Is it Spring now?

Given the storm this week, we are rescheduling our Bangrazi clean-up efforts on Saturday. Please stay tuned for a new date! 

Every Spring seems to sneak up on me and with it...thoughts of next fall. We will be starting the placement process in the elementary school soon. As is the district policy and best practice, we solicit information from parents in the process. Please remember that we are not always able to honor requests as our goal is to develop balanced classrooms and we have limited rooms to place kids. This year, we are accepting feedback on the placement process through this form. We will close the form on April 26th.

April break is right around the corner and a tradition that comes with it is cleaning out the Lost and Found. Overall, it's not the worst I've ever seen but still, some nice hoodies and other articles of clothing are waiting to be rediscovered. If they are still there by the end of the school day on the 12th we will be donating them.  

There was some confusion around communication regarding Summit Academy last week. While the district was looking into this potential partnership, Summit Academy announced they would be moving to TPS. This triggered many questions from many stakeholders, and rightfully so. I wanted to address and answer some of the questions I have received. These are my frequently asked questions. First, even though Summit Academy services students all the way up to age 22, we are only discussing potentially bringing K-8 students into our building. This amounts to around 14 students (about half of whom are WRSD residents). The students are high-functioning students on the spectrum with academic needs. We would work in collaboration to find inclusive opportunities during lunch/recess and potentially during specials. There would be no impact on the general classrooms during instructional time. This would not impact the STEAM lab or the school's focus on STEAM in any way. I suspect the impact on arrival and dismissal would be minimal. Most of these students are currently transported by van and my initial thought would be they'd come and go during typical arrival and dismissal through the bus lines. I know there are probably a million more questions, but these were my most frequently asked ones. And honestly, these are all still in discussion. There is much work to do and information to gather before anything is finalized. I do hope this adds some clarity to the process though. 

If you saw a lot of particularly happy teachers walking out of the building on Tuesday, it could be because the PTA announced their mini-grant recipients. They were able to fund nearly every request in their entirety! Overall, this round of grants awarded exceeded $2,500 and brought the year-long total up to around $5,000. I'm proud of the teachers who thought outside of the box in bringing in opportunities for our students. Of course, I need to thank the PTA for all their fundraising efforts as well as for the work they did on approving these grants. Finally, I want to recognize all of you who contributed to any of the fundraisers in any way. Thank you! 

An MCAS reminder. Next week will be a "zigger zagger" week with MCAS in grades 3 through 8. Some specials will be at different times to allow students enough time to really work through the assessment. We try to minimize the disruption and these grades will only be tested on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. How can you help your child prepare? They've already done all the heavy lifting in their learning throughout the year. Please reinforce to them that it's just a test and we only expect that they do their best. A good night's sleep and a good breakfast before getting to school on time also helps!

A reminder that Monday afternoon the solar eclipse will be in process during our dismissal process. We will remind students not to look at the sun (something they shouldn't do on a normal day either) and would appreciate it if families send the same message. Some students may have glasses for viewing, however, these are not conducive for walking to cars and buses. If you plan on dismissing your student early, please note this in School Dismissal Manager before 1:00 on Monday. 

A note from the Nurse Karina for 7th grade families: 

Dear 7th Grade Families,

During the week of April 22nd, as required by state law, TPS is conducting a screening

program related to the use of alcohol, marijuana, and other substances. The Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) process will screen all 7th graders. All screenings will be conducted confidentially by our school nurse in private one-on-one sessions. We will utilize the CRAFFT screening tool, the most commonly used substance use screening tool for adolescents in Massachusetts. The goal of this program is to let the students know that we are available to reinforce healthy decisions and to assist them in obtaining support if needed for substance use-related problems.

If you would like to opt your student out of the screening, please fill out the form in this link and send it to the school nurse before 4/22/2024. If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to Karina at (978)464-5507 or email at Karina_Abbascia@wrsd.net. 

Electronic Folder

New: April Reading Challenge

The week ahead: 

• Saturday (4/6) 
• Courtyard Cleanup Cancelled
• Sunday (4/7) 
• Princeton takes over Polar Park
• Monday (4/8) Day C
• Assistant Principal Appreciation Week (Thank you Mrs. DiFonso) 
• Solar Eclipse
• Tuesday (4/9) Day D
• Red Sox opening day! Wear your baseball gear!
• MCAS
• Wednesday (4/10) Day A
• MCAS 
• Thursday (4/11) Day B
• Friday (4/12) Day C
• The Floor is Lava assembly 
• 4th-grade Recorder Concert
• 911 presentations in K and 1st grade
• Vacation! 

WRHS has invited you to the spring musical Lucky Stiff this weekend. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for students/seniors, and $5 for children. Many of the music department students are involved on stage, behind the scenes, and in the pit orchestra. It's a fun murder mystery farce about an unassuming English shoe salesman who is set to inherit six million dollars if he can fulfill his uncle's dying wish of taking his dead body on a final trip to Monte Carlo. If he does not succeed or misses any of the details, then the money will go to the dog home of Brooklyn. Run time is around 100 minutes and there will be a 15 minute intermission so all in all, two hours starting at 7:00 on Friday and Saturday and 2:00 on Sunday.