Principal, Ryan McCluskey
Assistant Principal, Jill Lizier
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Please use this link to keep up to date on all that is happening at Memorial School. This calendar, along with other important information can also be found on the Memorial School website (link is above).
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It's that time of year again, time to help those in need. Memorial School is doing the annual "Giving Tree" to help families in our community. If you would like to help, please click the Signup Genius link below to sponsor a child or an entire family, if you like. Your generosity will ensure that a family in need will have a wonderful holiday.
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Student Council Food Drive
The Memorial School Student Council is looking for your help with this year's Food Drive! We will be collecting non-perishable food items as well as personal hygiene items until Tuesday, December 17th. It is our hope to exceed last year total of 800 items and with your help, we are sure we can do it! This is just one way to ensure the senior members of our community have a nice holiday season. Thank you to everyone for you generosity during this time of giving. For a list of some of the items we are collecting please click the Holiday Food Drive picture.
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Memorial School now uses PickUp Patrol as a way for parents to communicate absences, tardies, early dismissals, and transportation changes. It automates the dismissal process by allowing parents & guardians to submit plan changes through a convenient app on their smartphone. Specific information about downloading and setting up the app has gone home. For those families who have not yet set up their accounts, new "Welcome" emails were sent home earlier today. Please check your email.
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Lunch Account Balances
The goal of Memorial School’s breakfast and lunch program is to provide healthy meals to children during the school day. In order to serve healthy, high-quality meals to all children, we must make sure we are financially secure. You play a key role in this effort, and are responsible for purchases made by your child in our school cafeteria.
Parents of students who carry a balance over $5.00 will receive an email. These are sent home weekly. We suggest parents check their emails frequently, as It is extremely important that school lunch balances be paid in a timely manner.
Your continued support of our school lunch program is greatly apprecited.
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DIGITAL DIRECTORY/PARENT VOLUNTEER FORM
Every year the Memorial School PTO puts together a digital directory for families to use as a tool to communicate with each other, and to ask if any parents are interested in volunteering for any number of PTO sponsored events. This year the PTO has decided to use Google Forms to collect this information. This form will be sent out a couple of times a year, to allow for any new arrivals to our school to be added or for anyone who needs to update their information. Below you will find a link to the form, please take a few minutes to complete and submit it.
If you already completed this when it was emailed home in September, please do not fill it out again unless you need to update your information.
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Greetings Memorial School Community,
It appears that the winter season has found us if our two recent snow days are any indication. Despite all the snow, we had a very nice (although brief) first week of school in December. Specifically, I would like to thank all the families who were able to participate in our first night of conferences. It is always a meaningful experience for parents to take the time to meet with their child(ren) teacher to discuss learning. It also really helps our students to see the importance we all place on education. I look forward to another great night this coming Monday, December 9th.
As a reminder, if you were unable to attend a parent / teacher conference, I highly encourage you to reach out to our classroom teachers to schedule a conference at a more convenient time or to simply get an academic update via phone or email. Our teachers are incredibly invested in all of our students and would be more than happy to make sure we are all working together to support learning.
Additionally, I would like to thank our Library Media Specialist, Michele Parker, as well as our PTO for the hard work that went into the planning, organizing, and running of our 2019 Book Fair. Much like the significance of a parent / teacher conference, families coming together to celebrate and encourage a love of literature has long lasting effects on our students. As a former English Language Arts (ELA) teacher, I frequently told my students that consistently reading good books would be the best teacher they would ever have. The impact that reading has on a student’s vocabulary, critical thinking skills, and much more is powerful and helps to put students in a position to be successful in all content areas.
I thank everyone for their dedication to their child(ren) education and to our Memorial School Community.
Happy Holidays,
Ryan McCluskey
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In the Spotlight - 1st Grade
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Winter Traditions
First graders will be creating their own nonfiction books this month based on winter traditions. These books will be used for their classroom libraries to share with their peers then take home to share with families. Each book will have a chapter about their own family traditions, a tradition from another culture, and a comparison of the two. Some books may even have a glossary and table of contents!
We will be studying different traditions around the world. We will be using maps, songs, videos, crafts, and literature to explore these different traditions. Our suitcases are packed and the passports are ready to be stamped!
This is a great activity that brings closure to our nonfiction unit of study and embraces the excitement of the season!
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Sanborn District Prepares Budget for FY 20-21
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Did You Know???
