Hello Families,

Thank you to our presenters and the families who joined us for Family Engagement Night. The information shared was well received and provided families with new insights.

Our Science Fair is the next event on the horizon and is scheduled for February 26th from 6:30 to 8:00. Please see the flyer below for more information about participating and registering.

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

Respectfully,

Terri and Jayson =)

Sunday, February 2nd

• South Row Skate Night at Roller Kingdom, 6-8pm

Monday, February 3rd

• Kindness Matters Day - students and staff encouraged to wear kindness shirts and/or 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, February 4th

• Learnin' the Ropes Enrichment Program (Gr. 2-4), 9:15am

Wednesday, February 5th

• Global Play Day

Thursday, February 6th

• Early Release Day - Students dismissed at 11:45am - Teacher Professional Development

• Reminders for Early Release Days:

  • Students are dismissed at 11:45am
  • Car dismissals should adhere to the following times
  1. Last names A-G- 11:40-11:45am
  2. Last names H-N- 11:45-11:50am
  3. Last names O-Z- 11:50-11:55am
• Please communicate any changes to your child's dismissal plans to their respective teacher, Mrs. O'Neill (oneilld@chelmsford.k12.ma.us) and Mrs. Sepe (sepek@chelmsford.k12.ma.us). Be sure to also discuss with your child.
• Lunch is available for take home ONLY through online ordering ( see Food Services section below in this newsletter)
• Students will either have specials or recess (rotates every half day).
• Snack time may be adjusted and/or not occur depending on your child(ren)'s schedule.
• Extended Day will be open until 6:00pm for students signed up on THURSDAY. Please provide your child a lunch.
• Please anticipate possible delays with buses as they navigate an early release schedule.

Friday, February 7th

• Grade 3 Plimoth Pawtuxet Enrichment Program

Saturday, February 8th

• Gr. 4-12 Choralfest

Tuesday, February 11th

• Try it Tuesday

Wednesday, February 12th

• Grade 4 Enrichment Program - Lights and Lasers (Kellerman, Duncan, Semenza)
• Grade 1 Meteorologist Visit

Thursday, February 13th

• Grade 4 Enrichment Program - Lights and Lasers (Lewis and Tice)

Friday, February 14th

• Grade 4 Assembly to Watch Grade 5 Ensembles
• Red, White, and Pink Day

February 17th-February 21st

• School Vacation Week - No School

Wednesday, February 26th

• Science Fair, 6:30pm

Thursday, February 27th

• Science Fair (Snow Date), 6:30pm

Friday, February 28th

• Chelmsford/South Row Spirit Day

Global Play Day - We will be celebrating Global Play Day again this year on Wednesday February 5th. Teachers will share information with families regarding timing and sending in items from home for students to use during their time to "play".

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

Dear South Row Families,

We are seeing a few different illnesses here at South Row. Namely: Flu Type A, Strep Throat, and the Norovirus. The Flu is often accompanied by high fevers in the 102-103 range. The fever can last for days. It is not uncommon for students to miss a full week of school if they have the flu. There is a prescription medication available called Tamiflu, which decreases the duration of symptoms by 1-2 days. If you think your child might have the flu and you are interested in this medication, call your pediatrician to discuss the benefits vs. risks.

For all three of these viruses, handwashing is KEY! Practice handwashing with young children. Many of them will put soap on their hands and then immediately rinse it off. Make sure they are moving those bubbles around for 20 seconds, then rinse.

This is a friendly reminder to please monitor your child for head lice. The following information is helpful to keep in mind about head lice:

Head lice can happen to anyone and at any time of year. . It is not a sign of poor hygiene habits or of being dirty. Even though they do not jump or fly, lice can spread from one student to another by sharing combs, brushes, clothing, and hats.

Please do your part to prevent the spread of this communicable condition by checking your child(ren) on a regular basis. Lice infestation is much easier to treat if caught early. If you should discover a case of head lice, please notify the health office, as well as the parents of your child’s close contacts. This is the best way to protect your family and community. If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact me via email or phone call.

Dandruff and lice are easy to confuse. The two look similar, but close inspection reveals key differences. Nits stick to the hair while dandruff flakes, easily falling off of hair. While dandruff is visible on the scalp, lice lay eggs on hair, not the scalp.

Feel free to reach out to me with any questions.

Warmly,

Nurse V.

Our next meeting is Monday, February 3rd! Join us in person or virtually!

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.

Our Chelmsford Community Read-in is taking place March 3rd through the 7th. This is a time to come together as a community and show our students how much we care about them and supporting them in their literacy journeys. All schools CHIPs through Parker are participating. If you are interested in being a reader, please complete the form below and our coordinator will connect you with a classroom who is in need of a reader! Happy reading! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScX_oyyDzbmk4l1XCgv21BQknN3x_DBxfycvYe4inlwdGJyiQ/viewform?usp=sharing

Our Craft-ernoon was a huge success! Thank you to all those who gave their time to help man a craft station. We could not have done it without your help! We look forward to doing this again next year!

We still have lots of space for you to join us at our South Row Skate Night at Roller Kingdom. Your whole family can come, all current, former, and future South Row students. Remember you will save $2 per skater by reserving ahead of time! Please make sure you fill out the waiver in advance to save time when you arrive at the rink.

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.

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

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