News From The Nest: Issue #3

Hello Elm Street School Families and Friends!

We had a great first full week at the Nest! Students in kindergarten through grade 5 continued to build and work on their school stamina while also solidifying their understanding of the routines and expectations of all their learning spaces. Across classrooms students completed beginning of the year assessments in reading, writing, and math that provide our educators baseline data that will help inform instructional decisions as we begin to move away from beginning of the year review and layer in more complex academic tasks and skill building in the coming weeks and months. On Thursday students brought their best smiles to our fall school picture day (You can still order pictures online at https://inter-state.com/FlyerEntry Our school code is 0674KPF) and enjoyed Physical Education classes fully outdoors taking advantage of the lingering warmer weather. Friday was our first early release day where educators used the time to analyze beginning of the year writing samples and set concrete measurable goals for students paired with instructional action plans.

In this edition of our newsletter you will find more information about:

upcoming dates and celebrations for September
Counseling Corner: September/October Counseling Newsletter (separation anxiety, social emotional learning lessons preview)
Elm Curriculum Night
Math Corner
Career Day Volunteers Needed!
PAC Grant Cycle and Application
E-Bike Awareness and Expectations
Walpole Wednesdays
Arrival and Dismissal Protocols and Procedures
Private Music Lesson Through WPS Music Department
2026 - 2027 School Calendar
Lunch Menus
Walpole Virtual Backpack (community notices)

I am looking forward to seeing all of our Elm parents and adult caregivers at our Curriculum Night this coming Wednesday from 6:00 - 7:30p. Parking for this evening will be tight so please consider carpooling with neighbors and/or friends. Have a great weekend and we will see all of our Eagles back at the Nest on Monday!

Jen

Upcoming Dates: September

At the beginning of each month I will share a calendar of some upcoming Elm events as well as upcoming cultural celebrations and heritage months with hyperlinks to more information if you are interested in learning more. Below is information for September.

If there are cultural celebrations that are important to you and your family that you would like to share with the adult Elm community, please email me so I can be sure to include them in upcoming newsletters. If you have any questions about anything you see on our calendar, please don't hesitate to reach out to me directly.

September

9/2 First Day of School (Grades 1-5), RESCHEDULED 6:00p Kindergarten Popsicles
9/3 Kindergarten Visit Day
9/4 SCHOOL CLOSED
9/7 SCHOOL CLOSED, Labor Day
9/8 First Day of School (PreK and K)
9/10 6:00p "Ice Cream" Social for all K-5 students and families
9/11 Anniversary of 9/11
9/11 - 9/13 Rosh Hashanah
9/15 First Day of Hispanic Heritage Month
9/16 7:00p Elm PAC meeting
9/17 Elm Fall Picture Day, 6:45p School Committee Meeting
9/18 EARLY RELEASE DAY (12:25 dismissal)
9/21 International Day of Peace
9/23 Elm Curriculum Night
9/29 3:45p Elm School Council meeting

Elm Curriculum Night

We are so excited to welcome our families to this year's Elm Curriculum Night on Wednesday, September 23rd from 6:00 - 7:30p The Open Houses/Curriculum Nights at all of the Walpole Elementary Schools are for parents and adult caregivers only. Students, other family members, and guests should not attend.

Curriculum Night is a great way for parents and caregivers to learn more about the day to day experience for your child(ren) here at Elm. Our educators will be sharing curriculum expectations along with information specific to the classroom and there will be a whole school presentation about general expectations and community experiences at Elm. Parents and caregivers may also have time to ask general questions. Any questions specific to your child(ren) should be reserved for a more confidential setting such as the fall educator/caregiver conferences in November or at a separately scheduled time.

In addition to seeing your child(ren)'s classroom teacher(s), please stop by to see our essentialists and specialists in their spaces to learn more about their curriculum. Our essentialists and specialists are listed below:

Art: Ms. Fundinger
Music: Ms. Gopalakrishnan
PE: Mr. Iadarola
STEM: Mrs. Edwards
School Counselors: Mrs. Dore, Ms. Songin, and Mrs. Escobar (Partnership)
Literacy Specialists: Mrs. Cook and Ms. Morasse
Multilingual Learners: Ms. Sarkis
Math Specialist: Mrs. Ledbetter
Speech and Language: Mrs. Lynch
Special Education: Mrs. Lancaster, Ms. Disharoon, Mrs. Triest, Ms. O'Shaughnessy, Mr. Levesque, and Mrs. Loynd

For more information and the schedule of Curriculum Night at Elm, please see the separate email that was shared with all families.

