together as a Lighthouse family. To keep the holiday spirit rolling, our staff have planned lots of activities, some old and some new, to remind all of us that although we are not in the building together to celebrate as we normally would, we are still together, virtually. It seems that now, more than ever, we need to embrace those traditions we hold so dear from year to year.
One activity the students participated in this week was Homeroom "Window" Decorating. Each homeroom worked together to design and create a Holiday themed window design, brainstorming ideas as a team and putting it all together. What fun it was! The windows will be available on December 21st and 22nd for online viewing and judging and on the 23rd the winners will be announced. Prizes are to be awarded to the winners.
Next week, we will have an exciting visit from Santa Claus, who will be reading a story to all. Also, the students will be welcomed to show their own Christmas tree, ornament, menorah, or kinara, as well as share a favorite holiday tradition of theirs with their staff and friends. They will be encouraged to express why the ornament or tradition is their favorite.
Another fun activity planned for next week is Virtual Gingerbread House and Christmas Tree Decorating. This will be a virtual event where the students will have a link provided to them so they can decorate a gingerbread house and/or Christmas tree in their own personal style. They will be given a house and tree template along with online materials that they can drag and drop to create their very own designs. All the fun of holiday decorating, without the mess of frosting and candies, gumdrops and lollipops, glitter and glue, popcorn strings and oh so many other holiday things!
Finally, the students will have an opportunity each day next week (Dec 21, 22, 23) to show their holiday spirit. There are so many ways they can choose to participate, from wearing red and green or blue and white, or perhaps a Santa hat or jingle bells. Or perhaps they want to show off their favorite ugly sweater or send a holiday message to a friend or teacher. We look forward to sharing some holiday spirit together before we leave for our Winter Break.
Whatever this season brings, please know that we wish you all a very happy and healthy holiday season and we look forward to another exciting new year!!
Student Engagement
We are so proud of how hard our students have been working to attend all of their lessons and remain engaged in school while working remotely. As we have just a few days left until students and staff take a well-deserved Winter break, we wanted to remind all of our students and families how important it is that students attend school and participate on their lessons as fully and consistently as possible. We have a lot of fun activities planned for next week to enjoy together before taking a break and we hope to have all of our students join in!
Some of the ways we have worked to increase student engagement have included finding motivating items for students to earn by attending and participating on their lessons, making safely distanced visits to students homes, sending work packets to students who struggle to complete their work online and, as always, maintaining consistent and close communication with our families to ensure that we are doing everything we can as a team to support our students. We want all of them to be able to consistently access all of the learning and socialization opportunities available to them at Lighthouse. Please do not hesitate to reach out to a staff member if you have ideas for engaging your child in their learning or if you have any questions about how we can help!
To our LEA's
Thank you for your continued partnership as we work to support our students and their families. We are here for you. If you need anything, please do not hesitate to contact us:
Dorothy Pepin
Director of Program Administration
Pepind@lighthouseschool.org
Jennifer Kamin
Associate Director of Program Administration Kaminj@lighthouseschool.org
Amy Bassett
Supervisor for Team Meetings
Bassetta@lighthouseschool.org
Sandra Muldowney
Supervisor for Enrollment Services
MuldowneyS@lighthouseschool.org
To our Families
Our therapists are available to offer clinical support to families and students 24 hours a day.
If you are in need of assistance, please call our support line, starting with Line 1.
Line #1: (978) 821-1351
If you are not able to connect with a therapist or do not get a response within 10 minutes, please try Line 2.
Line #2: (978) 821-0316
Resources
Click the icon for up-to-date information regarding COVID-19 from the Mass General Hospital website