GMRSD Family Engagement
"Challenging and Supporting Every Student"
Student Services & Family Engagement Office Updates May 2026
Teacher Appreciation Week May 4-May 8, 2026
We appreciate our truly dedicated and hard working teachers, educational support staff, and specialists each and every day. Undoubtedly, they make the difference in the lives of students and offer inspiration that is carried forward into the future.
Teacher appreciation week is a wonderful opportunity to further celebrate the contributions of our amazing educators. We welcome parents, caregivers, and school support/ friends groups to join us in appreciating the many ways that our educators are going above and beyond to provide high quality instruction and positive learning experiences for every student, every day.
We encourage families to share a personal note or email, to your student's teachers to let them know how they are appreciated or to join in activities being planned by the respective schools Friends/ PTO groups.
Family Fun & Tools to Build Children's Sensory Regulation
GoZen offers some free resources for families to utilize to help promote children's sensory regulation, resilience, and mindful reflection skills. The linked sensory tracker is a tool to help build children's awareness of activity in their bodies when faced with a sensory response that may be overstimulating to them. As children become "Sensory Detectives" they can learn to better regulate the sensory responses within their bodies.
In addition, GoZen has offered a free Nature Challenge that we would like to share with families. The challenge can be as simple as a 3 day, 12 day, or 30 day challenge, that combines building awareness of your senses with being outside, making observations and guided discoveries.
We encourage participation in this challenge for elementary school students as part of our ongoing efforts to promote family engagement and spending quality time together. If you need print copies of the challenge worksheets, please let ask at your child' school for them to print you a copy.
Scholarship Opportunity for Youth Who Have Experienced Homelessness
We have posted this at our school guidance office but wanted to also send it out families within our community. The deadline to apply is June 2nd, 2026, at 11:59 pm (Pacific Time).
SchoolHouse Connection’s Youth Leadership and Scholarship Program
$2500 Scholarship and Monthly Stipends of up to $100 Throughout College
One-on-One Support from Staff and a National Peer Support Network
All-Expenses-Paid Awards Trip to Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida
All-Expenses-Paid Advocacy Trip to Washington, DC
All-Expenses-Paid Retreat Trip Focused on Wellness and Workforce Success
Opportunities to Engage in Local, State, and National Advocacy Work
Who Can Apply? (Eligibility Requirements)
You currently reside in the United States. (Undocumented applicants are eligible.)
You were born on or after June 2, 2007.
You will be starting college (not including dual enrollment courses) for the first time in the 2027–2028 academic year at a four-year college or university, community college, or trade school. This includes:
High school juniors
High school seniors planning to take a gap year
Students earning a GED who plan to start college in 2027–2028
You have experienced homelessness within the last six years.
Our program begins working with students one year before they start college to provide intensive college readiness support.
Application Components:
Eligibility, Demographic, and Education Questions
High School Transcript (Unofficial or Official)
Essay (up to 1,000 words) answering all three prompts:
Describe your experience of homelessness and how it impacted your education
Why do you want to pursue college?
What types of support do you need to be successful in college?
Letter(s) of Recommendation
At least one, and up to three
Letters can be uploaded with your application or submitted directly by your recommender here.
For more information and to apply, please visit this link:
Mark Your Calendar! Elementary Science Night is Coming Soon!
Our Science Night will highlight Gill Elementary's Nature Trail and outside gardens. This is an opportunity for students and their caregivers to work together to solve problems, perform experiments, and learn about conservation efforts. Join us in making your own paper, constructing a Rube Goldberg Machine, and more! We look forward to welcoming all district students!
Autism Acceptance & Ways Families Can Support Neurodivergent Children
Autism Resources for Families
April is Autism Awareness Month. Somehow we missed promoting this in our last newsletter but it's not to late to send out this message in the early edition of our May newsletter.
How parents can support neurodivergent kids at school
One way parents can support their neurodivergent kids is to create an “About Me” (sample linked) letter of introduction. Teachers can benefit from asking parents of neurodivergent kids (and all kids in their classroom) to provide such a letter ahead of the beginning of school.
Some things a parent might include would be:
- What are things their child is very good at (academically and otherwise)?
- What things are more difficult for their child?
- How does their child show stress? What behaviors should teachers look out for?
- When their child is stressed or frustrated, what’s the best way to approach them?
- Does the child use a behavioral support program at home? For example, how do they earn screen time?
An “About Me” letter is a great way for parents and teachers to start working together to help their neurodivergent students thrive. Once that bridge has been established, parents and teachers can keep a conversation going about what’s happening at school and home. That kind of ongoing communication ensures that every neurodivergent kid in a class gets the type of individualized attention they need to thrive at school.*
General Resources:
The Department of Mental Health: Services for Individuals with ASD and Mental Illness (from the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health)
MassDOT Visits Gill School
This December students in the elementary schools learned about snow plows and explored the different related arts classes. During this time each class created, voted on, and entered into the MassDOT "Name a Snowplow Contest."
