Warren School Weekly Update

This week began with a significant snowstorm that brought a great deal of snow, resulted in a school cancellation on Monday, and shifted our last day of school to Monday, June 22. While the change in schedule is never ideal, we appreciate everyone’s flexibility and understanding as we work with winter weather in New England.

Tuesday then brought a very different routine for our school community with a two-hour delay and adjusted daily schedules. Some classes walked into school and immediately began with lunch, which certainly made for a unique start to the day. We concluded the day with our January whole-school assembly focused on perseverance. The program began with a presentation from our kindergarten students in Mrs. Nanatovich’s class, followed by Ms. Hanson and Ms. Johnson’s first graders, and concluded with a presentation from Ms. Thorsen’s second graders. Our students did a wonderful job demonstrating confidence, teamwork, and determination as they shared their learning with the entire school.

Some families may be wondering why we have had indoor recess despite the recent snowfall and inviting playground conditions. As a reminder, when the “feels like” temperature (wind chill) drops below 20 degrees, we hold indoor recess to ensure student safety. I do expect temperatures to rise soon, and we look forward to returning outdoors. When we do go outside in snowy conditions, students must have boots and snow pants to access the field and playground areas. Students without boots and snow pants will still enjoy recess on the hardtop area.

We will be holding another Patriots Spirit Day next Friday, February 6. Students and staff are invited to wear red, white, and blue or colors representing their favorite team. With a little luck, we may even have another Patriots Spirit Day if there is an NFL championship parade to celebrate!

Have a great weekend,

Pete

Mrs. Nanatovich's kindergarten class

Ms. Hanson's and Ms. Johnson's first grade classes

Ms. Thorsent's second grade class

Come Cheer on Our Teachers!

Join us for a fun and spirited basketball game as teachers from different schools face off on the court! Bring your family, friends and school pride to cheer on your favorite teachers and show your support. This high-energy event is all about community, sportsmanship and school spirit. Don't miss the chance to see our teachers in action and help make it an unforgettable night! We hope to see you on February 26th at 6PM at Ashland High School for the 2026 Clocker Classic!

MetroWest Food Collaborative

Dear Families,

I want to share a helpful resource: our local partners at the MetroWest Food Collaborative have created an easy-to-use website where food pantries, community meal sites, farmers markets and more are listed for our region. You’ll find flyers and calendars in English, Spanish and Portuguese, and you can search by town to see what’s available. MWFC

Please check it out if you or your family ever need additional support: metrowestfoodcollaborative.org/find-food

Dear Families,

K–2 Reading & Writing – Update

Students returned from winter break eager to learn and share. During January and February, K–2 students continue to grow as readers and writers and are

Kindergarteners are working hard to develop their reading superpowers in the Superpower Unit! In writing students are finishing up writing narrative stories and will be gearing up to write How To books.

💡 At-home ideas:

Check out these videos from The Teachers Table:

To practice sounds and/or sight words try using a RAN chart with your child.
To practice segmenting words try these activities in this video

Practice letter sounds using names of people your child cares about.
Ask your child to draw a picture of a family activity and then write a sentence about it below the picture. Encourage your child to say the sentence and write letters to match the sounds in each word.

First graders are diving into nonfiction reading and writing, learning how to gather information and teach their readers. Students are practicing asking questions, noticing text features, and organizing facts in their writing.

💡 At-home ideas:

Read a nonfiction book and ask your child to share one fact they could teach someone else.
Encourage your child to write a helpful list or note for someone at home.
Look for nonfiction text features (headings, pictures, captions) in books or magazines.

Second graders are enjoying writing realistic fiction stories. They are focusing on characters, feelings, and story structure. In reading, students are thinking deeply about characters’ motivations and how events impact the story.

💡 At-home ideas:

Ask questions while reading:
How is the character feeling? What makes you think that? How do the character’s feelings change?
Talk about favorite characters and what makes them interesting.
Brainstorm story ideas where characters help others or solve problems together.

Thank you for supporting literacy learning at home. We are proud of the growth students are making as readers and writers.

Warm regards,

Kathy Ferrecchia

kferrecchia@ashland.k12.ma.us

Greetings,

Our goal as school nurses is to help keep students healthy so that they can be at school ready to participate and learn. We reinforce hand washing, cough and sneeze etiquette, and spend time with students talking about ways to keep themselves healthy. There are also ways you can help keep your child as healthy as possible.

