South Row's Home Link

Hello everyone,

This week at our Student Grade Level meetings we share the story "Wilma Jean the Worry Machine" with students. "Wilma Jean the Worry Machine" by Julia Cook is a children's book that uses humor to help kids manage anxiety by teaching them to differentiate between worries they can control and those they can't, and what to do about each. The story follows Wilma Jean, who worries about everything, as her teacher helps her learn coping strategies, including using a "worry hat" to contain her worries. Students were highly engaged in both the story and topic and shared some of their own worries and strategies.

Grade 3 students worked hard on their first MCAS assessments this week showing that South Row dedication and perseverance. Our grade 4 students will be taking the MCAS next Tuesday and Wednesday. Classroom teachers and our Technology Integration Specialist have been preparing students all year to do their best on the assessment.

Respectfully,

Terri and Jayson

Monday, April 13th

• No events

Tuesday, April 14th

• MCAS - ELA (Grade 4)

Wednesday, April 15th

• MCAS - ELA (Grade 4)

Thursday, April 16th

• Theme Song Thursday

Friday, April 17th

• No events

Monday- April 20th - Friday, April 24th

• April School Vacation - No School

Tuesday, April 28th

• Grade 3 and 4 SEL Survey
• Try it Tuesday

Thursday, April 30th

• PTO Basket Wrapping in Cafeteria

Friday, May 1st

• PTO Basket Wrapping in Cafeteria

Monday, May 4th

• Happy Teachers and Staff Appreciation Week!
• Student Grade Level Meetings w/Mrs. Gilbert & Dr. Ramalho
• Kindness Matters Day
• Gr. 4 Student Council, 3:30-4:15pm
• School Council, 5:30pm, Conference Room
• PTO Board, 6:30pm, Conference Room
• PTO Meeting, 7:00pm, Lab

Tuesday, May 5th

• Grade 1 Zoo New England Enrichment Program (Bullock/Costello)
• Grade 2 Origami Enrichment Program (all classes)

Wednesday, May 6th

• Grade 3 Math MCAS
• Grade 1 Zoo New England Enrichment Program (Frasca/Hicks)
• Incoming Kindergarten Orientation, 6:00pm, Cafeteria

Thursday, May 7th

• Grade 3 Math MCAS

Friday, May 8th

• School Spirit Day - Beach Day!

Tuesday, May 12th

• Gr. 3 Field Trip to Concord Museum

Wednesday, May 13th

• Grade 4 Math MCAS

Thursday, May 14th

• Grade 4 Math MCAS
• Art Show

Saturday, May 16th

• Sunshine Dance/Basket Raffle, 6-8pm

Monday, May 18th

• Incoming Kindergarten Screening

Tuesday, May 19th

• Incoming Kindergarten Screening

Wednesday, May 20th

• Grade 3 Engineering Day
• Kindergarten Discovery Museum (Lights and Colors) Enrichment Program

Thursday, May 21st

• Theme Song Thursday

Friday, May 22nd

• Spirit Day: Chelmsford/South Row

Monday, May 25th

• No School - Memorial Day

Thursday, May 26th

• Unified Games Day (District)

ELA - 4/8 and 4/9 (grade 3)

ELA - 4/14 and 4/15 (grade 4)

Makeup will be ongoing through the 17th

Math - 5/6 and 5/7 (grade 3)

Math - 5/13 and 5/14 (grade 4)

Makeups will be ongoing through the 22nd

Family Resources: Please use the Family Resources link to fill out our form if your family would benefit from assistance. We offer a variety of resources throughout the year.

Volunteer Reminders: Thank you for taking the time to support our school! To keep everyone safe and ensure your volunteer experience runs smoothly for you, our students, and staff, here are a few important reminders:

• Please sign in at the office first when you arrive, then obtain a visitor badge from the kiosk.

• Please remember to have your license with you when you check in at the main office kiosk upon arrival. Your license is required to check in and obtain a visitor badge to proceed to your designated location within our building.

• Our staff will direct you to your volunteer location, and the teachers will assist you in the space to get you acclimated.

• Head straight to your assigned area and focus on your volunteer tasks and activities there.

