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WELCOME TO THE 2021-2022 SCHOOL YEAR!
August, 2021
Dear Talbot Community Families and Friends,
Welcome to Gerald E. Talbot Community School! The beginning of the school year is fast approaching and I can feel the excitement growing as we make final preparations to welcome students back to school. At Talbot Community School, our hard working staff is dedicated to achieving our mission of “Empowering ALL learners to achieve high standards in a safe and welcoming environment.” Talbot School is a full service community school committed to creating a nurturing and high quality learning experience for all of our students.
Located in Portland’s historic Riverton neighborhood at 1600 Forest Avenue, Talbot Community School is a PreK through Fifth Grade community school serving approximately 400 students in 24 classrooms, including the district’s two BRIDGE classrooms (Functional Life Skills). Talbot is a Title I School with a talented, dedicated and caring staff that believes in and advocates for all students. We proudly educate one of Portland’s most diverse student bodies. Students enrolled in Talbot speak over 23 different languages and represent a variety of cultures and backgrounds. We believe our highly diverse student population makes us strong, and learning in diverse groups prepares students to thrive in an increasingly global, complex, and connected world.
In addition, Talbot Community School strongly believes:
- All learners can rise to high expectations.
- Students learn better when they are empowered and feel capable.
- Practicing and learning from mistakes are natural and necessary parts of the learning process.
- Academics, work habits, and social-emotional skills are equally important in school and in life.
- Belonging, engagement, and joy helps a learner achieve.
- All students should have a meaningful relationship with an adult.
- Students become empowered when they take ownership of their learning.
- Habits of Work are an essential component of lifelong learning.
- Teacher collaboration is necessary in order to meet the needs of the whole child.
- Positive relationships with students and families include understanding the culture and backgrounds of our student population.
- We need the help of strong community partnerships in order to support the whole student and family.
- We have the BEST Parent-Teacher Organization in Portland!!! Talbot PTO holds many events during the year and is crucial to fostering our strong school community. We can’t do it without you!
*Inspired from PPS Teaching and Learning Beliefs and Core Practices.
Teachers at Talbot use a rigorous standards-based curriculum to teach reading, writing and math skills. We promote student curiosity and engagement in learning about the natural world through inquiry-based science units driven by the Next Generation Science Standards. Other initiatives we continue to implement at Talbot to address the whole child include PBIS, Second Step, Art, Music, and Physical Education.
With recent COVID cases on the rise, we are still waiting for district plans to be finalized, but as of today, we are planning to return to full-time, in-person learning. Remote learning will only be available for students who have medically documented reasons for not being able to be in school. Students and staff will be required to wear masks indoors. Our school office will be open from 7:00am to 3:00pm Monday through Friday. School is in session from 7:40-2:10 p.m. Breakfast and snacks are available in classrooms and lunch will be served in the cafeteria, or in classrooms or outside.
I am excited for the year ahead and look forward to working together in creating a positive and successful school year for everyone. I am proud to be the leader of a diverse community school where every staff member really cares about children and is committed to helping all children succeed. I see it every day and feel so blessed to be a part of all the great things happening here at Talbot School.
Sincerely,
Ann Hanna, Principal
