The Starburst

Happy Valentine's Day, Barrows Families,

This week's update will be short and sweet—just like Valentine's Day! As we head into February vacation, I want to take a moment to celebrate another fantastic Barrows Spirit Week. We kicked things off with Sports Day on Monday, and our Kindergarteners marked their exciting 100th day of school. Today, we wrapped it up in a sea of pink and red with Valentine's Day celebrations. I hope everyone enjoys a restful and healthy week off—we are all due for some well-earned time to recharge our bodies and minds with plenty of rest and relaxation! I am looking forward to seeing everyone back on Monday, February 24th!

Highlights:

• Enjoy photos from Spirit Week below!
• Barrows Red Sox Night at Fenway Park ticket sales end on Friday, February 21st
• Thank you to the PTO for hosting the Barrows PTO Parents Night at Capri and organizing another successful Silent Auction!

Be well,

Alissa

February 17th-21st: Presidents' Day (No School) & February Vacation (No School)

Wednesday, February 26th: Barrows PTO Meeting (zoom link: https://readingpsma.zoom.us/j/84058658038

March 11th-13th: Barrows Scholastic Book Fair

Wednesday, March 12th: Reading Under the Stars, 6-7:30 PM

School Hours:

Monday-Thursday, 8:15 AM - 2:45 PM

Friday, 8:15 AM - 12:45 PM

*Students must be in class by 8:25 to be counted as on-time and present

Reading Public Schools Calendar

All first meals, including breakfast and lunch, are free for all students! If your child would like a second breakfast or lunch, these are available for purchase at $1.50 for breakfast and $2.75 for lunch. Additionally, our cafeterias offer a variety of snacks and a la carte items that can be purchased separately.

Reading Public Schools Food Service/Lunch Menus: http://reading.k12.ma.us/departments/food-services/

It is also important for families that may need financial support including but not limted to our food services to complete the following forms on this page: https://www.schoolnutritionandfitness.com/index.php?sid=1701802399965&page=lunchapps

SAVE THE DATE – Link to PTO calendar

• PTO Meeting- Wednesday, February 26th at 7 pm
• Read-a-thon – All of March!
• Restaurant Night – Mandarin – March 7th
• Barrows Book Fair- March 11-13th
• Reading Under the Stars – March 12 at 6pm
• 
  

Thanks to all who joined us at Parents Night Out and everyone who participated in the silent auction! We hope everyone had a fun time. Nearly $3000 was raised via the silent auction which will all be put to good use funding enrichment at Barrows. Thanks to all the teachers and staff for donating to the silent auction. The kids love all of these experiences and the parents have fun bidding on them 😊

Barrows Elementary Night at Fenway Park is Back!

Purchase your tickets through this link https://fevo-enterprise.com/event/Barrows2025 by February 21st to attend the Tuesday, June 3rd game (Red Sox v. Angels)

We hope you can attend!

Go Sox!

LUNCH VOLUNTEERS: We welcome our parents/guardians as lunch helpers by signing up. Volunteers are expected to help for all lunch periods (11:10 am-12:35 pm, not just their students' lunch. Volunteers will be asked to help wipe down tables between lunches, help students open food packaging, etc. Volunteers must have an up-to-date CORI check (please be sure this is done at least one week before volunteering).

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C094FA8AD2EA2FC1-parentguardian

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For your information, our School Year 2024-2025 PTO Agendas/Minutes are on this public Google Drive.

Many thanks,

The PTO Board

Lori Barcikowski, Co-President (LoriBarcikowski@yahoo.com)

Meghan Dribin, Co-President (MegDribin@gmail.com)

Jen Barsotti, Treasurer

Alicia Curtin, Secretary

Alison Ethier, Social Media Coordinator

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook:

@barrowselementarypto & https://www.facebook.com/BarrowsPTO/

YEARLONG FUNDRAISING EFFORTS

Minted Fundraiser

Do you need to order graduation announcements, birthday, or anniversary invitations? Order from Minted and use our promo code FUNDRAISEBARROWS to help support the Barrows Elementary PTO. You'll get 20% OFF your ORDER and 15% of every purchase made using our code will be donated back to Barrows. Make sure to spread the word to family who can also use the code and support Barrows from afar.

