Friday, December 19, 2014

Friday, December 20, 2014

Dear PWS Families, 

Hello and Happy Friday!  The students and staff are all excited about the holiday vacation.  We hope that you are all staying healthy and happy during this very busy time of year!

Lockdown
On Thursday, the school had a lockdown drill.  We had this drill at 11:00 when grade 2 was in lunch and grade 1 was at recess.  The students in the cafeteria did a great job at sitting quietly.  First grade students outside went to the outdoor classroom.   All other classrooms were locked and dark.  The fire department was here to monitor this drill as well. We are pleased with how well the students responded in this drill. 

Hour of Code
The Hour of Code is an international initiative to spark the desire to learn computer science.  It's a one-hour activity that students of all ages can participate in.  Peter Woodbury participated in this initiative last week and have continued into this week.  Mrs. Cassamassino has visited many classes to introduce coding and computer science to students.  Check out the slideshow of photos and videos below to get a peak at what went on. 




INVENTION CONVENTION/SCIENCE DAY - 2015
What:   -  Invention Convention - Science Day
When:   -  Monday, February 16
Why:     -  To learn about science, to become inventors, and to have fun!!
Who:     -   All third graders (mandatory)
 Fourth graders who would like to participate (The Invention Convention is mandatory for all fourth grade Math Apps students.)
Choices of projects:


Type of Project
Partners Allowed?
Judged?
Fun and Great Learning Experience?
Invention
Yes, -  up to 2 team
       members         
Yes
Yes  
Rube Goldberg
Yes,   1 - 4 team members
Yes
Yes
Inventor Report
No
No
Yes
Science Research
 (Science Question)
No
No
Yes

All projects will be exhibited on the morning of the Convention - February.  All parents are invited to attend from 10:30 - 11:15.  Rube Goldbergs and inventions will be set up in the gym.  Inventor and science research reports will be displayed in the front hallway.

4th Grade International/Diversity Day
Starting today our 4th grade teachers are celebrating International Day. This a time to celebrate students heritage and traditions. Students have worked hard on their country reports and we want to recognize them for their accomplishment. We hope you are able to participate in this event. We went into two classrooms today and the food was fantastic. All the students were excited for us to try their favorite dishes.

Finally, we want to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy, healthy, and safe holiday season and vacation.

Take Care,

Cheryl Daley Dan Mitchell
Principal Assistant Principal

Friday, December 12, 2014

Friday, December 13, 2014

Hello PWS Families,

Happy December! I am sure you have already heard that we had a fairly exciting day today. We were without power for approximately 45 minutes today. This happened right around lunch and recess time. However, with a little extra recess for some and the flexibility and hard work of the students, staff, and kitchen crew the impact was minimal. Thanks to all for your understanding and cooperation. This week the weather has not been cooperative and students have spent most recesses indoors. Thankfully, they were able to play outside today. Our goal is to get them outside as much as possible so please remember to continue to send in boots, snow pants, warm coats, hats and mittens. We appreciate your support with this and are hoping that students get outside more next week.

STEM CLUB GRADE 3
Mrs. Beecher, Mrs. Cassamassino and Mrs. Correia will be running a six week STEM Club for 3rd graders beginning in January.  The purpose of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) is to provide students with the opportunity to apply science, technology, engineering and math that make connections between school and the “real world”.  Students will be working within small groups to employ problem solving and critical thinking skills.  STEM Club will be held on the following Tuesdays from 2:30-3:30 Jan. 13th, Jan. 20th, Jan. 27th, Feb. 4th (this is a Wed.), Feb. 10th and Feb. 17th.tDismissal to parents/guardians will be at 3:30 in the main lobby. If your child will be picked up by someone other than a parent/guardian please send a note.  Any student attending after school will be dismissed to the after school program at this time.


The session is limited in the number of students able to participate, so registration will be first come first served.  STEM is a fun extra-curricular activity with the same behavior expectations as the regular school day.  Students are required to participate with appropriate behavior or they may be asked to leave the STEM Club. After registering you will receive an email from Mrs. Cassamassino stating whether or not your child will be able to participate in this session of STEM.   
Click here to register by December 22nd.

Lost and Found
Our Lost and Found is still very full. We encourage you to take a peek and see if any of the items may belong to your family. Over our December vacation we will donate any items still remaining. Please take a look next time you are in the building.


Traffic Reminders

In messy weather we realize how easy it is to drop off your students at the front of the building, however student drop off should take place in the rear of the building until the red flag and barrier is displayed.  The concern with this is that there is no adult out there to monitor traffic.  We have observed students walking in between cars. This can be very dangerous.  A reminder that you need to walk your child in if they are coming in at the front of the building.  After 8:00 we ask that you sign your children in. Thank you for you help with this and keeping our students safe.  

BEF Grant
The Bedford Education Foundation (BEF) is conducting an on-line fundraising auction with some great holiday gift items, including a live SAT prep course, a baseball autographed by former St. Louis Cardinals picture and Bedford resident Chris Carpenter, and a five-day bear hunting trip with Jay Miller, a former Boston Bruin.  The on-line auction will end at 9 PM on Monday, December 15 and is accessible at www.32auctions.com/BEFholidays.  If you are not interested in these auction items but would like to make a donation to BEF, please visit http://www.befnh.org/?nd=donate.

The BEF is also requesting community input regarding fundraising events.  Please click here to respond to a quick 7-question survey.


Food Drive

We want to thank all of you for the support in this week's food drive.  It was heart warming to see all the students so excited about giving to others.  What a great message to give to our students that giving to others less fortunate is so important and feels great we well.   In the end we collected over 4,000 items and we know there are still a few more donations out there as well. GREAT JOB!

Have a great weekend,


Cheryl Daley        Dan Mitchell

Principal              Assistant Principal

Friday, December 5, 2014

Friday, December 5, 2014

Dear PWS Families,

Hello!  We hope you all had a great Thanksgiving even if your power was out.  The students were excited to be back at school and have started to show some Holiday Happiness!

The Bedford Education Foundation

The Bedford Education Foundation (BEF) is conducting an on-line fundraising auction with some great holiday gift items, including: a live SAT prep course, a baseball autographed by former St. Louis Cardinals picture and Bedford resident Chris Carpenter, and a five-day bear hunting trip with Jay Miller, a former Boston Bruin.  The on-line auction will end at 9 PM on Monday, December 15 and is accessible at www.32auctions.com/BEFholidays.  If you are not interested in these auction items but would like to make a donation to BEF, please visit http://www.befnh.org/?nd=donate.

The BEF is also requesting community input regarding fundraising events.  Please click here to respond to a quick 7-question survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1mWuZokoyFsQVvvoBN4kv3IPGY078XQJ4VyaDiBEHImI/viewform?c=0&w=1&usp=mail_form_link.

Lost and Found

Our Lost and Found is still very full. We encourage you to take a peek and see if any of the items may belong to your family. Over our December vacation we will donate any items still remaining. Please take a look next time you are in the building.

Message from the School Nurse

Please remember to pack extra socks for your children.  During the Winter, socks get very wet in the snow. Also, if your child wears/brings boots to play in the snow please also send in other shoes to wear in the building. Wearing heavy boots in school all day is hard for their feet and legs.  Finally, the cold and flu season has arrived.  Please remember to not send your child to school if they have a fever.  Children need to be fever free for 24 hours before returning to school.  We appreciate your help with this.  We like to keep PWS a healthy environment.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Cheryl Daley         Dan Mitchell
Principal                Assistant Principal