Our very own Gill Elementary School 6th grade won with the name "Thaw Patrol!" On Friday, April 10th they were awarded a plaque with the name, and a visit from the snowplow. We are so proud of them!
Learn More: MA State Weighs Social Media & Cell Phone Ban
The Massachusetts House of Representatives is set to vote on a bill that would ban social media for kids under 14 in the state, while also prohibiting cell phone use during the school day.
House Speaker Ron Mariano and Ways and Means Committee Chair Aaron Michlewitz said the youth social media ban "would be among the most restrictive in the entire country."
"The simple reality is that Massachusetts must do more to ensure that our laws keep pace with modern challenges – especially when it comes to protecting our children, and to setting students up for success in the classroom and beyond," the Democratic lawmakers said in a statement.
Social media ban bill in Massachusetts.
The legislation instructs social media companies to ban minors under 14 from using their platforms. It also requires 14-and-15-year-olds to get verifiable permission from their parents before using social media. There would be no restrictions on social media use for those 16 and older.
Excerpted from: https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/massachusetts-youth-social-media-ban-phones-schools/
Related Article:
Pediatrician Salima Kerai explains that teenagers are especially vulnerable to social media because their developing brains are highly sensitive to dopamine-driven reward pathways, which can be overstimulated in ways similar to addictive behaviors like gambling. This risk is heightened by an underdeveloped prefrontal cortex, impairing judgment and impulse control, and may contribute to mental health issues such as depression and anxiety
Full Story: The Conversation (4/2)
Friends of Special Education (SEPAC) & More!
The group will next meet on May 19, 2026, from 4:00 to 5:00 pm. Please look for the meeting link, in your email, if you are a parent/caregiver of a child identified as having a disability requiring special education services or a child who is currently being referred for evaluation.
Thank you to the Friends of Special Education and our co-sponsor the Community Action Family Center for their support of our Parent/Caregiver Make & Take event held on March 31st.
In addition to creating three ring binders to hold important student records (IEP, progress reports, evaluations, and grade reports among other educational items), an electronic portfolio was also offered for families to use. Linked here is a copy of a Digital Learning Portfolio and directions on the use of setting up a free google account for organizing educational communications and records.
Equitable Services Meeting Dates and Information
The district holds three meetings per year and invites stakeholders (private and home school families) to these "Equitable Services Consultation" meetings to determine priority use of these limited funds.
Examples of how these funds have been used in the past?
Instructional enrichment
Materials
Student specific & small group instruction
Tutoring
This year meetings will be held on the following dates and times:
- Thursday, March 5, from 4:00-5:00 PM
- Thursday, April 2, from 4:00-5:00 PM
- Thursday, May 14, from 4:00-5:00 PM
All meetings will be held virtually, to allow for greater accessibility and the link will be sent out to all district families of children who are homeschooled or attending a private school at private expense.
To learn more about Equitable Services you are welcome to visit:
https://www.doe.mass.edu/federalgrants/equitable-services/district-level.html
Student and Family Community Resource Website
In an effort to support students and families our student services staff have put forth a compilation of local community based resources for food, housing, legal, transportation, mental health, wellness and more. The resources are included in the Family/ Community Resources linked as well as pasted below. Family/Community Resources
Community Based Offerings
Please note the Student Services and Family Engagement Office offers news and information that our families may be interested in or that may otherwise benefit students and families as a public service. We cannot endorse a specific program or community based activity directly unless specified as a district sponsored partnership. If you have an activity you would like the district to include in our public service communications please contact the superintendent's office for consideration.
We wanted to pass on information about the upcoming 24th annual Mental Health & Wellness Fair event put forth by Clinical Support Options, Inc. This fair provides an opportunity to connect with others in our community.
Community Action Family Center
Looking for free or low cost family activities this winter? Do you want to meet more people in the community and talk with other parents? Could your family either use additional supports (food, clothing, diapers, etc.) or have household items/toys to donate that are no longer needed?
If you would like to learn more about Franklin County Family Center you are welcome to visit their website at: https://www.communityaction.us/program/family-center/, check out their monthly calendar of events or to sign up to receive their monthly newsletter.
News and Offerings from the Brick House Community Resource Center
GMRSD Student Services & Family Engagement Department
Dianne M. Ellis, Assistant Director of Pupil Services & Special Projects Liaison*
Email: dianne.ellis@gmrsd.org Website: http://www.gmrsd.org/
Location: 35 Crocker Ave., Turners Falls, MA 01376
Phone: 413 863-7513
*part time-working primarily Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays by appointment.