Howard Newsletter

March 1, 2024

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Important Dates

School Committee Meeting- Monday, March 4 at 6 pm at the MSHS

Early Release- Wednesday, March 6. Dismissal is at 11:30 am and no lunch will be served.

No School- Good Friday, March 29

Early Release- Wednesday, April 10. Dismissal is at 11:30 am and no lunch will be served.

School Vacation Week- Monday, April 15 - Friday, April 19

Howard School Hours

The Howard School hours are 8:00 am- 2:25 pm. Class instruction begins promptly at 8:05 am. Although students are not marked tardy until 8:05 am, they are expected to be settled and in their seats by 8:05 am as class instruction and class movement begins promptly at 8:05 am.

School is Where You Belong!

We have seen a significant increase in student absences this year. Being chronically absent (10% of school year, which equals 18 or more absences) can have a significant impact on a student's academic progress and their ability to access the variety of academic and non-academic supports that schools provide. Please reach out to the school if you would like support in getting your students to school!

Howard Drink, Cell Phone, & Smart Watch Reminder

Dear Families,

It’s hard to believe we are more than halfway through our school year together! As we return from February break, I wanted to share a few friendly reminders with you.

Please remember to send a water bottle to school each day.
In an effort to avoid sticky spills, only water will be allowed in the classrooms with the exception of snack time. Dunkin Doughnuts coolatas, hot chocolate, etc. are not permitted. Students will be asked to take their last sip and throw them out in the café.
Per the student handbook, cell phones and smart watches are not allowed during the school day, unless given permission from a staff member. Please remind your child that these items should be turned off and stored in backpacks during the school day.

Thank you for your support,

Principal Leeman

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MCAS Testing Dates

ELA

Grade 6 - March 27 & March 28

Grade 5- April 2 & April 4

Grade 4 - April 9 & April 11

MATH

Grade 5- April 30 & May 2

Grade 6- May 7 & May 9

Grade 4- May 13 & May 15

Science

Grade 5- May 14 & May 16

5th Grade Author Visit

This week the fifth-grade students and teachers at the Howard School received a special visit from a local author named Victoria J. Coe. She is widely known for her series of Fenway and Hattie books, which are written from a dog's perspective. Victoria has written nine children's books and is currently working on her second writing book for adults. One of her books, Fenway and the Loudmouth Bird has won the Fleischman Award for Humor, which is the only major award for humorous writing for children. During her visit, Victoria provided the students with various tools and explained her writing process for writing books from a dog's point of view. She also provided the students with authentic writing experiences and encouraged them to share their work. We would like to extend our gratitude to the WBPTO for allowing our fifth-graders this opportunity!

Two students from each fifth-grade class were randomly selected to have lunch with her!

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New Building Use Online Portal

We are pleased to announce that we have a new online portal for building and athletic space use requests. For more information, visit https://www.wbridgewaterschools.org/page/building-use-requests

Congratulations to a Howard Student!

Congratulations to one of our own, Kiera Murphy, for winning the Patriot's Pen Essay contest!

She was invited to the VFW's Voice of Democracy and Patriot's Pen Banquet on January 28th and she finished in the top 10 for the state.

We are very excited for her!

Little Leo's Club

Penny War Winners 2024

The Little Leo’s Club is proud to present the results of our Penny War.

In fourth Grade:

4th place with -3,599 points: Mrs. Ferriera’s class

3rd place with -1,725 points: Mrs. Graf’s class

2nd place with -337 points: Mrs. Hegarty’s class

The winner for the grade is: Mrs. Magnuson’s class with +3,569 points

In fifth grade:

5th place with -385 points: Mrs. Olsen’s class

4th place with +1,668 points: Mrs. Richmond’s class

3rd place with +2,398 points: Miss Duffy’s class

2nd place with +3,651 points: Mrs. Holland’s class

The winner for the grade is: Miss Torres’ class with +4,402 points

In 6th grade:

4th place with -2,718 points: Mrs. Mills’ class

3rd place with -1,441 points: Mr. Peckrill’s class

2nd place with + 2 points: Mrs. Wenzel’s class

The winner for the grade is: Mrs.Doherty’s class with +2,397 points

Each grade level winner will receive an extra recess to cash in when the weather is good. They also will display the Penny War Plaque as a trophy in their classroom till next year. The class that officially won penny war by having the most points will get an ice cream party. Congratulations to Miss Torres’ class!

