Hello Families,

Our annual Science Fair was an outstanding event that included 100 students and 78 projects. In addition to the many students and families that participated with a project we had many visitors come to share in the Science! A special thank you to Melissa Dempsey for taking the lead on this event and organizing the projects and officials. A thank you also goes out to many of our staff members and our School Council for their help in making this event successful.

We are looking forward to the Book Fair the week of March 17th as well as our Multicultural Festival on April 5th. The flyer and registration link for the Multicultural Festival are below.

March 3-7th is National School Breakfast Week. We are having a district wide Pajama Day and celebrating “Breakfast for Lunch” on Thursday, March 6th. Students are encouraged to wear their pajamas to school on March 6th.

March is also National Nutrition Month, and we are eating through the alphabet. You will see tastings of different fruits/vegetables daily at your school for students to try!

Respectfully,

Terri and Jayson =)

Saturday, March 1st

• Rising Grade 5 Instrument Test Drive, 9:00-11:00am, CHS Performing Arts Center

Monday, March 3rd

• National School Breakfast Week
• Community Read In Week (ends Friday)
• Kindness Matters Day - students and staff encouraged to wear kindness shirts and complete a kind act
• Student Grade Level Meetings w/ Mrs. Gilbert & Mr. Ramalho
• Student Council, 3:30pm
• School Council, 5:30pm, Conference Room
• PTO Board Meeting, 6:30pm, Conference Room
• PTO Meeting, 7:00pm, Lab

Tuesday, March 4th

• Grade 2 Enrichment Program - Newhouse Wildlife Presentation

Wednesday, March 5th

• Grade K and 1 Dental Presentation
• Annual K-12 Youth Art Month Exhibit Reception, Chelmsford Public Library, 5:00pm

Thursday, March 6th

• School wide PJ Day in celebration of National School Breakfast week (breakfast for lunch)

Friday, March 7th

• School Spirit Day - Workout Day

Tuesday, March 11th

• End of Term 2 - Grades 1-4
• Try it Tuesday

Wednesday, March 12th

• Early Release Day - Staff Professional Development - students dismissed at 11:45am
• Book Buddies, Duncan/Bullock classes

Monday, March 17th

• Book Fair Week - students visit during library specials block all week
• School Spirit Day: Green, Orange and White Day

Tuesday, March 18th

• Grade 1 Professor Bugman Enrichment Program

Wednesday, March 19th

• Grade 4 Boston Symphony Field Trip
• Family Book Fair Shopping and Game Night

Wednesday, March 26th

• Grades Available online portal Gr 1-4

Friday, March 28th

• Tentative Whole School Reward

PE Reminder: Please help your child to remember to bring sneakers when they have Phys Ed. Snow boots are great for recess, but unsafe for the gymnasium. Also on PE days, I would suggest students wear T-shirts or layers so they can take their long sleeve off when they get hot. Thank you!

IIQ Help Desk Tickets: Some families have been using an unmonitored email for support with accessing the Aspen Family Portal. Instead, please use the incident IQ request form located on the CPS website under the parent drop down menu. Here is the direct link: https://chelmsford.incidentiq.com/guest/TKHNDKXH/parent-support#top .

Smartphones and Smart Watches: We strongly discourage sending your child to school with smart phones or watches. If your child brings either of these devices to school the expectation is that they are turned off and in their backpack.

Snow and Recess: We have had our first snow fall of the year. Below are some reminders for recess and playing in the snow.

• Students should wear coats, hats, mittens, to school in the winter months.
• Students/families should consider having students bring or wear boots to school depending on conditions.
• We will not be having students put on snow pants to go outside in the snow. However, if students wear boots, they will be able to go in the snow. Activities they will be able to do include (but not limited to):
• Walk around in the snow
• Run in the snow
• Build a snowman
• Make tracks through the snow
• Play follow the leader
• Students will NOT be allowed to:
• Throw snow / Kick snow
• Throw snowballs
• Get pants wet
• If a student forgets their snow boots, they will be able to go outside but will only be able to play on the blacktop area and not in the field or snow-covered areas.

Colder Temperatures: As the winter months approach us, please be sure your child comes to school dressed appropriately for outdoor recess (ie. jackets/sweatshirts, etc).

Snacks: Please remember to send your child in with a snack. The school has a very limited supply that gets depleted quickly and it is not to every students liking.

Community Read-in: The Chelmsford Community Read-In is making its return the week of March 3-7! The idea of the Community Read-In is to have readers who are members of the greater community visit classes for about 20 minutes to read a book or two to a class in grades Pre-K through 6. This is a special visit for these classes because the message it sends the kids is that members of the community, not just their teachers and parents, care about their education and love of reading. This is a really special gift you can give to the children of Chelmsford! If you are interested or know someone who would like to do this please sign up using the link below. Typically parents are not placed in classrooms of their own children.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScX_oyyDzbmk4l1XCgv21BQknN3x_DBxfycvYe4inlwdGJyiQ/viewform?usp=sharing

MCAS Dates: MCAS testing for grades 3 and 4 are as follows:

ELA

Grade 3 - April 7th and 8th

Grade 4 - April 9th and 10th

Math

Grade 4 - May 12th and 13th

Grade 3 - May 14th and 15th

We hope to see you tomorrow night as the UMass Lowell Riverhawks take on the UMass Amherst Minutemen!

