May 9, 2025

 

Griffin Memorial School News At GMS, We THRIVE

May 9, 2025 GMS Families,            Welcome back! We hope that last week's vacation was everything that you and your family needed and that you are ready for the last sprint of the 2024-2025 school year. It is hard to believe there are only five weeks left, but so much still to do. The weeks ahead will be jammed packed with field trips, assessments, special activities, and events. We hope you are all able to take a moment to pause and reflect on all of the growth and progress made over this school year.            This week we celebrated Staff Appreciation Week, and frankly we have the best! Our classroom teachers, support professionals, special education teachers, service providers, administrative staff, UAs, bus drivers, kitchen staff, monitors, OTs, PT, Speech Providers, Reading Staff, Counselors, tutors, nurse, and all other professionals give day in and day out to make GMS so special. We appreciate their work and commitment daily, but it is especially special to spend a week focused on what they do and the impact they make. Thank you to PTO for putting together this week of special events and recognitions.           Last night, our GMS Chorus serenaded us in their Spring Concert. There was laughter and tears as their love for music came through in their performances. We are so proud of the work they put in and the talent that has come through. A special thank you to Mrs. Wade for the work she has done with this chorus. As she moves to the middle school, she will be missed but we are happy that she will be able to continue to foster and grow the love of music that she has planted in our students during their time here at GMS.           Tonight is the night that our students get dolled up for our Annual Sweetheart Dance. The PTO has been working all day, and many weeks, to make this an extra special event. We can't wait to be part of the fun and celebration.              Be sure to keep reading for updates from the town and PTO, as well as ways you can help out with Field Day, Field Trips, and other events.              To all the mothers and motherlike figures in our loves we wish you a Happy and Peaceful Mother's Day this weekend. You deserve all the days, but this one is especially for you. Be Well, Be Curious, and THRIVE, Dan Mitchell, Principal Maura Clinton-Jones, Assistant Principal Upcoming Dates May 13, & 15 Volunteer Trainings (see below for times and information) May 14, 2025 Tiger Tribe Celebration 3:30 May 16, 2025 Kindergarten Orientation 9:00 and 12:00  Please also see a list of all upcoming activities for the end of the school year below: End of Year Activities List GMS News Volunteer Training As we prepare for Field Trip season we know that many parents would like to be considered for chaperoning. In order to chaperone, parents must be volunteer trained and then reverified each year. Please make sure your paperwork is up to date for consideration. We had low turn out for the previous trainings so we will be offering a few more: May  15 7:30 AM (in person) May 13 7:30 PM (Remote) If you would like to attend one of these trainings please let Mr. Mitchell or Mrs. Clinton-Jones know. Remember that all of the reading must be done and the forms must be completed before the training. A link to the directions on where to find the online reading and forms that have to be filled out can be found below. Volunteer Orientation Directions Field Day Donations Well it's that time of year again....we are busy planning our GMS Field Day 2025!!  It's hard to believe we are already at this point!  I am attaching an amazon wish list of items that we were hoping to have donated.  These items are used for all our kiddos and the art projects that they do on that day! Amazon Wishlist sidewalk chalk from Target  (10) Thank you in advance for your support!!! News from the PTO Sweetheart Dance We’re so excited to have you join us tonight,  Friday, May 9th, 2025, from 6–8pm in the GMS gym, for The GMS Sweetheart Dance,  "Leave a little sparkle wherever you go!"—Shine Bright, Be Kind, and Stay Curious. Tonight’s event features photography ($5), complimentary snacks and beverages, hair tinsel and sparkle heart face paint by Hello Hair ($5 each), music and dancing with our DJ, raffles ($1 per ticket or 11 for $10), and a Quiet Corner with bracelet and keychain making. Cash and Venmo accepted.  All proceeds from tonight’s dance benefit the GMS PTO.  Thank you to everyone who has already signed up to support this event.  Monthly Newsletters - May 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.  May PTO Meeting Our next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 13th at 6:30pm via Zoom. We hope you will join us as we hear updates from Mr. Mitchell and Mrs. Clinton-Jones as well as updates about the PTO events and happenings. At this meeting we will also be voting for all board positions for the 2025-2026 school year. If you’re interested in a board position, please fill out this interest form. If you are interested in a coordinator role, please fill out this interest form. If you have any questions, please reach out to Erica Ruggles and/or Trixy Gardner at ptonhgms@gmail.com.  We hope to see you there! Griffy Store The final Griffy Store of the year is right around the corner! Kindergarten will visit the store on Thursday, May 15th, and 1st through 4th graders will shop during recess on Friday, May 16th. The store will be set up outside and students can choose two items, such as educational tools, classroom supplies, and more. Inventory forms will begin to go home and are also available here for Kindergarten and here for Grades 1-4. Please visit the GMS PTO Facebook page for inventory photos and updates. To keep the store running, we need volunteers during recess—please consider signing up to help! **All of this information and more may be found on our Facebook Page: GMS PTO NH 2024-2025.** News from the Community Memorial Day Litchfield’s Memorial Day Parade and Program will be on May 26. 2025 at 10:00 a.m. Groups or individuals are invited to march in the parade. Marchers will meet at the Litchfield Middle School parking lot at 9:30 a.m. The Parade will begin at the Litchfield Middle School and end at the Historical Society Building. The Memorial Day Program will begin at this time. The Scouts with perform the Presentation of Colors. The Campbell High School Chorus and Band will be performing. The Program will end with the placement of Wreaths and the playing of TAPS. All are welcome to view the Parade and stay for the Program. This year we honor the 250 th Anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord (April 19, 1775) and the Battle of Bunker Hill and those who served from Litchfield (June 17, 1775). The Historical Society Building will be open. Repeated News/ Long Term Info to Know Kindergarten Pre-Registration is Open.            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. 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 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/