Sanford Pride Elementary School

Hello Pride Families - Please see the link to this week's SPE Weekly Roar. Translated Versions (English, Arabic, French, Khmer, Portuguese, & Spanish) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1CTMLjumXAPl5T1sJQKnz1E1KQA7dFxi4?usp=sharing

Grade 2 News - May 5, 2025 The second grade students recently completed a study of Cycles in Nature. The children created many projects related to the subjects they learned about. These projects showcased their understanding of various cycles such as animals, plants, seasons and weather. We have since moved on to learning about The War of 1812. Our first lessons have focused on learning about the important role of James Madison, the reasons the war began and how the war progressed and ended. The students are currently writing persuasive pieces of writing where they are choosing to either support or oppose the war. In Math, second grade students are practicing their strategies in adding and subtracting 3-digit numbers. We are additionally learning how to read and comprehend math word problems. Our next unit is a focus on reading and interpreting graphs. We are looking forward to the many end of the year events such as field trips and field day! It has been an amazing year of growth and learning in second grade at SPE!

Hello Pride Families - Please see the link to this week's SPE Weekly Roar. Translated Versions (English, Arabic, French, Khmer, Portuguese & Spanish) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1u5959pXyCuZa8q4q7ftztMZq0krZ3QAS?usp=sharing

Congratulations to Terri Gerrish (Left, Pride Elementary) and Kendra Marley (Right, Carl J. Lamb Elementary) on being recognized as "Outstanding Early Childhood Professionals" during the Week of the Young Child! These dedicated educators are making a tremendous impact on Sanford's youngest learners. Read our full article to learn more about these exceptional educators and why they were selected for this special honor from the Maine Department of Education and DHHS! https://www.sanford.org/article/2183211

Miss the Sanford Pride Elementary Celebration of Learning concerts? Good news! All performances are now available to watch on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPkhl1Gl0gAKdfZAKF6w-77BA3yIDedHP

Hello SPE families, Our PTA is looking for your support in making this year's Teacher Appreciation Week, from May 5th to May 9th, a truly memorable and meaningful event for our dedicated teachers and staff at Sanford Pride Elementary. Please see the donation sign up link below, thank you! https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/10C0A4CA8A72FA6F4C61-56269628-teacher If you have any questions, please reach out to our PTA at speptame@gmail.com.

Hello Pride Families - Please see the link to this week's SPE Weekly Roar. Translated Versions (English, Arabic, French, Khmer, Portuguese & Spanish) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ZG7jeHQ57aiI3v1dZc7L0xkMbUPM3mHJ?usp=sharing

Congratulations to the talented students of Sanford Pride Elementary who shined during this week's Celebration of Learning! From choral performances during the grade-level concerts to impressive artwork displayed in the Art Show, these young artists and musicians demonstrated incredible skills and dedication!

From high school students pursuing teaching careers to dedicated community mentors, Sanford Pride Elementary celebrated its amazing volunteers this past Friday! Check out our full article to see who was recognized and learn more about our first-ever Volunteer Appreciation Ceremony: https://www.sanford.org/article/2145217

Hello Pride Families - Here is the link to this week's SPE Weekly Roar. Translated Versions (English, Arabic, French, Khmer, Portuguese & Spanish) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1gBqinrnGx_dwc7mJUFnZBseR_LblCZ-5?usp=sharing

📚✏️ THANK YOU to all the families who joined us for our Kindergarten Exploration Event last Thursday! We were thrilled to welcome over 50 families across Carl J. Lamb, Margaret Chase Smith, and Sanford Pride Elementary Schools. It was wonderful seeing our future kindergarteners exploring classrooms, meeting teachers, and getting comfortable in their new schools! The smiles and excitement were contagious! 📣 REMINDER: If you couldn't make it to the event, it's not too late to register your child for kindergarten for the 2025-2026 school year!