Math Corner

Welcome to the Math Corner of the Weekly S’more! Each month, I will use this space to share helpful tips, family-friendly resources, fun activities, and math insights from across our elementary schools in Walpole.

I’m Heidi Ledbetter, the Math Specialist at Elm. I am new to Walpole Public Schools this year. Elementary math instruction is my passion, and I have been teaching and/or working with teachers on math curriculum for the past 18 years. I live with my family in Walpole, and I am looking forward to working alongside our students, teachers, and families to build confidence, curiosity, and—most importantly—a love of math!

Have a math question? Wondering how to support your child at home? Is there a particular math topic you’d like to learn more about? Reach out and let me know! I would love to hear from you, and I’ll do my best to feature your questions and ideas in a future edition of the Math Corner.

After all, math is more fun when we solve it together!

Your Family Math Hub

I want to take this time to share our Math Family Website. Think of it as your one-stop shop for all things elementary math in Walpole. It’s packed with resources to help families understand and support the mathematics happening in our classrooms.

For Parents & Caregivers

You’ll find helpful information and resources about:

For Students

Students can quickly access some of their favorite math tools and resources, including:

We’re Off to a GREAT Start!

Our school year is already off to a strong mathematical start, and students are multiplying their opportunities to learn every day!

Solving puzzles with JiJi in ST Math
Discovering new patterns in their Number Corner Calendar Grids
Building fact fluency with Math Fact Lab
Learning and strategizing through new Work Place Games
Exploring, thinking, and problem-solving through their Bridges investigation lessons

There is already a whole lot of math adding up in our classrooms!

We’re excited for a year filled with wondering, exploring, problem-solving, perseverance, and plenty of “Aha!” moments.

So let’s add some fun, subtract some frustration, multiply our learning, and divide our excitement!

It’s going to be a mathematically marvelous year—and that’s no exaggeration!

Stay tuned for more Math Corner fun. We promise it will all add up! 😄

Career Day Volunteers Needed!

We are excited to announce that we are planning a Career Day for our students in grades 3–5! This is a wonderful opportunity to inspire our young learners by showcasing the diverse careers and professions represented in our community.

We are looking for volunteers from all types of careers and professions. Examples may include (but are not limited to) automotive technicians, firefighters, EMTs/paramedics, graphic designers, hair stylists, healthcare workers, engineers, educators, landscapers, contractors, and more!

You are welcome to participate even if your child is not currently in grades 3–5.

If you are interested in volunteering, please complete the form below. At this time, we are simply gathering interest as we continue planning. Participant spots will be limited, and additional details will be shared with selected volunteers.

Please submit this form by October 19, 2026 at 3:00 PM.

Thank you for considering this wonderful opportunity to support our students' learning and growth!

PAC Grant Cycle and Application

PAC is pleased to announce an exciting opportunity to support student learning and experience for our Elm Street Eagles! Due to the robust fundraising of the past few years, we are in a position to support innovative projects brought to us by the community. We invite teachers, parents, and even students to apply for a grant to support their ideas. While not at all limited to this list, ideas could include….materials, equipment or books to support a new learning experience or funds for a celebration of learning or event in a certain class/team or subject area. We are asking that anyone who would like to apply for a grant fill out the form below and present their idea at the October 15th PAC meeting for consideration. We will vote on which projects we can fund based on budget and student benefit. If we continue to successfully raise funds at our fall and winter events, we will have another grant cycle in the spring to support more exciting projects at Elm!

PAC Grant Application

E-Bike Awareness and Expectations

We want to highlight the growing presence of electric bikes and electric scooters and remind students to exercise caution and remain alert for cars, noting that the speed of these bikes and scooters can be unexpected for drivers. Increased awareness is essential—both for students using them and for drivers adjusting to their presence on the roads. Even though Elm School does not allow students to bicycle to school because of the lack of sidewalks, the expectation at the other elementary schools and middle school is that students who ride electric bicycles (e-bikes) to school must use pedal mode only while on school property. The electric motor (throttle and/or electric assist) must be turned off upon entering school grounds and remain off until the student has exited school property.

