Letter from Dr. Bianco

Dear Lower School Families,

A number of years ago when my daughter Mila was a baby, I asked a friend of a college-aged child when the knot in my stomach, the feeling of always being worried about her, would go away. She smiled at me and said, “Never.” Ha! So over the years I have had to learn how to address my concerns to keep her safe and at the same time give her freedom to explore and to develop confidence in her own abilities, as my mother and father gave me.

I understand as a parent, that it can be difficult for us to know when to step back and allow our children more independence. The research is clear, the more opportunities children have to do things on their own, the more successful they feel. 

Jonathan Haidt's “The Anxious Generation”, the research I am drawing from, documented a key change in the past decade in the drastic decline of unsupervised independence in childhood, largely driven by the rise of iPads, computers, smartphones and social media. This “online childhood" has replaced the "play-based childhood," with children now spending hours a day on screens instead of engaging in unstructured, real-world activities. As a result many young people have fewer opportunities to develop the resilience and problem-solving skills that come from navigating challenges on their own - from settling a dispute with a friend, to walking to a store by themselves. This shift is linked to a corresponding rise in anxiety, depression and other mental health issues. As an educator with thirty-five years of experience, I have witnessed the change.

Haidt’s research is one reason we are implementing the Let Grow project this school year. The Let Grow program is an initiative created to promote childhood independence and combat the culture of “over-parenting” and fear. Founded by authors and psychologists like Lenore Skenazy and Jonathan Haidt, the program operates on the belief that children are more resilient and capable than they're often given credit for.

Soon you will receive information from your child’s teacher about the Let Grow project and the  assignments students will bring home. For example, a simple homework assignment is to go home, talk to your parents about trying to do something on your own for the first time, and then do it after there is agreement. This could be anything from making breakfast, doing laundry, walking the dog, making a meal for the family, or riding your bike to the park. The goal is to help kids (and their parents) discover what they're capable of.

“The Let Grow Experience helps educators and parents work together to give kids the crucial dose of independence necessary to become competent, confident and resilient.” Below is a recent Shorecrest News article, "Learning to Let Grow," that explores the program and why it's so vital right now. Click here to read the full article. 

Patrols

Our patrols are doing an amazing job and we are grateful for their service.  Please remember that patrols need to be dropped off at Charger (at 7:30) not Pratt.

Standardized Testing

You are invited to join Sarah Palazzolo and Mandy Howell on Tuesday, September 16 at 8:15am for a special session explaining the ERB standardized tests we administer with our 3rd - 7th grade students. This is a great opportunity to understand why we use the Educational Records Bureau (ERB) tests, what they measure, and how the results are used to inform our curriculum and provide insight into your child's academic progress.  Please RSVP to spalazzolo@shorecrest.org.

Early Literacy Parent Presentation Video

A big thank you to Sarah Palazzolo and Kristin Silver for leading a parent presentation on early childhood literacy. I encourage our kindergarten and first grade families to watch the recorded presentation. (Login with Shorecrest credentials is required.) 

International Day of Peace - Friday, September 19

Students may wear their peace shirts or spirit wear tops on Friday, International Day of Peace. Uniform bottoms or denim bottoms.

Homecoming Week Fun Days for ES and LS - October 20-24

Homecoming Fun Days are around the corner.
10/20 - Pajama Day
10/21 - Crazy Socks Day
10/22 - Fun Hair Day
10/23 - Favorite Sports Team T-Shirt Day
10/24 - Class Colors 

Class Colors: In the spirit of school unity, all grades are invited to wear their class color on Class Color Day of Homecoming Week, which promotes class unity, and connection to older peers who share the same class colors. The class color travels with the student as they progress through Shorecrest. The colors assigned to be worn by each class are intentionally not Shorecrest green and gold, which are reserved for green and gold day celebrating ONE Shorecrest!

2026- red
2027- purple
2028- blue
2029- orange
2030- red
2031-purple
2032- blue
2033-orange
2034- red
2035- purple
2036- blue
2037-orange
2038-red
2039 - JK - purple
2040 - Alpha - blue

The Kind Mouse

Over the years we have established a partnership with The Kind Mouse, an organization focused on addressing food scarcity; they provide weekend meals for children in need. We will kick off the food drive starting October 20 - November 14. (More information to come.) 

We will encourage each grade to contribute by bringing in specific items:

• Fourth grade -- jars of baby food for the Mouse Babies distribution.

• Third grade -- Vienna sausages, single-serving pasta, tuna pouches or Beanee Weenees.

• Second grade -- pudding cups, jello cups and single-serve peanut butter cups.

• First grade -- granola bars, protein bars, and cracker packs (such as Lance).

• Kindergarten -- fruit snacks and individual size cereal.

Picture Retake Day

Every once in a while photographs from Picture Day do not come out well. We will have picture retakes on Wednesday, October 29.

Schoology

Each week read your child’s teachers’ pages on Schoology to learn about what’s happening in the classroom. Read the Specialists' pages as well: Art, Music, STEAM, PE, Spanish, SEL and Library.

Final Thoughts…

I recently had the pleasure of observing Mrs. Ford's third grade class learning in the new Spark Lab. (The photos below give you a  sneak peek inside the classroom.) The students were engaged in a fun and challenging learning environment and activities, thanks to Ms. Deegan's dynamic teaching style. It was a joy to see the children using their creativity and developing a bias toward action as they worked with legos on a variety of challenges. I am excited to see how the STEAM program evolves throughout the year and deepens our inquiry work with children.

Lower School Town Meeting

Lower School Town Meeting is a weekly tradition that brings Shorecrest Lower school students, faculty and parents together. Each week during Town Meeting, classes or specialist groups take turns leading the event for their peers. Students and teachers share what they are learning, often in an engaging and participatory way, and each class has an opportunity to share. Parents and Shorecrest faculty and staff have an open invitation to attend. Town Meetings are on Fridays at 8:15am on the Weiss Family Pavilion. 

[3rd - 8th Grade] Parent Presentation: ERB Testing Info Session - September 16

Join us on Tuesday, September 16 for a parent presentation for grades 3-8: “ERB Testing: Understand our school’s standardized testing and what this means for your child.” Presented by Assistant Head of Lower School Sarah Palazzolo and ERB Coordinator Mandy Howell. 

The event begins at 8:15am in the Ohana Community Room, 2nd Floor of Charger Commons. 

Shorecrest Vaccine Policy 

Recently proposed changes to State of Florida vaccine mandates do not apply to private schools. Shorecrest has no intention of changing its vaccine policy for students. 

Early Experience with Shorecrest College Counseling 

The Shorecrest College Counseling Office offers comprehensive programming to support students and families throughout the college search and placement process. While many College Counseling events are tailored toward particular grade levels, all interested Shorecrest families are invited to attend these College Counseling events this fall: 

Sophomore Strategies 

Tuesday, September 30 @ 6pm
Location: Janet Root Theatre
Dedicated programming for tenth grade students and their families

The Shorecrest Advantage: Exploring Shorecrest's Upper School

Wednesday, October 15 @ 7pm
Location: Virtual
Dedicated programming for families of seventh and eighth grade students 

All-School Calendar

Lower School Contacts