Gertrude Chamberlin School

See information below about our Meadows Farm Fundraiser!

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Families can bring their camp chairs and blankets to watch a movie in the gymnasium!

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The start of the meeting on November 17th will be for families to learn how we use our federal Title funding at GCS. We will then move into our regular PTO meeting. Families are welcome to attend one or both of these meetings! There will be an online and in person option - Google Meets or in the GCS library.

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View this calendar for in-school dates, early dismissal dates, and school vacations.

Family Pizza & Movie Night (presented by the PTO) is Friday, November 6th at 6:00 PM.

Here are some Movie Night basics:

• Suggested Donation of $3 per person, maximum $10 per family -- PLUS a free bag of popcorn with a family ticket purchase (until sold out)

• Doors open 6pm - Movie starts at 6:30pm

• Seating is on the gym mats, but these are limited. Camping chairs from home are suggested. Feel free to wear pajamas, bring pillows/blankets and stuffed animals to make yourselves comfortable

• Bottled water, PIZZA and snacks will be on sale; no outside food or beverages please

• All children must be accompanied by an adult and supervised at all times, including in the hallways and bathrooms

Please click the link below to sign up to volunteer your time or donate to our snack table. Thank you for your help!

Below is the trailer for the movie, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.

How to Login to SORA for access to our Audio and Ebook Collection: Including our One School, One Book Read Aloud

1) Download the app or click the link on Chamberlin’s website.

2) Click Sign in using Chamberlin School

5) Login using google on a school device, if on a home device login using your school email and password

6) Enjoy online audio books, eBooks, and magazines! Students can checkout 3 books at a time for 2 weeks.

Students have begun to ask if they will be able to wear costumes as Halloween nears. Not all cultures celebrate Halloween, and it has been a long-standing practice at South Burlington School District elementary schools to focus on fall festival and harvest themes instead. Near Halloween, we want to provide a distraction-free environment so teachers and students can focus on learning. That's what schools are really about!

We are very fortunate that the City of South Burlington provides multiple opportunities to celebrate Halloween safely in the community. If you are looking for a fun way to celebrate, check out the Pumpkin Carving event, and Community Glow Walk. Links and details are provided in the SB Parks and Rec section of this newsletter, below.

You may hear about schools that still include costume parades and other Halloween traditions, but the vast majority have come to the same conclusion as us. On Halloween, students should keep their costumes at home. We also ask that you save candy for eating at home. We do not share snacks at school that would not be safe for students with life-threatening allergies.Thank you for understanding and for being considerate of the entire school community.

Teachers use the visual below to help remind students. Families, we encourage you to have a similar conversation at home.

Before each recess, our staff check the playground area, and our custodians are extra attentive during their daily rounds. If anything unusual is found, we follow established safety procedures, which may include notifying our custodian, school nurse, or the South Burlington Police Department, depending on the situation.

Thank you for helping us keep all children safe and aware.

On Friday, the South Burlington Fire Department came to visit our school! Each grade level had a presentation from Firefighter Michelle Collins, who is also an EMT and the Fire Prevention Coordinator for our city. Michelle read a book to younger grades and showed all grades the tools that she uses on her gear to fight fires and help during an emergency situation. She put on her gear and breathing apparatus to show students what if would look and sound like if they were in an emergency and a fire fighter was nearby for rescue. She also spoke to the students about the importance of having working smoke alarms in their homes. Here are a few photos from the presentations!

This year, we dedicated a big chunk of our Title funding to support a more positive recess experience for our students. We are contracting with Colleen Christman of WonderRoots, who worked with kindergarten on Forest Fridays to help us redesign our recess time to promote a positive school climate that supports student engagement and academic success. Right now, our recess staff are engaged in training on a structured facilitation model that promotes positive peer interactions, conflict resolution, inclusion, student belonging and strengthens students' social-emotional skills. Training will equip staff with evidence-based strategies to facilitate inclusive play, teach and reinforce social skills, support positive behavior, and foster a safe and welcoming environment for all students.

What does this mean for your children?

GCS Play Lab will use “loose parts” to facilitate collaborative and imaginative play at recess:

Loose parts are open-ended materials that children can move, combine, redesign and adapt in endless ways during play. This might include items such as buckets, tires, milk crates, ropes, pots and pans, containers...and many other items that can support collaborative and imaginative play!

