Dear Intermediate School Families,
As we welcome the beginning of a new month, we are so pleased to report that our students have firmly fallen into school routines, and they are working hard and having fun in grades four and five! As always, thank you for your support at home.
Counselors’ Corner:
We cannot believe we are already in our second month of school! It is our priority for all students to feel included and to realize their unlimited potential. When a student is absent from school it can make an impact on the progress he/she makes academically. Having good attendance not only helps children do well in school, but also within the workplace in the future. Having students attend school every day, on time, is teaching them valuable time management skills that they will use in all aspects of their lives. Help your child succeed by making attendance a priority for you and them! Here are some tips to improve school attendance:
Arrive to school on time (tardies can lead to poor attendance)
Have a backup plan for getting to school (neighbor, family, friend)
Have a night and morning routine (layout clothes, make lunch and pack backpack night before)
Plan medical appointments & vacations when school is not in session
Ask for help: contact your teacher or school counselor if your child is avoiding school
Creating a successful morning routine for school - click HERE
Daily schedule chart to print and post at home - click HERE
How to support a child with separation anxiety - click HERE
Fall Sensory & Halloween Events in Massachusetts
Please follow this link for some wonderful opportunities
STEM Week is Coming:
We are really looking forward to seeing the solutions that the fourth and fifth graders come up with for our STEM challenge during the week of October 16th. The students will be engaging in the engineering design process while they work in collaborative groups. A great deal of thanks to all the families who procured and delivered all the newspapers we will need for the challenge. We appreciate you!
Notes from the Music Room:
This week, music classes are wrapping up a unit on Bob Marley with a fun Kahoot activity. Fourth grade students are working on their proper grips and bucket drumming along with "Thunder" by Imagine Dragons. Fifth grade students are diving into "Ghostbusters" by Ray Parker Jr.
The fourth and fifth grade chorus will be starting up in two weeks and permission slips were handed out during music classes this week..
Fifth grade band forms went out last week, and any families of fifth graders still interested should contact Mr. Duff ASAP at aduff@freelake.org to get into the program.
News from the Nurse’s Suite:
In-school health screenings will begin after our Thanksgiving break. If you will be opting your student out of school health screenings, please send in a signed and dated letter to Mrs. Burke stating specifically what you are opting out of no later than November 1st.
MDPH School Health Screening Website
If your student has any severe allergies, surgeries, accidents, or new health issues arise during the school year, please inform the school nurse at jburke@freelake.org or 508.923.3506 x3333
Additionally, should your student sustain a concussion or an injury that requires him/her to miss physical education classes, please send in a note from a physician. A copy will be made for the nurse and the PE teacher. We will also need a note indicating when the child may resume participation in PE class and usual activities.
The flu is a highly contagious viral infection of the respiratory tract. Children tend to contract the flu more often than adults. Flu season is typically November through April, but it can start as early as October and end as late as May. It is often confused with the common cold, but flu symptoms tend to develop quickly (usually 1 to 4 days after a person is exposed to the flu virus) and are usually more severe than the typical sneezing and stuffiness of a cold.
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/what-should-i-know-about-flu#what-is-flu?-
If your child has been ill, he/she should be fever free with no vomiting or diarrhea for 24 hours before returning to school without the use of fever reducing medication. We appreciate your use of the call-in line at 508.923.3100 (push #6) as well.
PTO:
The day is here! You can now register for our GRAIS Fun Run! Our goal is to raise $30,000 for field trips, playground improvements, and enrichment programs. Registering is easy and free! Plus, registering your child enters you for a chance to win a family Disney vacation.
Our Halloween Social will be on October 20th from 6-8pm. Volunteers are needed for this event! The Sign-up Genius will be going out next week, so keep a lookout for it. A lack of volunteers would be SCARY! If you can’t volunteer, we will also need water/food donations which will be included in the Sign-up Genius. This is a drop-off event for GRAIS students only.
There is no fee to attend this event, but we will ask each student to bring tissues to help supply the school for the winter season.
Our next meeting is on October 17th at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom.
Meeting ID: 975 169 9808
Password: graispto
Future Dates to Remember:
Columbus Day/No School - October 9th
PTO’s Halloween Social for GRAIS Students - October 20th from 6 - 8 p.m.
PTO’s Fun Run - October 26th During the School Day
No School for Students/ PD Day - November 7th
Veterans Day/No School - November 10th
Picture Retakes - November 15th
Thanksgiving Recess - November 22nd at 11:30 a.m - November 24th
First Trimester Grades Close - November 27th
Respectfully,
Dr. Sullivan
508.923.3506 x 3150
esullivan@freelake.org