Kennedy Cougars

Dear Kennedy families and caregivers,

It's hard to believe that we are in mid-May already. Lots going on at Kennedy. Upcoming field trips to the Boston Museum of Science for grade 5, a day trip to Pilgrim Day Camp for grade 6, 8th grade dance in the final stages of planning, and our famous Kennedy field days are fast approaching!!! The students finished MCAS in style this past week and we are on the home stretch.

Career day at Kennedy on Wednesday was AMAZING!!!! I want to thank all of our community members, parents, friends, and professionals who came out to share their professions with the grade 7 and 8 students. Careers from firefighter, strength and conditioning coach, artist, photographer, orthodontist, musician, and structural engineer to hockey arena director, biologist, chemistry professor, business owner, Broadway stage manager, and many many more!! THANK YOU ALL for donating your time during the day to share your craft, your joy, your passions with our students. See some of the pictures below...

Our KMS lost and found pile is HUGE. Please stop by the main lobby to claim any items that may have been left at school. Unclaimed items will be donated. Thank you!

8th grade end of year activities are fast approaching...please check the schedule for moving on ceremony times by team on Thursday, June 13th.

8th Grade End of Year Activities

Now that the final day of school has been announced, June 14th (early release day), our 8th grade activity schedule has been finalized. Please see the dates and times below. More details to follow.

• 6/6 - 8th grade Dance (more details to follow soon)
• 6/11 - Cole Fields (Rain Date: 6/12)
• 6/13 - Moving On Ceremony, 8:00am - 9:30am
• Teams Discover (Dion, Alagappan, Raider, Czymbor, Balderson) and Endeavor (Miller, Prince, Siegfried)
• Team Inspire (Gallivan, Rogers, Regan, Forest, Melito) - 8:45am

Calling all Overdue Library Books!

The KMS library has over 600 books that are currently overdue!

They often end up in cars, old backpacks, or on bookshelves at home.

Students know how to check their own Destiny accounts to see what they still owe.

Any help you can offer in facilitating their swift return would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

~ Miss Murphy

8th to 9th Grade Transition Information:

8th Grade to 9th Grade Transition Events for The Class of 2028.

4th to 5th Grade Transition Information:

If you have children that will be a part of this transition, here is the full outline of events that you can expect throughout the spring. We can't wait to meet our new Kennedy Cougars!!

Upcoming events for rising 5th graders:

KMS guidance counselor, administrators, and two current 5th graders will meet with 4th grade students to discuss 5th grade at Kennedy and the upcoming Step Up Day. Students also get the opportunity to ask questions to the guidance counselor and middle school students.

Memorial: Monday, May 20th - 9:30

Johnson: Wednesday, May 22nd - 9:00

Brown: Thursday, May 23rd - 12:00

Incoming 5th grade Parent Night (parents/caregivers only)

Parents are invited to learn about a typical 5th grade day such as the cycle schedule, extracurricular activities & support services. This will be followed by a brief Q&A session with administration.

Tuesday, May 28th - 6:00pm - Kennedy Middle School Auditorium

KMS Step-Up Day

Incoming 5th grade students visit KMS for the morning. Students meet the teachers & tour the building.

Friday, June 7th

Find Your Way Day

All 5th grade students are welcome to bring their homeroom assignments (which they will receive in the mail in mid-August) and spend some time finding their classrooms. KMS Peer Leaders will also be available for guidance and question & answers.

Late August - TBD *** Subject to change based on district scheduling ***

5th Grade Orientation

Early September - Students are oriented to middle school through discussions on safety, classroom expectations, organization of materials, etc. Students also participate in many team building activities.

Natick Youth Field Hockey:

Natick is getting youth field hockey this fall! There will be two teams, grades 5/6 and 7/8. One practice a week and one game on Saturdays. No experience required. This is different from the middle school teams. League begins early September. Come join us to learn and improve your field hockey skills. Email Ms. Pini (mpini@natickps.org) with any questions!

Registration link: https://register.communitypass.net/Natick

May is Mental Health Awareness Month!

To raise awareness, the Town of Natick is sponsoring various events, resources, and collaborations around Natick. All events are FREE & open to the public (some require registration). Scan the QR code or visit bit.ly/mentalhealth_natick for more event information. Follow @NatickSupportsMentalHealth on Facebook to stay updated on mental health resources and events all year round!

