February 21, 2025

 

Griffin Memorial School News At GMS, We THRIVE

February 21, 2025 GMS Families,          We have made it to vacation!!!! We are so proud of all that has been accomplished so far. Everyone has earned this break.          Last night's Winterfest was more than any of us could have hoped for or imagined. Thank you to everyone who came out for some pizza, games, cardio drumming, story time, chili, and cardio drumming. A special thank you to our amazing staff for pulling together to make this event so special. Particular shout outs also go to the Litchfield Fire Department, the SAU staff, our GMS custodial staff, School Board Chair Cutter, and Romano's Pizza. This was an amazing community event and it took the whole community. Kindergarten Pre-Registration starts this coming Monday, Feb 24th.            Go to the Litchfield District Web page and click the "Student Registration" icon in the middle of the page. There are a number of documents required as part of the process. The documents should be emailed to:   jwilcox@litchfieldsd.org                   If your child is currently enrolled in our 4yr old PK program, you do not need to re-register for Kindergarten. Please be sure to share this with any family that you know has a kindergartner for next year but may not already be connected to GMS. Pre-Registration for the 25-26 PreSchool program will begin March 17th. Have an amazing, restful vacation and we will see you in March ready for the next leg of our learning, growing, and thriving together! Be Well, Be Curious, and THRIVE, Dan Mitchell, Principal Maura Clinton-Jones, Assistant Principal Upcoming Dates February 24, 2025 Kindergarten Registration Opens February 24-28, 2025 Winter Vacation March 11, 2025 No School- Town Voting March 12, 2025 Spring Pictures March 27, 2025 Spring Conferences 3:30- 8:00 GMS News Spring Pictures Are Coming Up! Counselors' Corner Please click below for the January/ February Edition of Counselor's Corner from our School Counselors Mrs. Hayes and Mrs. Perkins Counselors’ Corner Girls on the Run - Spring 2025 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 grades of all fitness abilities.   Practice Times: Mondays and Wednesdays 3:00 - 4:30 PM   Start Date: March 26 Location: Griffin Memorial School   5K Celebration Event: May 31 (Loudon, 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 Volunteer Opportunities - Coordinators Needed! Kids N’ Canvas Coordinator  Have you thought about getting involved in the PTO, do you like to plan events, want to start small and work your way up to a larger event or role? In this role you will help organize an after school painting program for students. Boys Night Out Coordinator(s) In this role you will help lead a planning committee as well as generate ideas, coordinate and plan the event, and act as the point person should people have questions.  Both of these positions will have a point of contact from the Executive Board who will be available as a resource and for guidance. If interested, please reach out to Trixy Gardner or Erica Ruggles at ptonhgms@gmail.com.  Kids 'N Canvas:  We are excited to bring Kids 'N Canvas to our GMS students on March 19th and March 25th. Students will be guided to duplicate a spring painting on their own 8x10 canvas.  Students will stay after school and must be picked up at 4:00 pm.  Kids ‘N Canvas Flyer. To be put on the waitlist please visit here.  Sweetheart Dance We are excited to announce the Sweetheart Dance is scheduled for May 9th. Our next planning meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 10th at 7:30pm via google meets. If you are unable to make the meeting but would like to help, please reach out to Katie LaBrie bardsleykatie@gmail.com and/or to Erika Charbonneau at erikacharb@gmail.com. We look forward to another successful dance!   Griffy Store The next Griffy Store is right around the corner on Friday, 3/14. The store will open during recess with a variety of items for the students to shop for 2 items (e.g.  educational tools, classroom supplies, and more). Inventory forms will be sent home with students after break. To keep the store running we need VOLUNTEERS during recess times. Please consider volunteering for one of the slots. You can sign-up here! March PTO Meeting Our next meeting will be the second of our two in person meetings! We hope you’ll join us on Tuesday, March 19th at 6:30pm. We will hear updates from Mr. Mitchell and Mrs. Clinton-Jones as well as updates about the PTO events and happenings. We hope to see you there! Monthly Newsletters - February Be sure to read our monthly newsletters where we will highlight important dates and upcoming events, and we'll introduce you to our Executive Board and Coordinators.  Calling all 4th Grade Families! It is time to start thinking about the 4th grade yearbook. We are starting to collect photos for winter activities from past years and the current year. Please click on the flyer for more information.  Yearbook Advertisements Each year the GMS PTO is proud to present each of our graduating fourth graders with a yearbook that captures memories from their last elementary school year at no cost to families. If you are interested in partnering with us for the upcoming publication, please fill out the sponsorship form. Please contact the yearbook coordinators at GMSyearbook2025@gmail.com with any questions. Thank you for your consideration and support! **All of this information and more may be found on our Facebook Page: GMS PTO NH 2024-2025.** News from the Community Attention! Time to register for Litchfield Lacrosse Town League. Girls and Boys Grades 1-4. Season starts in April. 1-2 practices and games on Sunday. Have questions? Email patireland32@gmail.com  Registration for the 2025 spring baseball season is now open! To register, please visit www.litchfieldbaseball.org and sign up today. Deadline to register is March 15th. Please contact Andy Ruggles at andy.ruggles@litchfieldbaseball.org with any questions. REC Soccer Registration is NOW OPEN!  Sign up before March 21st to secure your spot! Birth year divisions remain the same as Fall 2024.   Register today at  https://system.gotsport.com/programs/121G28657. For more info visit https://litchfieldyouthsoccer.com/  Questions? Please email lysl.rec@gmail.com. Repeated News/ Long Term Info to Know 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 now use a more efficient student absence reporting system called SafeArrival.  This  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: 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. 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. 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. SafeArrival Sign Up SafeArrival FAQs SafeArrival Report an Absence 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 From Nurse Alexa ·         Please do not send your child to school if they are experiencing o    a fever (>100.4°)They must be fever free for 24 hours without fever reducing medications o   Vomiting or diarrhea within the past 24 hours o   Continuous coughing not relieved by cough medicine o   Are overall not feeling well (headache, stomach ache, fatigue, etc.) ·         Practice hand washing ·         Practice covering a cough and sneeze ·         Drink lots of fluids ·         Get plenty of rest Linked below is a resource for helping prevent the spread of respiratory viruses. As always, you can reach out to the school nurse with any questions or concerns. https://www.cdc.gov/respiratory-viruses/prevention/precautions-when-sick.html 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.  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  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/