Lighthouse School, Inc.
November 30, 2022
"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies."
-Mother Teresa
"Real generosity is doing something nice for someone who will never find out."
-Frank A. Clark
In This Edition:
Announcements:
The Bioeducational Theme for the month of December is Generosity.
November Bioeducational Newsletters will be sent home on Friday, December 2nd.
School will be closed:
December 26th through Monday, January 2nd.
Thanksgiving at Lighthouse School
The holiday season at Lighthouse is officially underway. We were extremely excited and blessed to have been able to bring back one of our most cherished traditions. For over 40 years, Lighthouse School staff and students, past and present, have come together to share Thanksgiving dinner as one very large family.
During the days leading up to our Thanksgiving, all students and staff participated in preparing for our meal. We peeled potatoes and squash, wrapped utensils in napkins, set up rows after rows of tables and chairs in our gymnasium, prepared stuffing, and put together dessert trays. During this time, there were many opportunities to discuss family traditions, students’ favorite memories, and process their thoughts and feelings about our Thanksgiving. For our new students and staff, this was an opportunity for them to experience Lighthouse as a second family.
Once dinner was over, there was clean up, which many of our students enjoyed helping with and then we all enjoyed indoor and outdoor activities as clusters. To end our amazing day together, students and staff enjoyed an array of desserts in their homerooms and shared powerful moments that will be remembered for years to come.
We hope all our families had a safe and healthy Thanksgiving holiday.
It's Good to Give Thanks!
According to an article posted at Harvard Health Publishing, gratitude is "strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness [and] helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships."
Some great reasons to share what you're grateful for!
Honor Roll
Academic Honor Roll acknowledges students that maintained excellence through A/B or Adv./Prof. grades in their core academic areas of ELA, Writing, Reading, Mathematics, History, and Science. We are happy to announce that for Quarter 1 we had sixty-four students who have achieved Honor Roll status. This is the largest group we have had here at Lighthouse. This opportunity for success has been quite powerful for our students. It allows them to realize their very own abilities and strengths. It also provides them with an opportunity to help define their identity as learners as well as build their self-confidence.
We congratulate all the students who earned Honor Roll for their outstanding academic performance!
Holiday Shop
The holiday season is upon us and students have started asking their teachers if there will be a Holiday Shop this year. The answer is, “Yes. There will be a Holiday Shop.” Many of you may be wondering what exactly is a Holiday Shop? It’s a long-standing tradition at Lighthouse School where students save up their tokens or points to purchase gifts for their family members.
It had a very humble beginning many years ago when our staff learned that their students were worried about not being able to buy gifts for their loved ones, so our staff brainstormed a way to help. With our staff’s passion and generosity, it has grown to be an experience for all students throughout the program. All of the gifts are donated by the staff and our team of Bioeducational Facilitators play the role of Santa’s elves transforming an ordinary conference room into a shopping experience that rivals any department store or even Santa’s Workshop.
Before the shopping begins, the students participate in group discussions that focus on generosity, kindness, and the joy they can bring to others when giving gifts to someone important to them. The opportunity to share who they want to shop for and why it’s important to them is a significant part of their overall experience. The art of wrapping a gift is practiced back in their homerooms using paper, ribbons, and most likely too much tape, and this all makes waiting to bring home the gifts even harder. It brings us great joy to be part of their giving experience and to see the pride on their faces as they walk to their bus laden down with colorfully wrapped gifts. We wish all of you a wonderful and peaceful holiday season.
December
December's Theme of the Month: Generosity
The bioeducational theme of the month for December is generosity. Generosity is the habit of giving without expecting something in return, whether it be tangible or intangible. Throughout the month, students will have opportunities to talk about ways they can show generosity toward others. We want students to experience the positive effects of helping others, giving back to those in their lives, and spending time with those they care about. Some activities students may participate in include creating cards or ornaments for those they care about, spending time with peers or helping others, and writing positive statements about their classmates.
Book Suggestions:
The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
One Hen by Katie Smith Milway
Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister
Pass It On by Sophie Henn
Philosophy Amplification Project:
"Needs by the Dozen"
The first highlight of our Philosophy Amplification Project is “Needs by the Dozen.” This interactive ladder has 12 rungs and 12 plaques each with a need printed on it. The user is able to arrange their needs in any order from least important to most significant.
The Biodevelopmental components are:
Biodevelopment, Conflict, Individuality, Needs, and Self-Understanding.
How To Use The Ladder:
First, explore what each need means to you by asking:
What does each one mean?
Is it important to you?
Then arrange, from top to bottom, all 12 from most important to least important.
Look at your most/least important need, and reflect on why you chose each one.
Do you have a need that is not represented on the ladder? What is it?
MA & NH Community Activities
Looking for things to do in your community? Check out the links below.
Our Resources
Family Support Line
As a reminder, 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
Bioeducational Newsletters
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