A Message from Principal Gallegos
Greetings, Barrows Families,
Last week's Starburst was so long, so I want to make this one short and sweet! We had a lot of learning happening this week for students and staff! Here are some of the things that Barrows enjoyed this week:
- A fully stocked Staff room--THANK YOU to the families who generously donated and to the Barcikowski family for cleaning and restocking the shelves, baskets, and drawers. We are so, so appreciative. Jaws dropped when they walked in on Monday morning!
- A quick trip back into winter on Tuesday. I hope the students enjoyed a few extra hours playing in the snow.
- Third Grade Field Trip to the Concord Museum
- Kindergarten Super Reader Cape Ceremony
- Barrows Belief Assembly celebrating National Women's Month
- First Live Raffle for our Read-a-thon, which brought tons of excitement!
- Staff In-Service on Friday, which focuses on our district goals of creating an academically rich and rigorous learning environment and a strong sense of belonging for our school community
We are still concentrating on reading as many minutes as possible this month, and I am still collecting ideas from families about how they encourage reading in their house that I can share in the future Starbursts this month @ alissa.gallegos@reading.k12.ma.us. Thank you to the families that emailed me with strategies and great book suggestions! See below for another excellent idea that was shared with me yesterday!
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Alissa Gallegos
Barrows Grades 3-5 MCAS Dates
Mark your calendars! Barrows Grades 3-5 2023 MCAS Assessment dates are noted below. The testing window has been set by DESE and we are planning for the following MCAS test dates at Barrows. Please note that students will take 2 days of tests per content area (English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Gr. 5 Science and Technology). Please refrain from vacations or unnecessary absences on these dates.
Check-out how Barrows Families Encourages Reading at Home!
Awesome idea #4:
"Audiobooks! My daughter has dyslexia, and I'll never forget someone telling me how important it was for her to be exposed to books that her peers were reading. Not just to be in the conversation, but for the vocabulary and the language that she would be exposed to through literature that was higher than she was able to read (with her eyes) at that time. For years and years we had a steady stream of audiobooks in the car. Summer vacation when we would be on the road a lot was the best, we would fly through books! My personal favorite series of all those years were the Penderwicks. Never underestimate the power of reading with your ears. 🙂 And as an aside, she just had her 3 year eval. She is graduating out of her Reading IEP .. and you know one of her greatest strengths... Vocabulary!"
School Lunch Menu
Remember, school lunches are once again free for students in the Commonwealth. We look forward to providing nutritious meals for our students! Be sure to check out the weekly menus, as there are a lot of NEW options! Our new daily options are Bagel & Cream Cheese, Yogurt Parfait with Granola or SunButter & Jelly sandwich (details listed in the menu). Students will not have the option of cereal or pretzels anymore.
Reading Public Schools Food Service/Lunch Menus: http://reading.k12.ma.us/departments/food-services/
DAILY SNACKS in the CLASSROOM
It is the Reading Public School's wellness policy that we are not permitted to provide snacks to our students during the school day. Please send a healthy snack with your child every single day. If you are unsure about the allergies in your classroom, please check with your child's teacher. Teachers are not allowed to provide snacks to our students.
Calling all library volunteers!
The UPDATED (January-June) link to signup to help in the library is here! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E45ACA62FA0F58-parent
Please make sure you have an up to date CORI on file.
If you would like to know more about volunteering in the library please contact Mrs. Becker @ carina.becker@reading.k12.ma.us . All are welcome to donate their time!
SAFETY FIRST, ALWAYS!
Arrival
- Please drive slowly up Edgemont to keep everyone safe; remember, it is one way.
- Do not park in the indented section by the gym. This is the "kiss & go" area for a quick drop-off.
- Doors open at 8:15 and close at 8:25. Your child needs to be in the doors by 8:25 AM. If your child gets to school after the doors have closed, they must come to the front door and be marked tardy.
Dismissal:
- At dismissal time, there is no live pick-up in the driveway except for students who take the bus. Kindergarteners exit the building at 2:40 PM. The rest of the students dismiss at 2:45 PM from the same doors they enter in the morning.
As a safety reminder, the staff parking lot is staff-only. We respectfully ask that caregivers park along the streets. With our students exiting from their external doors in the parking lot, having cars drive in and out is not safe. You need to walk around the school on the blacktop to the back. Thanks for helping us out.
Dogs and Puppies on School Grounds
School Committee policy prohibits dogs on school grounds as much as we all love dogs and puppies and as much fun as it is walking them. If you'd like to walk your dog as part of your pick-up routine, the dog has to stay off school property. If you'd like your child to walk to you on the sidewalk or to the driveway entrances at dismissal so you can wait with your dog, please make that plan with them.
About these Services
