4 New Teachers at Milton Avenue School

When opens its doors for the new school year Tuesday, they will welcome more than the 380 students currently enrolled.

Principal Marion McCarthy said, “We have several new teachers. We have a new counselor. We’re sharing the counselor with Washington [Avenue] School. We have a new media specialist. We have a new kindergarten teacher. And we have a new custodian.”

Jill Mills will act as the new media specialist in the library. Jaclyn Brief will teach kindergarten in the mornings and basic skills in the afternoons. Martina McElroy will teach special education, and Lindsay Feldman will act as the elementary school counselor at both Milton Avenue and Washington Avenue Schools.

Changes in Kindergarten

Like the other elementary schools, “we’re [also] implementing the CHiP program, which stands for Chatham Inclusion Preschool,” McCarthy said. This program is mandated by the state and has been modified to allow for high school students to help teach and facilitate the classrooms, thus .

Kindergarteners have a different start date for school than the first, second and third graders. While the older children start school on Tuesday, Sept. 6, kindergarteners begin on Monday, Sept. 12. The extra week gives kindergarten teachers a chance to meet with the students for one-on-one assessments.

“Some [kids] come in already reading. Some don’t know the letters of the alphabet and that’s okay.  That’s what kindergarten is for,” McCarthy said. 

The Role of the PTO

Every year on the first day of school, McCarthy said, "the PTO [Parent-Teacher Organization] does balloons, and we’ll have an assembly. Then we’ll have another Opening Day on Sept. 12 because it’ll be the first day for kindergarten. ... The PTO will do balloons again, and we’ll make it a really big deal for them.”

The PTO also provides after school enrichment programs. "We have everything from golf to LEGOS to homework help after school,” said McCarthy.

Parents also helped to fund a gift to the school in the form of a literary mural, featuring some beloved characters from children's literature.  “Over the summer [Washington Avenue School’s Media Specialist’s] daughter painted some murals [of] some favorite book characters in the library. On the walls, we have Winnie the Pooh and Peter Rabbit... [and] Harry Potter,” said McCarthy.

“It looks great. She did a beautiful job.  And the PTO funded that. We have a great PTO,” McCarthy said.

Holidays at Milton

Like the other Kindergarten through third grade schools in the district, Milton has an Author's Day in the spring, tentatively scheduled for April 24, 2012. This year's guest author is Eileen Christilow, who will speak to the students and hold workshops throughout the day.

Milton also has some activities planned for those new to the school. "We will have a New Family Coffee on the first day of school, [which is] a good way to meet everybody," McCarthy said. "We'll [also] have our new family picnic," scheduled for Friday, Sept. 16 at 5:30 p.m.

Back to School Night at Milton Avenue School is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 27 at 6:45 p.m.

Said McCarthy, “It’s going to be a great year.”

Chatham Patch brings you everything you need to know for the start of the school year with several stories over the course of the week to get students, and parents, ready for the year to begin.

In case you missed it:
Wednesday—The parking lot  
Thursday—Chatham Middle School has a ,  
Friday—What parents and students at need to know.
Saturday—

Coming up next:
Monday—After four days without electricity, Washington Avenue School welcomes new staff and students.
Tuesday—School begins today, and we'll have photos from schools throughout the district as kids start another year. We'll also look at 9/11 curriculum in the district this year.
Wednesday—A look at the district's new anti-bullying policy.