On Thursday, December 5, the Sanborn Regional School District Budget Committee unanimously voted to present to the voters the same budget that was also unanimously recommended to them by the School Board and by the Administration.
It is a tax-restrained 0.54% increase that includes the staff contracts passed last March, and the ability to begin the School-Board-adopted 2-year plan to implement early intervention for children for improving outcomes.
At the same time it provides for pursuing the planned school consolidations of moving the Middle School to the High School and reorganizing the elementary schools. These consolidations will both fund the intervention and give tax savings.
This proposed budget is lower than the default budget.
Per the Superintendent's statements, it provides for the children's educational needs and the District plans, and it gives room for any consolidation uncertainties.
Identified by all in the Administration, on the School Board, and on the Budget Committee, are budget areas for further audit and likely additional cost savings, once the consolidation is completed.
Sanborn Budget Committee
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News from the Health Office
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Outdoor Recess Clothing
The cold weather has arrived, and we want to remind parents to be sure that your children are dressed appropriately for daily outdoor play. Please remind them to wear warm winter coats, hats, mittens and bring winter boots and snow pants.
We also suggest that you send an extra change of clothing (especially socks and pants) to be kept in your child’s cubby for those days when they get wet from playing in the snow and puddles. Remember to send sneakers or shoes to wear in class. Thank you for preparing your child to enjoy outdoor play this winter.
Winter Wear Donations
Very special thanks to CBI/Terex, a local company that has supported our students through the donation of coats, hats, gloves and school supplies. Barbi Fraser, Jeff Helle, Ryan Cannon and Bethany Bearce took time to stop by Memorial School and drop off bags full of cold weather gear in an effort to keep our kids warm and dry this winter. We at Memorial feel very fortunate to be surrounded by such a generous and thoughtful community.
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The nurse’s office at Memorial School has many resources available for families. I can help you access free flu shots, connect with local primary care physicians or dentist, vision exams or assistance covering the cost of glasses. Many winter items are donated each year and I have access to funds through the Exeter Chamber Children’s Fund to help supply winter gear for children as well. If you have any questions or need any assistance please call the nurses office or send me an email.
Cindy Cole, BSN, RN
Memorial School Nurse
603-382-5251 ext. 106
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The End 68 Hours of Hunger program is a local private program whose mission is to help families feed their children over the weekend so that they arrive to school well-nourished and ready to learn. The participating children receive a reusable bag on Friday afternoons with non-perishable and easy to prepare meals ready to take home. This program is completely confidential and the names of participating students are not shared with anyone. No financial disclosures are required to participate in this program.
If you are interested in having your child participate or have any questions about this program please contact nurse Cindy at
ccole@sau17.net
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Library Media Specialist News
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A Special Visit
Before heading home for their Thanksgiving break, Memorial’s K-2 students were treated to a special visit by two VIP’s in the children’s literature world! In collaboration with Water Street Bookstore of Exeter, NH, author friends Anika Denise and Jamie Michalak paid us a visit as a part of their Friendship Tour with the goal of getting kids excited about reading and writing and sharing their newest releases, The Love Letter and Frank and Bean, which just happen to be about friendship. The children watched in awe as Anika literally “kicked off” the visit with her Olympic quality cartwheel, something she recommended not be tried by our students. The excitement continued with the unpacking of their mysterious suitcase which contained artifacts to support their cause. Adorning giant sunglasses, the pair encouraged our children to READ! READ! READ! Adding an over-sized magnifying glass into the mix, they reminded the audience of the importance of observing the world around them in search of ideas for writing that can be kept in a secret notebook and used later. Using the two magic words
WHAT IF was another strategy they shared to generate ideas for writing. Anika and Jamie further encouraged our young writers to create characters using people they know, to be word collectors to make their writing interesting, and to practice sharing their writing. Wearing party hats and blowing on noise makers, the duo’s final tip for writing was revealed: HAVE FUN! As a grand finale to kindness month at Memorial, this fun-filled visit brought smiles, laughter, and many great strategies for our young readers and writers to try using in their daily work at Memorial and beyond.
I’m sure it will not be soon forgotten!
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Greetings from the cafeteria!
I looks like winter has arrived early, and we are now getting back on schedule after our unexpected snowy break!
We would like to thank the Seniors from our community for coming out to Memorial for a beautiful Thanksgiving feast on November 21. We really enjoyed having you and look forward to many more!
We would like to thank the students from the Middle school and Memorial for sharing your amazing musical talents with all of us, and also the staff for your help in making the day a success.
