Hello Elm Street School Families and Friends!
On behalf of our entire team here at Elm I want to share our immense gratitude to all of you who made this Educator Appreciation week so special and filled with notes and acts of appreciation. Reading through all of the appreciation fish that students posted on the bulletin board really shows how deeply and positively our educators impact students and everyone was overwhelmed by the support you all showed all week. A HUGE SHOUT OUT to Erin Harrington and Tammy Rourke who coordinated 5 amazing days filled with treats and special surprises. They worked so hard to make each day unique and filled with joy and I am so grateful for all the hours of work they put into setting up and coordinating this week for our team. THANK YOU!
Congratulations to all of our Eagles who were featured in this year's Art Show! Walking through the Opening Night on Wednesday, I really enjoyed seeing all the beautiful art work done by our students and getting to talk with some of the artists themselves as they explained their process and pieces to me at the event.
Also this week we finished up our Math MCAS. The final days for make-ups will be on Monday and Tuesday next week. Also next week Grade 5 will take the STE MCAS which will conclude this school year's testing cycle. Thank you for helping your children come to school rested and prepared on test days and for supporting them in being flexible and putting their best efforts forward.
In this edition of our weekly newsletter you will find more information about:
- upcoming dates and celebrations for April
- Essentialist Newsletter: PHYSICAL EDUCATION
- counseling newsletter for May/June
- Spirit Day: May 16th (Mismatch Day)
- Coffee and Conversation Follow Up
- School Start/End Times and School Calendar Update
- Spring Concerts at Elm Information
- Penny War for Dana Farber
- Student Support and Attendance Newsletter
- Keeping Kids Safe Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents
- 2025 - 2026 School Year Calendar
- Walpole Road Race Fundraiser
We have five fast weeks of the school year left with many exciting special events, celebrations, and activities. Please help your child(ren) have a safe and joyful conclusion to the school year by reminding them that though summer break feels close, we all still need to follow the expectations and stay focused on our work in these next few weeks. We know that this time of year, when we start to talk about and prepare for big transitions, can be tricky for many students and sometimes feelings can be expressed through behavior. We are here to support all of our students through this winding down and transition period while also maintaining high expectations and firm boundaries for behavior.
I hope everyone has a wonderful and restful weekend and I look forward to welcoming our newest Elm Street Eagles families this week during our Incoming Kindergarten Family Meeting on Wednesday evening.
Jen
Upcoming Dates and Celebrations: May
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 the month of May.
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.
- Asian American, Native Hawai'ian, and Pacific Islanders Heritage Month
- Mental Health Awareness Month
- 5/1: Grade 4 Math MCAS Session 1, Kindergarten Field Trip, 6:45p School Committee Meeting
- 5/2: Grade 4 Math MCAS Session 2
- 5/5: Cinco de Mayo, 7:30p Town Meeting
- 5/5-9: Educator Appreciation Week
- 5/6: Grade 5 Math MCAS Session 1
- 5/7: Grade 5 Math MCAS Session 2, 6:00p District Wide Art Show
- 5/8: Spring Photo Day
- 5/12: Vesak
- 5/14: Grade 5 STE MCAS Session 1, 6:30p Incoming Kindergarten Family Meeting
- 5/15: Grade 5 STE MCAS Session 2, 6:45p School Committee Meeting
- 5/16: Early Release Day, Elm Spirit Day (Mismatch Day)
- 5/20-21: Incoming Kindergarten Screening Days
- 5/20: 3:15p Elm School Council Meeting
- 5/23: Grade 5 Field Trip
- 5/26: Memorial Day SCHOOL CLOSED
- 5/27: Grade 3 Field Trip
- 5/29: Spring Concerts (Grade 3- 1:15p, Grade 4- 1:50p, Grade 5- 2:25p)
May Coffee and Conversation Follow Up
This morning's (Friday 5/9) topic of conversation was supporting diverse learners in an inclusive setting (including tiered supports and interventions, special education, and more).
You can view the presentation here and follow up with myself (jbuller@walpole.k12.ma.us) or Mrs. Nalbach (dnalbach@walpole.k12.ma.us) with any questions.
There are no additional scheduled Coffee and Conversations for the 2024-2025 school year. Please keep an eye out for a survey on how we can adapt this community outreach series for next year!
