Dear Greenwood Families,
Happy Monday! I hope everyone who spent some time at the Greenwood Halloween Dance had a wonderful evening - I always have to laugh at the constant RUNNING throughout the Civic Center over the course of the dance. Everyone must sleep really well that night! Onward to “real” Halloween at the end of the week…
Early Release - Friday, October 31st
Our next early release day for students is on Friday, October 31st. All students will be dismissed at 11:55am in order for WPS staff to have professional development sessions in the afternoon. While there will not be a scheduled lunch block during the morning, families will have the option to sign up for a “Grab & Go” lunch. See next blurb for details!
Grab & Go Lunches - Friday, October 31st
Due to the necessary adjustments to our instructional schedules on shortened school days, we will NOT have a scheduled lunch block during the morning on early release days (kids will still have snack!). However, we WILL be offering the opportunity for children to pick up a “Grab & Go” lunch before they leave the building or go to Wakefield Academy. While still free to access, families will have to sign up in order for their child to take a lunch on any early release day. I will be sending out a separate School Messenger with the sign-up link on Monday, October 27th. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions about this!
Fun Fall Friday
As we’ve done the past couple of years, we will give a nod to Halloween on Friday, October 31st with some school-wide spirit for our early release day. Students (and staff!) can celebrate a fun day together by dressing up in some wacky way, which could involve wearing their costume, or simply just sporting some seasonal fall gear, crazy hair, mismatched clothes, or a fun hat.
Dress-up guidelines for the day:
Must be school-appropriate (both for costume theme and ability to do schoolwork in it)
No props or accessories
No full-face masks
And we will bring our (early release) day to a close with the K-2 costume parade! Starting at 11:30am, students will follow a route out the back door, around a giant loop (or two!) of the blacktop, walk around the Kindergarten side of the building, and go back in the front door to pick up backpacks, etc. before being dismissed. Families are welcome to come and spectate - please arrange yourself outside the cones. Our 3rd and 4th graders will join everyone outside to help cheer on our younger students.
Keep your fingers crossed for good weather - we will not hold the parade if it is raining.
Annual Pumpkin Drop - Wednesday, November 5th
Wakefield’s Department of Public Works and Environmental Sustainability Committee are proud to partner with Black Earth Compost for their Annual Pumpkin Drop on Wednesday, November 5th. If your jack-o-lantern or doorstep pumpkin is ready for a new life, bring it to school so it can be composted. Last year, Black Earth and communities across the state diverted 22 tons of pumpkins from the waste stream.
On the morning of Wednesday, November 5th, a tarp will be out back at Greenwood, just waiting for your pumpkins! Collection by Black Earth Compost will occur between 12:00-1:30pm. Please remove glitter, stickers, plastic decorations, and candles/wax from your pumpkin prior to drop off. If you bring your pumpkin over in a plastic bag, please do not include the bag in the compost pile.
Staff Parking Lot - Arrival
We have had reports (and have observed) an uptick in family vehicles entering the staff parking lot from Greenwood Avenue during arrival. This is not allowed under any circumstances due to safety concerns. As a reminder, I’ve included here the relevant points from my “Back to School Letter” related to drop-off on Greenwood Avenue.
If you are driving via Greenwood Avenue - if you need to park longer than quickly dropping your child off and/or you need to exit your vehicle for any reason, please do so outside of the live drop-off zone (designated by “No Parking - Bus Only” signs). Children must be able to exit and enter vehicles independently if you are using that zone
The back parking lot is for the use of Greenwood staff members. Families dropping off or picking up students should not be pulling into the lot to do so.
Safety Drill Practice
Last Wednesday we held a schoolwide drill to practice staying safe within the school building. This included a drill for shelter-in-place and a drill for lockdown. The key points emphasized are:
Drills help us practice how to stay safe in case of an emergency. A fire drill is an example.
The outside doors of our school are locked at all times.
During the school day visitors can only enter through the main office entrance. Before they come in, they must identify themselves to office staff members and tell us why they are visiting the school.
If we see someone outside a school door, we should never let them in.
If we hear an announcement, it is important to listen to the teacher and follow directions.
Students did a great job listening to directions from adults and practicing their safety routines in the classroom!
Conferences - November 20th/21st & December 5th
We're still a little ways out from these dates, but they will sneak up on us quickly! Our first date for conferences is on Thursday, November 20th when we will have time available for evening conferences from 5:00-7:00pm. Friday, November 21st is an early release day, with time slots for afternoon conferences available. There will be another early release day on Friday, December 5th with conference time slots in the afternoon. Teachers will be reaching out directly to families with options to sign up. Please note: the format of conferences is up to family preference. Both in-person and Zoom conferences are options for any given time - please let your child’s teacher know which you would like to have. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions about this!
Lunchroom Volunteers - A Renewed Call!
THANK YOU SO MUCH for everyone who has stepped up over the past week!! It has been so amazingly helpful while Karen has been out. As some of our regular volunteers know, our regular lunch monitor has been out on a short leave and is now scheduled to return on November 3rd. This means we could REALLY use some helping hands during each and every lunchtime!!
Do you have any free time between 12:00-1:15pm on school days? Looking for a way to help out at Greenwood? We are finally bringing back lunchroom volunteer opportunities! If you’d like to come in and help support students while they’re eating lunch, please see the linked Sign-Up Genius to select time slots up until the Thanksgiving break!. Single days, multiple days, one time slot, the whole lunch block…we welcome any and all helpers!
Lunchroom volunteers will help students with those tricky thermoses, hand out napkins and utensils, support students while they sort items into composting/food rescue/trash, and help clean tables at the end of each lunch. Oh, and the most important thing - bring smiles and laughter!
NOTE: You will need to have a CORI form completed before coming in for any lunch shifts - please contact Ms. Paiva about the process or to check if you have a current one on file.
Greenwood School Social Media
We are on Facebook and Instagram, and one of my personal goals this year is to show off the fun we’re having throughout Greenwood! Check us out - @wpsgreenwood on both Instagram and Facebook!
As always, please do not hesitate to reach out with questions.
Thank you for everything you do to support your children and their learning! Let’s have a great week!
Tiffany Back
Principal, Greenwood School