The Lions club also wanted to recognize the class that raised the most money with a bonus Ice cream party. Congratulations to Mrs. Holland’s class for raising $158.61. The Lions Club of West Bridgewater wanted to say thank you for donating to the Eye Research fund.

As a school we raised $812.74 for Eye research!

Thank you from the Little Leo’s Club!

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School Lunch

National School Breakfast Week March 3-8! "Surf's Up with School Breakfast" To promote the importance of school breakfast we are celebrating next week with prizes and new menu items!

Menus - Click on WB Food Services to find March's menus. Locally grown apples from CN Smith Farm are still being served each week.

New Menu Items! The Food Service Director and Howard's School Nutrition Staff have been meeting with the Student Council to add new menu items. In March new items include an oven "fried" breaded chicken drumstick with a honey-wheat biscuit, brown rice pilaf, Mini-cheese ravioli with marinara sauce, and a chicken corn dog. All items meet strict nutrition standards and we hope the students love the variety!

Food Assistance- Project Bread Food Source Hotline , West Bridgewater Food Pantry.

Position available- Great at social media and interested in food photography? There is a stipend available for an individual to promote our School Nutrition program on social media. Hours are very flexible and variable but the applicant will need to be available during the day.

Questions, concerns, suggestions? Contact Ann Marie Grinder, Food Service Director at agrinder@wbridgewater.com or (508)894-1220.

Unified Basketball Update

Great job by our Unified Basketball team as they kicked off their season with a scrimmage at East Bridgewater Tuesday! The wildcats played in mini games against both East Bridgewater and Whitman Hanson. Thank you to all who came out to support them! The team will have their first game of the season at home against Pembroke on Monday, March 4!!

There will also be a unified cornhole team that will be starting after April vacation for grades 5-8. Registration is open on the athletic website, please email Nikki Maloney at nmaloney@wbridgewater.com with questions!"

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The Preschool is in the process of determining the number of slots that will be available based on the number of current returning Preschool students. If there is more interest in a particular session than available slots, we will hold a lottery for placement. Once all available slots are filled, a waitlist will be established. We have included descriptions of each of the programs being offered. Please review before deciding which option is best for your childIf you have any questions, please contact Maureen Ellis at mellis@wbridgewater.com.

Using this GOOGLE FORM , please indicate your First and Second choices of programs by March 15th. The week of March 25th , confirmation emails will be sent out with your program session.

Once confirmed, you will need to complete the 2024/2025 registration online through Aspen along with a one month deposit to secure your spot. More information on registration will be included with the confirmation email.

*Tuesday/Thursday Morning (2 half days) $3,150/year

This program meets 2 mornings a week for a total of 5 hours. It runs from 9:00-11:30 am and is geared toward our young three year olds who will turn 4 during the school year or in the summer. This program is typical for students to attend in their first year of preschool. It focuses on learning through play and teaches children how we function in the classroom.

*Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday/Friday Morning (4 half days) $4,480/year

This program meets 4 mornings a week for a total of 10 hours. It runs 9:00-11:30 am and is geared toward our older three year olds (those that will turn 4 in the Fall or Winter) and our 4 year olds who will turn 5 during the school year or summer. This program is typical for students to attend as their second year in preschool or an older 3 year old to attend in their first year. It builds on our preschool curriculum and will incorporate more academics as children are ready for it.

*Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday/Friday Afternoon (5 half days) $4,700/year

This program meets 5 afternoons a week for a total of 12.5 hours. It runs from 12:10-2:40 pm and is geared toward our 4 year olds who will be entering kindergarten the following school year. This is typical for our students to attend in their second year of preschool. This program builds on the skills learned in previous years and includes academic preparation for kindergarten. When choosing this program please consider your child’s ability to work and play during the afternoon hours.

*Monday/Wednesday/Friday Full Day (3 full days) $5,000/year

This program meets 3 days a week for a total of 16.5 hours. It runs from 9:00-2:40 pm and includes lunch in the cafeteria with the kindergarteners. It will also include a short rest or quiet time. This program is only available for those students who will be entering kindergarten the following school year. Your child must be 4 years old to sign up for this program. This program builds on the skills learned in previous years and includes academic preparation for kindergarten. When choosing this program please consider your child’s ability to be away from home for a full day.

*To be eligible for Preschool, your child must be age 3 by 8/31 and a resident of West Bridgewater.