Unified Sports Program receives the Massachusetts Sportsmanship of the Year Award from MIAA.- very proud of our student athletes! Congratulations! | |
Sharing best practices and promoting inclusive opportunities for students with special needs | |
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Executive Director's
Message
Dear LABBB Community,
As 2024 rolls to its end and 2025 begins, I’d like to take a moment and share some highlights:
- LABBB works with students from 72 different districts across the state
- Our enrollment is healthy and we are accepting new students daily! We are very proud of our students and their successes!
- We are:
- Developing a more systematic and long term Professional Development plan for our staff
- Continuing to ensure that the students' (and staff) social and emotional well being remains a key focus.
- Continuing to focus on improving our community and transitional programming for our middle and high school students
- Improving and aligning technology. Our long term goal of providing access to current technology and working on digital citizenship is a critical focus.
- Improving our communication with families/guardians. LABBB’s website is newly revised and is being updated almost daily to make access easier and friendlier. Additionally, we are seeking ways to improve our ability to update parents with in-the-moment communications ( ie. cancellations ), stay tuned as we explore this.
- Focusing on business practices and procedures for improved accountability and sustainability as well as ensuring strong financial stewardship
- Improving our Transportation Network for improved safety and accessibility for students, families and districts. Five new wheelchair vans are being added to our fleet by the first of the year.
I would like to take a moment and recognize our Unified Sports program for receiving the Massachusetts Sportsmanship of the Year Award from MIAA.- very proud of our student athletes! Congratulations!
A reminder that ‘Dialogue with the Directors’ is happening! All are welcome! We will be hosting these as drop-in meetings to discuss what is on your mind - while we will not be answering specific student related questions, we hope to engage in dialogues with parents and/or community members about how to keep LABBB’s mission strong and vibrant for another 50 years! These meetings will be held at the LABBB Central Offices at 70 Blanchard Rd., Suite 206, Burlington, MA and will be held on January 29, 2025 from 9:30- 10:30 am and April 1, 2025 from 9:30 - 10:30 am.
Recreation opportunities continue for our middle and high school aged LABBB students. If you are interested in exploring any of these opportunities please contact your child’s teacher or program coordinator.
It is that time of year, when the weather can impact our schedule! We are exploring a few options to deliver news like this in a timely manner but for now, updates will be available on the website and will be shared through the Constant Contact platform, just as we did last year.
LABBB Evening Parent Meetings
LABBB Evening Parent Meetings will continue on the same evenings as our monthly dances (Thursday evenings). This allows parents of middle and high school students to drop off their daughter or son at the Lexington Community Center (39 Marrett Rd., Lexington, MA) then attend the meetings upstairs. We also encourage our parents of elementary school students to attend these parent nights. These informative meetings provide time to discuss and learn about a variety of topics related to programming, MCAS, special needs planning, recreation, transition, post -22 planning, supplemental security income (SSI), financial planning and many other important topics. Keep your eyes open for a survey regarding parent night topics that are of interest to you. We want to hear from you!
Parent meetings for 2024-25 will take place from 6:45 p.m. to 7:4 p.m. on the following dates:
Our presenters and speakers are scheduled, but may change…
December 12, 2024 (NO Parent meeting)
January 9, 2025 - Basic Rights with Attorney Meinelt
February 6, 2025 - Social Media Safety
March 13, 2025 - Estate Planning with Michael Weiner
April 3, 2025 ( NO Parent meeting)
May 15, 2025- Understanding Executive Functioning with Elise Wullf
LABBB’s Transition Fair date - April 14, 2025
We look forward to seeing you!
Please do not hesitate to contact me directly at pgirouard@labbb.net with any questions or comments.
With appreciation,
Pam
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Friendsgiving
By: Lisa Poirier, OT Department
On November 20th, the students at Burlington High School enjoyed a “Friendsgiving” lunch. Each class participated in the planning and preparing as part of the Speech/OT Independent Living Skills group over the course of the month. From making invitations with Canva, to budgeting, shopping, preparing food and making homemade apple crisp, all was thoroughly “gobbled” up (LOL).Students and staff alike enjoyed the meal that everyone contributed to. We all look forward to the holiday season!