Box Tops

Did you know you no longer need to clip Box Tops and send them into school? Box Tops now offers an app where you scan your receipts! Doing online grocery delivery these days? No problem! Box Tops also offers a way to email your online orders for credit. Find it in the app store or google play store today!

Helpsy Bin

Finally, have you been in purge mode lately? Getting rid of old, stained or ripped clothing? Drop it off in the Helpsy box in the Barrows staff parking lot (after school hours of course) and Barrows will receive a small donation for your items. Clothing, shoes and accessories are all accepted!

SEPAC works for the understanding of, respect for, and support of, all children with special needs in the community (including ALL children on IEPs or 504 plans and children who may require specialized support). Watch this brief introductory video to learn more!

Visit the SEPAC WEBPAGE

Sign up for our mailing list

Follow SEPAC on Facebook or Instagram

To learn more about Reading SEPAC, please visit our website: Reading SEPAC Website

Should you wish to receive our monthly newsletter, please send an email to SEPACReading@gmail.com

Please note that Reading SEPAC IS OPEN TO ALL parents/caregivers and not only families who have a child with special needs as we offer various opportunities to connect with other families and provide learning experiences.

• Building Literacy Success for Every Student:

  Feb 26 (Wed), 7pm (Online; Registration is required)

  
  

  As a follow-up to the movie screening of “The Right to Read,” Dr. Sarah Hardy (Assistant Superintendent for Learning and Teaching) and Renee Limauro (District Special Ed Literacy Coach) from RPS will continue the literacy discussion on February 26. This will be a wonderful opportunity to learn more about reading disabilities, literacy screening in our schools, literacy programs, and updates on the new literacy program (ARC Core) that was adopted by the Reading Public Schools in 2022 that is in keeping with the science of reading as discussed in The Right to Read.

  
  

  To Register:

  • Register for the Building Literacy Success for Every Student Presentation using this link; you can also use this link to pre-submit general questions for presenters to address.

  
  

  The Right to Read - Award Winning Documentary:

  • The Right to Read Film: The Right to Read video is now available for free on Youtube

  • The Right to Read Panel Discussion Moderated by Thomas Wise (Chairperson, Reading School Committee): Available on RCTV Youtube page

  
  

  Past Relevant Presentations:

  • So You Think Your Child Has Dyslexia

  • Understanding Reading Strand By Strand

  • Tiered Support for Students Presentation

Reading SEPAC Board members for the 2024/25 school year:

Amanda Fitzgerald

Dilly Wilson

Eunice Kenyon

Jacyln Lee

Patricia Kiely

Zea Lennard

Should you wish to reach out to Reading SEPAC anonymously, please use this form

METCO unites suburban towns with Boston to engage in a reciprocal learning partnership in support of all students. Because of this, every child who attends school in Reading Public Schools is a METCO student and every parent or guardian who has a student in RPS is a part of the METCO community.

"Since its founding during the peak of the Civil Rights Movement, the METCO program has enrolled tens of thousands of Boston students of color in predominately white school districts, creating the opportunity for those districts to experience the advantages of learning and working in a racially and ethnically diverse setting."

Reading METCO will be hosting a roller-skating event for our Reading and Boston students and parents at Roller World in Saugus on Thursday March 20th, from 5:00pm-7:00pm. This will be a fun opportunity for students to hangout and mingle after school hours. This allows space for Reading and Boston resident parents to meet and engage with one another. Pizza and drinks will be provided. We will also cover costs for skate rentals.

You must register for this event as it is on a first come first serve basis. Here is the link to register for this event- Roller World Registration Link

Deadline to sign up is Thursday March 6.