Natick Summer Programs Are Back! Register Now:
Students will enjoy week-long courses for enrichment, exploration, and fun–right here in Natick! The Summer Enrichment and Summer Scholars programs will allow your children to explore their interests and help prevent summer slide. Pre-approved students are welcomed into the Extended School Year (ESY) program and the High School Credit Recovery Program. Our Strength and Conditioning Program provides dynamic exercises and drills from some of the best coaches in the area.

Registration through Active.com is open now. Our popular Summer Enrichment program courses include Cooking, Arts and Crafts, Pondology, Chemistry, Sports, and much more. Students from rising Kindergarteners up through rising 8th graders are grouped by grade level.

NEW THIS YEAR: All participants in Summer Enrichment and Summer Scholars will receive a complete schedule of classes (subject to availability) running from 8:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. every day. Join us this summer! Access our dedicated website for more information.

Laps at Lunch information:

Please consider volunteering at Laps at Lunch. We are looking for help during all 4 lunches, grades 5 - 8. Please sign up for the same weekly time slot if that works for you, or for individual times slots if that’s better. We are flexible and will train any volunteers on how to help with laps. The link is below: Please sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080448ABAD2EAAFF2-kennedy

Natick High School Fall Athletics Information:

Fall registration opens on May 27th, 2024 @ 12pm & closes on August 6th, 2024.

Registration closes and payment is due August 6th by 12pm.

A late charge of $25 will be added after 12pm on August 6th, 2024.

There are 2 courses to take. (Arxed Natick Student-Athletic course & Concussion for Students) We have updated the courses to make them more time efficient and effective. By State Mandate this course has to be done each academic year. This is only valid for the school year 2024-2025 when completed after May 2024. All of the courses are embedded in the registration to make it easier to find them and to upload the certificates of completion.

Please make sure your physical is within the last 13 months and your required courses have been completed and uploaded so you will be approved to start the season!

Registration link:

https://students.arbitersports.com/natick-public-school-athletics/fall-2024-high-school-registration

All athletes will need to complete the required concussion course

https://nfhslearn.com/courses/concussion-for-students

Athletes will be required to complete the Arxed student course

https://studentathlete.arxed.com/enroll/2631694?price_id=3447778

Sports offered for the Fall season are:

Football, Cheerleading, Boys & Girls Cross Country,

Field Hockey, Golf, Boys & Girls Soccer, Girls Swimming, Girls Volleyball

Unified Basketball will have a separate registration

Football start date is August 16th.

All other Fall sports start date is August 19th.

Unified Basketball Start date is September 9th

Unified Basketball registration link:

https://students.arbitersports.com/natick-public-school-athletics/unified-basketball-2023-boys-girls-athletes-partners-grades-10-12

Only Unified Athletes and 10th - 12th grade Unified Partners can register.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Jodie Cohen

Proud Principal of Kennedy

"Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you'll start having positive results."

~ Willie Nelson

Twitter - @KennedyMSNatick

Instagram - @KennedyMSNatick

website - kennedy.natickps.org

Students will enjoy week-long courses for enrichment, exploration, and fun–right here in Natick! The Summer Enrichment and Summer Scholars programs will allow your children to explore their interests and help prevent summer slide. Pre-approved students are welcomed into the Extended School Year (ESY) program and the High School Credit Recovery Program. Our Strength and Conditioning Program provides dynamic exercises and drills from some of the best coaches in the area.

Registration through Active.com is open now. Our popular Summer Enrichment program courses include Cooking, Arts and Crafts, Pondology, Chemistry, Sports, and much more. Students from rising Kindergarteners up through rising 8th graders are grouped by grade level.

NEW THIS YEAR: All participants in Summer Enrichment and Summer Scholars will receive a complete schedule of classes (subject to availability) running from 8:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. every day. Join us this summer! Access our dedicated website for more information.

Looking for financial assistance this summer? Please complete this form prior to registering to get the process started: 2024 Summer Programs Assistance. Thank you!

1 - Kennedy Middle School Student Handbook

Here is a link to our newly updated Kennedy Student Handbook. Please take some time to review this handbook with your students. It is chock full of helpful information about our school policies and procedures for students and caregivers.

2 - Directions to view grade reports and ROSPs:

Below are the links to directions to access grade reports and ROSPs in PowerSchool.