Join us for our March PTO meeting - join in person or virtually through the Google meeting link provided in the Home Link.

Help South Row provide for others and your child's class can have a chance to win $200 in books from the Scholastic Book Fair!

Dear South Row families,

On behalf of the South Row PTO, the Book Fair Committee is excited to announce that our Scholastic Book Fair challenge & annual charity drive is beginning next week!

In conjunction with our upcoming Scholastic Book Fair, South Row is participating in a charity drive to collect donations for Community Teamwork in Lowell, MA. We are looking to collect shampoo, conditioner, and soap/body wash to support the families that Community Teamwork services.

We are challenging each class to collect at least 25 items. Each class that meets this challenge will earn an entry to win one of three certificates for $200 worth of Scholastic books for their classroom!

Donating is completely optional, but if you wish to contribute, please send your donations to school with your child any time between March 3rd and March 14th.

The Scholastic Book Fair will take place March 17th through March 21st. More details will be included in this week’s Home Link…stay tuned!

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to the Book Fair committee at southrowbookfair@gmail.com.

Sincerely,

South Row Book Fair Committee

Michelle Fearon, Chrystal Begay, Denille Ruth, Liz Haugner

We will be offering a virtual option for those that would like to join the monthly PTO meeting but can't make it in person. Please use this link to join the meeting virtually.

We welcome you to check out ou Connections Calendar and provide feedback using this link.

Please click on the "button" below to access resources and supports available. Do not hesitate to reach out to any support team member with any questions you may have.

**Please note: We continuously update the button below with new resources as they arise.

The City of Lowell Recreation Department is working on an initiative to provide swimming opportunities for children ages 0-18 with special needs. As they work to build out this program, they need YOUR help. If you are the parent/guardian of a child/children with special needs, please take a few minutes to complete this survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScfX0VaSL0mIMGnXosEfncvEWX_0sRuGnrqF40-x907BPoAiQ/viewform

This section is comprised of the following items pertaining to food services

• Website
• Breakfast Information
• Tentative Breakfast/Lunch Menus

Dear Parents and Families --

To better estimate the demand for lunches on half days, CPS Nutrition utilizes online lunch ordering for HALF DAYS ONLY.

For the upcoming half day Wednesday 9/18/24 orders must be received by Friday 9/13/24.

2024-2025 CPS Upcoming Half Day/Early Release dates

● 9/18/24

● 10/24/24

● 11/20/24 (Elem & MS Only)

● 11/27/24

● 12/12/24

● 1/14/25

● 2/6/25

● 3/12/25

● 4/1/25

If you would like your child to have lunch on future half days, the online ordering is open for you to go ahead and select those dates. Set Up Your Account Now

Directions to set up your account and order: 1. URL Link: family.onlineordering.linq.com

2. Sign up now: Email, create password.

3. School District: Chelmsford Public Schools

4. Student ID: This can be found on x2- Child’s student ID number

5. Last Name: (You can also search and add siblings/family members at this time). Once this is completed, the student's name should appear on the page.

How to order meals

1. School Menu-select online lunch ordering (all schools)

2. Scroll to week of half day/early release date (top right of page)

3. Find date, select meal option

4. Add item to cart/Select Add to order

5. Click on shopping cart icon at top right of page

6. Click Check out

7. Select pick up location: Elementary pick-up location classroom. Middle/high school pick up location cafeteria.

8. Place order

🎟️ Tickets On Sale Now! 🎟️

Join Parker Middle School for a magical journey down the Yellow Brick Road in The Wizard of Oz: Youth Edition! https://our.show/wooparker25

📅 Show Dates & Times:
🌟 5th Grade Performances – Thursday, March 20 & Friday, March 21 at 6:00 PM
🌟 6th Grade Performances – Saturday, March 22 at 2:00 PM & 6:00 PM

📍 Location: McCarthy Auditorium, 250 North Rd, Chelmsford, MA

For the first time, each show will feature just one grade—don’t miss this exciting new tradition! Get your tickets today! ✨👠🌪️

Mrs. Terri Gilbert

Principal

gilbertt@chelmsford.k12.ma.us

Mr. Jayson Ramalho, M.Ed.

Assistant Principal

ramalhoj@chelmsford.k12.ma.us

Email: gilbertt@chelmsford.k12.ma.us
Website: https://www.chelmsford.k12.ma.us/Domain/15
Location: 250 Boston Road, Chelmsford, MA, USA
Phone: 978-251-5177
Facebook: facebook.com/SouthRowElementary
Twitter: @CPSSouthRow

• Mrs. Terri Gilbert, Principal: gilbertt@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177 ext. 4
• Mr. Jayson Ramalho, Assistant Principal: ramalhoj@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177 ext. 3
• Mrs. Shannon Vandevoordt, School Nurse: vandevoordts@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177, ext.2
• Mrs. Debbie O'Neill, Secretary: oneilld@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177, ext. 0
• Mrs. Kim Sepe, School Clerk: sepek@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177, ext.0
• Absentee Line: 978-251-5177 ext. 1