Mindess School Weekly Update

Dear Mindess Families,

This week was another busy and exciting one at Mindess! Today, students participated in our annual Mindess Jump-A-Thon, a fun and energetic event that our community looks forward to each year. It was wonderful to see so much enthusiasm, teamwork, and school spirit on display.

As a reminder, next week is school vacation. We hope everyone enjoys a restful and safe break, and we look forward to welcoming students back to school on Monday, February 23rd.

I would also like to share an important parking reminder. When visiting the school—including during evening events—please do not park in handicap parking spaces unless you have the appropriate permit. We have several families who rely on these spaces, particularly in the mornings, as they allow close proximity to the crosswalk and enable staff members to assist their child safely into the building. It can be very frustrating for families when these spaces are unavailable due to improper parking. Thank you for your cooperation and consideration.

Finally, our teachers completed their mid-year data analysis this week. They reviewed student progress, set new learning goals, and identified targeted interventions to continue supporting student growth moving forward.

Thank you, as always, for your partnership and support. Enjoy the vacation week!

Warm regards,
Kate Altman
Principal

February

Monday, February 16 - Friday, February 20 - NO School - February Break

Thursday, February 26

• Clocker Classic - 6pm - AHS

March
Friday, March 6

• Grades Close

Tuesday, March 10

• Site Council - 2:30pm

Thursday, March 19

• Report Cards Go Home

Friday, March 20 - NO SCHOOL - Eid al Fitr

Tuesday, March 24 - Conferences

• ½ Day Before Lunch 10:40 Dismissal

Wednesday, March 25 - Conferences

• ½ Day Before Lunch 10:40 Dismissal

Thursday, March 26 - Conferences

• ½ Day Before Lunch 10:40 Dismissal

Friday, March 27

• Hoedown

In the spirit of the Winter Olympics, our 4th graders took part in their very own Measurement Olympics this week, applying math skills through fun, hands-on challenges!

Students jumped, cheered, and showed incredible energy and teamwork during our annual Jump-A-Thon—another joyful Mindess tradition that brings our community together!

A note from our school nurses:

Massachusetts state law mandates that all fourth grade students have a complete physical exam form on file in the school health office. A physical exam done after September 1, 2024 will meet this requirement. Please ensure that the nurses have an up-to-date exam form for your child. You can fax a copy of the form to 508-881-0189 or email it to mes_nurses@ashland.k12.ma.us.

Please call the health office at 508-532-8045 if you have any questions.

January's SEL Theme of the month is Empathy. SEL lessons in the classroom focus on how to put yourself in other's shoes and recognize how they might be feeling. In third grade, kids are learning to look at facial expressions and body language to guess how someone might be feeling. In fourth grade, students are learning to related to the feelings of another by thinking about how they have felt in a similar situation. By fifth grade, students work on thinking not only about how someone else might be feeling, but also what they can do to improve situations around them. Our restorative circles this month focused on making New Year's Resolutions about classroom expectations- what they can do better to make school be successful for all. Empathy is one of the biggest skills we try to get all students to work on at this age.

Don’t forget to visit ashland.k12.ma.us/Flyers where we feature announcements and events offered by organizations, clubs and teams throughout our community that serve to enrich the lives of our students, families, faculty and staff.

Saturday, March 21

10:00 AM—4:00 PM

LibraryAshland Public Library66 Front St, Ashland, MA, 01721

Click here for more information.

With Thanksgiving behind us and winter right around the corner... we've got Spring 2026 on our minds!

That's right, registration is now open for the 2026 Spring Baseball and Softball season.

Click on the link below to register and enter today!

Register Here

You can find all of the program descriptions on the AYBS site by visiting the links below:

Baseball Programs | Softball Programs

We've also included tentative program schedules (practice and game days) in the descriptions on our site but we've also included them below for quick reference.

2026 Schedule by Division

Baseball
Tiny Tots (Age 4) - There will be 1 session per week on Saturdays.
T-Ball (Ages 5-6) - There will be 1 practice a week on either Mondays or Wednesdays. There will be 1 game per week on Saturdays.
A (Ages 6-7) - There will be 1 practice a week on either Mondays or Wednesdays. There will be 1 game per week on Saturdays.
AA (Age 8) - There will be 1 practice a week on either Mondays or Wednesdays. There will be 1-2 games per week on Fridays and Saturdays.
AAA (Ages 9-10) - Games and practices will be held on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Majors (Ages 11-12) - Games and practices will be held on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.

Softball
K-Ball (Pre-K and K) - There will be 1 practice a week - day TBD. There will be 1 game per week on Saturdays.
AA (1st Grade) - There will be 1 practice a week - day TBD. There will be 1 game per week on Saturdays.
Minors (U8) - Games are on Mondays and Wednesdays. Practices are on Saturdays.
Majors (U10) - Games are on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Practices are on Saturdays or Sundays.
Seniors (U12 or U14/12) - Games could be on a Tuesdays, Fridays or Sundays. All will depend on # of teams across the League. Practice 1x during the week possibly or weekends depending on game schedule.

We look forward to seeing you on the diamonds next spring and good luck with the raffle!

Note: Schedules may change depending on number of players and teams. However, we anticipate following the above format for the 2026 season.

Registration Raffle Drawing Details:
One entry per a household.
Having multiple players in AYBS programs will not increase your number of entries or chances to win.
You must have a player registered for an AYBS program by 11:59 PM EST on November 30, 2025 to be eligible for drawing.
Random drawing from all eligible entries will be held on or around December 2, 2025.
We will contact the winner directly to notify them.
No purchase necessary. Email president@aybsonline.org and include "Register Today" in the subject line for alternative form of entry.