Viewing Standards-Based Grades in Parent Portal for MS Grade 5

Viewing Student Grades in the PowerSchool Public Portal - grades 6-12

For your convenience, here is a link to the Kennedy Trimester Schedule 2023 - 2024

3 - Drop off and pick up important reminders:

I want to share an important reminder of the rules for driving around the Kennedy Middle School property. These driving regulations are in place to provide a safe environment for all our students as they arrive and leave school. Please follow these guidelines when dropping off or picking up at school:

• ALL drop off during the morning before school and ALL pick up in the afternoon after school will be done around the back of the school at the cafeteria entrance. Please wait in line and only pass other vehicles when a faculty member signals that it is safe to do so.
• Parents/caregivers MUST NOT drop off children in the front parking lot at the beginning of the day. This significantly prohibits faculty the ability to park quickly and enter the building to be ready for your children each day.
• Parents/caregivers MUST NOT wait for their children in the front faculty parking lot next to the buses at end of day dismissal. We understand that everyone is in a rush and it is hard to wait in the pick up line, but ALL PICK UP after school is done IN THE BACK OF THE BUILDING.
• When picking students up following after school activities (clubs, extra help from teachers, music lessons, etc.), please be aware that the late buses also board students in the back of the building. It is imperative that cars DO NOT PASS while students are boarding the late buses. This is a huge safety concern. Because most teachers are helping students after school, we do not have many staff available outside during the boarding process to ensure the rules are being followed. We are counting on you to help with this process. If you are in the line after the buses start boarding you MUST wait until the students are done boarding (usually takes at most 5 minutes) and leave the property before driving around any buses.

The safety of our Kennedy students is our first priority. By following these simple rules you will help us keep our student and staff community safe while they are traveling to and from school every day. Thank you for adhering to these guidelines.

4 - Dismissal from School Information:

Here is a link to the dismissal policy found on our Kennedy website. Please read for a refresher of the guidelines.

5 - UPCOMING SCHOOL EVENTS for your calendar

• Wed, May 22 - Retiree and new PTS staff ceremony, 3:00 - 5:00pm KMS Auditorium
  
• Mon, May 27- Memorial Day, No school
• Wed, May 29 - grade 5 & 7 chorus concert, 6:30 - 8:00pm
• Thur, May 30 - grade 6 & 8 chorus concert, 6:30 - 8:00pm
• Tues, Jun 4 - grade 5 & 7 band concert, 7:00 - 9:00pm
• Wed, Jun 5 - grade 6 & 8 band concert, 7:00 - 9:00pm
• Thur, Jun 6 - grade 8 dance, 5 - 9:00pm
• Thur, Jun 13 - grade 8 moving on ceremony, 8:00 - 9:30am
• Fri, Jun 14 - Last day of school, 1/2 day, dismissal at 11:30am

Natick Public Schools is excited to announce our partnership with Paper for on-demand tutoring for NHS students. Paper is a secure, online tutoring service that provides students with unlimited, 24/7 academic support. Whether they’re stuck on homework, studying for a test, or need someone to read and make suggestions to their essays, there will always be experts available online to assist students in over 200 subjects and more than 4 languages.

Paper tutors have been specially trained to conduct expert, academic support in a secure, chat-based platform. With a commitment to helping students learn, they’ll never give students answers, but rather interact with them in an encouraging tone to lead them forward.

This is a free service that we’re providing, so students are encouraged to use it as much as they need, whenever they need. Our teachers also have accounts and will be able to review all student activity to see what they’re working on and provide more targeted instruction as needed.

If you’d like to learn more about Paper you can sign up for a Paper hosted Parent Info Session, available in both English and Spanish.

To see Paper and the help it offers firsthand, we encourage you to login with your students. To get started, simply visit PAPER’s student login page, type your school’s name, and log in via Google using your school credentials.

We’re thrilled to offer our students the unlimited, 24/7 support that Paper provides and we can’t wait to see what we’re able to accomplish together.

Our Kennedy Middle School PTO works hard behind the scenes to support our school in a variety of ways. Check out their website for more information about all PTO sponsored events.

Natick Public Schools does not discriminate in employment nor its educational programs, services, and activities based on race, creed, color, age, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions, physical and intellectual differences, immigration status, homeless status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Please be aware all electronic communication to and from Natick Public Schools is public record and subject to public disclosure per Massachusetts General Law Chapter 66, Section 10.

• Title I: Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990
• Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990
• Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
• Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972
• MGL, Ch.76, Section 5: Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 76, Section 5