Hello Pride Families - Please see the link to this week's SPE Weekly Roar. Translated Versions (English, Arabic, French, Khmer, Portuguese and Spanish) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1yno3w-DeOEVPDU5l0Q_4LzPdiHVKSbry?usp=sharing

Hello Pride Families - Please see the link to this week's SPE Weekly Roar. Translated Versions (English, Arabic, French, Khmer, Portuguese and Spanish) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1NA4daBpOBAXmMaQzwXiRoZrSUVzEZc1F?usp=sharing

Kindergarten Exploration Event for incoming Kindergarten students: APRIL 3RD, 2025 from 5PM-6PM at MCS, CJL & SPE! Join us to: Explore your school See a kindergarten classroom Meet teachers & staff Learn about the transition to kindergarten Still need to register for kindergarten? No problem! Register online or in person at the event. Questions? Email: spalmer@sanford.org

Fun with Words Submitted by Mr. Benham Is it there, their, or they’re? To, too, or two? Does the pronunciation change when you address a group at your address ? If you’ve found yourself with these questions and more, then this group of 3rd graders at Sanford Pride can relate. These students have been working with homophones, homographs, and homonyms. After exploring how these words can function as nouns, verbs, and even adjectives in sentences they got to work writing their own “playful” sentences. Using Google Slides students were able to illustrate their sentences to show the meanings of each homophone or homograph. Can you think of any playful sentences of your own? How would you draw it? Fun with Numbers: If you are familiar with the myth of Icarus, then you know that he ignored his father’s instructions, flew too close to the sun, and ultimately crashed into the sea below. This got Mr. Benham thinking. What if his altitude was controlled by a simple mathematical formula? What if every time Icarus was at an even height we divide it by two. Whenever Icarus is at an odd height we can multiply by three, then add 1. Is it possible to save Icarus? These musings were inspired by the famous Collatz Conjecture. A conjecture in math is a statement that is believed to be true but not yet proven. The Collatz Conjecture states that every positive number will eventually lead to 1 by following a simple rule. If even: x2. If odd: x3, +1. Artists and mathematicians have tried to visualize this problem for years. A group of 4th graders explored these sequences and decided to represent them as “Collatz Trees.”

Hello Pride Families - Please see the link to this week's SPE Weekly Roar. Translated Versions (English, Arabic, French, Khmer, Portuguese and Spanish) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1RCCLQCKiY0510FuHKQkIXFmmV-SETxNt?usp=sharing

Hello Pride Families - Please see the link to this week's SPE Weekly Roar. Translated Versions (English, Arabic, French, Khmer, Portuguese & Spanish) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1X775B_tXh4DggioMzkS8NT11v48wgY5g?usp=sharing

📣 JOIN US FOR FAMILY MATH GAME NIGHT! 📣 Sanford's third virtual Family Math Game Night is happening Tuesday, March 18th at 6:00 PM via Zoom! Families can play fun math games together from the comfort of home. ✅ All materials and Zoom link will be provided to families who RSVP ✅ Registration deadline: March 17th (this Monday!) ✅ Two easy ways to register: Scan the QR code to access the Google Form (or follow this link: https://forms.gle/GTakXJUaxFL2mVDh7) Fill out the paper form and return to school

What an incredible turnout for last night's Staff vs. First Responders basketball game at Sanford Pride Elementary! The gym was packed with supporters as our amazing elementary staff took on our dedicated local first responders on the court. Congratulations to all participants and a BIG THANK YOU to our local first responders who generously gave their time to make this special event possible.

Hello families! We’d like to share a few quick updates about happenings in specials classes at SPE. In P.E., students had fun and successful sledding days last month. Indoors, students have finished their basketball unit and are now moving onto volleyball. For 3rd and 4th grade girls, the “Girls On The Run” club is starting up. For more information, see Mr. Welch or Ms. Kennedy. In Health, students in all grades are beginning their safety unit. This portion of the year will cover a variety of safety topics, such as medicine, summer activities, navigating online, biking, and when/how to call 911. In Art and Music, students are getting prepared for their big Art Show and Concert nights! Students are selecting art pieces to display and also adding the finishing touches to their concert songs. The Art Show and concerts will happen the week before April break. Be on the lookout in your child’s backpack for more information. Happy Spring! Mr. Welch, Ms. Leigh, Ms. Smith, and Mrs. Mannino