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McGovern News!
March 31, 2023
March often feels like a long "season" and we made it through. As we turn to April, we are really in the home stretch of the school year. It is so exciting to see our students making such gains in reading, writing, math and relationships.
Please see below for important updates and remember there is no school on Friday, April 7th and vacation is April 17-21st. Have a great weekend!
Best,
Amy McDonald, Principal
Room 5 Math Event!
Thank you MEPTO for decorating our Bulletin Board!
Medway THRIVE Parent/Caregiver Survey
THRIVE is a component of the Medway School’s Wellness Department that is committed to providing wellness-related parent/guardian enrichment opportunities. THRIVE is looking to better understand how parents/caregivers would like to consume enrichment opportunities and what topics they would like to learn more about next school year. Please share your thoughts by completing this two-three minute survey.
Snacks and Water Bottles !
Our growing students often get hungry through out the school day. Please be sure to pack your child with enough snacks to get them through the day!
As the weather starts to warm up, please be sure to send your child in with a water bottle each day.
We are happy to provide these if students forget but we do not want students missing out on instructional time to come to the office to get them.
Practice Lunch Codes
Students were sent home today with a copy of their PIN Number and a sheet on how to practice it. Practicing at home will keep our lunch line moving along!
Scholastic Book Fair - Thank you Volunteers !
The book fair is still open online until April 6th. Scholastic will give 25% of online purchases back in rewards too McGovern. Click here to shop online!
Preschool Planting Event!
Field Day is Coming !
Field Day will be held on Friday June 9th with a rain date of Tuesday June 13th. If you are planning on volunteering for field day you must complete a CORI check (a CORI form is good for one academic school year) and sign off on the Confidentiality Agreement. This needs to be completed no later than Friday June 2nd.
You will not be able to volunteer if we don't receive your CORI and Confidentiality Agreement by June 2nd at 3:00 pm.
MassHealth Members will soon need to renew their health coverage
Placement for the 2023-2024 School Year
To find out more about our placement process and to complete a parent letter, please use this link.
OLDER NEWS !
Attendance Letters
Per our handbook and the attendance letter, an absence may be considered excused if documentation is provided supporting one or the following conditions: family bereavement or serious illness in the family; school approved field trips; observance of major religious holidays; legal reasons; absence due to a doctor's appointment; absences on the day following dismissal by school nurse and other family circumstances at the discretion of the principal. Below is a link to the elementary student handbook which outlines the Elementary attendance policy and definitions of excused and unexcused absences.
Elementary School Handbook pages 16-17Please reach out to Caitlin Creed and or Amy McDonald with any questions.
Report Cards
If you have any questions please reach out to your child's teacher.
Night of the Arts !
Save the Date!
Dear McGovern Families,
The Allied Arts Team (Wellness, Music, Art, Science, and Library) will be
hosting Open House events for the McGovern School! Save the following dates:
PreK families
May 17th, 3:30-4:30
Kindergarten families
May 17th, 5:30-6:30
First Grade families
May 24th, 5:30-6:30
More information will be shared as we get closer to the date, but we wanted you to mark your
calendars for these fun upcoming events! Please reach out with any questions!
Brad Shoenfelt, Wellness
Peter Malagodi, Music
Beth Ann Cornwell, Art
Stephanie Fogaren, Science
Matthew Holt, Library
Caregiver Connection & Support Group
351 Clothing Drive
Did you know that 245,000 children in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts don’t have warm, comfortable clothing to wear to school each day? Across our state, thousands of children between the ages of zero and twelve depend on donations of basic clothing necessities each year. Cradles to Crayons is a non-profit organization that works with approximately 75,000 families across the commonwealth to meet these needs. But they can’t do it alone! Please consider helping out this noble organization and these deserving children by donating new or gently used clothing at one of our conveniently located drop boxes any time between March 20 and March 31. You can find donation boxes at the following locations:
Medway Middle School
Burke Memorial School
McGovern Elementary School
Medway Public Library
Boxes will be easy to recognize by their bright colors and “Project 351” and “Cradles to Crayons” labels.
Please remember that “quality equals dignity.” Cradles to Crayons and these deserving children request that you tailor your donations to the age range of 0-12 years, and only donate clothes that are still in new, or nearly new condition. Clothing cannot be accepted if it has rips, stains, or any sort of messaging. Donations of socks, underwear, and/or pajamas are greatly needed but can only be accepted if they are new.
Thank you so much for your kindness and generosity! Together, we can improve the lives of thousands of kids and families across Massachusetts.
Aurelia Mello
Project 351 Ambassador
Medway Middle School
COVID-19 REMINDERS AND PROTOCOLS
With the cold and flu season upon us, and the continuing challenges posed by COVID-19, it is important that we all stay vigilant in protecting the health of our schools. At-home testing is encouraged when your child or a family member has symptoms. Free at-home tests are available with most health insurance through CVS. If your child tests positive, please inform your child’s school nurse and follow COVID protocols around isolation and mask-wearing. We encourage you to keep your child home when exhibiting COVID and influenza symptoms and recommend mask-wearing when sick. For tips on effective mask-wearing and mask options, please click here.
Parking for School Events
Principal Coffee Hours
The coffee hour this week was focused on equity for all students. You can find the presentation here. Please reach out to Shelby Holt or Amy McDonald with any questions.