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Transition Department : “Friendsgiving,” 2024
By: Amanda O’Leary
The word “Friendsgiving” is, of course, a blend of friend and Thanksgiving and it refers to a celebration or a large meal shared with friends either on or near Thanksgiving. (Miriam-Webster.com)
The day before Thanksgiving was always a challenge for the Transition Department. As a department, we are given a day that is too limited in time to bring our student workers out to work but are tasked with being sure that the day is filled with educational and meaningful activities. A Friendsgiving celebration was the perfect solution!
One of LABBB’s community partners, Grace Chapel, graciously gave us a space to host, with plenty of tables, chairs, and even a sound system to spin some tunes. The weekend before, the plan was shared with families. If they were able, students were asked to donate canned goods, as well as contribute $5 towards a continental breakfast and bring that money to school Wednesday morning, where some groups of students would take breakfast orders and shop at the grocery store. Another small group shopped the day before for paper goods, such as plates, cups, napkins, and utensils.
On November 27th, the room was set up with some stations: board games to choose from, coloring and word search pages, puzzles, kindness rock painting, as well as a mini-dance party. Each table also had hand-outs prepared by Ms. Carver around gratitude to look at and discuss. Students were able to mingle with students from all the LABBB high school classrooms, which does not happen often due to the logistics of vans and community partner locations.
The morning was fun and festive and seemed to be enjoyed by staff and students alike and was a kind reminder that it is okay to slow down for a moment, socialize with peers, and give thanks for what we have.
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IEP 2.0
As we are sure you have heard, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education released a new Individualized Education Program (IEP) form to be used in schools and districts across the state. At LABBB, we are committed to providing the best possible supports and services for your child's educational journey, and our use of the new IEP form is designed to enhance that commitment.
This new statewide IEP form helps teams to more effectively address the needs of students eligible for special education services. The revised form focuses attention on gathering complete information about your child's strengths, challenges, and individualized goals to develop a more personalized education plan for your child.
We believe that our use of the new statewide IEP form will offer several benefits to you and your child. Some of the key advantages include:
● Enhanced Collaboration: The form promotes better communication and collaboration between you, your child's teachers, and the IEP team. It encourages a better understanding of your child's unique needs, allowing for improved support strategies.
● Increased Student Participation: In this new form, students are encouraged as early as three years old to participate in their own IEP meeting. This self-advocacy is a life skill that is incorporated in the IEP process. Teams can support young student participation, as developmentally appropriate, by helping them to share information such as their interests, strengths, needs, what they want to learn, what they are concerned about, and what they are looking forward to. As students move towards high school age, there are different options to become more actively involved in their meeting.
● More Clarity and Consistency: The revised form is designed to ensure clarity and consistency in the IEP process and in the implementation of state and federal requirements. This consistency will facilitate smoother transitions between grade levels, and it is particularly designed to help students with disabilities to transition to post-high school life.
● Comprehensive Documentation of the Program: The new IEP form offers a more detailed framework for documenting your child's progress, accommodations, and services. This will support better tracking of your child's achievements and provide valuable information for future evaluations and assessments.
LABBB provided a parent workshop in March 2024 to present an overview of the new document before its rollout this fall. For those who have had an IEP meeting already this school year, we hope it has gone smoothly and that you’ve felt comfortable contributing to the development of the new document for your child. We appreciate your patience as our staff work to navigate and become more fluent with this new form and process.
Please feel free to reach out to your Program Coordinator or Director if you have any immediate questions or concerns regarding the implementation of the new statewide IEP form. We value our partnership in your child's education, and we look forward to working together to support your child’s educational needs.
For more information about the new statewide IEP form, please visit the state webpage at: https://www.doe.mass.edu/sped/improveiep
For general special education parent information, please visit: https://www.doe.mass.edu/sped/parents.html
Thank you for your ongoing partnership and support.
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Finding Purpose in the Climb: Small Moments, Big Impact
By: Gina Ruscio
Throughout my four years in education, like many of us, I’ve experienced the highest highs and the lowest lows. At times, it can feel like we’re endlessly pushing a boulder up a hill, striving to make a difference even when the path seems steep and unyielding. Yet, it’s in those moments of struggle that the smallest breakthroughs—a smile, a connection, a spark of understanding—remind us why we keep climbing.