• Please stay in your volunteer location throughout your visit rather than moving throughout the building. This helps us keep track of all adults on campus for everyone's safety.

• Please remember student confidentiality in your role as a volunteer in our building.

• Please do not take pictures of students while working with them and/or post pictures on social media.

• For the safety of all students, please don't check in with other children or staff outside your assigned volunteer role, and avoid the cafeteria and recess areas.

• At the end of your volunteering time slot, please report directly to the office to sign out before you leave. Please avoid visits to other locations and take the most direct path to the office.

We're so grateful for your support. These guidelines help us maintain a secure environment for everyone while making the most of your generous time. If you have any questions, our office staff is always happy to help!

As we all enjoy more time outside (finally!) I wanted to send some sun protection information:

Sunscreen tips:

• Choose a broad spectrum coverage ideally SPF30 or above. Mineral sunscreen is usually best for individuals with sensitive skin. There is limited data that sunscreen above SPF 50 provides more protection.

• Put sunscreen on 15-30 minutes before going outdoors and reapply every 2 hours.

Other sun safety tips:

• Sunburns can happen even on cloudy days as most of the UV rays can pass through the clouds! UV rays can also bounce back from surfaces (water, sand, snow and concrete).

• Wearing protective clothing is another great option to protect skin from UV damage. The UPF rating on clothing can help you identify clothing that protects skin best (a rating of UPF 50 fabric blocks 98 percent of the sun’s rays).

For more information about sun safety: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/safety-prevention/at-play/Pages/Sun-Safety.aspx

Spring Allergy Season
Spring is here!! If your child experiences seasonal allergy symptoms such as sneezing, itchy eyes, nasal congestion, or coughing, Please contact your child’s pediatrician or allergist to discuss when to begin seasonal allergy medications.

Many providers recommend starting medications before pollen counts begin to rise, which can help reduce symptoms once the season begins.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss your child’s health needs, please feel free to reach out.

Respectfully,

Nurse Martin

Planning for the 2026 Annual Basket Raffle has already begun!

On Saturday, May 16th, South Row PTO will be hosting our 4th Annual Sunshine Dance! Along with this fun event, we will be holding our 22nd Annual Basket Raffle. Each class will have a themed basket to showcase during the dance. These are no ordinary baskets; they are GINORMOUS baskets and are a beloved South Row fundraising tradition!

In order to make this a smooth and successful fundraiser, we are looking for volunteers to coordinate donation collection for each classroom and to wrap baskets before the event. For more details and to sign up to volunteer, please sign up using the SignUp Genius linked HERE.

Baskets will be on display a few days before and during the Sunshine Dance! More information about the Sunshine Dance and raffle ticket sales will be shared in the coming weeks.

We are also looking for people to join the Sunshine Dance and Basket Raffle Committees and to shadow our planning processes this year so that this beloved event can continue for years to come. The Sunshine Dance is fun for the whole family and the baskets are a fantastic fundraiser for our amazing South Row School!

If you have any questions about volunteering or joining a committee, please reach out to Ashley Cakounes or Michelle Fearon at southrowptobasketraffle@gmail.com.

What a WONDERFUL event the Multicultural Festival was! So many families and cultures represented, delicious treats from around the world, and engaged kids sharing about their cultures! A multitude of performances were showcased and the audience was blown away! We hope to see you at next year's event!

Thank you to all who participated in the Dine-to-Donate event at Zesty's on Tuesday. Zesty's is always a treat - who doesn't love a takeout dinner during the week?? Many faces were seen dining in or picking up takeout, so from the PTO - THANK YOU! We expect to hear more about the giveback amount in the next week or so, so stay tuned!

We're looking for President/Co-president, Vice-President/Co-VP, and Secretary/Co-secretary positions for the 2026-2027 year.

-Ashley, Sarah, Beth, and Courtney

PTO Board 2025-2026

2026-2027 PTO Executive Board Needs YOU!