Please have your child dress appropriately for the weather. Even during the winter and cold months all students go outside for recess for fresh air and exercise. The exception is extreme cold. When it is 20 degrees or less, with or without wind chill, the children will have indoor recess. For outdoor recess, your child will need a coat, hat, and gloves or mittens. Snow pants and boots are needed when snow is on the ground.

Nutrition is very important in keeping healthy. Have your child start the day with a nutritious breakfast and bring a healthy snack to school. Drinking lots of water during the day keeps their bodies hydrated and cuts down on headaches and stuffy noses.

Getting adequate rest is important. When one is tired and not well rested, it is much harder to learn and participate in school.

Colds are a nuisance. Runny noses, coughs, and generally feeling lousy makes all of us uncomfortable. Having a cold, though, does not necessarily mean your child must stay home. But if your child has a low grade fever, or a productive, frequent cough, and is easily fatigued, it is suggested he or she stays home and get the rest needed.

Children should remain home if they have a temperature above 100 degrees. If your child has a temperature of 100.0 or higher at school, he/she will be sent home. They can return to school once they are fever-free for 24 hours WITHOUT the use of tylenol or ibuprofen.

The same goes for vomiting and diarrhea. Your child should be without vomiting or diarrhea for 24 hours before returning to school.

If your child has been diagnosed with strep throat, he/she must be on medication for 24 hours before returning to school. Please inform the school nurse of strep or any other contagious condition.

The above guidelines protect other children from coming in contact with germs and also prevents your child from returning to school too soon after recovering from an illness.

You know your child best, but please never hesitate to call the school nurse with any questions or concerns. (508) 532-8065 or (508) 532-8091

Thank you,

Phylis Bhandari RN

Jennifer Tracy RN

Warren School's Social Emotional Learning Update:

Hello Families,

This month we are learning about PERSEVERANCE.

We have defined perseverance as: not giving up on something, even if it gets hard.

Here are some things you can do to help your child build perseverance:

Share real life stories about how your child has shown perseverance, learning to walk, ride a bike, play a sport…
Talk about it with them. Brainstorm strategies they can use when they get stuck.
Help your child set goals they would like to achieve. Talk about the steps they could take to help them meet that goal.
When reading or watching a movie point out times characters show perseverance.
Praise them when you see them working hard and being persistent.

Books about perseverance:

Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty
Emmanuel’s Dream: The True Story by Laurie Ann Thompson
Amazing Grace by Caroline Binch & Mary Hoffman
Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall
A Chair for My Mother by Vera Williams
Brave Irene by William Steig

Warren School’s SEL Team

pdf

insert_drive_file

January Warren Menu SY2526.pdf

Download

250.5 KB

Check out what our Nutrition Services department is serving up for Warren students in January! Menu items are subject to change without notice, based on current supply chain issues or other factors. If dietary concerns are an issue, please contact us.

To view a translated version of the menu, please visit ashland.k12.ma.us/Nutrition.

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Happy New Year! As we kick off 2026, we are thrilled to share our January menu, featuring this

month’s Massachusetts Harvest of the Month: Apples!

Apples are a versatile and delicious fruit that will shine in our meals throughout January. Grown

right here in Massachusetts, these apples are packed with dietary fiber, vitamin C, and powerful

antioxidants. This month, we’re excited to offer dishes that showcase their wonderful flavor,

including Apple Cinnamon Compote, Barley & Apple Salad, Apple Cinnamon Cornbread and

Roasted Sweet Potatoes; Apples. For more information on the health benefits of apples and fun

recipe ideas, we encourage you to visit Massachusetts Harvest of the Month

At Ashland Public Schools, we’re committed to providing fresh, locally sourced produce,

supporting our local farmers, and ensuring that every meal we serve offers the highest nutritional

quality. We hope you’ll join us in celebrating apples by incorporating them into your meals at

home!

Thank you for your continued support and for entrusting us with your children’s nutrition and

well-being. Here’s to a healthy and delicious start to the new year!

Warm regards,

Regina Wilkinson

Director of Nutrition Services

Ashland Public Schools

Email: rwilkinson@ashland.k12.ma.us

Phone: 508-881-0165

January 31: Incoming Kindergarten Registration 9:00 am to 12:00 pm in the Warren School library
February 4: Drop Everything and Play
February 6: Patriots Day, wear Red White and Blue or your favorite team's colors
February 16-20: No School, February Vacation
February 23: Wear Comfy Clothes Day
Febrary 27: Whole School Assembly, wear BLUE for Ashland pride
March 18: Literacy Night
March 20: No School in observance of Eid at Fitr
March 24/25/26: Early Release at 12:00 for Parent Teacher Conferences. Lunch will not be served.

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.