Canterbury Elementary School

CES held classroom spelling bees throughout the month, culminating with the 5th grade schoolwide bee on January 24. Kudos to all students for their efforts and focus in learning new words, and congratulations to our champions!

Grade 5 Winner: Ella Walsh

Grade 5 Runner Up: Amelia Perron

Grade 4: Amelia Krautmann

Grade 3: Pemberley Lane

Grade 2: Timothy Slayton

Grade 1: Rowan Melanson

The Fisher Cats Reading Challenge encourages students to read five books during the school year. Any student who completes the challenge will earn two tickets to a 2023 New Hampshire Fisher Cats game at Delta Dental Stadium in Manchester.

There's a reading log that parents/guardians can help their student(s) to complete and submit to the Fisher Cats by mailing it in, or by scanning the QR code on the log.

Additionally, the five schools with the highest percentage of participation will have a chance to win a cash prize up to $1,000 for their school. Thank you in advance for supporting our young readers!

Living in New Hampshire requires adaptability to frequent weather changes. We will go outside for recess every day that we can. Watch/Listen to local weather reports and help your child dress according to our guidelines (see attached letter). It is recommended that you post these in a visible place at home!

If your student is not dressed for the weather, they will report to the nurse’s office and make a phone call home during their recess time. Thank you for your support as we work to ensure a safe, fun recess time for all students!

February 1-24: I Love to Read and Write Month

February 7: School Board Meeting - CES 6 PM

February 8: Deliberative Session for 22-23 Budget - BHS 6 PM

February 9: PTO Meeting - 6 PM

February 10: CES Celebrates Valentine's Day

February 16: Nature's Classroom Parent Night for Grade 5 - BMS 6 PM

February 17: Winter Sports Day - More Details to Come

February 20 or 23: Kids Heart Challenge Event (during P.E. classes)

February 24: Author Marty Kelley Visits CES

February 27 - March 3: Winter Vacation Week - NO SCHOOL

March 14: Voting Day (School Budget) - Old Town Hall

March 14: Teacher Workshop Day - NO SCHOOL

We are excited to announce that our school will again be participating in the American Heart Association’s Kids Heart Challenge (formerly known as Jump Rope For Heart) program in P.E. classes from January 30th through February 23rd, 2023.

This year we will end the program with a Kids Heart Challenge event, which will take place during your child’s regular scheduled P.E. day (on February 20th or the 23rd).

This is always a fun and exciting program for our entire school as we work together to raise awareness for our nation’s #1 cause of death, heart disease. We will be doing online donations only this year! As we have found this to be an easier way for us to monitor donations more safely and accurately.

We are also taking part in the Principal's Challenge. Please click the button below to view a brief video that describes the challenge.

More information is coming home with your student! Thank you for helping us support the AHA, and this life-saving educational event!

In the event that your child borrows an article of clothing or footwear from our school inventory, please be sure to launder the item and return it as soon as possible. Our supply of items is limited and we want to ensure that future students can benefit from a provision of clothing if needed. In addition, if you find that your student frequently needs a change of clothes, please send in an extra set to keep at school. Thank you!

CES will be celebrating Valentine's Day on Friday February 10th! If your family chooses to send cards or treats, please be sure that all donations follow the SRSD Wellness Policy. Our Wellness Committee has created a letter that contains lots of fun ideas! Please see the attachment below (a copy also went home last week).

After the buses have departed, those in private vehicles may enter the school driveway and proceed to the playground entrance for car rider pick up. A staff member will escort each child safely to their ride. If folks arrive too early, the cars get backed up into the road. Please adhere to the 3:20 arrival time in order to mitigate this issue.

It is also essential that private vehicles do not drive around other vehicles (whether they are school buses or other private vehicles) while students are loading or unloading. Please wait until the vehicle in front of you begins to move.

Thank you for your help in ensuring that our routines are efficient and safe.

The CES PTO meets the second Thursday of every month. The weather in January kept us from holding our monthly meeting so we are hoping the weather cooperates in February! Our next meeting is February 9, 2023 at 6PM in the library at CES. Please come and join us as we plan upcoming events and fundraisers! If you have any questions please email Jessie Heath, PTO Chair, at jmheath579@gmail.com

The CES PTO is teaming up with Canterbury Woods Country Club to host a Kids’ Activity Night and Pasta Buffet on Friday February 17, 2023 from 5-7 PM. There will be activity bags for all the kids that attend and some entertaining activities to keep the kids busy throughout the evening. The buffet will include some of your favorite dishes such as caesar salad, pasta, meatballs, red sauce, alfredo sauce, broccoli, garlic bread and the famous Canterbury Woods chicken fingers. The cost of the buffet is $16 for adults and $8 for children. $3 of each buffet bought goes to the CES PTO! Regular menu items will also be available if you are not interested in the buffet. Please mark your calendar and join us!

Regular attendance at school is critical for a student's success. The interactive nature of lessons at school today make it challenging to provide students with the same learning experiences when they return from an absence.

If a student reaches 10 half days (or 5 full days) of unexcused absences in a school year, the State of NH considers that student habitually truant. Our protocols require that we follow a process with families to ensure that the importance of attendance is understood and that unexcused absences are to be avoided.

Below I have attached a PDF of our attendance policy, as well as RSA 193:1 (Duty of a Parent - Compulsory Attendance) and RSA 189:35-a (Truancy defined).

Absences are excused in the event of sickness, required quarantine, a death in the family, or medical appointments. Other absences are considered unexcused and should be avoided.

Please note: SRSD School Board Policy JH states that for absences other than illness, parents must provide a written notice to the principal 10 days prior to the absence: the reason for the absence and how long the student will be absent.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Thank you for partnering with CES to support the success of all students.