Our current board has reached term limits and would love to welcome in some new Board members to help take over the reins! Many of us are still around for another year or two, so there will be plenty of people to reach out to for questions. The current board is willing to co-chair each position, to allow for transfer of information. Email us at southrowpto@gmail.com or grab our ear after the in person PTO meeting Monday night. We'd love to chat and address any concerns you might have! :)

If you are also interested in joining the Basket Raffle Committee and would like to learn more about the behind-the-scenes planning process, please let us know. Additional people would make it possible for us to create sub-committees (similar to the Pumpkin Fair) so we can divide and conquer more easily! This event lends itself to teams such as classroom volunteer coordination, donation collection, basket wrapping, presale ticketing, and day-of-event organizing. We’d love to have a few extra hands to be sure the Basket Raffle can continue once our kiddos move on from South Row.

Contact southrowptobasketraffle@gmail.com for more information!

Ever wondered what goes into making our South Row PTO events happen? Want to help out, but aren't sure where to start? We're currently looking for shadows for each of our upcoming events as parents will be moving up with their children.

Right now, we're still looking for shadows for:

- Scholastic Book Fair (for next year's fair)

- Basket Raffle

- Sunshine Dance

- Staff Appreciation Luncheon

We'd love to share what we know to keep these South Row School traditions alive for years to come! Interested in learning more about an event? Email us at southrowpto@gmail.com or chat with a Board member today! We'd love to have you!

Know a graduating senior this year? South Row PTO offers a $1,000 scholarship to a former South Row Elementary School student every year. Please pass this information along to any seniors you may know who once attended South Row! Interested applicants must apply by Wednesday, April 15th, 2026. Scholarship Application

We’re happy to share that our school is automatically re-enrolled in the Hannaford Helps Schools program! The 2026 program will run from April 5 through May 30. During this time, our community can support our school by shopping for specially marked items. For every 4 participating products purchased, shoppers earn 3 School Dollars. At checkout, customers receive a School Dollar printout that they can redeem online and direct funds to our school.

Using Hannaford To Go? With Hannaford To Go, School Dollars are not provided at pickup. Instead, about a week into May and again a week into June, Hannaford will email you a unique code reflecting the total School Dollars you earned in the previous month from qualifying purchases.

To redeem School Dollars, simply enter the unique printout code and store number on the Hannaford Helps Schools website or app, then select our school. Each School Dollar printout also includes a QR code linking directly to the website, making it quick and easy to redeem School Dollars.

Not sure what the PTO is? What are we here for? Join us for our next meeting so hear a bit of what's going on. Find out how our Board helps make all the enrichments and programs at South Row run smoothly!

Add our PTO event calendar, meeting schedule, and the CPS district calendars to keep it all on the go!

Add the PTO Events Calendar

Add the PTO Meeting Schedule

Add CPS District Dates

We will be offering a virtual option for those that would like to join the monthly PTO meeting but can't make it in person. Please use this link to join the meeting virtually.

Please click on the "button" below to access resources and supports available. Do not hesitate to reach out to any support team member with any questions you may have.

**Please note: We continuously update the button below with new resources as they arise.

This section is comprised of the following items pertaining to food services

• Website
• Breakfast Information
• Tentative Breakfast/Lunch Menus

Mrs. Terri Gilbert

Principal

gilbertt@chelmsford.k12.ma.us

Dr. Jayson A. Ramalho

Assistant Principal

ramalhoj@chelmsford.k12.ma.us

Email: gilbertt@chelmsford.k12.ma.us
Website: https://www.chelmsford.k12.ma.us/Domain/15
Location: 250 Boston Road, Chelmsford, MA, USA
Phone: 978-251-5177
Facebook: facebook.com/SouthRowElementary
Twitter: @CPSSouthRow

• Mrs. Terri Gilbert, Principal: gilbertt@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177 ext. 4
• Dr. Jayson A. Ramalho, Assistant Principal: ramalhoj@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177 ext. 3
• Mrs. Heather Martin, School Nurse: martinh@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177, ext.2
• Mrs. Debbie O'Neill, Secretary: oneilld@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177, ext. 0
• Mrs. Kim Sepe, School Clerk: sepek@chelmsford.k12.ma.us, 978-251-5177, ext.0
• Absentee Line: 978-251-5177 ext. 1