Plainville Community Schools Volunteers enjoyed an evening in their honor at a volunteer appreciation event held at Plainville High School on April 26th—the first time the group has gathered for the annual celebration since before the pandemic. The event featured special recognitions for Superintendent Steven LePage and Plainville Board Of Education Member Foster White, together with dinner, “make your own floral bouquet” and a raffle!

Community partners from a number of local businesses and organizations gathered for an appreciation breakfast event on May 10th, hosted by the Plainville Community Schools "School Business Community Partnership Program."

Plainville High School students in the Unified Sports program recently participated in a “Week of Wellness” coordinated by Plainville High School Special Education faculty member, Sheila DiMinno. “The student athletes raised money for the Week of Wellness activities through the school store that they operate,” explained DiMinno. “Through the various wellness related activities, they were able to practice life skills and reinforce the need to take the time for self-care.”

The Petit Family Foundation presented Plainville Adult and Continuing Education with a grant award of $2,518.83 to support, “Be the Change: Homelessness Awareness and the Brian Bag Project.”

The Plainville Community Schools Fine Arts Department is sponsoring an art show to honor the creative achievements of Plainville students in grades K-12. The Plainville Public Library has generously provided exhibition space throughout the building.

Louis Toffolon Elementary School fifth graders completed their third community service project for Plainville's Daybreak Adult Services. They created approximately 40 "stained glass" candy filled flower pots and in return, the students received thank you notes of pens and notepads for their act of kindness.

The Louis Toffolon Elementary School Garden Club members are gearing up for another growing season. The students researched seeds to create a planting schedule, then planted the seeds indoors to get a head start. The group also built two greenhouses to extend the growing season which were funded by a grant from the Plainville Community Fund.

Thanks to the support of the HW Green Company in Plainville, Louis Toffolon Elementary School students learned that all metal has value and to never throw it in the trash, through “Metal Recycling Simplified.” Toffolon Student Council officers and members began the program by reading aloud the book, The Girl Who Recycled a Million Cans" to fellow Toffolon students. After the reading, the students were able to use a Metal ID kit to identify various types of metal for recycling. The HW Green Company provided bins for Toffolon, placed throughout the school so that students and faculty can recycle reusable metals and plastic.

Frank T. Wheeler Elementary School third graders recently participated in a special day of planting and celebration of nature on April 19th as part of their Makerspace classes and in recognition of Arbor Day celebrated in April. First, leading up to the planting event, students put together garden boxes in the school’s courtyard area which were used for their planting activity. During the event, the students planted a variety of seeds in the boxes, and also planted several trees and bushes on the school grounds, donated by Eversource, together with pots and soil. Eversource representatives Julian Picciano and John Dyckman, (Arborists), Vegetation Management Supervisor Doug Pistawka, and Vendor Arborists Kait Gallow and James Hanson from ECI Environmental Consulting, were on hand to assist students with the planting project. Additionally, Foreman Kyle Pelletier and Groundman Andrew Pearse, from Asplundh Tree Experts, an Eversource contractor, brought a bucket truck to Wheeler and students had the opportunity to see the truck in action, 70 feet in the air! This exciting event fosters college and career readiness for Wheeler students, as they learned about careers in landscape design and forestry, as well as being an arborist, master gardener and CDL licensing. The planting and celebration of nature event was coordinated by Wheeler Music Teacher Veronica Picciano and her husband, Eversource Arborist Julian Picciano, and facilitated by Wheeler staff members.

On April 21st, Miss Connecticut, Sylvana Gonzalez, visited Linden Street School! She spent time with each grade level where she shared stories about her time in the Miss America Association, read picture books, and shared powerful messages about kindness, bullying, and controlling your emotions. She left students feeling positive, inspired, and represented.

Students, faculty, staff and special guests enjoyed a “taste test” during the Put Local on Your Tray event held at Frank T. Wheeler Elementary School on April 18th, . The event, which was coordinated by Plainville Community Schools Food Services Director Ashley Carl, and held during the school’s lunch waves, introduced Kale Salad as a taste test item, featuring locally grown kale from the Maple Bank Farm in Roxbury, Connecticut. Additionally, students enjoyed locally produced maple syrup from the Lamothe Sugar House in Burlington, Connecticut, Greek yogurt from Cows Around the Corner in Bethlehem, Connecticut, and several additional healthy food items as part of the lunch menu that day. As students participated in the “Kale Salad taste test” they also shared their candid feedback, by placing stickers on a large chart indicating whether they “tried it” and / or “loved it”. The goal of the taste test event was to provide an opportunity for students to enjoy a variety of healthy, locally produced food items that they may not have otherwise had the opportunity to try.