St. Mary's School
Monday, August 28, 2023
Dear Parents/Guardians,
Today our faculty and staff gathered for our opening meeting of the school year. Our day was productive as we prepared for the return of students and renewed our shared commitment as Catholic school educators to fostering a positive school experience for our students that will encourage their growth in mind, body, and spirit. As a faculty and staff, we are excited for the year ahead and can't wait for their arrival on Wednesday.
Please see below for important information regarding drop-off procedures for Wednesday and Thursday, as well as other pertinent information for the start of the school year. We look forward to seeing our PreK and Kindergarten students and families at the supplies drop-off tomorrow and all of our students and families on our first day of school on Wednesday.
Sincerely,
Mr. Christopher Beza
Principal
In This Issue
Important Upcoming Dates
Morning Drop-off Procedures for Wednesday and Thursday
Academic Calendar 2023-2024
Back to School Night (K - Grade 8)
Arrival/Dismissal Times and Locations
Before/After School Program
Lunch Orders for September
Lunch Volunteers Needed
Volunteer Background Screening Process
Supply Lists
Student Summer Work
Important Upcoming Dates
Tuesday, August 29...Faculty Professional Development Day
Tuesday, August 29...PreK and K supplies drop-off in classrooms (parents and students welcome), 9:00 am - 11:00 am
Wednesday, August 30...First Day of School (full day, all grades)
Wednesday, August 30...September lunch orders due today
Thursday, August 31...Full day of school for all grades
Thursday, August 31...BSP/ASP registration and calendars due today
Friday, September 1...NO SCHOOL
Monday, September 4....NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, September 5...Before/After School Program begins today
Tuesday, September 5...PTO meeting, 7:00 pm in parish center
Morning Drop-off: Wed 8/30 and Thu 8/31
To help ease the transition for our new students, as well as the first steps into the building for our returning students after a long summer break, we would like to have all classes gather outside on Wednesday and Thursday morning so each class can enter the building together. Please see below for a diagram with class meeting locations. There is potential for rain on Wednesday morning, but at this time our plan is to meet outside prior to entering the building. If the rain is intense, we may need to have students enter the building as soon as they arrive, but we're hoping that will not be the case.
Academic Calendar 2023-2024
Back to School Night (K - Grade 8)
Please mark your calendars! Back to School Night for kindergarten through grade 8 will be held on Thursday, September 14 at 6:00 pm. There will be two sessions (6:00 - 6:30 pm & 6:30 - 7:00 pm) to accommodate families with multiple children.
* On Tuesday, August 29, Kindergarten parents and students are invited to drop off school supplies and visit the classroom at any time between 9:00 am and 11:00 am. Students in grades 1-8 should plan to bring their supplies to school with them on the first day of school, Wednesday, August 30.
Arrival/Dismissal Times and Locations
Morning Arrival
7:55 - 8:10 am
Students may enter through either one of the side doors that will be staffed for morning arrival.
Door #1: Grove Street side, door closest to Grove/Myrtle intersection
Door #2: Schoolyard between school building and church, door closest to Myrtle Street
* After 8:10 am, all students should enter through the main door on Myrtle Street.
* PreKA will enter the building through the back exterior door on Grove Street.
Afternoon Dismissal
2:20 pm - PreKA and PreKB
2:25 pm - Kindergarten through Grade 3
2:30 pm - Grades 4 through 8
The following classes will be dismissed from Door #1 (Grove Street side): Grade 1, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 8
The following classes will be dismissed from Door #2 (Schoolyard side): PreKB, Kindergarten, Grade 2, Grade 6, Grade 7
* PreKA will dismiss through the back exterior door on Grove Street.
* Grade 3 will dismiss through the back exterior door in the schoolyard.
Before/After School Program
Sign-up forms for the Before School and After School programs are now available. Both programs will begin on Tuesday, September 5. Completed forms are due on Thursday, August 31. If you do not have access to a printer, printed copies are available in the main office.
BSP/ASP 2023-2024 Registration Form (due Thursday, August 31)
Before School Program Prepay Calendar (due Thursday, August 31)
After School Program Prepay Calendar (due Thursday, August 31)
Lunch Orders for September
Lunch orders for the month of September can now be placed online at orsgonline.com. The deadline for submitting the September order is Wednesday, August 30 at 11:59 pm.
If you already have an account with OrgsOnline, click here.
To create a new account, click here and use school code 442SMOTASMA when registering.
All students in PreK - grade 8 may place orders for lunch or milk.
Note: The school lunch program does not begin until Tuesday, September 5. All students should pack a lunch and drink for their full days of school on Wednesday, August 30 and Thursday, August 31.
Lunch Volunteers Needed
The responsibilities of a lunch volunteer include the following:
- assist with distribution of lunch orders and milk when students arrive
- circulate the cafeteria to provide assistance to students who may need it
- encourage students to eat their lunch and report to the faculty/staff member on duty if there is a student who does not have a lunch
- when it is time to clean up, assist in monitoring students as they throw trash away and clean up there personal spaces
* Please note that all volunteers must have a CORI background check (every year) and the VIRTUS Protecting God's Children training. More information can be found in the section below.
Thank you in advance for your consideration!
Volunteer Background Screening Process
Per mandate by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston, anyone who volunteers in a Catholic school in any capacity (lunch assistants, field trips, classroom readers, etc.) must complete the following two requirements:
1) Complete a CORI background check annually
2) Participate in child safety training (to be completed only once - see below for more info)
The child safety training program approved by the archdiocese is Protecting God's Children (Virtus Online). This training must be completed in person. Please go to www.virtusonline.org and click on "First Time Registrant" and select "Boston Archdiocese." When training is completed, please send a copy of the certificate to mrs.mobilia@stmaryschoolmelrose.org and keep a copy for your records.
For those who would like to volunteer and have not completed a training, please note that an additional training session has been scheduled at St. Mary's for Wednesday, September 27 at 6:00 pm in the lower church hall. Pre-registration through the Virtus website is required.
Supply Lists
Quick links to supply lists for the 2023-2024 can be found below:
Student Summer Work
Research indicates that students can lose as much as three months of progress during the summer months. The teachers at Saint Mary's School have prepared these assignments to provide students with an opportunity to maintain reading and math readiness. Please support your student during the summer months to be academically prepared for the upcoming school year. All summer work is due by Thursday, August 31 and will count toward the “effort” grade in trimester one.
Student Summer Work - Entering Grade 1
Student Summer Work - Entering Grade 2
Student Summer Work - Entering Grade 3
Student Summer Work - Entering Grade 4
Student Summer Work - Entering Grade 5
Student Summer Work: ELA - Entering Grade 6
Student Summer Work: MATH - Entering Grade 6
Student Summer Work: ELA - Entering Grade 7
Student Summer Work: MATH - Entering Grade 7
Contact Us
Email: mr.beza@stmaryschoolmelrose.org
Website: stmaryschoolmelrose.org
Location: 4 Myrtle Street, Melrose, MA, USA
Phone: (781)665-5037
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stmaryschoolmelrose/