Sherwood Middle School
April 11, 2021 Update
This Week's Messages
Active April
To practice these daily goals at home, download or print the calendar here.
Good Morning Sherwood,
I hope you and your family are enjoying your weekend so far!
We are excited to welcome your child back to their remote or in person team, or welcome them to a new team this Monday April 12th. Special thanks to all of our staff who have been working extra hard to ensure a safe and smooth return for your child.
Thank you for your ongoing patience as we made some adjustments to our schedule this week. I recognize that some of these changes may have caused a disruption to your child care needs or your child’s typical learning plans. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we finalized our plans for reopening.
Please be sure to read through this week's newsletter for more information about this week's schedule and other important reminders about this week.
As always, thank you for all you continue to do each day to help maintain a safe and supportive environment for our students and staff.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Kelly, Principal
A Message From Mr. Kelly
This Week's Schedule
Monday, April 12th : Full Day 8:00am-2:35pm
In Person
- Grade 6: Cohorts A, B, C
- Grade 5 Cohort A1
- Grade 5: Cohorts A2, B, C
- All students in Cohort D
Tuesday, April 13th : Full Day 8:00am-2:35pm
In Person
- Grade 5: Cohorts A, B, C
- Grade 6 Cohort A1
- Grade 6: Cohorts A2, B, C
- All students in Cohort D
Wednesday, April 14th 1/2 Day 11:35 Dismissal
In Person
- All Students in Cohorts A, B, C
- Cohort D
Thursday, April 15th & Friday, April 16th: Full Day 8:00am-2:35pm
In Person
- All Students in Cohorts A, B, C
Remote
- Cohort D
Schedule for Week After April Vacation
As a reminder, all students in Cohorts A,B, C will be in school for full days when we return from April break. Students in Cohort D will stay remote.
What's For Lunch This Week?
Important Reminders About Next Week
We Know You May Have More Questions
- Grade 5: Heather Gablaski: hgablaski@shrewsbury.k12.ma.us
- Grade 6: Karen Gutekanst kgutekanst@shrewsbury.k12.ma.us
From the Nurses' Office
ALL STUDENTS
Please make sure you continue to do wellness checks each morning to ensure that your child does not have any visible COVID symptoms.
Important Health Reminders
REMOTE STUDENTS RETURNING TO IN PERSON
Please have your student view the attached visitor health and safety slides if they are returning from a remote team to an in person team. If you have any questions please reach out to us. Thank you very much and we look forward to welcoming your student to in person learning!
Regards,
Linda Berard, BSN, RN
Sherwood Middle School Nurse
lberard@shrewsbury.k12.ma.us
Phone: 508-841-8678
Fax: 508-841-8677
Kristin Franger, BSN, RN, NCSN
Sherwood Middle School Nurse
Phone: 508-841-8678
Fax: 508-841-8677
Thank You Mrs. Gablaski & Mrs. Gutekanst!!!
This past week was National Assistant Principals Week! We took time on Wednesday with staff and Friday with students to recognize all that they do to run our school and keep our students safe! Please join us in thanking them for all that they do!
Week Five of Voluntary Covid Student Testing
Thanks to those students and families who participated in our free, voluntary COVID-19 testing program last week! The district has contracted with JCM Analytics to provide weekly surveillance testing for all interested students.
Please open this link for more details about the program and to sign up for future testing.
Calling All Artists: Yearbook Cover Design
DEADLINE TO SUMIT IS THIS WEDNESDAY: 4/14/21
Calling all artists!
Time for our annual contest to design a cover for our 2020-2021 yearbook. The winning
entry will appear on the front cover! The entries of the runner-up covers may appear
on the back cover of the yearbook.
Submit art on:
1. 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper- regular copy paper
2. Vertical orientation
All entries:
1. Must include the words Sherwood Middle School and school year 2020- 2021.
2. Depict some of our core values - (cooperation, responsibility, compassion, acceptance, honesty, kindness, confidence, respect, creativity,
perseverance)
3. Must be turned in to the office no later than Wednesday, April 14th.
4. Write your name and your teacher’s name in *pencil* on the BACK of your entry.
Tips for a successful entry:
1. Not a lot of white space – use lots of color (including background) 2. Use bold colors! You may use crayons, markers, paint, colored pencils, or any other medium to draw and color.
3. Use up the whole sheet of paper. Keep what’s important in the design (ie: our school name) away from the paper edges to avoid the artwork being cut in the trim process.
Entries due by 3:00p.m. on Wednesday, April 14, 2021. – There will be an envelope in the lobby. Sorry, no late entries will be accepted.
Please make sure to add the student/artist name on the back in pencil. Do not include your name to the front of your artwork. We will do our best to return artwork submissions.
Recognize These Items?
