Friday, August 23, 2024

August 23, 2024

 





Griffin Memorial School News

At GMS, We THRIVE


August 23, 2024
GMS Families,  
       Monday brings the beginning of the 24-25 school year. After a few days of staff we are ready and excited for the school year. Teachers and staff have spent days getting the rooms and school ready for the students' return and it looks great. We can't wait to see you all.
        Earlier today we welcomed all new families for our Meet the Teacher Event. Thank you to all who attended and added a new level of energy to the building. As a reminder, Open Houses will be later in September. Those specifics can be found below.
       The bus routes were updated today, Aug. 23. Please make sure you recheck your child's bus route on the GMS website for any changes.
         Finally, there are Back to School Forms that all families must fill out each year. The link and instructions to these forms can be found below. We thank you for your attention to these.
         We are excited for Monday morning and cannot wait to see you all soon and begin this amazing school year together.

Dan Mitchell, Principal
Maura Clinton-Jones, Assistant Principal

Upcoming Dates
August 26, 2024

First Day of School

August 30 and September 2, 2024No School- Labor Day Weekend
September 7, 2024PTO Night at the Fisher Cats
September 17, 2024Picture Day
September 17, 2024Open House PreK, K & 1 6:00- 7:00 PM
September 19, 2024Open House 2,3, & 4 6:00 - 7:00 PM

GMS News

Back to School Paperwork

  • Back to School forms are available and need to be completed on the portal. These forms MUST be filled out EVERY YEAR

  • Here is a link to the PowerSchool Parent Portal 

  • Here is a link  to the Portal Quick Reference Guide

  • Chromebook insurance can now be paid through Titan (same for lunch) or by check (Please add student name and "CB Fee" on check memo so that it is applied to proper student)

  • Gr 1-4 Chromebook usage fee is $5

  • Gr 5-12 Chromebook insurance fee is $20 and free/reduced is $10

Morning Drop Off Procedures

During the morning drop off, both buses and cars will utilize the big loop. As vehicles pull in please pull as far forward until all cars have stopped. Then you can let your child out of the car. Please then wait until the cars in front of you move before pulling forward. Please DO NOT pass a stopped car or stop at the front door if there is space in front to pull forward. We also ask that you avoid parking in the parking lot and walking your child to the door, this adds pedestrian traffic to car traffic. Our attempt is to make this a safe and fluid process. We understand that some back ups do occur, but this procedure ensures safety of all and limits the length of any delay.

Pick Up Procedures

Those utilizing parent pick up are asked to fill in the large loop at the designated time. Please have the colored pick up slips that were sent home, as these act as verification for our staff. If you arrive early for your designated time, you will be directed to a waiting line in the parking lot until your group time.

Pink Group (Last Names A-E): 2:45

Yellow Group (Last Names F-N) 2:52

Blue Group (Last Names O-Z) 3:00

Buses: 3:10 targeted departure 

FREE COMMUNITY CHILD FIND PROGRAM FOR ALL LITCHFIELD RESIDENTS

AGES TWO ½ YEARS (2.5) THROUGH FIVE YEARS, 11 MONTHS (5.11)

Who are suspected of having vision, hearing, speech, coordination and/or developmental concerns.

GRIFFIN MEMORIAL SCHOOL

Monday August 26, 2024

 9:30-11:30 am

We encourage parents of preschool age children to set up an appointment if they have any concerns.

For more information or to schedule an appointment please contact

Courtney Bradish at 424-5931 x 1243 or email cbradish@litchfieldsd.org

**No child will be seen without an appointment**

**Bring birth certificate and proof of residency**

Girls on the Run at GMS

We believe that every girl is inherently full of power and potential.  As the leaders of their lives, these are the girls that will change the world. 

At Girls on the Run, we inspire girls to recognize their inner strength and celebrate  what makes them one of a kind. Each session is led by trained volunteer coaches  who guide and mentor the girls through dynamic discussions, activities and running  games. Lessons are fun and engaging and teach specific skills and strategies such  as how to manage emotions, help others, make intentional decisions, and resolve  conflict. Girls can then use these strategies at home, at school and with friends.  The program culminates with all participants walking or running a celebratory 5K  event, which gives them a tangible sense of accomplishment, as well as a framework  for setting and achieving life goals. 