Packets will be coming home with your child(ren). Families who want to participate will need to register their child(ren) using the information in the packet. (If you have registered in past years, you will want to update your child's grade/teacher.) Online orders will be shipped as the orders are placed, to the address given by the buyer. An online customer who lives close to the student can choose to have their order shipped to the student for $1.95, but the student must be registered and acknowledge that they want to deliver orders. Otherwise, shipping is $4.95 per order.

There is also a prize program for students who sell at least one item. Feel free to share the information and your child's seller code with friends and family, even those who live out of state!

Already have enough wrapping paper? Not looking to add to your snack drawer at home? Please consider donating directly to our PTO which helps support field trips and school events. In the packet coming home with your child, you will see a purple flyer for our "Un-Fundraiser." You can send in a donation with your child, or use the QR code on the flyer to donate using Square.

Register here: https://portal.meadowfarms.com/?page=authSignup&groupid=1234001

If you have questions, please reach out to Heather Osborne: dauben20@gmail.com

The GCS PTO is uses Konstella as a way to connect with our school community. Our hope is that Konstella strengthens our school's sense of belonging and helps families connect with one another. This private, secure platform will help you get to know other parents and stay engaged. Whether you want to coordinate a playdate with a classmate's family or join a school committee, Konstella makes it easy to communicate and get involved.

With Konstella you’ll be able to:

• View PTO announcements and events.
• Access a school directory to connect with other parents.
• Easily sign up for volunteer opportunities.
• Message other families directly or in group chats.
• Choose your own notification and privacy settings.

Our hope is that families who want to join the Konstella platform and directory will do so by 10/30/26. The Konstella directory will be used in place of the GCS directory that used the google form. You must join Konstella and fill out your student’s information in order to be included in this directory. Please only input the information you are comfortable sharing with the GCS school community-it may be printed by the PTO if a printed copy is requested.

*If you require a printed copy, please reach out to samanthaeayrs@gmail.com or paquette442@hotmail.com to request one.

Please note, Konstella is available in multiple languages when using a desktop computer.

Click the link below or the QR on the photo above to join and under "Find Your School" type Gertrude Chamberlin School to get started!

Questions? Contact Samantha Earys samanthaeayrs@gmail.com.

https://www.konstella.com

Vision and hearing screenings are conducted in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, 1st, 3rd and 5th grade (per State of Vermont guidelines). This fall, we are continuing to screen students in those grades. You will be contacted ONLY if we determine that your child requires further (out of school) testing by their provider or a specialist. Children can also be screened, during the school year, upon request. Please call Nurse Farrell if you have any questions.

The PTO has an awesome vendor for all of your SB gear needs! There are a variety of logos (see photo below) and items to choose from - you go online and pick your items and the logos you want on them, and then they will be shipped to your home for a flat fee of $4.95...and sometimes they run specials for free shipping! The PTO earns a portion of all sales which goes to support our school. This link will be open all year long, so you can order whenever you want! Click on the link below and get ready for our next spirit wear day!

As a Title I school, we have a School/Family Compact with agreements on how we will support all of our students at home and at school, to have positive learning outcomes. You can find the School/Family Compact in our Family Handbook, on the website and linked below.

Glow Walk: Our Community Glow Walk, sponsored by NBT Bank, is back for its 7th year and better than ever! Join us Saturday, October 24, from 6:00–7:30 PM at Goose Pond/City Center Park for a not-so-scary Halloween stroll filled with festive sights and sounds. Glow necklaces will be given to the first 400 kids!

Link: https://secure.rec1.com/VT/south-burlington-vt-recreation-parks/catalog?filter=c2VhcmNoPTQxNTM0NjA=

Fun Fest: Looking for FREE family fun? Join us for Family Fun Fest on November 7th from 1:00-3:00pm at Rick Marcotte Central School! Enjoy games, mini golf, face painting, arts & crafts, interactive activities, and more! Light refreshments and snacks will be provided.

Link: https://secure.rec1.com/VT/south-burlington-vt-recreation-parks/catalog?filter=c2VhcmNoPTQxNTM0ODI=

Email: hrussell@sbschools.net
Website: https://vt01819219.schoolwires.net/Domain/10
Location: Chamberlin School, White Street, South Burlington, VT, USA
Phone: 802 652 7403