Asa C. Adams School Newsletter
Dear Asa Families,
Welcome to the hustle and bustle of December. The month of December is often filled with many family activities and traditions along with the first vacation of the school year. Just like in many of our homes, where we are preparing for guests, here at Asa we too are looking forward to hosting families for the Grade 4 & Grade 5 Band and Orchestra performance, as well as the Grades 3, 4, & 5 Choral performance. Students have been practicing and preparing songs in music class, along with practicing their instruments during band and orchestra. We are excited to share these events in the new Orono Performing Arts Center.
Other great ways to spread some cheer and reduce the stress of the holidays can be to create a family bucket list for the season. Making time for the things your children and family like to do can help savor the season that sometimes slips by a little too quickly. Scheduling a family movie night and cookie decorating or maybe building a family of snow people when the white stuff starts to fall? Whatever the things are that you enjoy the most, it is our hope that you will find time for them this season.
We hope that you have a truly wonderful holiday season and remember we are here if you need us.
Sincerely,
Ms. Wyman and Ms. West
JMG Angel Tree
Dear RSU 26 community,
The Orono High School JMG students have organized the third annual Virtual Angel Tree for RSU 26 children in need of presents. Each item on our wish list is personalized to the student receiving the gift. Every donation will bring a smile to students’ faces this holiday season!
Over the past two years, we have had over three hundred presents purchased by the fabulous Orono community!
This link will send you to a website which gives you directions to purchase gifts. For any questions, please contact the JMG Specialist, Kelsi Whelden at kwhelden@rsu26.org.
Our goal is to have all presents purchased by Friday, December 2 to take into account possible shipping delays.
Happy Holidays and Thank You!
-Orono High School JMG Students
Show Choir Opportunity
Show Choir will begin next month and will be open to students in grades 3, 4, & 5 this year. More information will be coming soon. Please email Mrs. Neville at
sneville@rsu26.org with any questions.
Student Council
During the month of November the student council collected 416 nonperishable food items for the Maine Veteran's Project. Grade three won the competition with a total of 111 items donated. Thank you to all families that participated!
Student Council will be hosting PJ day on December 20th. Wear your favorite and most festive school appropriate pajamas.
Stormwater Baseline Survey of K-8 Students in RSU 26
The Town of Orono has a Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit that allows the Town to release stormwater from within the urbanized area into our waterbodies via stormwater sewer pipes and outlets. However, Orono needs to follow a set of federal laws and guidelines from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to keep the stormwater clean to be able to continue to release it into waterways. This year, the town is required to survey our students in Kindergarten through Grade 8 to determine what the baseline knowledge of stormwater is in students.
Our K-8 students will be completing a quick questionnaire between December 12th and December 20th. If you do not want your child to participate, please notify Susan Smith (ssmith@rsu26.org) by Friday, December 9th.
Please note that this is developed to obtain a baseline measurement. In the future, the Town will provide teachers with education and outreach tools on stormwater throughout the permit cycle. Students will need to be reevaluated again in 5 years.
If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact Susan Smith or Megan Hess. Thank you for your time and help.
Megan Hess
Environmental Services Coordinator, Town of Orono
mhess@orono.org, 207-889-6105
Susan Smith
Director of Learning, RSU 26
ssmith@rsu26.org 207-866-4917
Asa C. Adams PTO Update
The annual PTO Craft Fair for students will be on December 6th and 7th. Lots of beautiful crafts have been arriving at school for the fair. There is still time to participate and if you would like to know more or how you can support the PTO, please reach out to the PTO at
asaadamspto@rsu26.org
There will be a Hot Chocolate fundraiser at the Stillwater Trail of Lights on the evening of December 9th. Take a visit to see the lights and enjoy some hot chocolate while supporting the PTO.
The PTO is also collaborating with Texas Roadhouse to earn 10% of your order for the Asa C. Adams PTO on Wednesday, December 14th from 4pm to 8pm.
Finally, the PTO is also always welcoming new members. Please find the PTO on Facebook or contact them via email to find out about meeting opportunities.
National Elementary School Principals (NAESP) Monthly Report to Parents
2022-2023 School Calendar