Details for Roller World:

Date: Thursday March 20th, 2025

Time: 5:00pm-7:00pm

Where: Roller World, Saugus, MA- 425R Broadway, Saugus, MA, 01906

BOSTON RESIDENT PARENTS/STUDENTS:

If you would like your child to attend this event, you must sign your child up through the link provided in this email. If you are unable to attend/don't sign up your child for this event, the school bus will still be taking your child home at the regular afterschool time of 2:45pm. Additionally, if your child will be attending this event and you're unable to pick your child up by 7:00pm, METCO will be providing transportation back to Boston. However, as their parents/guardians, if you're able to come join the event, we would love that! As always, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.

Warmest Regards,

Cindy Marte

Interim METCO Director for Primary Education

School Adjustment Counselor/METCO Coordinator

Birch Meadow Elementary School

27 Arthur B Drive, Reading, MA

Cindy.Marte@reading.k12.ma.us

The Friends of RMHS Dance are hosting a Dance Party fundraiser on April 11th at the Coolidge Middle School cafeteria. The event is being offered to students in Grades K -5. The proceeds from the event will benefit the RMHS Dance Team for the 2025-2026.

Arrival

• Please drive slowly up Edgemont to keep everyone safe; remember, it is a ONE-WAY during the school day.
• Do not park in the indented section by the gym. This is the "kiss & go" area for a quick drop-off.
• Doors open at 8:15 and close at 8:25. Your child needs to be in their seat by 8:25 AM. If your child arrives to school after the doors have closed, they must come to the front door and be marked tardy.
• The Staff Parking Lot is for staff only and off limits to all pedestrians from arrival-dismissal for the safety of all. Please respect this important aspect of our campus.

Dismissal:

• At dismissal time, there is no live pick-up in the driveway except for students who take the bus. Kindergarteners exit the building at 2:40 PM. The rest of the students dismiss at 2:45 PM from the same doors they enter in the morning.

As a safety reminder, the staff parking lot is staff-only. We respectfully ask that caregivers park along the streets. With our students exiting from their external doors in the parking lot, having cars drive in and out is not safe. You need to walk around the school on the blacktop to the back. Thanks for helping us out.

Ready to Play the Best Way

Please do not have your children wear flip-flops. Sneakers are best, but flip-flops are dangerous when running at recess (and Crocs aren't great).

Dogs and Puppies on School Grounds

School Committee policy prohibits dogs on school grounds as much as we all love dogs and puppies and as much fun as it is walking them. If you'd like to walk your dog as part of your pick-up routine, the dog has to stay off school property. If you'd like your child to walk to you on the sidewalk or to the driveway entrances at dismissal so you can wait with your dog, please make that plan with them.

Dear Barrows Families,

This is a friendly reminder that kids should wear sneakers on the days that they have Physical Education. I love Crocs too, but they don’t count as sneakers…even when they’re worn in sport mode! Thanks so much for your support with this safety matter.

Sarah Atwood

You must request to follow these private accounts. We post images, reels and stories that give you a quick glimpse into your child’s day during these Special class times. Mrs. Hurley for Art can be found here @mrs.hurley_art and Mrs. Atwood for Physical Education can be found here @barrowspe

*If your Instagram name does not easily identify you, please send us a separate email so we know it’s you! For safety, we are careful about who we accept.*

Dear Barrows Families,

Another way you can support your child’s art is to join Artsonia. Artsonia is the world's largest collection of student art, published by teachers and students from around the world. Through Artsonia families can view student art online and leave comments. If you would like to join Artsonia keep your eye on your inbox; email invitations will be going out shortly! Thank you! Beth Hurley

The Town of Reading contracts with William James College to offer a special service for our residents. The William James INTERFACE Referral Service maintains a mental health and wellness referral help line Monday through Friday, 9 am-5 pm, at 888-244-6843 (toll free). This is a free, confidential referral service for individuals across the lifespan living in Reading. Callers are matched with licensed mental health providers from our extensive database. Each referral meets the location, insurance, and specialty needs of the caller. Click here to learn more!

PTO Facebook Link https://www.facebook.com/BarrowsPTO/

Follow us on Instagram: @barrowselementarypto

Barrows Homepage: http://www.reading.k12.ma.us/barrows/

Reading Public Schools: http://www.reading.k12.ma.us