Weekly Bulletin

Hello Parker Families,

It was great to have everyone back this week after winter vacation. The students were eager to connect with friends and engage with their classes after a week's rest. We have another busy week ahead of us at Parker with a half day/professional development day on March 5. Our aim is to keep our school community a safe and inclusive community. We will once again be conducting an ALICE Drill next week in an effort to remain vigilant in our efforts to keep everyone safe. I will notify the community after the drill has been completed.

Parker Food Drive

The food drive that culminated our PRIDE week was a great success. We received a wonderful note of thanks from the Chelmsford Food Pantry. The Chelmsford Food Pantry is an essential organization in town and the demand has risen over the past year. The food drive met a need while providing our students with an opportunity to contribute to the community. The picture attached is of some of our student council members unloading the food at the pantry.

Parker Students Making a Difference - Adele Betsold. Paige LaRochelle and Jenna Cormier

Two of our Sixth-Grade students each have spearheaded fundraising drives to benefit our community recently. Adele Betsold and Paige LaRochelle organized a fundraiser to benefit the Lowell Humane Society and Jenna Cormier organized a fundraiser for St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Each received their fundraising checks to forward to these organizations. We are so proud of their activism, empathy, and passion!

February Parker Pride Paw Winners

We recognized the February Parker Pride Paw winners today. Each month four students per grade are chosen from all the students who have been recognized for demonstrating our core PRIDE values that month. These students have demonstrated perseverance, respect, integrity, dedication, and/or empathy. We are so proud of them!

Grade 5 - Gia Sherpa, Emilie Velazquez, Elias Wright, and Peyton Freeman

Grade 6 - Zachary Arrington, Judith Johnson, Makaylah Williams, Dhemerson DeSouza

Parker Snowman Contest

Students were encouraged to submit their snowman creations . Students will be voting this week, and the winner will be proclaimed next week. Please take a peek at the nominees!

Tuesday March 5 - Half Day Dismissal at 11:10

Wednesday March 6 - Second Step - Social Emotional Learning

We will be continuing our units on Problem Solving in Grade 5 and on Relations and Social Conflict in Grade 6. Please see below for a brief overview of the lesson along with an activity with which to engage with your child.

Grade 5: Solutions Web

Summary

In this lesson, your child will evaluate solutions to an interpersonal problem by thinking about the problem from each person’s point of view.

Try This at Home

Tell your child about a simple interpersonal problem that you’ve experienced and describe each person’s point of view about the problem. Ask them to help you think of solutions and predict the possible outcomes of each solution.

Grade 6: Why Conflicts Escalate

Summary

In this week’s lesson, your child will identify behaviors that can cause conflicts to escalate, so they keep them from becoming more serious.

Question

Tell your child about a time when you played a part in escalating a conflict. Explain what you wished you had done instead. Ask your child if they are part of a conflict right now that they need help with.

Have a great weekend everyone. Please reach out if you need support.

IMPORTANT DATES:

Tuesday, March 5th - Early release day - dismissal at 11:10 a.m.

Friday, March 29th - No School

There is one more week to purchase a yearbook before the rates go up on March 1st. Order now at Yearbookforever.com Books will not be available to purchase in June—pre-orders only.

Tickets are now on sale for Parker Drama Club’s production of "Annie Kids" This show is the first of its kind in Chelmsford- an entire production comprised of 5th and 6th graders! There are 4 chances to catch and support our awesome team of 110 cast members!

March 8 at 6pm (Featuring 5th Grade Leads)

March 8 at 7:30pm (Featuring 5th Grade Leads)

March 9 at 2pm (Featuring 6th Grade Leads)

March 9 at 6pm (Featuring 6th Grade Leads)

We bet your bottom dollar that you will have a great time with us! Buy Tickets Here: https://our.show/parker/anniekids

Monday, April 1st - Grade 5 ELA - Session 1

Wednesday, April 3rd - Grade 5 ELA - Session 2

Thursday, April 4th - Grade 6 ELA - Session 1

Friday, April 5th - Grade 6 ELA - Session 2

Tuesday, May 7th - Grade 5 Math - Session 1

Wednesday, May 8th - Grade 5 Math - Session 2

Thursday, May 9th - Grade 6 Math - Session 1

Friday, May 10th - Grade 6 Math - Session 2

Tuesday, May 14th - Grade 5 Science - Session 1

Wednesday, May 15th - Grade 5 Science - Session 2

Our after-school programs will start on Tuesday, October 17th. The Activity Fee is $50 per student. PLEASE CLICK ON LINK My School Bucks or send in cash or check made payable to Chelmsford Public Schools and turn into your child's homeroom teacher. The activity fee allows students to take full advantage of any clubs they wish to attend. The after-school activities run from 2:40-3:40 on Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday throughout the year. Students also have the option of taking a late bus home. The routes are posted in the school and will not be posted publicly. We will work with students and the drivers to be sure students take the correct bus home. Since we only have 8 late buses, for both McCarthy and Parker the stops tend to be more spread out than the “regular” bus runs. After activities, students who are not taking a bus will exit the school into the Crooked Spring Road lot and can be picked up there.

