Marching Right Along
March, 2023
Message from J. Desto
Hello Mason Road Family!!
We are now in March! MARCH! The month of Spring and the month we turn our clocks ahead (THIS SUNDAY)! I am sure that you are all just as excited as I am about having the nice weather make its way back to us. We have been pretty lucky this winter but, it isn't over just yet. Fingers crossed that any more snow storms stay far away from Massachusetts so we can welcome the sun and warmth sooner rather than later.
One thing I have been sharing, on a consistent basis, is that students need to be in school. The more they are not in school, the tougher it is to get them in and back on track. With only a few more months of school left, our time is limited. We need to know where your child is when looking at their social, emotional, and academic strengths and weaknesses. This information is important so that we can make meaningful decisions as he/she transitions into the next grade level. We need to work together so that the students are as successful as possible. If you find that you are having difficulty at home, please let us help! On the flip side, if we are having difficulty, we are certainly going to reach out for your help. I am hopeful that, with the nice weather approaching us, things will start to improve for a great, successful close of the 2022-2023 school year. A sincere thank you in advance for your support and understanding. Note: We understand when sickness is involved. This message is not about when students are sick. It is about refusing to come to school. If your child ever visits the doctor, dentist, etc. and misses school, please be sure to send in a note from the doctor.
A lot of great things will be taking place this spring so be on the look out for more information on field trips, music classes/shows, field day, in-house performances, etc. There are also a lot of community events taking place this month and during the spring. Please be sure to check out the attached flyers for more information. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at jdesto@dcrsd.org or check out our website page at MASON ROAD SCHOOL.
Sincerely,
Jen D.
DCRSD BUDGET UPDATE
As I am sure many of you know, the DCRSD School Committee, along with Superintendent Lamarche, Director of Finance, Mr. Mathieu, and the administrative team, has approved the 2023-2024 district budget (or click on the above picture). However, there is still a great deal of work to be done. Please visit the DCRSD Fiscal Year 2024 presentation to view the slides that represent the FY24 budget with the proposed Town of Dudley Proposition 2 1/2 override. Additionally, in the event the Town of Dudley override is unsuccessful, the presentation includes identifiable reductions that will have to be made.
DON'T FORGET ~ March 23rd ~ K & 1 SPRINGTIME STEM SPECTACULAR @ MRS!!!
Families are invited to participate in an "around the classrooms" type event where math/science activities will be held in each classroom on Thursday, March 23rd, 5pm-6pm. Activities will be geared towards skills students have already learned and are in the process of learning. With the way students are learning math/science nowadays, they might be able to show you some new problem solving tricks!
Please join the Mason Road team for a hour of fun and games all geared toward math/science skills. Unfortunately, we cannot include siblings and we are looking for a number of attendees for the purpose of parking. This is an open-door event starting at 5pm and ending at 6pm. If you are able to come at some point during that hour, that would be fantastic. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation and look forward to seeing you!
In order to get a number of attendees, I request that you complete the following Math/Science (STEM) form: Math/Science (STEM) Survey, 2023. If you have any questions, please contact the main office.
Update from Nurse Moisan
Hello Mason Road Families:
We made it! Spring is FINALLY almost here! With spring fast approaching, so is allergy season. If your child suffers from seasonal spring allergies, please let me know.
Seasonal allergies can also increase the chances of your child having an asthma exacerbation. If your child has asthma that requires an emergency inhaler and does not have one here at school, I will be in contact with you to set up a time to drop this medication off.
I want to thank you all for being so diligent in keeping your children home when they aren’t feeling well during the winter months. My hope is we are on the downward slope of winter illnesses here at Mason Road. We are still seeing a good amount of the stomach flu. If your child is experiencing vomiting/diarrhea/fever they should stay home until they are symptom free for 24 hours without the use of medications.
Please continue to dress your child appropriately for the weather. As the weather gets warmer we will be utilizing outdoor space as much as possible.
The mobile dentist will be at Mason Road on Friday, March 10th, and provide dental services to 18 of our students! They will be back next school year on 10/23/23.
Thank you for continuing to update me on any changes in your child’s health that may affect them here at school (ie. medication changes, new diagnoses, etc.). If your child has had a recent physical, please forward me a copy.
As always, please don’t hesitate to contact me via email/phone smoisan@dcrsd.org/ 508.943.4312 with any questions or concerns.
Stay healthy,
Nurse Moisan
Spirit Week ~ February, 2023
What a fun week everyone had with Spirit Week. From work out clothes to jammies, the week was priceless. Grade 1 celebrated their space unit and kindergarten celebrated their royalty unit on the Friday before vacation. It was great to see all our little space cadets and royal ball in action.
Pizza with the Principal ~ or ~ Mr. Davis!!!!
The fun continues! It gives me great pleasure to share that the grade one lunch room, while not perfect, is getting better. The majority of students in each classroom are entered into our raffle. I am excited to see what the future holds and how many students are able to come more than once!
March Lunch Menus
Read Across America Week ~ THANK YOU MAPFRE
Partner Reading with Grade K and 1
During our Read Across America Week, Grade 1 students paired up with Kindergarten students and spent some time reading to each other. This is one event that is truly enjoyed each and every year by staff and students.
Kindergarten Happenings –
Kindergarten Happenings – February 2023
The month of February certainly flew by and we enjoyed so many fun learning activities! The
month began celebrating our 100 th Day of School. Children were invited to bring in collections
of 100 items. Each classroom completed different activities that centered on the number 100.
We practiced counting to 100 and some children even dressed up like people that were100 years
old!
Our Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) Knowledge theme was all about Kings and
Queens. We learned about the members of a royal family, listened to stories and nursery
rhymes where kings and queens are the main characters, and we practiced retelling fairy tales.
