Dear K-4 Families,

Congratulations to our 2nd and 4th graders on their Blues, Jazz, and Rock & Roll performance yesterday! It was awesome that the students had such a large audience of caregivers and classes! Bravo, performers and thanks to Mrs. Hoffman for preparing the students so well.

Last night, the principals went to the School Committee to provide end-of-year updates on our School Improvement plans. My report is included below! Many thanks to the School Committee for their hard work and support.

A reminder to take a look at the class placement information below and complete the optional Family Input google form which is accepting responses through next Friday, 5/29.

Finally, I wanted to take a moment to share how we have recognized Memorial Day in school. Last week at community meeting, Mr. B (Bermudes), who served as a Marine, read excerpts from The Poppy Lady: Moina Belle Michael and Her Tribute to Veterans by Barbara E. Walsh, illustrated by Layne Johnson. We learned how the poppy became the symbol of fallen soldiers. During todays morning announcements we had a moment of silence in honor of Memorial Day.

Enjoy the long weekend!

Sincerely,

Sarah

It’s been a very positive and productive year. We achieved several outcomes that were set in our school improvement plan, and there are areas where we made progress or need more time.

Goal 1: 

Our first goal came directly from the District Improvement Plan to successfully implement the new EL English Language Arts curriculum. The K-4 had a successful implementation year. Teachers report seeing high levels of student engagement with the knowledge-based curriculum topics - some of which were included in Student Learning Spotlight presentations to the School Committee. Students used a variety of texts to learn about inventions, poetry, weather, schools around the world. Other modules focus on fossils, birds and language. Some of our field trips were directly tied to the EL curriculum. The 4th grade went to Wood’s Hole to see the Alvin deep sea submersible they’d read about in their Deep Sea Discoveries module. Second graders went to the Harvard Natural History Museum to see fossils after their module “The Fascinating Stories Fossils Tell”. 

The professional development was well received, especially the collaboration time when teams could spend extended periods of time unpacking the curriculum and work on lesson plans as a group. Implementing a new curriculum is always a big undertaking and it’s notable that our outside partners were pleasantly surprised there were no signs of resistance as that can be fairly common when rolling out a new curriculum. Our teachers have bought-in and worked incredibly hard this year. They are eager for more in-depth experiences such as doing learning walks, seeing lessons modeled, and being able to shift from the pacing challenges and somewhat rigid approach required as they are learning the curriculum. The K-5 end of year assessments are taking place this week and we are all eager to see the outcome of this year’s learning.  

The District Improvement Plan includes planning for Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, or MTSS. At the K-4, we focused on Tier I which is the universal instruction and support for all students. We had professional development including an overview of MTSS as a framework and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) which is the foundation of Tier 1 instruction. 

We look forward to expanding this work to include Tier II supports, defining the decision points that would prompt transitions between Tier I to Tier II, as well as detailing what those more intensive supports will entail.

We made a significant shift in our child study process by combining our separate teams (Instructional Support Team and Community Support Team) into one, now called the Student Support Team (SST). We have a smaller standing team, and a tighter protocol of data collection, written updates, and goal setting.The team develops smaller goals to help us understand if a student needs a short-term intervention, a series of goals and interventions, a referral for evaluation, or to discontinue. Similar to last year, SST had fewer referrals and released nearly double the amount of students from the SST process - meaning, the intervention was successful and the team no longer needed to meet on that student. 

Two of our “partially achieved” outcomes are part of a summer work proposal that I submitted in the hopes that we can develop a concrete plan and tools to utilize the DCAP (district accommodation plan) and a protocol to systematically analyze student work and performance data. The goal is to have a unified, standardized routine with a clear framework to look at student work and plan adjustments to practice. This framework would be a foundation for equitable, responsive, data-driven instruction.

Our family and community engagement efforts continued to thrive this year with meaningful and joyful connections across our school community. Community meetings were expertly planned and led this year by faculty members Jen O’Sullivan, Caroline Curry, and Brianna Laughlin. We were glad to have several caregivers and younger siblings in attendance at each meeting. Our Family Literacy Night also received incredibly positive feedback; it was a truly joyful evening with multi-generational appeal, engaging our youngest and oldest students alike alongside their caregivers through a book swap, book character trading cards, book bingo, sentence relays, and campfire reading. We developed guidelines for parent chaperones and have seen wonderful caregiver participation for field trips including today's 3rd Grade walking field trip in Lincoln, where caregivers supported students as they explored local historical landmarks related to their study of the American Revolution.

While we celebrate these wins, we have identified several key areas where we want to expand and deepen our impact next year. We want caregivers to participate in authentic learning experiences in addition to joining us for special events.