Kindergarten Registration is Open
We have several events leading up to our first day of kindergarten including Summer Kindergarten Camp. You can find them here. We look forward to welcoming our Class of 2036 to the Medway Public Schools!
88 Keys
Medway Public Schools, in partnership with our support organizations, are excited to invite funding contributions to support the purchase of a new professional performance piano and additional performing arts’ department needs! For fundraising details, please see the 88 Keys for Kids and MFPA Annual Campaign flyer! Thank you for your support!
2023-2024 School Calendar
At the School Committee meeting that was held on Thursday, February 2, the 2023-2024 School Year Calendar was approved. School Committee also approved the 2024 Medway High School Graduation date. Click here to view!
Medway App
After School Program Reminders - Parking
There are various after school programs (Monday through Thursday from 3:15-4:15 PM) at McGovern School. Please park using the front circle and side parking lots. Please do not block in other cars. Most importantly, please do not park in front the bus and please leave enough room behind the bus so it can pull out first.
MPS Budget Development and Approval Process
May 8, 2023: Town Meeting
Community members are encouraged to attend Medway’s Town Meeting on Monday, May 8, 2023, at 7:00 p.m., at Medway High School, 88 Summer Street, when residents will be asked to vote on the Town of Medway FY24 budget, which will be inclusive of the FY24 Medway Public School’s budget to be used for the 2023-2024 school year.
SORA
We’re excited to remind you that the school has access to a wonderful reading resource called Sora. Sora is an online library, run through the Massachusetts Library Network, giving our students access to thousands of ebooks, audiobooks, and digital read aloud books. The service is free to all students, accessible at all times, and only requires your student’s school email and password to access it. Sora can be accessed at home via your web browser at soraapp.com/library/masslibma or download the Sora app onto your device.
When using Sora for the first time, please select our school district ‘Medway Public Schools’ from the list and then use your student’s school email address (@student.medwayschools.org) and password, this is the same password students use to log into their Chromebooks. Student’s may borrow up to 5 books at a time and keep them for 21 days or return them early if they wish to check out more.
If you have any issues accessing Sora please email support@medwayschools.org
Fuel Assistance
Supporting Shriners Hospital
At least 4 families in Medway have been helped by Shriners Hospital for Children in Boston over the years. The Jackson family, the Davis family, the Fagerson family, and most recently the MacLeod family this summer. All at no cost thanks to the incredible Shriners Hospital!
Shriners hospital collects can tabs for money. If you would like to join us in thanking Shriners Hospital on behalf of these families you can collect can tabs and drop them at the fire station or police station. If you have a student at McGovern School you can have them bring them to school to drop in a container in our main office. Thank you for your support!
Follow us on Social Media!
Did you know there are several ways to follow us on social media? Please see below for our links. Please also note that we will not be interacting with our Facebook page, as it is a place for us to post information. As always, if you have any questions regarding your child and/or the school, please reach out to your child's teacher, the front office, or administration.
McGovern Elementary School: Twitter: @McGovernElem
Facebook: @mcgovernelem
Instagram: @mcgovernelem
Breakfast and Lunch
Important Dates!
April 7: No School - Good Friday
April 14: No Preschool - Arena Day
April 17-21: Spring Vacation - No School
April 25: MCG School Site Council, 3:20 - 4:20 PM
April 27: PK-12 Permanent Art Gallery Collection Viewing, Medway Middle School - Presentation Room, 5-6 PM
April 27: School Committee Meeting, 7:00 PM
Do you need the Smore Newsletter Translated?
Here is the link for the master directions in English.
Here is the link for Spanish.
Here is the link for French.
Here is the link for Russian.
Here is the link for Arabic
Here is the link for Portuguese.
Here is the link for Chinese (traditional).
Here is the link for Tamil.
Here is the link for Telugu.
Haga clic en los siguientes enlaces para obtener instrucciones sobre cómo traducir el boletín.
Aquí está el enlace para español.
Here is the link for Spanish.
Veuillez cliquer sur les liens suivants pour savoir comment traduire le bulletin d'information.
Here is the link for French.
Пожалуйста, нажмите следующие ссылки для получения инструкций о том, как перевести информационный бюллетень.
Вот ссылка на русский.
Here is the link for Russian.
Clique nos links a seguir para obter instruções sobre como traduzir o boletim informativo.
Aqui está o link para o espanhol.
Here is the link for Portuguese.
單擊以下鏈接以獲取有關如何翻譯時事通訊的說明。
這是西班牙語的鏈接。
Here is the link for Chinese (traditional).
செய்திமடலை எவ்வாறு மொழிபெயர்ப்பது என்பது குறித்த வழிமுறைகளுக்கு பின்வரும் இணைப்புகளைக் கிளிக் செய்யவும்.
ஸ்பானிஷ் மொழிக்கான இணைப்பு இதோ.
Here is the link for Tamil.
వార్తాలేఖను ఎలా అనువదించాలో సూచనల కోసం క్రింది లింక్లపై క్లిక్ చేయండి.
స్పానిష్ కోసం ఇక్కడ లింక్ ఉంది.
Here is the link for Telugu.
انقر فوق الروابط التالية للحصول على إرشادات حول كيفية ترجمة النشرة الإخبارية.
هنا هو الرابط
Here is the link for Arabic