Thursday, October 22nd, 2020
Dear Families of L'Ecole Française du Maine,
Please consider your nominations for our School Council Parent Representatives. We would like to have all nominees emailed to office@frenchschool.me by Friday, Oct. 23rd. This is a wonderful chance to build connections between teachers, parents, and administration. We are so grateful to the parents who have already volunteered to nominate themselves!
Picture Re-Take Day is here! If you would like your child to have a second chance at school pictures Friday, Oct. 23rd, please let Emily know so we can schedule students accordingly. Below you will find a link to view the gallery of photos from October 8th's picture day!
Our Halloween Parade is soon approaching-- we cannot wait to see what costumes and characters we have joined us this year! Parents are encouraged to wear costumes too!! It would be helpful to familiarize yourself with the protocols and plan for this year's parade if you have yet to do so already; details are listed in this newsletter as well.
As always, if you have any questions regarding any of the following included in this newsletter, please email Emily at office@frenchschool.me
Merci!
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| Updates from the Classrooms |
PS students continue their daily songs and games to build routine and structure of the school day! Also, congrats to Marcel (pictured above) for becoming a big brother this week!!
MS students have transitioned seamlessly into autumn play outdoors! Mud-pies, acorn collecting, and leaf-art have become all the rage on the playground.
CE2, CM1, and CM2 have created some beautiful works of art under Dasha's instruction, and their new English classroom is just about ready to host classes!
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Our very own Faunce family shared a campground with Maine Senator Angus King this past Indigenous Peoples' Day weekend! What a timely reminder to exercise your right to VOTE in the upcoming elections if you have not done so already! Maine has early voting available now until Election Day, Nov. 3rd. If you still need to make a plan to vote, check out www.vote.org for more helpful information.
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| Parent Representative Elections- Nominate now! |
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Parent representatives in 2017
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We will be hosting an election for Parent Representatives to our School Council again this fall! The School Council is a group of staff, administration, and parents who meet a few times a year to discuss student life and connect. We still need a few more nominees to host the election. Please consider taking on this small commitment to assist in growing connections between the school and families. Meetings for the foreseeable future will occur over zoom or in the parlor of La Maison, schedules, and availability pending.
If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else to be a candidate, please email office@frenchschool.me by Friday, Oct. 23rd, with the name of your choice! Voting will take place Tues. November 3rd via an online anonymous ballot survey.
Merci!
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| School Pictures Review & RETAKE Day- Friday, Oct. 23rd |
Class pictures from Oct. 8th are now available for your review!
Please follow this link from photographer Danielle Peterson to peruse the gallery for your students' photos. No password is required. Prints are available to purchase directly from Danielle's website.
For those who were absent on Picture Day or would like their pictures retaken, our photographer, Danielle Peterson, will be retaking portraits on Friday, October 23rd. Danielle will be masked and taking pictures from a safe distance, one family/student at a time. The children will come to the separated photo area on the playground masked, take their mask off for the photo, and put it directly afterward. If you would rather your child keep their mask on at all times, please let us know so we can plan accordingly!
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| Updated Directory Available |
Parents of current students, please be on the lookout for a separate email with an updated version of this year's Family Contact Directory! We've welcomed a few new students this fall and wanted to be sure to include their contact information. If you find any discrepancies or have any changes to make to the updated directory, please let office@frenchschool.me know, and changes will be made for the next version of the document. Merci! |
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Halloween (Socially distanced) Parade
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Halloween, like most events in 2020, will be celebrated differently in this unprecedented year. In light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, L'Ecole Française du Maine will take extra safety precautions in continuing this wonderful tradition.
As in years past, we will plan to have all students participate in a walking parade around South Freeport village, fully in costume! This event will take place from 2 PM to 3 PM on Friday, October 30th, as listed on the academic calendar. We ask that ALL student Halloween costumes include their face mask. Students should NOT wear any additional costume masks on top of their protective masks. Any parents who would like to join us for our walkthrough of South Freeport Village will be required to wear a mask as well. Teachers, with the help of parents, will be separating their class groups with an extra distance between bodies.
Parents of younger children will be asked to park down at the Freeport Wharf and walk up to meet our group on the school playground. Together, we will parade from the playground, down Park St. and down the hill toward Brewer's Marina.
A small celebratory treat will be waiting for all, after which parents can either take their child home from the wharf parking lot or walk back up the hill to school with the group for dismissal as usual. Map of the Parade
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A minute of silence was observed on October 20 by the 53 Heads of the AEFE French Schools in Canada and the United States after the death of history and geography professor Samuel Paty on Friday, October 16, near his middle-school in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, France. Willy LeBihan, Head of School, participated in this tribute given by Olivier Boasson, Head of the School Department at the French Embassy in Washington, DC. The school community extends its condolences to the victim's family and its support to the middle-school of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine.
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In honor of Indigenous Peoples' Day...
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If you missed the movie, a special link for our school community to enjoy on vimeo password: teal.seven.can
and the guide to accompany viewing via this link.
Although this film is for adults only, students and teachers have been doing their part of learning more about Indigenous Peoples throughout Maine and North America.
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Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
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L'Ecole Française du Maine is committed to providing a safe, nurturing environment for learning, self-discovery, and personal growth to every student. Our families, teachers, and staff hail from many different origins, and our community is made all the stronger because of them. This fall, the School has undertaken a reflection on the topic of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
L'Ecole Française du Maine will encourage its community members to reflect on important topics such as bias, stereotypes, diversity, equity, and inclusion. The pedagogical team is also reviewing the French National Curriculum to make sure crucial North American issues such as the history of racism and tolerance are taught age-appropriately to each child, starting in preschool.
... more to come .....
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Important Flu Shot Information during COVID-19
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It seems as though it's never been easier to get access to a flu shot. Most pharmacies have a shot available, or you can schedule a visit with your healthcare provider. Find more information about the latest flu statistics on the Maine flu website.Keeping yourself and those around you safe from the flu includes what we're already doing to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Please continue to practice social distancing, wear a mask, and stay on top of hand hygiene!
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Thanks to all for providing a great supply of special cleaning products to kick off our school year! We have paper towels and hand sanitizer to enter the winter season but could use more of the following wishlist products if you happen to come across any while doing your weekly shopping:
- Hand soap (larger refill bottles welcome!)
- Lysol or a similar brand of disinfectant spray cleaner
- Disposable child-size masks
- Glue sticks
Merci beaucoup for keeping these items in mind and for your generous donations!
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Reopening Plans and Covid-19 Protocols 08/03/2020 version
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Thank you for continuing to perform the daily check before coming to school.
Communication with the school is paramount; if you have any uncertainties regarding the checklist questions or anything that cannot be answered negatively, you must call or email the school office as soon as possible.
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| Implementing Maine CDC Protocols Safely |
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Everyone gets their temperature taken at the start of the day- Even Emily!
Frequent hand-washing throughout the day
Learning outside whenever possible
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| Window to the past ... just for fun |
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November 2009, Valerie Legentil just removed the blanket covering the aquarium and preschool students of l'Ecole Française du Maine discovered "FLEUR", the fish! Since 2012, Valerie teaches Physical Education at Lycée Jules Verne, in Johannesburg, South Africa.
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