Family Communicator
Issue #6 - October 5-9, 2026
The Week Ahead
Monday, October 5, 2026
- After School Program - Grades 3&4
Tuesday, October 6, 2026
- After School Program - Grades 1&2
Wednesday, October 7, 2026
- Early Release Day - 1:30 pm - NO PREK
- Banking Day
Thursday, October 8, 2026
- Family ELPAC Meeting - 5:30 pm
- After School Program - Grades 1&2
Friday, October 9, 2026
- Moveathon Fundraiser
Early Release Day
Our first Early Release Day is on Wednesday, October 7th. School closes at 1:30 pm with dismissal starting at 1:20 pm. Breakfast and lunch will be served. There is no School for PreK on any Early Release Day (Ms. Green - Room 111) & (Ms. Katie (203).
We have assemblies and fun events on these days, so please send your children to school. All buses should arrive home about 2 hours earlier than normal.
Other Early Release Days for the year include:
- November 25th (11:50 am dismissal - No Lunch)
- December 2nd
- January 13th
- February 3rd
- March 3rd
- May 12th
- Last Day of School in June
Move-a-thon
Our biggest and most fun fundraiser will take place on Friday, October 9, 2026. The move-a-thon is simple. Children get to skip, jog, run, or walk around the baseball field to music for 30-45 minutes. Families get pledges for each lap or just get donations. Last year we raised over $4000.00. Donation sheets are being sent home. Ideally we hope each family can raise $10.00. We use this money for events and bus costs for field trips. The raindate will be October 16th.
FREE UML Hockey Tickets
A voucher for 4 free UML hockey tickets will be sent home next week for Friday, October 9th. Enjoy this free event.
Trunk-or-Treat
Our annual Trunk-or-Treat event will take place on Wednesday, October 28th from 5:00-5:45 pm. Students can trick or treat in our parking lot along with other students and school staff. We are now accepting candy for the event. Last year we went through 800 lbs of candy in 45 minutes. If you are interested in hosting a trunk, please reach out to me at jmccrevan@lowell.k12.ma.us or add your name and theme to this form. We need about 20 trunks!
NO GLASS PLEASE
Please refrain from sending food or drink in glass containers. We have had three breakages lately and they are dangerous to clean up.
Shark Wear
If you would like to purchase Shark Wear for your child or family, here is our WebStore. It takes 4-6 weeks. The merchandise is delivered directly to the school. The store will be open through October 4th. We added several different items this year and also brought back the original mascot from five years ago. If you pick Logo #1 it is the Shark Fin. If you pick Logo #2 it is the Running Shark. Please see the images here. Also, make sure you are ordering youth vs. adult sizes.
All students are receiving a sky blue t-shirt for free with logo #1 (fin) next week in school.
Introducing - Surprise Attendance Day
Happy Friday Everyone!
We are excited to introduce a new school-wide attendance celebration this year called Surprise Attendance Day...
Every month, we will choose a random surprise day to celebrate our students who come into school. Students who arrive at school that day can look forward to a fun activity, special surprise, or exciting celebration!
The catch? You won’t know which day it will be or what time! 🤫🎉
That’s why it’s so important for students to come to school every day and arrive on time. You never know when a Surprise Attendance Day might happen!
Regular attendance helps students stay connected to their teachers, keep up with learning, build friendships, and feel part of our school community. Every day at school matters!
So, make sure your child is here ALL DAY, EVERY DAY and ready to learn—because any day could be Surprise Attendance Day! 🎉
Early Breakfast Program
Students in grades K-4 can enter school from 8:40-9:00 am at the main entrance to eat breakfast in the cafeteria. After 9:00 am, the students will wait until we open regular breakfast at 9:10 am. The children will be monitored by school staff. This program is a privilege and not a right. If students are struggling with the rules, they will not be able to participate in the program.
Recently, we have had many students dropped off before the 9:10 am start time for the school. All students coming early will be required to go into the cafeteria for breakfast, with no exceptions. We do not want to have unsupervised children outside. Please do not drop the children at the playground. The students will enter the building by the main entrance and school staff and cafeteria personnel will be there for supervision starting at 8:40 am.
After-School Program
Dear Families,
Our Morning and After-School Programs for students in Grades 1–4 will begin October 5, 2026. Please review the information below carefully and use the registration link to sign your child up.
📌 Important: If you would like your child to participate in both the morning and after-school programs, you must complete the registration form twice—once for each program.
🌅 Morning Program
8:10–9:10 AM
• Grades 1–4: Monday–Thursday
• No morning program on Fridays
🌟 After-School Program
3:30–5:00 PM
• Grades 3 & 4: Monday & Wednesday
• Grades 1 & 2: Tuesday & Thursday
• No after-school program on Fridays or half days
📅 Sessions
We will have 2 sessions during the school year:
Session 1: October 5th – February 11th
Session 2: February 22nd – June 4th
🎯 What Will Students Do?
Our program will include:
• 🏀 Gym time
• 🔬 Weekly STEM activities
• 💙 SEL activities and games
• 🌱 Gardening and cooking activities with Mill City Grows
ℹ️ Important Program Information
• 🍎 A snack will be provided during the after-school program.
• Regular attendance is required. More than 3 absences without a doctor's note will result in removal from the program.
• 🚌 There is no bus transportation. Students must be picked up. Dismissal begins at 5:00 PM. Pick ups after 5:15 PM will be considered late.
• Three late pickups will result in removal from the program until the next session.
• 📅 There will be some days when the program does not run due to staff meetings, holidays, or other school events. Families will receive reminders before these dates. Please check ClassDojo regularly for updates.
• Inappropriate behavior that interferes with the safety or learning of others may result in removal from the program for the remainder of the session.
Please make sure you understand these expectations before registering your child.
👉 Please use the link below to register:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSckWuhNAxj51INWctIUPtSOk7LWnzI1iqJWfQBUMIkD9yDOWw/viewform?usp=sf_link
We are looking forward to another great year of learning, fun, and enrichment! 💙
October 2026 - SAVE-THE-DATES
Here are the school's October Happenings!
- October 8 - Family ELPAC Meeting #1
- October 9 - Moveathon Fundraiser
- October 12 - No School - Indigenous Peoples Day
- October 19th - School Site Council Meeting #1
- October 21 - Banking Day
- October 28 - Trunk-or-Treat - 5:00-5:45 pm
Jeanne d'Arc Credit Union
Teaching children about banking is a great way to learn about financial Literacy. We are proud to start a partnership with Jeanne d'Arc Bank for our children. Every other week, on Wednesdays, the bank will come to Shaughnessy School, and students can deposit money into a Savings Account. The account requires a $10.00 start-up fee, but after that, kids can deposit any amount. The children get a prize every time they add money to their accounts. Please be on the lookout for a Savings Account application that will be sent home early next week. This is how children start the account. We hope this partnership will help students learn the importance of saving money. You can also register for the program at our Open House this week. The dates for deposits this year will be:
If you were enrolled in the program last year, you do not have to fill out the form again!
