The Woodland Weekly

With the impending snow storm, we hope everyone stays safe, warm, and well, because when we return to school next week, temperature permitting, we’ll be celebrating the season with a special Woodland Winter Wonderland Day!

As long as the temperature is above 20 degrees with the wind chill, students will have an extended opportunity to enjoy winter activities outdoors. If it's too cold, we will have to delay to the following week, but we are hoping Mother Nature cooperates with us. To help your child participate comfortably, please make sure they come to school with appropriate winter gear, including:

• Warm coat

• Hat and gloves/mittens

• Snow pants

• Boots

If your family needs assistance with winter gear, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We are happy to help. Contact one of us by phone or email, or feel free to call/email the main office. Additionally, we hope to build snowmen, so if you have anything you'd like to donate, feel free to send it in. (We can't guarantee you'd get these objects back, however.)

To ensure we get to celebrate Woodland Winter Wonderland Day, remember the ever-important Operation: Snow Day steps:

1. Sleep with your pajamas inside out.

2. Brush your teeth with the opposite hand.

3. Flush 6 ice cubes down the toilet. (I don't know who decided 6...sorry!)

4. Sleep with a spoon under your pillow.

5. Go to bed at the REGULAR time. No staying up late!

As always, thank you for your support, and we look forward to a fun Woodland Winter Wonderland Day with our students!

Warmly,

Emma and Kayla

erood@stgrsd.org

kbrady@stgrsd.org

413-569-6598

https://www.stgrsd.org/community/calendars/s_t_g_r_s_d_calendar_of_events

January 23:Half Day (No PM Preschool) 12:00 Dismissal, Staff Collaboration

January 27: School Council @ 4:00

January 31: Thunderbirds Game (See below)

February 12: PTO meeting @ 5:30, WS Cafeteria

February 16: Presidents' Day, Schools & Offices Closed

February 17-20: Winter Vacation

March 4: Spring Pictures

Woodland School is excited to announce that enrollment for kindergarten for the 2026-2027 academic year is now open. Families with children who will be five years old on or before September 1, 2026, are encouraged to register their child by May 1, 2026. Early registration ensures eligibility for the Kindergarten Screenings, scheduled to take place on May 28 and 29, 2026.

How to Enroll To begin the enrollment process and learn more about the requirements, you can tap the picture above or visit the Woodland School enrollment page at:

https://www.stgrsd.org/community/enrollment

The enrollment page includes detailed information about necessary documentation and the steps to complete the registration process. Families are encouraged to complete all required forms promptly to secure their spot in this exciting program.

Don’t miss this important milestone in your child’s education! For questions or assistance with enrollment, please contact Woodland School at 413-569-6598 or WES_Office@stgrsd.org.

We look forward to welcoming your family to Woodland School and partnering with you in your child’s educational journey.

If you know families with kindergarten-aged children, please spread the word about this important opportunity!

During the month of January, Pre-K-2nd grade students have been learning about Sport stacking in Physical Education class. Students use sets of 12 cups to practice up-stacking and down-stacking the cups in different patterns as fast as they can. This fun activity teaches hand-eye coordination and when paired with games in class provides great fitness-based lessons!

Our next unit will focus on the 2026 Winter Olympics. Students will learn about the Opening Ceremony, Winter Olympic Events, and the Medal Ceremonies all taking place in Italy.

They will also participate in Winter Olympic individual and team events in class.

During each class, we always spend time talking about our Woodland CARES and how to show good sportsmanship while participating in PE class!

If you have any questions, please contact me at marchambeault@stgrsd.org

Stay Active,

Mr.A.

Students have been doing some great things in Digital Literacy! All grades have started projects: kindergarten and preschool are making Robot Puppets, and first and second graders are learning about Binary Code and making keychains or bracelets to represent their initials in binary code!

We will be working on some more cool new things soon!

Students in art have been working hard on a variety of projects! Students worked on a "Dinosaur in the City" project where they created a black and white city scape overlayed with their colorfully created dinosaurs. Many classes also earned "Stuffy Day" where they not only brought their favorite stuffed animal to school, but also drew them. We have many more fun projects on the agenda for next month!

Hello Woodland families,

We have finished up our engineering unit here in STEM and switched gears back to science. All grades are learning about habitats. And with winter in full swing, we started with the coldest habitat on Earth – the polar habitat! We have talked about what makes the Arctic and Antarctica unique, what plants and animals live there, and how they are able to survive in such a harsh climate. This week we’re taking a closer look at polar bears (near the North Pole) and penguins (at the South Pole). Kindergarten students had an extra fun time touching icy water with their bare hand before touching it again with a glove coated in vegetable shortening to see how blubber helps protect animals from the cold.

We’ll continue exploring a few different habitats and as always I look forward to hearing what amazing facts and information your students know!

--Mrs. Brown

Hello and Happy New Year!

I am so incredibly proud of all our Woodland friends for a fantastic Winter Concert. I say it every year, but this was the best one yet! Now that we've finished practicing our songs, we are back to our normal music class routine. Some students have received new walk-up song papers - if your child lost their paper, you can simply email me their song choice and the person/group that performs it.

In Pre-K and Kindergarten, we are learning to use our singing voices and playing fun singing games like "Jack in the Box" and "Fill the Basket". Keep practicing your singing at home!

First graders have learned about a musical rest, which is a beat of silence. We read a fun book by my friend and author Mel Emerick called The Loud (not really) Book. We will be learning how to play rhythm patterns on classroom instruments and creating our own songs.

Second grade students have learned about La, who is the teenage sister of Sol and Mi. We have practiced writing patterns with Mi, Sol, and La and, in the next few weeks, we will be learning to play those patterns on our classroom instruments.

Please check out December and January's Musicians of the Month. We did not have a lot of time to listen to Dame Evelyn Glennie in December, but she is amazingly talented and so fun to watch.

Here's a great YouTube channel to check out on our next school break (not mine) - you will find singing videos and instrument tutorials.

In the words of Dory from Finding Dory: "Just Keep Singing!"

Mrs. Peirce

kpeirce@stgrsd.org

Come join us for a PTO fundraising event at the Springfield Thunderbirds game on Saturday, January 31st. Students will have the opportunity to get on the ice to hold the flag, and students from Powder Mill School will showcase their band and chorus skills. It will be a fun night for all!

NOTE: if your child is sensitive to sounds, please bring headphones. This is an extra special game honoring police, fire, and EMT for their annual Hometown Heroes event! They bring emergency vehicles on the ice with full lights and sirens which can get LOUD!

Our school district is in need of Substitute Registered Nurses (RNs), and we know many of our families have talented healthcare professionals among them!

Substitute nurses play a crucial role in keeping our students safe and healthy each day. They support our school health offices by caring for student needs, administering medications, attending field trips, and ensuring a welcoming, well-supported environment for all children. Plus, the hours are pretty great!

If you or someone you know is a Massachusetts licensed RN who enjoys working with kids and is looking for a flexible way to support our schools, we’d love to connect! Please reach out to Lead Nurse, Ashley Chicoine at achicoine@stgrsd.org for more information.

Thank you for helping us keep our students healthy!

The Pathways Program at SRS is doing a community service project working with the Community Food Pantry in Southwick. They will be collecting specific items each month according to the pantry's needs. This month they are looking for all kinds of canned soups and hygiene products but will gladly accept any donations you provide. The donation bin will be located in the lobby of the main office. Thank you!