Perry Newsletter

We hope that you and your child have had an amazing start to the school year! Below please see our first biweekly family newsletter. At your convenience, we ask that you take a few minutes to read through for important updates (and please save the newsletter to refer back to if needed). Newsletters will be sent out every other Thursday afternoon.

Thank you and have a wonderful afternoon!

We will be hosting a Fall Family Open House on Thursday, October 10th from 4:30 to 6:00 PM. This will be an opportunity for families to walk around the school, visit their child's classroom and see what's happening at the Perry each day. We are excited to welcome you on the evening of the 5th!! (Please do note that this is not intended as a time for one-on-one conferences with teachers.)

We will be holding our Fall Scholastic Book Fair from Tuesday, October 1st through October 3rd. More information, including how to access EWallets and online ordering, can be found at the Scholastic Perry Book Fair site. Please note that we will be holding the Book Fair during the week before our Open House this year.

Our annual Safe Mode Drill will occur on Friday morning. We will take just a few minutes to review safe mode protocols with students before returning to our regular school day. As a reminder, Safe Mode is used in situations in which an external threat has been reported. During Safe Mode, no one is allowed to enter or exit the school, and students remain in their classrooms with the doors locked.

• If you have not done so already, please complete the following Emergency Form with the necessary student information for each child that attends the Perry. This will only be shared internally with teachers who work directly with your child.

Perry Family Emergency Form

Perry Formulario de Emergencia (en espanol)

As we prepare for the new school year, please remember that all volunteers in Boston Public Schools must pass a CORI (Criminal Offender Record Information) check to help keep our students safe.

A CORI check is valid for one year. If you completed one during the 2023/2024 school year, it has expired, and you’ll need to submit a new form for the 2024-2025 year. To start, complete the CORI Authorization Form at bit.ly/bpscori. Then, bring a government-issued photo ID to your child’s school. We’ll verify your form, make a copy of your ID, and conduct the background check.

CORI checks can take up to 2 weeks to process, so please complete this as soon as possible to avoid delays in volunteering or chaperoning.

Thank you for helping us create a safe and positive environment for our students. We look forward to a great school year!

• If your child will be riding the school bus this year, we encourage you to please download the Zūm app so that you are able to track the school bus’ progress. Please see the ZUM Welcome Letter to Families from BPS linked here, which contains information on how to get started.

• There continues to be significant delays for both morning and afternoon buses. We hope that this will start to get better in the coming week. Thank you very much for your patience and support in navigating a less-than-ideal start with the buses!

• For any transportation challenges or questions, please contact BPS Transportation at 617 635 - 9520. You can also go to the BPS Transportation Online Support Portal for assistance. If you are unable to get appropriate assistance, please do let us know – we are happy to help the best we can!

With the beautiful weather of late, there have been many opportunities to enjoy the Perry Schoolyard afterschool. While it’s a great place for families and students to connect outside of school, we kindly ask that we please make sure that we are all actively supervising and ensuring that children are not doing things that they are not allowed to do during the school day (for example, climbing fences, hanging upside down on the monkey bars, etc.). Thank you for your cooperation in ensuring a safe and positive space for all!

As we start the year, MAP Testing will take place in K2 through Grade 6. This administration of MAP Testing helps us to gain baseline data of where each student is as they start the school year. It is not “high stakes” in any way and usually takes each student just about 30 minutes to complete. K2 - Grade 3 students take the MAP Fluency test to measure progress in reading skills. Students in Grades 3 to 6 take both the Reading (more so reading comprehension-based) and Math MAP assessment.

In order to ensure the safety of our students, families, and staff, we kindly ask that families do not pull into or park in the school parking lot during morning arrival and afternoon dismissal.

Thank you!

We had a number of additions to the Team during the final weeks before the start of school. Please join us in welcoming the newest members of the Perry Team!

Ms. Danielle Derosier will be returning and shifting over to serve as the paraprofessional in Ms. Yagaloff's K1 classroom.

Ms. Shawna Lymon will serve as the paraprofessional in Ms. McNiff's classroom. Ms. Lymon has worked at the Mission Grammar School in Roxbury for the past decade-plus. At Mission Grammar, she has served as a K1 Teaching Assistant, a Lead Infant Teacher, and as the Director of Early Childhood Education. Ms. Lymon has a Masters in Special Education.

Ms. Maryn Torricelli will be our cluster sub this year. Ms. Torricelli completed her student-teaching and served as a cluster sub for the second half of the year at the McKay K - 8 School in East Boston. Ms. Torricelli earned her Bachelors in English Education at Utah Valley University.

Ms. Kenley Adams will be covering the maternity leave as a paraprofessional in Ms. Hennessy's class. Ms. Adams will be entering the public education world after a year in the business field. Ms. Adams graduated from Florida State University where she served as student body vice president, president of the mental health council, and a legislative affairs intern with the Florida Department of Education.

Ms. Hannah Long will be joining us as our psychologist (half-time); Ms. Long has previously served at the East Boston EEC for the past three years.

Ms. Malena Horne (Ms. M) will be joining us as a paraprofessional in Ms. Weafer's classroom. Ms. M served as a paraprofessional in a K2 classroom at the Taylor Elementary School in Dorchester last year.

Ms. Shilan Siddiq will be joining us as a lunch monitor. Ms. Siddiq served as a monitor at Hernandez K - 8 in Roxbury last year.

BPS has started to send out messages from the Parent Square Platform when students are absent.

Please note that when students arrive late, they are often marked absent initially and then their status is changed. This can result in the student still being included in the automated messages. If you think that you have received a message in error (e.g. your child is in school), please contact the main office to verify. Thank you!

1. Missed Lessons = Falling Behind: Even one day can mean missing critical instructions and activities, making it harder for your child to catch up.

2. Impact on Future Success: Consistent attendance is a strong predictor of academic achievement and future opportunities.

3. Building Resilience: Regular attendance teaches your child the value of perseverance and responsibility—essential skills for success in life.

4. Stronger Friendships: Daily presence helps your child develop and sustain friendships, which are crucial for emotional and social development.

5. Healthy Routine: Attending school every day establishes a stable routine, promoting better mental and physical health.

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?

A: I want to be an Electrician.

Q. Why do you like being a kid?

A. I like being a kid because I don't have to work!

Q: If you could have any superpower, what would it be?

A: I would be invisible.

Q: What's your favorite subject in school and why?

A: Art because I like Ms. Doyle and drawing.

On Monday, October 14th, schools are closed for Indigenous Peoples’ Day. For other upcoming holidays this year, please see the 2024 - 2025 BPS Calendar linked here.

From the BTU: Our 11th annual BTU Back to School Fair for BPS families will take place on Saturday Sept. 28, 2024 from 10 AM to 2 PM at the Boston Teachers Union, 180 Mount Vernon Street, Dorchester. Come by for a day full of music, face-painting, games, read-a-louds and ice cream. We have over 40,000 FREE books for students, families, and educators.

As a quick FYI/ reminder, there are two family events coming up in the community this weekend and next:

Saturday, September 21st: South Boston Street Festival, East Broadway

Saturday September 28th: 7th Annual Robot Block Party.

For more information, please visit https://www.massrobotics.org/roboboston/

Saturday, September 28th: Colin’s Joy Project 5K and Kid’s Races. For more information, please visit https://www.colinsjoyproject.org/events.

For families with students in K0-K1, please refer to the Pre-K menu on the second page.