Caregiver Update

It's November, and that means it's a great month to think about gratitude. It's also a month where our students (and staff) have to adjust to some very different schedules throughout the month. We only have one week where we are here in school for 5 full days. The rest of the weeks we have some full days of no school and/or some half days with early dismissals. We are also adjusting to the time change where we are seeing more daylight in the morning, but it's getting darker sooner in the evening. With these changes, we know that students sometimes need support. The good news is that teachers have been establishing routines and helping set the foundation for students to be able to quickly adjust to changes in the school day routine.

We do have three half days in November. Two during parent conference week next week and one the day before Thanksgiving. I just want to remind families of the lunch change where we will be serving lunch on those days. Students are also able to bring lunch from home on those days. K and 1 will eat lunch in the cafeteria and 2nd, 3rd, and 4th will eat in their classrooms.

This morning, I announced our lucky winner for the PTO raffle of riding to school in a police car. We had to do a second round of pulling one lucky winner since people didn't come forward or lost raffle tickets. The lucky winner is : Claire Smaltz. Congrats Claire! The PTO will be in touch to set up this prize. And we are still working through scheduling our other lucky winners for their special days.

Last Wednesday, I had the chance to review bus safety with every class. I also had every student practice evacuating the bus, both through the front door and through the rear door of the bus. I will include some graphics below that have helpful bus safety information. I explained to the students that I am most concerned about keeping them safe, but it is a challenge to protect them from other drivers because I don't have any control over that. Thank you for helping us by reviewing bus safety with your children and by reporting any dangerous behavior from motorists that you witness. We are in regular communication with the bus company and the Mendon police to advocate for bus safety.

Thank you,

Liz Garden

Principal

P.S. Cardboard Creation Day was so much fun!! Thank you to all our parents and guardians who came in to help us. And thank you to those of you who donated cardboard. Check out the video below with some photo highlights from the day.

We tried something new last year during lunch and parents and guardians told us that they loved it and wanted to continue this year! We’re inviting parents and guardians to join us in the cafeteria to eat and chat with students. The goal is to model friendly conversation skills, appropriate volume, and positive lunchtime behavior—while building a stronger sense of community.

Parents/guardians will sit with their child but also engage the other students at the table in conversation. We’ll provide simple conversation starters to keep things fun and meaningful.

We’d love your help as we support students in practicing respectful, confident communication during lunch. We understand that schedules can be tight, but if you’re able to visit during your lunch break, we’d be thrilled to have you join us. This year, there is only one grade at a time in the cafeteria. We will stick with Wednesdays and Fridays like last year. Please sign up on this sign up genius link for your child's grade.

Please make sure you have an approved CORI form on file with us before you sign up.

Again this year, across the district, we’re asking parents and guardians to help us with a special activity called “A Million Words or Less.” We invite you to tell us, in any length you choose, what makes your child special. You know their joys, challenges, quirks, interests, hopes, and what helps them feel safe and confident. Your insight helps us support them in the best way possible. We had several parents and guardians complete this last year, including many who did it during kindergarten screening. If you already shared information, you don't need to share again. But if you have not completed this, please take some time to help us get to know your child.

You can share in whatever style works for you—a few sentences, a list of bullet points, a poem, a note, even a song! The goal is simply for us to hear your voice.

We’ve created a form where you can type your thoughts. But we know writing isn’t the easiest or preferred way for everyone. You’re welcome to upload a photo, a short video, voice recording, or a document instead—whatever helps us get to know your child. If you would prefer to hand write your thoughts, you are welcome to do that as well and send in the information to us, that works as well.

November:

Nov. 3 - No school. Teacher PD Day

Nov. 9 and 10 - Half days, Parent/Teacher Conferences

Nov. 9 - Student Council Meeting @ 8:00am

Nov. 10 - Clough PTO Meeting @ 6:30 in the library

Nov. 11 - No school, Veteran's Day

Nov. 17 - School Council Meeting @ 3:30

Nov 25 - Breakfast and BINGO before school - more info coming, half day, dismissal at 12:05

Nov. 26/27 - No school, Thanksgiving break

Email: lgarden@mursd.org
Website: https://www.mursd.org/o/henry-p-clough-elementary
Location: 10 North Avenue, Mendon, MA, USA
Phone: 508-634-1580
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HPClough-Elementary-School-102887309160164
Twitter: @HPClough