There’s something transformative about the connection between students and animals. The opportunity to engage with animals creates a safe space where students can open up, grow, and explore new possibilities. Even the toughest kids—those who build walls around themselves—often soften in the presence of a curious rabbit, a gentle dog, or a playful goat. Animals have a way of opening hearts and minds, teaching lessons in empathy, patience, and trust that no textbook can convey. These moments remind us of the quiet power of connection and the hope that lies in every student, waiting to grow.
In the end, it’s the small, meaningful moments that make the climb worthwhile. They remind us that every effort, no matter how heavy the boulder may seem, has the power to create lasting change. We see growth, connection, and the spark of understanding in our students, and those moments reaffirm why we do this work. They’re a testament to the resilience of both our students and ourselves.
Happy Holidays, LABBB.
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Belmont Middle School Science
By: Ms. Gardner
Ms. Gardner’s Belmont Middle School classroom grew bag plants in the classroom. We put lima beans and black beans inside the bag. We measured the beans each week. We wrote observations down. We watered the beans each week. Overall, the Belmont Middle School class grew plants from a bag to make plant observations and learn how plants grow.
Here’s how you can make your own bag plant!
- Get materials (beans, we used lima and black, paper towel, ziploc bags, tape, soil, plant container, popsicle stick)
- Wet paper towel
- Wrap beans one inch apart in wet towel,
- Put the wet paper towel and beans in the bag
- Hang the beans with tape on the window where it can get sunlight
- When they grow lots of roots, put the beans in soil.
- Make sure to label your name and the type of plant.
This article was written in collaboration by the LABBB - Belmont Middle School classroom. Outside of science, students are learning how to structure their writing, that means including a topic sentence, details and conclusion sentence. Last month students learned about Photosynthesis, and what plants need to grow. They put these concepts to the test with the bag plants, and it was a success!
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LABBB Recreation
On December 4, LABBB went on our recreation trip to the Enchanted Village. New attendees and seasoned participants all enjoyed this annual tradition. We have been doing this trip since Jordan’s Furniture took over housing the Enchanted Village in 2010. While we may have missed a few years (COVID), it is always a popular trip and one that many look forward to. In addition to the Enchanted Village, students were able to ride the tube or watch a Laser Light Show. After our time at Jordan's Furniture, we went to IKEA Swedish Restaurant and Bistro for dinner. Many enjoyed the famous Jordan Marsh blueberry muffins for dessert, or to bring home.
Make sure to look for Spring after-school programming information in the January or February newsletter. Sign-ups will be due at the end of February.
Dates to remember
LABBB Holiday Dance: Dec. 12
LABBB Ring in the New Year Dance: Jan. 9
SAVE THE DATE: May 29,2025
LABBB Spring Formal, for students in graduating years 2025-2030 (17-22 year olds).
More information to come in the near future.
REMINDER: The LABBB Recreation Brochure and monthly trips/dances flyers will ONLY be in our emailed LABBB newsletter and on our website (www.labbb.com). They will no longer be sent to LABBB family homes via USPS.
Remember to follow @LABBBREC on Twitter
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This is from one of our parents:
We would like to share with you this fantastic Medford-based musical theater program for people with special needs. Our son Isaac has participated in Spotlight Production's adaptive theater program for three years and absolutely adores it.
We can't say enough good things about the program, which meets performers where they are. The director, staff and volunteers are creative and caring. They find many ways to work with the special needs performers so that Spotlight musical productions are fun and joy-filled. Past productions have included adapted versions of High School Musical Jr., Annie Jr., and Finding Nemo Jr. (see photos below).
As of now, Spotlight has not reached their target of 15 enrolled performers to start this winter/spring's production of Adaptive Shrek Jr. The cost is $625. The 75-minute rehearsals are every other Saturday from December through February, and every Saturday from March through mid-May. Spotlight provides all costumes and other materials needed for the productions. People can sign up for the program HERE.
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Robyn Thom, psychiatrist at the MGH Lurie Center for Autism is running a research study that seeks to identify digital signatures of anxiety in youth with autism by using wearable devices such as smartwatches.
If you are interested, please see the attached flyer.
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LABBB Collaborative
70 Blanchard Rd, Suite 206, Burlington MA. 01803| LABBB.com
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