School Start/End Times and School Calendar Update
Next year Elm Street School will switch to being a "late school". Every 3 years the elementary schools in Walpole rotate late and early school hours. For the 2025 - 2026 school year we will have an official start time of 9:00a and an end time of 3:30p.
- Doors will open at 8:50a for arrival
- We will begin dismissal at 3:20p in the afternoon
- Early Release Dismissal will be at 12:25p
For a full list of start and end times for all Walpole Public Schools please click here.
The full school calendar will be available after the May 1st School Committee meeting.
Spring Concerts at Elm
Spring Concerts Are Coming!
We’re excited to invite families to our End-of-Year Spring Concerts, happening May 29th and June 3rd!
This year, we’re introducing a new concert schedule. Instead of the usual three days of concerts, concerts will happen across two school days (May 29th and June 3rd), and we are shifting to an afternoon schedule.
This change is designed to minimize the impact on families' busy schedules and make it easier for families with children in multiple grades to attend all of their kids' performances. With this new format, we hope you have more flexibility to enjoy each concert!
Concert Dates & Times:
Thursday, May 29th – Grades 3, 4, and 5
1:15pm: 3rd Grade
1:50pm: 4th Grade
2:25pm: 5th Grade
Tuesday, June 3rd – Grades K, 1 and 2
1:15pm: 2nd Grade
1:50pm: 1st Grade
2:25pm: Kindergarten
Over the last few weeks students in Grades K-5 have been reviewing songs and activities learned this year in preparation for their upcoming grade-level concerts. Performances will feature the culmination of their work demonstrating skills and concepts learned throughout the academic school year. Students are enthusiastically looking forward to sharing a “snapshot” of their musical experiences using song, instruments, improvisation, and movement. It has been a complete joy for me to hear and see them be so inspired to showcase their musical talents! I'm so proud of their accomplishments and I know you will be too. I hope you can join me in applauding our young musicians.
Due to traffic concerns, guests will not be allowed to enter the building until 5 minutes before the start of their child’s concert.
Thank you for supporting our amazing young musicians—we can’t wait to see you there!
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at
Jessica Veneto
Music Teacher
Penny War for Dana Farber
Our Grade 5 Student Council will be sponsoring a "Penny War" to raise funds that will be donated to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.
The friendly competition will run from Monday May 19th - Friday May 23rd.
The rules are:
- Each grade level will have their own collection bin located in the main lobby of the school
- Pennies placed in a grade level bin count as positive points
- Silver coins or paper bills placed in a grade level bin count as negative points
- The grade level with the most positive points at the end of the week will win an extra recess
We will tally points each day and make an announcement in the afternoon updating students on the totals. We will also be keeping track of the overall amount of money raised. The student council has set our overall goal at $500
Keeping Kids Safe Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents
The United States Attorney’s Office will be hosting a virtual internet safety presentation for all adults who wish to keep children safe online. Assistant United States Attorney Luke Goldworm and Victim Witness Specialist Lauryn Mackey will be joined by Special Agent Andrew Kelleher from Homeland Security Investigations Child Exploitation and Digital Forensics Unit to present a Webex Webinar:
Keeping Kids Safe and Secure Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents
Wednesday, June 4th from 6:30 – 7:30 pm.
A Q & A session will follow the presentation. The presentation will bring awareness to how predators are sexually exploiting children online and how to keep them safe.
Advanced registration is required. You may register for the webinar at the link below:
https://usao.webex.com/weblink/register/r4617269953953d7a4aaa839f6c3e110b
Fore more information visit this link.
Walpole Road Race Fundraiser
JOIN US FOR A SPIRIT NIGHT FUNDRAISER AT CHICK-FIL-A Walpole
Tuesday, May, 13th from 5-8pm
Join us for food and fun! A portion of the sales from this spirit night will be going back to Walpole Labor Day Road Race. Make sure to toggle on the spirit night button if placing a mobile order or tell the order taker you are here for the spirit night so it can be tracked!
Nest Connections
Email: jbuller@walpole.k12.ma.us
Website: https://www.walpole.k12.ma.us/o/ess
Location: 415 Elm Street, Walpole, MA, USA
Phone: 508.660.7374
Instagram: ElmStSchool