November 24, 2025
Important Dates…
Wednesday, November 26-Friday, November 28: School CLOSED for Thanksgiving Break. School resumes Monday, December 1st.
Tuesday, December 16: Night Tree for Toddlers, 5:30 p.m. in the Gathering Place. Night Tree for Kindergarten, 6:30 p.m. in the Gathering Place.
Wednesday, December 17: Night Tree for South Side, 5:30 p.m. in the Gathering Place. Night Tree for North Side, 6:30 p.m. in the Gathering Place.
Thursday, December 18: Night Tree for 1st-3rd Grade, 5:30 p.m. in the Gathering Place. Night Tree for Overfield Alumni, 7:00 p.m. in the Gathering Place.
Friday, December 19: Last day before Winter Break. School CLOSED December 20-January 5th; school resumes Tuesday, January 6th.
Letters from Leadership
Research is at the heart of our educational philosophy here at Overfield. We believe that children are born researching their world, using all of their senses to investigate. A disposition toward research as an everyday practice for both children and adults is a foundational way of being, and is also multi-faceted. It pushes us to be in a state of awareness. It frames us as lifelong learners, always discovering more about our world–searching and re-searching the ways in which life continuously changes, taking note of the complexity and wonder of existence. It orients us toward meaning-making; taking the observations we have, communicating and comparing those with others’ insights, and then contextualizing these ideas to make sense of the “why” of our world.
This research is made concrete through the process of documentation. We make learning visible every day in the classroom through the act of recording its traces: using transcriptions, photos, and examples of material work to take the sometimes ephemeral process of learning and make it perceivable and shareable. Through this dialectic of research–through our capturing of the traces of this process, and through our shared dialogue about both the process and products of learning–we are able to become both better learners and better teachers.
This is an intentional choice. It consciously puts learning and thinking about learning at the heart of our educational practice, prioritizing both cognition and metacognition for children and teachers alike. This is formalized through many internal processes here at Overfield, including bi-weekly team meetings for each classroom, where we examine the documentation we have gathered; through monthly full faculty meetings we call Reggio Study Group; through the act of writing daily journals to reflect on and communicate with our families about that process; through the reflective evaluation process that guides professional development for staff; through the act of generating documentation on our walls that more closely analyzes and interprets the what of the learning, the why of the learning, and the how of the learning.
Another way that we ensure that this is central to our praxis is by declaring an annual Area of Research. This Area of Research, which is decided on as a faculty, is a way for us to know where to focus, how to organize ourselves, an impetus to reflect together as researchers around a specific topic, and to determine ways to let others know what we have learned. We have joined with other educators across Ohio who are also inspired by the Reggio Emilia philosophy, and who also have monthly Reggio Study Group meetings, to take on a common Area of Research through the umbrella of the study group consortium we are all a part of which is called Ohio Voices for Learning. Ohio Voices for Learning (OVL) is a group we have been a part of since its inception in the early 2000s. There are roughly 15-20 Study Groups across the state during any given year, made up of teachers from private and public schools, librarians, museum educators, artists, and many others–all who are drawn together by a shared pedagogy. I have personally been a part of the group OVL since joining the staff of Overfield in 2002, and have served as the Chair, Past Chair, Technology Chair, as a Member at Large, and now as Secretary for the organization; Erin Johnston, our Finance Lead, is currently the Treasurer. This group hosts professional development initiatives, supports Study Groups across the state, and advocates for meaningful, context based learning in schools–supporting research as a central and essential part of education.
As I have mentioned previously, this year our Area of Research is on another central and structural element of our philosophy: project based learning. In support of this aspect of learning, we are engaging in a project with families around the topic of digital interfaces. We discussed this as a group at the September OFP meeting, webbing all of our questions and areas of interest regarding this subject. We will delve further into our research at the next OFP meeting in January, when we will have a Book Club style discussion of the text The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. We hope to model the process of project based learning by actually participating in a project with our families. I hope to see you there, to join in dialogue to observe, reflect, question, and learn, as we search and re-search together about things that impact us, our children, and our world.
Beth Poronsky – Program Lead
We are looking forward to giving back to our community this holiday season, and hope you will join us!
Overfield will begin collecting food items and personal care items that will be donated to the First Place Food Pantry here in Troy. Donation barrels will be located in the Gathering Place, and baskets for donations will also be placed in the Toddler, Kindergarten, Primary classrooms. We will begin collecting items starting Monday, November 17th and ending on Wednesday, December 10th. We have attached the list of items that are being requested. Please consider donating as you are able. Thank you for helping involve our children in the act of giving, and for helping those in our community!
Food Items Requested:
Ramen Noodles
Canned Fruit
Canned Soup
Packages of Noodles or Pasta
Cereal
Pasta Sauce and Canned Pasta Meals
Rice Side Packets
Dry Milk Powder
Canned Vegetables, Canned Tomatoes
Canned Tuna
Ketchup or Salsa
Baby Food
Macaroni and Cheese
Vegetable Oil or Olive Oil
Peanut Butter
Instant Potatoes or Stuffing Mix
Velveeta Cheese
Personal Care Items Requested:
Toilet Paper
Toothbrush
Band Aids
Q Tips
Baby Wipes
Dish Soap
Deodorant
Bar of Soap
Shampoo
Disposable Razors
Laundry Detergent
Toothpaste
Night Tree Celebration, 12/16-12/18
Each year around Thanksgiving break, we prepare for our annual winter celebration, Night Tree, which is based on the book of the same name by Eve Bunting. The children research our local animals and prepare food for them. They create beautiful art and gather natural materials to transform the Gathering Place into the forest depicted in the story. On the night of the celebration, families enter into this space to sing and celebrate literature, nature, and the simple joy of being together. We can’t wait to celebrate this wonderful tradition with all of you in the Gathering Place this week at the class times detailed above in the Important Dates section!
Wishing you all a happy, safe, and warm Thanksgiving with your families and friends! We are thankful for each and every one of your children, and for your trust in us as we explore, play, and learn together at Overfield.
