October 27, 2025
Important Dates…
Monday, November 3: OFP Andy’s Garden Fundraiser poinsettia orders due.
Tuesday, November 11: Evening appointments for Parent-Teacher Conferences, 4:30-7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, November 12: School CLOSED for Parent-Teacher Conferences.
Thursday, November 20: Overfield Family Partnership Meeting, 6:30 p.m. in the Gathering Place.
Wednesday, November 26-Friday, November 28: School CLOSED for Thanksgiving Break. School resumes Monday, December 1st.
Letters from Leadership
We spent the last week with visiting artist, Jake Lockwood, and our time together was full of joyful learning. There are so many benefits to exposure to the discipline of theater: it stretches the children’s imaginations, supports them in being confident and poised in front of others, makes them better listeners and communicators, increases their awareness and responsiveness, and makes them more proficient collaborators. In addition to these benefits, one of the hallmarks of theater is live performance. We were so eager to share this aspect with our families, but the fates had other plans! An aspect of live theater–or any live event–that always keeps us on our toes is that there can be unanticipated occurrences. A part to our HVAC system setting off the fire alarm right before call time certainly fits in that category! However, the children were able to perform for their peers and teachers the following day, and though it was disappointing to have a limited audience, the children did wonderfully, and through the marvel of digital technology, we were still able to share these performances with our families.
The lessons of theater thus became even deeper last week when plans were upended at the last minute. What does a happening like this teach us, both adults and children alike? It teaches us the power and importance of quick and decisive action. It highlights how we sometimes must pivot and find a strategy and the persistence to carry on with our goals in some way, even in the midst of the unexpected. It teaches us about communicating hard things; it gives a lesson in dealing with our children’s disappointment, which is never easy–especially when we are also dealing with our own disappointment or stress. Things like this teach us how essential it is to practice, whether that is through rehearsing lines for a play, or by walking through what we would do if there was a fire as we do in our monthly fire drills.
We regret that we couldn’t have the event as planned, and the busy calendar didn’t allow us to reschedule. We are thankful to have digital technology that allows us to connect, even when space and time and unexpected events get in the way of our in-person gathering. And yet, we do know that part of what makes theater special is that it is live and in-person. In a time where so much is experienced digitally, this is an art form that prioritizes physical presence and proximity–a still essential aspect of forming and maintaining connection with each other as a society. This is another example of the sweet and the sour, the double sided coin: that this technology can simultaneously connect us in ways that were not possible in the past, like bringing this performance to you all, and yet it is this very technology that often seems to be pulling us apart in so many ways.
This summer I went on a five day professional development trip, held in New York City and sponsored by Muse Machine, centered around the role of the arts in education, and particularly around the art form of theater. Through each show I saw, it somehow kept coming back to this area of focus around digital interfaces, and the myriad ways that is impacting learning, creativity, relationships, communication, and thinking itself. We as a faculty have been having deep discussions around this over the past few years, as technology seems to impact us all in more and more ways, and this seemed like the perfect time to make this our area of research for the year. This experience last Thursday gives us yet another chance to reflect on some of these big questions, such as what is gained or lost by sharing things digitally vs being in person? How do we feel experiencing art in the room with others, as compared to watching it on a screen on our own? In what ways is technology beneficial? In what ways is it challenging? How do we support balanced and responsible use of technology with our children? How do we model that as parents? How can we use technology actively and creatively vs passively and as a distraction? How is technology use impacting physical health and motor skills, as well as social emotional well being? How do we reap the benefits of this tool and ameliorate the detrimental side?
We look forward to diving into these questions and exploring more with you and the children, to being in dialogue and a place of reflection and intentionality with you, as the play of life unfolds in ever unexpected ways each day!
Beth Poronsky – Program Lead
The children learned so much and had a wonderful time with our first visiting artist, Jake Lockwood! We would like to extend our thanks to all of our families for providing us with delicious lunches all week. We would also like to thank everyone for their flexibility and understanding with the performance being cancelled and moved to a school assembly format, with a digital format being shared with families. The show must go on, though, and the children were very excited to perform for their peers!
Many thanks to the Muse Machine, and to the Ohio Arts Council, whose grant funding makes this possible!
Parent-Teacher Conferences November 11-12, 2025
It is hard to believe, but Parent-Teacher Conferences are fast approaching! Our teachers have already been preparing to meet with you by diligently observing each child, and will be creating photo files that will be used to support discussion with you during your scheduled conference time.
These Parent-Teacher Conferences are scheduled for the evening of Tuesday, November 11 and all day Wednesday, November 12.
There will be NO OVERFIELD CLASSES on November 12th as parents meet with teachers. You should have received an electronic link via email, where you can reserve your meeting time with one of your child’s teachers. These sign ups will remain open until November 7th.
This Parent-Teacher Conference is for adults only. It is a time allotted for us to discuss your child’s progress, and since it is not appropriate to discuss a child in his/her presence unless you are talking to that child, please make sure you make other child care arrangements for your child during this meeting. Children may not be unattended in the building during these conferences, as this poses a safety concern.
Each conference will be 30 minutes in length, and it is important we stay on schedule. We will discuss our observations about your child and any questions or thoughts you have for us. If you feel more time is needed, we can immediately schedule another conference for another date.
We are looking forward to meeting with you all, and discussing all of the wonderful children we are fortunate to spend time with at Overfield!