Looking ahead, while we have welcomed a wealth of informal positive feedback throughout the year, we will officially send out our K-4 family feedback survey shortly to gather comprehensive data. I am also hoping to bring a team together to utilize resources and insights from the DESE Bridges to Belonging Fellowship which I attended with Jay Peledge (5-8 Principal), Lynn Fagan (Principal for Early Childhood Programs), Alison Bryan (METCO Academic & Enrichment Coordinator), and LaRonda Shedd (Preschool Administrative Assistant). We will work together to devise a strategic plan that elevates our two-way communication and community partnerships for the upcoming school year.

It's that time of year when school operations are preparing to close out one school year while simultaneously getting ready for the next.

As we prepare for next year, our educators and administrators are beginning the annual process of creating balanced class lists. Our top priority is to group students appropriately for optimal learning, taking into account academic, social, emotional, and behavioral factors, as well as peer relationships and student services.

While our team uses their deep knowledge of your children to make these thoughtful decisions, families may also share insights via this Family Input Form.

Thank you for your partnership as we work together to support your child's transition into the new school year!

Lincoln's annual Pride Celebration will be held on Wednesday, May 27, from 1-3:30 at the Mall at Lincoln Station.  There will be ice cream, performances by local students, a photo booth, and more! 

Show your pride at home with a yard sign that celebrates everyone! Signs were designed by Lincoln School 7th grade SAGA members. Limited number of signs available. Local delivery included in the cost, or you may pick up your sign at the Pride celebration on May 27. 

Signs maybe be purchased online HERE*. 

*Lincoln PTO is hosting the online sales. All purchases and donations will go directly to Lincoln Pride to help offset costs of the annual celebration.

Lincoln METCO proudly presents a community-wide Juneteenth celebration on Saturday, June 6th, from 1:00 to 4:00 PM at 6 Ballfield Road.

This year's theme is Rest, Resilience, and Mindfulness. Come out for an incredible afternoon featuring live performances, a DJ, a step team, poetry, dance, delicious food, and local vendors. There will also be a bouncy house, game truck and more!

Programming begins at 1:00 to 2:30 PM, followed by outdoor festivities at 2:30 PM. Don't miss out on the fun, food, and community. See you there!

Dear Families, 

We are excited to be preparing for the 2026-27 kindergarten classes and look forward to meeting our youngest students and their families!

We have a Kindergarten Information video that introduces you to Lincoln School staff and provides information about learning and the school day. Please click here to view the 5-minute video and bring any questions you have to orientation on May 28th. 

Rising kindergarteners and their parent(s)/caregiver(s) are invited to come to school on Thursday, May 28th during the school day for Kindergarten Orientation! We will meet in the Learning Commons and then walk the children to a kindergarten classroom where they will play, color, enjoy a read aloud and more. This teacher will be your child’s orientation day teacher but will not necessarily be your child’s teacher in the fall. 

While the children are in the classrooms, parent(s)/caregiver(s) will attend a meeting with the building administrators and the literacy and math specialists. Parents/caregivers of students who did not attend the Lincoln Preschool will complete a home language survey with the EL teacher.

Please complete this Kindergarten Family Information & Orientation Sign-up. 

If you are not sure if your child will register, please do complete the form so you can recieve updates!

Children must have reached the age of five (5) before October 1, 2026 to enter Kindergarten. The Lincoln Public Schools also enroll employee children who have been approved by the School Committee and Boston resident students through the METCO Program. 

Here is a link to the online New Student Registration

*Students attending LPS Lincoln Preschool are already registered and need only to complete this form.

You will fill out student and caregiver information, and upload documentation listed below. 

*Students enrolled through the METCO program need to provide Health and Medical forms only. We have access to the other documents in Avela. 

We look forward to welcoming your child and working with you to ensure that your child’s first school experience is a happy and successful one!

 

Sincerely,

Sarah Collmer, K-4 Principal

Dear Lincoln School Composting Volunteers,

Thank you so much for your awesome support this school year! Since January, we have had six amazing volunteers helping out over multiple days. While this number is down from twenty unique volunteers from September-December, we still LOVE our volunteers and whether you joined us for one session or many, we truly appreciate YOU and your time. 

As we look ahead to the end year, we are in dire need of volunteers and would be delighted to see you again– or to have you help spread the word about this important work we are doing in our school with others who might also be interested in volunteering. 

If you'd like to spend time with your child as you volunteer, your child is welcome to join you at the compost table if they would like to pull up a chair and eat their lunch with you, don a pair of composting gloves, or use the coveted composting tongs! 

Appointment slots are open through the end of the year.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or suggestions. Thank you again for your invaluable support!

Most sincerely,

Gwen Blumberg & Nicole McDonagh

gblumberg@lincnet.org / nmcdonagh@lincnet.org