Fisher Family Update

Dear Fisher Families,

We have one more week until the winter break and the excitement is mounting at Fisher School! Please see below for a "Spirit Week" update and be sure to check your emails and backpacks for information and updates from your student's classroom teacher. Next Friday, December 23rd is a FULL DAY of school for all WPS students. Fisher dismissal will be at its usual time of 3:25.

I hope you all enjoy the weekend,

Brian

December

23 Full Day of school

26 Winter Recess Begins

January

3 Classes resume

13 No School - Professional Developement

16 No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

We have planned a "Funday" for our students on Friday, December 23rd. On the schedule for this day will be a dance party with a DJ, schoolwide BINGO and a winter holiday Sing-A-Long with none other than our own Mr. Holmes! Since our day is going to be different we were hoping you could help us make snack look a little different too. Please plan on packing a special snack for your student on 12/23. The snack could include some of their favorite fruits, vegetables, chips or cookies along with a drink (no soda and no glass containers please) in a fun and festive bag. A decorated brown bag will do! Please remember that we are a peanut safe school and to check in with your child's teacher if you have any questions. Thank you for your help and we look forward to a very Funday on Friday (12/23)!

I am happy to announce that Samuel M in grade 3 has been selected by Artsonia to be their Artist of the Week! Artsonia is the world's largest collection of student art, published by teachers and students from around the world. The "Artist of the Week" program is a weekly contest that highlights new artwork from four different grade categories. During the contest, Sam received 668 votes from website visitors and is one of 4 students from various states to be recognized for creating the most popular artwork on Artsonia. He has been awarded a plaque with his artwork displayed on the front as well as a gift certificate. His composition is a pastel pumpkin patch landscape. Congratulations on your hard work Sam!

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

If you have any boots, snow pants or jackets for donation, please bring them to main entrance of the school and we will get them to students in need. You could also have your student bring donations to school.

Our new Bridges Math Curriculum has interesting and fun family math activities that support concepts presented at school. Visit this direct link to Bridges’ Math At Home, which is also linked by buttons on our Family Math website's Student main page and Parent main page to engage in these fun, developmentally appropriate activities for each grade level.

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

Walpole Fire Department firefighter Peter Armstrong came to Fisher to teach our K-2 students about fire safety. During the presentation, Mrs. McMillan put on all the gear and a student demonstrated "stop, drop, and roll". Big thank you to WFD!

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