Fisher Family Update

Dear Fisher Families,

We had another very productive week at Fisher School. Students have settled back into their routines and are working hard toward classroom and grade level expectations. This week, students were provided with many opportunities and activities to learn about and discuss the great accomplishments and contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We also celebrated Dr. King on our morning announcements by saying....

Next Monday is a yearly holiday that marks the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King was born on Tuesday, January 15, 1929, in Atlanta Georgia

Martin Luther King Jr. was an American preacher, humanitarian and activist who is best known for his role in the African-American civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. He used the power of words as well as demonstrations like non violent protests, sit-ins, boycotts – all with a goal to achieve equality for all people regardless of race or class or gender. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is a true American Hero that continues to inspire people around the world.

Martin Luther King, Jr. spent his life fighting for the equal rights of all people regardless of race, religion, or nationality and was more than successful. He is considered America’s greatest human rights advocate. In 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a federal holiday honoring him which is called Martin Luther King Jr Day or MLK Day. The day has been officially observed by all 50 states since 2000.

We encourage all of you to think of Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday and to perform at least one act of kindness to mark the day.

MLK Day is the perfect lead in for our school wide celebration of Black History Month. A website has been created and shared with teachers and students that includes famous and not so famous Black History Month heroes. These include people from the past and those that are active and inspiring us today. Students and staff also have access to podcasts, websites and online books to read and listen to. One last activity will be for our fifth graders to research and share with all of us, via morning announcements and our Fisher Podcast, Black History Month Heroes. We can't wait to see who they introduce us to. I'll be sure to share with you soon.

I hope you all enjoy the long weekend,

Brian

January

16 No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

18 Fisher PAC Meeting 7pm - Fisher Media/STEM classroom

February

10 Early Release 12:25

10 Reports Cards available on Aspen

18 PAC Meeting 7pm

20-24 February vacation

27 Classes resume

Check out Fisher School’s new podcast! You can search “Fisher School” on Spotify or you can use this link. Thanks for listening and don’t forget to subscribe!

Please click on the virtual backpack for the newest and latest information about sign ups, fundraisers and upcoming events in and around our community.

The Walpole Police Department is now selling sweatshirts/tshirts to help raise money for local families in need. CLICK HERE to order your Walpole Police/Walple police community dog, "Rebel" sweatshirts and T-shirts with our friend Rebel on the back.

Please send a note in the morning with your student, it is the best way to inform all who need to know. Teachers are unable to check their emails during instruction time and the office needs to interrupt important learning time with messages. We do understand emergencies arise, however, whenever possible, please send a note.

Now that the snowy weather and conditions are upon us, please be sure to send your child to school with boots, snow pants, gloves etc. if they want to play in the snow at recess

New peer applications for the 2023-2024 school year will be available on January 3, 2023, at 8:30 AM on the DFP website. It will also be emailed through our email list and shared via the elementary Principals' weekly notes.

Please note: returning peers and siblings are prioritized.

*Children must be three years old and toilet trained to be considered for a peer slot.

Please make note of the following dates when scheduling appointments for your student in the spring.

The United States Attorney’s Office is hosting a virtual Internet safety presentation for parents the evening of Wednesday, January 18th from 6:30 – 7:30 pm. The presentation, entitled Keeping Kids Safe and Secure Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents will bring awareness to the dangers of the internet, including gaming and social media platforms that predators use to groom children with the intent of exploiting them sexually online or for an in person meeting. The presentation will focus on prevention by educating parents and community members how to help keep children safe online. We will be covering the following topics: Social Media 101 & Digital Footprint, Cyberbullying, Sexting, Gaming, Victim Support, Protecting Against Online Predation

The presentation is free. Registration is required. The link to register is included on the attached flyer and is also included here:

REGISTRATION DETAILS

Please register at the following link: (via Chrome browser))

Event address for attendees: https://usao.webex.com/usao/onstage/g.php?MTID=ec3d8ccd61ccdd26ee39d8c6ffd5c57aa

Password: PSC1

Questions or difficulty registering? Please contact

Karen Legace @ USAMA.PSCOutreach@usdoj.gov

Registration begins on January 17th!

The Fisher PAC is happy to roll out our Teacher Wish Lists!!! Click on our website and look through the grade levels to see what they want. If you can help out, great! We have also included the Math Household Items wish lists on here, too, to keep it all in one place!!! Teachers will be updating these lists throughout the year so keep checking back!

Fisher PAC

https://sites.google.com/walpole.k12.ma.us/fisherpac/home?authuser=3

Winter Greetings!