We have several lost and found items (lunch boxes, water bottles, and articles of clothing) in the Main Office. If any of these belong to your child, please have your child stop by the Main Office between now and Friday, April 16th. All unclaimed items will be donated or recycled. Contact the Main Office (508-841-8670) with any questions. Thank you!
For Grade Six Families Only
Please go to the attached link to read information about signing up your child for foreign language class at Oak Middle School next year. Please be sure to read the information carefully and watch the video with your child before making a choice. You will be able sign up through Power School from April 15th through April 30th.
FOREIGN LANGUAGE SELECTION LINK
Power of Purpose Fundraiser
We wrapped up our STEAM ENGINE FUNDRAISER on April 6th, and we want to give everyone who participated a HUGE thank you for all of the amazing support! This donation campaign was an incredible success thanks to the efforts of all of our Sherwood and Oak families! We hope you followed along on Facebook and saw the great prizes various students won for participating. Final fundraising prizes will be distributed this week at each school.
We are thrilled to announce that with this campaign the SMS PTO raised an amazing $31,164! Our annual budget is close to $40K, so in a year where we were unable to do much fundraising, but still funded what we could, we are hopeful to continue our support of media materials, enrichment programs, and field trips at Sherwood and Oak! The proceeds of this fundraiser also enable each school to select and order STEAM products totaling $6200 between the two schools! This is simply phenomenal!
Again, this program was a success thanks to you and your students, and we thank you!
MAY PTO MEETING
Mark your calendars! The May SMS PTO Meeting will be Monday, May 3rd at 7PM via Zoom. The Zoom link will be provided closer to the meeting date.
Please be reminded that the SMS PTO is a singular board that serves both Sherwood and Oak, and we welcome all families from each school to join us!
From the Main Office
Attendance
Attendance is taken every morning during Morning Meeting. Please make sure your child is present and ready to go by 8:00am. Thank you!
Student Absence
Any child, regardless of hybrid or remote learning program, must inform the office if their child will be absent or late to school. SPS requires that you telephone us either the night before or first thing in the morning on the day of the child’s absence at 508-841-8690. If we have not received a call to report an absence, the school will be in contact with the parent to confirm the child’s safety.
Technology Support
If students or families are having trouble with Schoology or Zoom, you can get tech support at ParentTechSupport@shrewsbury.k12.ma.us. Please remember that Team teachers are not immediately available for this support as they have students in class.
If students or families have other questions or concerns abut technology please go to this link: Frequently Asked Questions about Technology. This link includes parent access for Schoology; password help; school email help, broken iPad, and more!
District News
SSMA’s Online Rockin’ Auction!
The Shrewsbury Schools Music and Theater Association is a 60 year old volunteer, nonprofit group. We are asking for help in supporting SPS music and theater programs for all ages with the SSMA’s online silent auction! The SSMA buys music, instruments, and uniforms, funds special school events, and so much more. There are over 100 items to bid on, valued from $10 to $500, with something for everyone. There’s wine, jewelry, art, and a signed baseball; gift cards to grocery stores, restaurants, and fun activities; plus so much more! You can browse items and sign up for a bidding account anytime.
Bidding opens 10:00 AM Saturday, April 24 and closes 7:00 PM Sunday, May 9.
Visit www.MySSMA.com for the link to the auction.
Anyone can participate, even “Aunt Peg” in Florida, so please share this link!
Free Online Math Competition for 4th and 5th Grade Students:
Students at Winchester (MA) High School hold an annual math competition called WinMaC for students in Grades 4 & 5 with the mission of creating a fun and inspirational, yet challenging, contest that will foster greater interest in mathematical problem solving outside of school. Due to this year’s pandemic, WinMaC will be completely online from April 17th. This free math competition is open to all fourth and fifth grade students, who are encouraged to form teams of up to four. In addition to the traditional math competition format, the day will include fun math-related activities! For more information, specifically on the contest details and format, please visit their website at https://winchestermc.com/information/. Please email winchestermathcomp@gmail.com with questions.
SORA READING APP
The media centers across the district are excited to share that we now have a K-12 subscription to an iPad app called SORA that provides access to ebooks and audiobooks that students can read or listen to on their iPads. SORA enables users to borrow up to 3 books at a time. Users can also place holds on an additional 3 books at a time.
Here is a video overview of SORA.
Here is the link to a step-by-step tutorial that explains how to get started using SORA on your child's iPad: https://bit.ly/2JZa2SZ
All adults with a child enrolled at SPS are welcome to attend.
No registration needed; use this link to join our Zoom meeting.
1st Monday of the Month, 7:30 - 8:15pm
December 7 | January 4 | February 1 | March 1 April 5 | May 3 | June 7
1st Thursday of the Month, 12:15 - 1pm
December 3 | January 7 | February 4 | March 4 April 1 | May 6 | June 3
CONTACT: MS. MADDOX, JMADDOX@SHREWSBURY.K12.MA.US
28 Sherwood Ave
Shrewsbury, MA 01545
508-841-8670