The next two weeks will feature our student's favorite lunches. We will be serving Pancakes with maple syrup and home fries, Mozzarella stuffed breadsticks, Hot dogs and beans, Popcorn chicken, Meatball subs and cheeseburgers and fries.
We also offer a variety of breakfast foods daily, including bagels with cream cheese, cinnamon rolls, egg sandwiches, donuts, an assortment of cereals, and breakfast tacos! (2 Pancakes with sausage and scrambled eggs folded inside)
If you would like to deposit money into your student's lunch account, you can send a clearly marked envelope in with your student, and it can be given to their teacher to send down to the cafeteria where it will be directly deposited into their account. Another option is to use a "Myschoolbucks" account and funds will also be directly deposited. Please note lunch is $2.75, and breakfast is $1.75.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact JoAnne in the cafeteria at 382-3326.
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Check Out Our Recap of Kindness Month at Memorial
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Dear Fourth and Fifth Grade Band Parents,
Click here
for the December Band Newsletter. Please take a look as it contains important information the upcoming concert.
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Hi Parents and Guardians,
With the holidays rapidly approaching the PTO wanted to give you a “heads up” on the themes for the 2020 raffle baskets. For those of you who aren’t familiar, every year the PTO hosts a spaghetti dinner and raffles off baskets made by each class or grade. This event occurs toward the end of March, but
we like to have the baskets assembled and ready to go by Friday, February 21, 2020
so that we have time to advertise and sell raffle tickets to the community outside of the Memorial School. By giving you the themes ahead of time, we are hoping that you will keep your class’s theme in mind while out and about doing your holiday shopping.
Please reach out to your room parent(s) you will find them to be enormously helpful. If you do not want to purchase a specific item for the basket, but would still like to participate monetary donations are always welcome.
Thank you in advance for your generosity and helping to make this year’s Basket Raffle the most exciting one yet!
Sincerely,
The Memorial School PTO
Raffle Basket Themes
Pre-K -
Playdough Play Time (anything and everything playdough)
Your room parents are: Dvina Valcour and Amy Chaisson
Kindergarten Mrs. Carroll -
Faithful Friend, pet care basket (ex: treats, shampoo, leashes, toys etc…).
Your room parents are: Elizabeth Walker, Jessica Sykora, Terry Hart, and Valerie McCarter
Kindergarten Mrs. Manning
- Creative Kids, Arts and Crafts Basket (this can be anything from the essentials such as crayons and paints to creative activity kits).
Your
room parents are: Lindsay MacDonald and Valerie McCarter
Kindergarten Miss. Rich
- Family Game Night (games that would be fun for all ages)!
Your room parents are: Natatlie Ramos Hatch & Danielle Mercier
1
st
Ms. Charest -
Take Me Out to the Ball Game (this basket can be ALL sports, and not just going to games/baseball, but equipment ex: wiffle ball bats, foam football, dart board etc…)
Your room parents are: Amy Chaisson, Laura Johnson, Leslie Deane, Chelsea Carey and Terry Hart
1
st
Mrs. Kirste -
“Why So Tense?” Think at home spa, relaxation, and self-care.
Your room parents are Becca Domenici and Amber Surette
1
st
Mrs. Mac -
“Honey Do” this basket will be items that you might need to complete chores around the house, it can vary from tools to home cleaning supplies, to small fix-it items, to gardening and yard work items, feel free to be creative, think of things that might be on your “Honey do” list.
Your room parents are Kristie Sullivan, Melissa LoCastro and Cait Foucher.
2
nd
Mrs. Black -
Legos (this is always a big one, websites like Zulily.com often have Lego deals, also contact your room parent about the possibility of donating money so that funds can be pooled to purchase Lego sets).
Your room parent is Lindsay MacDonald.
2
nd
Mrs. Sotis -
Coffee, Chocolate, Tea Party
Your room parent is Meredith Bastien
2
nd
Ms. DesRosiers -
Nerf (anything Nerf)
as of right now this class does NOT have a room parent. If anyone is willing to volunteer please contact me at caitlilinfoucher@gmail.com.
3
rd
Mrs. Doucett -
Grill Master (anything grilling related from spice packets to tongs, think outside the box)
Your room parent is Christi Nicolacopoulos
3
rd
Mrs. McLaughlin -
Camping/ Fire Pit Fun (jiffy pop, marshmallow roasting sticks, a book of scary stories, candles, flashlights, first aid kit, etc… fun and practical items).