• Please remember if your child is ill with a fever (greater than 100) they need to remain at home for 24 hours without the use of an antipyretic (Tylenol, Motrin, fever reducing medication).
• If your child has a viral stomach illness with symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea, please keep them home for an additional 24 hours after symptoms have subsided.
• If your child has been diagnosed with an infection requiring antibiotic treatment such as Strep Throat, Conjunctivitis, Impetigo, etc. they must be treated with the antibiotic for at least 24 hours before returning to school.
• In addition, for Conjunctivitis, your child's eyes must be free of drainage. For Impetigo, lesions may not be oozing.
• Here is a link to the WPS Health Services website. On this site you can find links to forms (i.e. medication administration, over the counter medication consent forms), medication policies, and information regarding illnesses, concussions and injuries.
• Please pack an extra outfit in your child’s backpack in case of emergencies, this can be stored at the school in their locker or cubbies. Please be mindful of your child wearing appropriate shoes to minimize injuries at recess and PE- sneakers are best.
  

• Here is the Fisher health office wish list.

As always, please feel free to send me an email with any questions or concerns regarding your child.

The four elementary schools rotate start and end times every three years. The 2022-2023 School Year represents year one of the next rotation. For the next 3 years, Boyden and Fisher School will start at 8:55 a.m. and end at 3:25 p.m.

Doors open at 8:45am and the doors will be locked at 8:53. If your child arrives after 8:53 they will be marked as tardy. Instruction/learning begins promptly at 8:55am

We are excited to have our students back at Fisher School! Please see below some guidelines for attendance. Any questions can be emailed to fisher-secretaries@walpole.k12.ma.us

If your student will be absent or tardy for any reason, call 508 660 7234 and press 1 and leave a message as to the reason before school begins at 8:55 am. Our automated absence calls go out at 9:30. If we do not have a reason noted for the absence you will receive an automated phone call and email. This is for your student’s safety, to ensure that all are accounted for.

The front doors will be closed at 8:53 as students are expected to be sitting in their seats at 8:55. If your student is arriving tardy, please ring the front doorbell and you will enter the building to sign your student in. A student must be accompanied by a parent/guardian when arriving. There is a sign in sheet with a column to indicate the reason for the tardy arrival.

Please note: We mark all students having school lunch in Aspen with a “L”. This does not mean the student was marked Late. We use T for tardy.

If you are dismissing your student early or changing the way they go home, send a written note on the day of dismissal that includes your student’s first and last name. The teacher will note the dismissal and plan accordingly, and the note goes to the office so we can enter it into our Aspen system. An email sent during the day may be missed by your student’s teacher.

Please avoid calling with an early dismissal change or a change in the way your student goes home. When this happens we need to call the classroom to let the teacher know and this disrupts learning time.

We cannot change the way a student goes home based on them telling the office or their teacher. We need to hear from a parent/guardian via note or phone call to make that change. If they are scheduled for Extended Day and we do not hear otherwise, we will send them to Extended Day.

Arrival/Dismissal procedures will be the same as they were last year. Please click HERE for all details regarding car drop off and pick up. Staff will be outside everyday to assist you student. Please do not exit your vehicle.

If your student is a "walker" at dismissal time.....

• Please do not park in the Fisher parking lot - You could park on Cobb terrace and walk down but the parking lot is not a safe option at dismissal time
• You may walk down to door 18 (by the Fisher Garden) to pick up your student

Please be aware that we are required to see you in the office with your CORI form. We need to ascertain that whoever we are checking is in fact the correct person. We will take a copy of your license while you are here. Also, please try to avoid arrival and dismissal times if possible when you are coming in.

If you are interested or think that you will be later this year, please complete the "Volunteer Contract" and the CORI form below. The contract has some general "agreements'' that we need all volunteers to abide by and we appreciate your cooperation. We know the students really enjoy seeing their adults involved in the school and we hope you sign up to join us.

We are pleased to share that Massachusetts will continue to fund free school meals for all students, regardless of household income, under a one-year expansion of a free federal school lunch program. The state’s budgetary commitment will ensure 400,000 students statewide, who would not otherwise qualify for free school meals, continue to have access to free school lunch and breakfast for the next year.

What does this mean?

All Walpole Public School children will receive free school meals while at school.

Important: We still encourage all families to submit a school meal application if they believe they are income eligible to receive free meals. While your child will receive a free meal regardless of their free or reduced-price meal status, the meal application can qualify your family for additional benefits beyond free school meals.

You can access our on-line meal benefit application here: https://www.myschoolapps.com/Application

This on-line application is available in multiple languages via a drop-down menu "Language" on the toolbar.

HERE is the school calendar for 2022-2023, including start dates, holidays and early dismissal days. This is continually updated over the course of the year if we have snow days.Please note that there are different start dates for Kindergarten students