November Events & Programs
Calendar  HERE
 

Weston  Parks and Recreation  Current program details  HERE
 

Weston Public Library  has November programs for all ages, and some great upcoming  free events for  Middle and High School youth, including: Arm-Knitting a Scarf, YA Fiction Book Club, Teen Game Night ,  Fandom Friday (Gr. 5-12) & Dream Catchers (Gr. 4-12) For  more fun, for the adults, don't forget the Flu shot clinic on Nov. 7th, 10AM-Noon!

Weston Youth Services WOW after school enrichment programs: Winter program catalogs for HES, WIS and WMS are now available for viewing at Westonyouthservices.org  Registration opens Tuesday, 11/12 at 10:01 p.m

 

Weston Youth Services Youth Mini Grant applications are available to Middle and High school  students  to apply for funding for  youth-initiated and youth-led projects. Details and application are available at Westonyouthservices.org    

Weston Police Department School Resource Officers Joe Mogollan (WHS) and Jason Kim (WMS) continue to support and educate students. This month Officer Kim has been teaching about  internet safety  in the middle school; Officer Mogollan spoke on 11/1 to  the WHS PTO about vaping, his role at WHS and more.  Both SRO's can be a great resource for students and parents. Officer Mogollan also has some good info. on his website page.

ADAP’s Youth Wellness Council (YWC) for 2019 – 2020:   ADAP's YWC offers  MS and HS students  a safe place outside of school to talk with peers about life's challenges They meet once a month on Mondays at the Weston Public Library, facilitated by Tim Walsh (More about Tim Walsh HERE) and more about the program details HERE. 
 

Programs for parents
 

1. Wed. 11/6 at 7PM-8PM: Vaping: The Real Risks with a presentation by Tricia Dahl, a Yale Medical School researcher. MS and HS students encouraged to attend: Get the facts and ask the questions with your teen. Register for this event HERE (Weston Middle School Library)
2. School Safety and Security (2 sessions) - Captain Matthew Brodacki, Weston Police Department, Dr. William McKersie, Mr. Michael Rizzo, and Weston Public School Staff  Wednesday, November 13 2019 12:30 p.m.—2:00 p.m. WHS Main Office Conference Room  OR  Wednesday, November 13, 2019 7:00 p.m.—8:30 PM @ the Weston Middle School Library.
3. Skills Training for Emotional Problem Solving - Mr. Michael Rizzo, Dennis Richetelli, Health Teacher and Weston Public School Staff; Thursday, November 21, 2019 9:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. WHS Main Office Conference Room

HERE is the Sept/Oct. Principals' Report. Some highlights:

• At WHS: Mental Health: During first period and fifth period, there is a counselor on call for any student dealing with a very stressful challenge—this ensures that if the student’s regular counselor is not available, the student is able to see someone during the hours of 7:45-8:38 and 12:30-1:30 daily.
• WHS: The implementation of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a new initiative this year. Lessons have been embedded into the freshman health curriculum this fall. Freshmen have learned about mindfulness and the emotional/reasonable/wise mind. Advisory period (twice per month) is being used to implement DBT activities that align with the health program, which guarantees that all grades learn strategies.
• WMS: Kicked off the Wingman program, a unique youth leadership program from Dylan’s Wings of Change, that creates empathy and acceptance leading to inclusion for all children. Participants explore the qualities of a wingman such as courage, perseverance and resilience
• WIS: FOOD DRIVE: WIS students and families participated in a community service project, collecting and donating over 135 bags with a variety of food and personal care items to the Weston Food  Pantry to meet the needs of their patrons.
• HES:  Uses Responsive Classroom as the approach and philosophy to teaching and classroom management; an approach comprised of research and evidence-based practices. In an October professional development day,  these practices  were strengthened with a full-day faculty workshop by a Responsive Classroom trainer.  The workshop, “Improving Teacher and Student Language,”  focused on the power of language and the words we use to ensure each child feels they are a valued part of the school and classroom community.

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All of the Weston Public Schools have a life size Be K_ND  banner  as part of the Weston Kindness initiative to highlight the  kindness that is always happening in Weston. Students, staff and visitors can stand in the blank space and be the "I" in KIND.  We can all bring deeper meaning to this by having the conversations with kids about this: How do you show Kindness? Why does it matter? Who is kind to you and how does that make you feel?

                                           
 
                

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Resource Spotlight:

Grief, Loss and Helping Kids through hard emotions

• Adam's house,  Shelton CT:  grief education and peer support; "We support children struggling with any type loss- parent, grandparent, sibling, aunt/uncle or friend. All programs are offered at NO-COST to participating families." (203) 513-2808 
• Healing Hearts Center, Danbury (203) 303-9409 Support for adults and children of all ages
• Center for Hope, Darien ​(203) 655-4693  Grief support groups for children
• Westport Family Counseling General bereavement group meets Tuesday evenings (203) 227-4555 ext. 5

• The Dougy Center is not local, but is a great online resource for children, teens, young adults and families grieving the loss of a friend or family member; they have two brief handouts on How to Help a Grieving Teen and How to Help a Grieving Child that parents may find particularly helpful. Help for Kids and Help for Teens, including: How to Help a Grieving Teen
• Helping your child comfort a grieving pal "I love the idea of framing it as a family value that you decide upon and live by. We show up. We help. We listen. We push aside our own awkward feelings, because our own awkward feelings aren't the point."​
• Child Mind Institute: Helping Children Cope With Grief; toolkit for parents including talking about grief and loss at different ages.
• What's your Grief? Extensive resources about grief for people of all ages and all situations.

• Building Emotional Intelligence in Children: Talking About Sadness, Loss and Grief:  some  guidance from Hey Sigmund: "The temptation can be to push your sadness away, pretend it doesn’t exist, or cover it up with another feeling, such as anger. The problem is that none of that makes the feeling go away, and can sometimes make you feel worse for longer."
• 3 Ways Parents Shape Their Kids' Emotional Intelligence Without Realizing It, Marc Brackett (he's one of the creators of Yale's RULER program which is in place at WPS) "Permission to feel doesn't mean obsessing over every time somebody is mean to us or ignores us. It's really just the opposite—teaching the ability to get through those moments, to learn from them, and to continue to function normally."