Your room parents are Danielle Finn and Nicole Morton.
3
rd
Mrs. Banyas -
“Life’s a Beach” (anything beach related)
Your room parent is Christine Kilgore.
4
th
Grade BOTH CLASSES -
“Mixed Greens” this is literally a cash basket. Donate as much or as little as you would like. We’ve combined the grade into one basket, please feel free to reach out to these room parents for your questions and to receive your donations:
Jessica Sykora, Krystle Brown, Hollie Donovan and Shannon Dougherty.
5
th
Grade BOTH CLASSES -
Lotto Tickets/ Scratchers/ “Rake in the Cash” There are only room parents for one class, but as we’ve combined the grade into one basket, please feel free to reach out to these room parents for your questions and to receive your donations:
Dvina Valcour and Patti Fitzpatrick.
Teachers -
Date Night
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Box Tops for Education News
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Happy Snow Days!
Training ourselves to do something new is never easy. We need to find a way to make this Box Top transition a success. I am looking for input from Memorial School parents, so that we can start earning Box Top money. Memorial School uses this money to help reduce the student cost of field trips for each class and I am sure we all want our kids to continue to have these wonderful experiences. So far this school year you have earned $55.70 for our school.
On the bright side, Zip Lock continues to have real Box Tops on their boxes, they chose not to participate in the digital revolution.
There are a bunch of bonuses from companies such as Annie's, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Paper Mate/Lysol, Food Should Taste Good, and Farm Valley. The bonus is credited when you scan, nothing to save, tear-off or mail in.
You can also "GIVE CREDIT", this allows you to determine which class the Box Tops should go to. Either write in teacher's name or use the grade number and teacher initial (i.e. 3D) to let me know where to credit the Box Tops. You can also split your Box Tops between more than one class. Just make a note like, 3BT for 3D and 4BT to 5P. I ask that you DO NOT put your child’s name, I am looking for classroom teacher names only.
I hope to resume classroom contests in December, so please scan or turn in real Box Tops. If you would like me to scan your receipts, please leave them in the Box Tops mail slot in the office. Remember receipts are only good for 2 weeks. Please make sure to write the classroom teacher on the receipt.
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Join in the
holiday fun
and excitement at the Gale Library, Newton! Listen to some special favorite holiday tales and make Holiday decorations, ornaments, cards, and crafts during the month of December.
On Monday, Dec.9 at 6 PM make a
Luminary or Candy Jar.
Choose from a variety of different styles, last year’s favorite Santa, Snowman, Rudolph, Christmas tree, Frosty wreath or deer. Materials will be supplied but please notify the library at 382-4691 or on our FB page, The Gale Library, to ensure we have enough jars, etc.
Drop-In Holiday craft
on Saturday, Dec. 7, 14, or 21. Drop in anytime until noon in the Children’s Room to make an easy, quick Christmas craft, - snowflake picture frames Gingerbread men, or Candy canes.
Friday, December 20 is Early Release day. Come relax with a
Holiday Movie
at 2 PM. Snacks will be served but bring your own drink and a friend.
The next
Baby Play Dates
will be held on Friday, Dec 6. Come try some sensory play with your young one, as well as songs, motion, and stuffies.
Need a gift- Come to the library, check out all the great gift baskets and take chances on the
Friends of the Library Basket Raffle.
There are many beautiful baskets to choose from, filled with great gifts for each member of your family and friends. Baskets will be raffled on Friday, Dec. 13 at 1 PM. Buy your tickets now, $1 each-6 for $5.
Story hours
on Tuesdays each week at 10:00 AM will highlight more of our favorite holiday stories, crafts and songs. Come decorate cookies, make ornaments, and enjoy a party with games and goodies. Story hour Holiday party will be held Dec. 17 at 10:00 AM.
Drop in any time to make your own
Holiday Greeting Card
from the materials in the Children’s Room. Stickers, stamps, old cards, markers, and lots of imagination can create a very special card for Mom, Dad, or Grandparents.
Make someone’s holiday happier. The
Angel Tree
is filled with children’s Christmas wishes. Come pick an angel tag off the Tree at the Library. Purchase a gift for that child, wrap it, and return it to the library by Dec. 16 so it can be distributed to a happy Newton child.
Many thanks for a successful
Food Drive
to all those patrons who paid their fines with food. Our local Food Pantry will be well stocked and able to help many during the holidays thanks to your generosity.
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