As a culminating activity for this unit, our royal kindergarteners were invited to a Royal Ball
and could dress up as kings, queens, princes, princesses, and knights. Mrs. Hooper and her
husband were able to construct a royal throne for all of the children to sit in. How fun!
Art Class Grade 1 Chrysanthemum and the Otter experiment
Art Class Kindergarten Ferdinand the Bull, Loom work, and Percy the Porcupine
Tidings from Title 1 with Mrs. Connor & Ms. Pontbriand
Welcome back! We hope everyone had a fun, relaxing Winter Break. Spring is around the corner and we can’t wait for the warmer weather to arrive.
What’s Happening in First Grade?
In Language Arts, we are continuing to practice the Dolch Primer Word list and are moving on to the First Grade Word List. We are also working on First Grade Fry Phrases, groups of words students encounter in early reading. If you need a copy of any of the lists, please let Mrs. Connor or Ms. Pontbriand know. We are reading and writing words with the oi, ou and aw sounds. We are also learning to read and write words with the Bossy r sound: er, or and ar. The First Graders amaze us every day with their wonderful reading and writing! We have seen so much progress! Please continue to read with your child at home as often as possible. Just listening to a favorite story increases vocabulary and comprehension skills and promotes the joy of reading.
In Math, we are continuing work on the 120 chart.. Students are learning number identification to 120 and they are looking for patterns as they count by 2s, 5s and 10s. We are also learning about 10s and 1s in two digit numbers (place value). Students are learning the terms greater than, less than and equal to and applying them to number sentences.
and.......
What’s Happening in Kindergarten?
In Kindergarten Language Arts, we are working hard to read CVC words(consonant vowel consonant ex=cat). We have been practicing reading word families, which is so helpful in making our beginning readers feel successful. Word families are words that all have the same middle and ending sounds (ex=cat, mat, rat, sat, flat etc..) We have continued practicing sight words and tricky words. These words are important to know by sight as many of them are not able to be sounded out. Some of the sight words we have been learning are: one, two, three, the, a , and, red, blue, yellow, look, and are.
In Kindergarten Math, students have been learning teen numbers. We have been using ten frames and manipulatives to show that teen numbers are made up of a ten and some ones. We have been practicing using our addition skills and manipulatives to find sums up to 20.
Dudley-Charlton Educational Foundation
SHRHS BOSTER CLUB FUN!
Dudley PTO
Opportunities for Fun in our Community!
CHAMPION: BEFORE/AFTER SCHOOL CHILD CARE
Champions before/after school program located at Mason Road School!!
In addition, you can also find out more information regarding the Boys & Girls Club by visiting their website at Boys & Girls Club of Dudley/Webster or by calling (508) 943-0037.
MARK Those Calendars!!!
DUDLEY-CHARLTON REGIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICT 2022-2023 SCHOOL CALENDAR
March 15: MRS School Council, 3:30, Virtual
March 12: Daylight Savings - Turn those clocks ahead one hour
March 22: DCRSD School Committee at 7pm @ Charlton Middle School
March 23: Springtime Stem Spectacular @ MRS: 5:00pm-6:00pm - PLEASE BE SURE TO SIGN UP: Mason Road Family Math/Science (STEM) Night
April 1: DCEF Heros Among Us Gala - see flyer above to grab your tickets!
April 4: Dudley PTO meeting @ DES Library - 6:30pm
April 7: Early Release Dismissal at 12:15pm
April 12: MRS School Council, 3:30, Virtual
April 12: DCRSD School Committee at 7pm @ SHRHS
April 17-21: Spring Break - NO SCHOOL
April 25: The Ecotarium visits Grade 1
April 26: DCRSD School Committee at 7pm @ Charlton Middle School
May 1: Dudley PTO meeting @ DES Library - 6:30pm
May 10: DCRSD School Committee at 7pm @ SHRHS
May 12: Kindergarten goes to OSV
May 16: Grade 1 goes to the zoo
May 17: MRS School Council, 3:30, Virtual
May 23: Spring Open Music Classes, K only
May 24: DCRSD School Committee at 7pm @ Charlton Middle School
May 26: Early Release Dismissal at 12:15pm, Educator PD
May 29: Memorial Day -NO SCHOOL
June 4: Commencement for the Class of 2023!!!
June 8: Grade 1 program at DES
June 9: Field Day @ Dudley Little League Field (rain date of June 12th)
* June 14: Last Day of School (180 days) (tentative - will depend on snow days), Early Release Dismissal at 12:15pm (snow day 2/28/23,3/14/23)
June 14: DCRSD School Committee at 7pm @ SHRHS
June 19: Juneteenth Day - NO SCHOOL
* June 20: Last Day of School (185 days with 5 snow days), Early Release Dismissal at 12:15pm
June 28: DCRSD School Committee at 7pm @ Charlton Middle School
Mason Road School Swag
MASON ROAD SCHOOL CONTACT INFORMATION
Mason Road School
20 Mason Road
Dudley, MA 01507
Telephone: (508) 943-4312
Fax: (508) 949-1005
Principal: Jennifer A. Desto
Email: jdesto@dcrsd.org
Administrative Assistant: Crissy Harris
Email: charris@dcrsd.org
School Hours PreSchool
AM: 9:10 am - 11:40 am
PM: 12:20 pm - 2:50 pm
School Hours K & 1
Arrival begins at 8:30 am
Late Bell at 8:40
Classes begin at 8:45 am
Dismissal begins at 3:00 pm
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact contact me. This cannot be stressed enough especially when there are concerns. I cannot address what I am not aware of. ~Jen