Tuesday - March 5th

No Clubs Today - Early Release - dismissal at 11:10 a.m.

Wednesday - March 6th

Fitness Room (Health & Wellness)-Ms. Wilson-in the Fitness Room

Intramurals-Clark, McCarthy & Sullivan - GYM - Check Google Classroom

Homework Club-Ms. Larrabee/Ms. Morse - Library

Jewelry Making Club - Ms. Annunziata - Room 4

Yoga Club/Mindfulness-Ms. MacAllister-Room 123

Thursday - March 7th

Art Club - Ms. Annunziata - Room 4 - GRADE 5 TODAY

Festival Band - Mr. Linsner - Band Room

Festival Orchestra - Ms. Tiano - Room 8

Fitness Room(Health & Wellness)-Ms. Wilson-in the Fitness Room

Game Club - Ms. Baker - Library

Intramurals-Clark, McCarthy&Sullivan - GYM - Check Google Classroom

Dear Parker Families,

Please disregard our previous notice for postural screening. All students will be screened during Physical Education Classes. To decline our postural screening and see the updated notice see the link below. If you wish to have the screening done for your student, no action is required.

YOU MUST CLICK HERE AND SCROLL ALL THE WAY TO THE BOTTOM TO OPT OUT OF THIS SCREENING.

Please see the link below to view the 10-minute educational video from the National Scoliosis Foundation, Catch the Curve for important information on this screening. Students will be shown this video before being screened during PE classes from March 22nd to March 28th. See video link below.

National Scoliosis Foundation's "Catch the Curve"

Best regards,

Lisa

Parker PTO has some exciting activities coming up! Check out events below:

📅 Thank you to all that returned calendar raffle tickets. If you forgot to send in your envelope, please send it to the main office as soon as possible. Congratulations to our March 1st Winner: Jessica B! Enjoy your 4 tickets to Boston's first professional women's hockey team (WPHL) and 4 tickets to a UML basketball game!

🏒 Women's Professional Hockey League (WPHL) is celebrating Chelmsford Middle Schools on Sunday, March 10th at 3pm. Come see Boston's first professional women's hockey team battle New York. A portion of ticket sales will be donated to Chelmsford Middle schools. Click link to order tickets:

https://fevo-enterprise.com/Chelmsfordmiddle

👕 Check out our new Parker Pride Wear! Get ready for the spring weather with new athletic wear. We have new team color options! Don't forget to check out our Ozzie Super Fan apparel. All proceeds from Ozzie apparel will be donated to Officer Ozzie's care. Click the link to view items and purchase items:

https://parkermiddleschoolapparel2024.itemorder.com/shop/home/

🎤 Calling all performers! The Lions' Middle School Showboat will be Saturday, May 18th at the CHS Performing Arts Center (PAC). You won't want to miss this amazing talent show starring our very own middle school students grades 5-8! All students are encouraged to audition. See attached flyer with details regarding auditions. Contact Showboat Director and parent, Karyn Crouthamel at lionsmiddleschoolsshowboat@gmail.com

👟 Lace up those sneakers! The 2024 Parker Pride Run is back! Run, walk or roll with families and friends along this 2 mile course through the neighborhoods surrounding Parker on Sunday, May 19th @ 9am. Early bird registration of $20 available until April 20th. Registration includes: event t-shirt, swag bag, drinks and snacks at finish line and raffle tickets. Prizes awarded for top three finishers for various grade levels and adults.

https://runsignup.com/Race/MA/Chelmsford/ParkerPrideRun

⚾ Join Chelmsford Middle School Families at Fenway Park on Thursday, May 30th @ 7:00 P.M. to see the Boston Red Sox vs. Detroit Tigers. Tickets are $40 each and can be purchased via the following link: https://givebutter.com/gMsmi9 Tickets will be "tossed" to your MLB Ballpark App closer to the game day. Please write down which email address you use to order these tickets as that is the email address we'll use to "toss" you your tickets.

If you have any questions, please reach out to: ptoparker@gmail.com

As always, thank you for your continued support of our Parker Middle School community!

To report a Student Absent:

Email: ParkerAttendance@chelmsford.k12.ma.us

Please Send Email: Prior to 9am on the day of the absence. Please Include: Child’s name, Grade, and Reason for absence. We encourage you to use the email option when reporting an absence, dismissal, etc. for efficiency.

**PLEASE READ**

We will continue to send automated emails home when students are absent. You will receive the email whether you notified the school or not. In order for an absence to be marked as "Excused", families will need to provide medical documentation.

Thank you for your understanding.

Email: robinsond@chelmsford.k12.ma.us
Website: https://parker.chelmsfordschools.org/
Location: 75 Graniteville Road
Phone: 978-251-5133