The spirit that filled the halls this week was truly invigorating. Not just the spirit of the season, but the spirit of the school. It was so great to see the many sports teams represented, mismatched outfits, class colors, and comfy PJs that made this week special. It was also nice to see so many parents come in today to help our students celebrate their accomplishments with a little bit of cheer.
We want to extend our thanks to all of you who reached out to us after last Friday. We received many kind words of thanks and much helpful feedback. The process of reviewing this day has already begun and lessons learned are being implemented. There is no greater or more important task that we have then keeping your child safe. We know that this is a partnership and a collaborative effort so we thank you for all that you do as well. On the theme of safety, if you are in the first parent pick up group ( Pink Group) and you arrive a bit early, you may run into our Preschool program dismissing. If this is the case we ask that you please park and wait as the preschooler load. Once the preschool cars are gone we ask that the line then move up. We have had a few cars pull around preschool cars to get in line and we would like to avoid this as much as possible. Thank you for doing your part in keeping all our students and families safe.
Finally, we wish you and your families the Happiest of Holidays and Best Wishes for a New Year. 2021 has been an interesting year with many challenges but also many celebrations. We are grateful that you have been part of this journey with us. GMS is the greatest community in the greatest little town. As we move on to 2022, there is only one question that comes to mind... Now What?
GMS News
COVID Update
At this time we are reporting 3 positive cases within our school community. Please continue to be extra vigilant when it comes to mitigation strategies such as distancing, hand washing, and masking. With our current high number of positivity, we feel it is helpful to show the breakdown in terms of grade impact:
Pre K | 0 |
Kindergarten | 1 |
First Grade | 1 |
Second Grade | 0 |
Third Grade | 0 |
Fourth Grade | 1 |
Other/ Non Grade Specific | 0 |
News from the Nurse
Hello GMS Families!
First of all, thank you all for entrusting me to care for your amazing children!
As winter is upon us, the need for warm winter clothing is here. I have found, as a mom, my children grow out of their winter wear and I don’t realize it until the last minute or sometimes it can happen in the middle of the season and stores may or may not have what I need. I also have had families ask if we accept donations for these items. This year I would like to offer a “Winter Wear Donation Drop Off and Pick Up” space in my office. For the month of January I will be accepting donations for gloves, boots, winter coats and snow pants. In addition to that, if there is a need for any of these items for your child, they can come see me or you the parent can reach out to me directly and let me know. I will facilitate trying to find them winter items they may need. I will have a labeled box in vestibule for items to be dropped off at any time or the students are welcome to drop them off to me in my office as well. All items donated will be washed as well prior to giving back out.
I hope you and your families have a wonderful Holiday Season!
No News at this time
News from the PTO
Happy Holidays on behalf of the GMS PTO!! We hope you have a wonderful time over the holidays!
Apparel Drive
A big thank you to everyone who collected their gear or reached out previously to set up alternate pick up plans! For anyone who has not yet picked up your items, please assume that they will be distributed by today to your student via their classroom to take home with them. Once again - we appreciate your support of the GMS PTO's fundraising efforts and can't wait to see pictures of everyone in their new gear!
4th Grade Yearbook
Only current 4th grade students can be included in the photos submitted for the yearbook. These will NOT be shared online and will only be used for the 4th grade yearbook. Please only submit photos from this year using this form.
https://forms.gle/8G4oDWrPixEAufzY9
News from the Community
No News at This Time
Repeated News/ Long Term Info to Know
New COVID-19 Resource - To help ensure clear and consistent communication, our three school nurses, Ms. Vail-Naylor (GMS), Ms. Chambers (LMS) and Ms. Boucher (CHS), have created a new web resource for students, families and staff. This resource contains up to date information about preventing the spread of COVID-19 in our school community. It also offers guidance on testing including a list of current testing centers. This resource is linked on the district website, and the website of each school.
End 68 Hours of Hunger
End 68 Hours of Hunger and Litchfield Schools are pleased to inform you about a free, confidential food program which provides students with meals from Friday after school until they return to school on Monday morning. If meeting the weekend nutritional needs of your child is challenging at this time, we would like to help meet that need. All food is non-perishable and easy to prepare. If your child has any food allergies, please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate this need. Nut products are included for those who are not allergic, but children are informed that they are not to open the bags until a parent can review the contents. The bags are delivered to schools and students will take the bags home with them on the bus or at parent pick-up. If you would like to pick up the bags yourself, arrangements can be made for pick up at the front office.
If you are interested in joining the program or learning more, please contact Elin Pelland, School Social Worker, at 424-2133 x 2215 or at epelland@litchfieldsd.org.
Powerschool Parent Portal
This summer we switched our Student Information System to Powerschool. As part of Powerschool, you are able to access the Parent Portal in the Unified Classroom feature of this system. Please follow the link below to set up you parent portal account. Please contact the main office if you have an issues creating an account.
For Parents - Directions for Parent Access
Bus Routes
Bus Routes for the upcoming year can be found here: Bus Routes
Absence Reporting Email
The GMS office now has a dedicated email address to use to report your child tardy or absent: GMSabsences@litchfieldsd.org. You can also find it on the Griffin Memorial School homepage, on the top, left side under “ABSENCES”.
When you send an email please include the following information:
*Child’s first and last name
*Teacher
*Reason for absence
If you would prefer to leave a voicemail message when your child is absent or tardy you are still welcome to call 424-5931 and then hit “2” when you hear the automated message. Please remember to include the above information in the voice message.
Please note that when you email or leave a voice message saying that your child “will be out” then the absence is recorded as unexcused. Please tell us the reason for the absence so it is documented correctly.