Arrival and Dismissal Protocols and Procedures

Notifications Protocol

We will continue to utilize our Elm Student Notification Form, to report absences, late arrivals, and changes to dismissal plans. You can also find the link to the form on the main page of our website by using the button labeled "ATTENDANCE"

For ABSENCES and TARDIES, we ask that families do their best to complete this form as soon as possible in order to communicate with the main office. You will no longer need to leave messages on the Elm attendance line.
For EARLY DISMISSALS and CHANGES TO DISMISSAL PLANS, we ask that families complete this form no later than 2:00p when the form will be locked. This will minimize our front office staff calling and interrupting instruction. If there is an URGENT change in dismissal plans that occurs after 2:00p, families must call the main office to communicate the change.
If families are reporting absences, tardies, early dismissals, and/or changes to dismissal plans for multiple students at the same time, please complete the form separately for each student.

By notifying our team in advance and centralizing information in one online platform we will be able to avoid interrupting instruction and avoid confusion and errors during dismissal.

Arrival Procedure

At Elm Street School, students who ride the bus arrive at the first circle parallel to Rt.27. They are supervised by staff as they walk along the sidewalk to enter the main building of the school. The procedures for arrival and dismissal as listed below pertain to parents, caregivers, and other private drivers who transport children to school.

Students may be dropped off in the Main Arrival Loop ONLY. This is the loop by the main door, near the flagpole. Dropping off students by the Rt. 27 driveway is not safe and is prohibited.
Follow the directions of the staff people “on duty”.
Upon arrival, drivers should turn right and thread through the parking lot. The first car must pull around the loop as far as the stop sign by the preschool playground. This will allow the maximum number of students to disembark onto sidewalks simultaneously.
Instruct child/ren to disembark only from the sidewalk side of vehicle to avoid the danger of crossing between cars in the roadway. Exiting vehicles on the driver's side is strictly prohibited.
Drivers must prepare students to be ready to exit vehicles immediately upon arrival. If a student is not ready, the driver will be instructed to go around the loop again.
Drivers should be ready to follow a staff member’s signal to exit the loop following the vehicle ahead, once students have disembarked. Do NOT pull around and pass the vehicle in front of you.
Do NOT attempt to park in the loop during arrival. If, for any reason you would like to accompany your child into the building (or help carry materials) please park in the 15 minute parking area near the Preschool Playground.
Do NOT drop off students without pulling into the main arrival loop.
If a child is having difficulty separating at arrival, the driver will be instructed to pull into a spot close to the building or in one of the PreSchool visitor spots. Staff will then assist in making the transition.

Dismissal Procedure

Students being picked up by parents/caregivers/car pools will be dismissed to the main office lobby. They will be grouped by order of arrival in the main lobby. Carpoolers should stand with the driver’s child.
Parents/car pools will thread through the parking lot, then into the loop by the main door.
Anyone picking up students may NOT come into the building.
One staff member with outside duty will use an online reporting system to alert the team inside of the order for dismissal. Those students will then be sent outside in groups of 10 vehicles.
Staff on duty outside will ensure that students enter the correct vehicle.
It is essential to keep traffic flowing. Parents/caregivers must not engage staff or other parents/caregivers in conversation during dismissal.
If a parent/caregivers is in the building (for example, as a volunteer) and wants to take their child with them, they must stop at the office before exiting the building with their child.
All vehicles must stay in the line until the car in front of them moves. Pulling out and passing the vehicle ahead of you is PROHIBITED.
If a child is not ready when they are called, the parent/caregiver will be asked to park at the preschool 15 minute parking area and wait. A staff member will accompany the student to the car.
Student safety is our first concern. If you have concerns during dismissal, please get the attention of a staff member on duty to assist you. Please do not get out of your vehicle or move your vehicle out of the line unless instructed to do so by a staff member.
Students who take a bus home will be dismissed from their classroom when their bus is called over the PA system.
All students who take a bus must have a bus pass.
Students and drivers must always follow the instructions of the staff members on duty.

Private Music Lessons Through WPS Music Department

The Walpole Public Schools Music Department is pleased to announce the fall session for our Private Lesson Program for students in grades 4 - 12. If your child is interested in taking private instrument or voice lessons, here is your chance. Lessons are offered in flute, oboe, clarinet, bass clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, baritone horn, tuba, piano, percussion, violin, viola, cello, guitar and voice. All lessons are taught by accomplished performers on their respective instruments.

Session 1 will run September 21 to January 29. Registration is open until Wednesday, September 16th.

For more information and to register, visit:

https://sites.google.com/walpole.k12.ma.us/wpsmusic/private-lesson-program/overview

For questions, email:

Tim Fleming (K-12 Music Coordinator) at tfleming@walpole.k12.ma.us

News From The Nest: Issue #3