The 8-week program is for girls in 3rd, 4th and 5th grades of all fitness abilities. 

Practice Times: Mondays and Wednesdays 3:00 - 4:30 PM 

Start Date: September 16

Location: Griffin Memorial School 

5K Celebration Event: November 16 (Concord, NH) 

To learn more about Girls on the Run, registration or financial assistance, please  visit our website: 

https://www.girlsontherunnh.org/ 

No girl will be turned away for financial reasons.

GOTR-NH is a 501© 3 organization. Contact Rachel Maynard: 603-778-1389

News from the PTO

GMS Back to School Family Fun Night

Join us on Saturday, September 7th as the Fisher Cats take on the vs. Portland Seadogs. First pitch at 6:35pm. Exclusive on the field experience for GMS students! Please click here for tickets and more information!

First PTO Meeting of the School Year

Please join us for our first meeting on Tuesday, September 10th at 6:30pm via Zoom. Come meet the board and learn about the PTO! At this meeting we will be reviewing the dates for the upcoming year and voting on the proposed budget. A link will be provided on the PTO FB page (GMS PTO NH 2024-2025). We look forward to seeing you!  

News from the Community

Calling all soccer families!!! Fall recreation soccer and cubs registration is open until August 25th. Each child that is registered before the August 25th deadline is guaranteed to be placed on a team. Registrations after the deadline will incur an additional $10 late charge per player. These players are not guaranteed to be placed on a team and will be added as long as there are available places.

For more information about our programs please visit: https://litchfieldyouthsoccer.com .

To register go to https://system.gotsport.com/programs/45G439506?reg_role=player .

Please email lysl.rec@gmail.com with questions.

Repeated News/ Long Term Info to Know

End 68 Hours of Hunger and the Litchfield School District 2023-2024

The End 68 Hours of Hunger Program 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. 

Each week, bags containing food will be provided to students at school.  Students will bring the bag home on the bus or by whatever mode of transportation they have at the end of the day.  If you prefer, parents may pick up the bag at school. 

If you’d like to sign up for the program or need additional information, please contact Taryn Staples, School Social Worker, at tstaples@litchfieldsd.org

Absence Reporting 

At Litchfield School District, one of our greatest priorities is ensuring that all our students arrive safely at school each and every day. 

To enhance our existing absence-checking procedure, we are introducing a new, more efficient student absence reporting system called SafeArrival.  This new system will reduce the time it takes to verify student attendance, make it easy for you to report your child’s absence and easy for staff to respond to unexplained student absences. 

With SafeArrival, you are asked to report your child’s absence in advance using any of these 3 convenient methods:

  1. Using your mobile device, download and install the SchoolMessenger app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store (or from the links at https://go.schoolmessenger.com). The first time you use the app, select Sign Up to create your account. Select Attendance then Report an Absence.

  2. Use the SafeArrival website, https://go.schoolmessenger.com. The first time you use the website, select Sign Up to create your account. Select Attendance then Report an Absence.

  3. Call the toll-free number 1-833-516-0370 to report an absence using the automated phone system.

These options are available 24 hours/day, 7 days a week.  Future absences can be reported at any time. 

In addition, we will use the SchoolMessenger Communicate automated notification system to contact parents whose child is absent when the absence was not reported in advance. The automated notification system will attempt to contact parents at multiple contact points until a reason is submitted for the absence. If our system is unable to reach the designated contacts, office staff will follow up. 

If you report your child’s absence in advance using the SafeArrival toll-free number, website or mobile app, you will NOT receive these notifications.

Starting March 4, when we return from Vacation, please report absences in advance using SafeArrival instead of sending notes or calling/emailing the school.  

Starting March 4, staff will begin using the SafeArrival notifications to let you know if your student is absent (when you haven’t reported the absence in advance).  

Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we implement this new system.

***Please Note that Sign Up may not be available until early next week***

SafeArrival Sign Up

SafeArrival FAQs

SafeArrival Report an Absence




229 Charles Bancroft Hwy. Litchfield, NH 03052

(603) 424-5931

Past Editions of the GMS School News can be found at: https://griffinnhnews.blogspot.com/


                                                                                                



No comments:

Post a Comment

September 13, 2024

  Griffin Memorial School News At GMS, We THRIVE September 13, 2024 GMS Families,                The first, full, five day week is in the bo...