Principal’s Notes
October Messages
Peace Message: Responsibility and being Bully Free
Brain Message: My Brain is like a Muscle that Grows
Report Cards
A reminder about Report Cards:
Student report cards are available online only in the PowerSchool Parent Access Portal. To access your child's report card online, log into the PowerSchool Parent Portal and you will see a Report Cards icon in the left hand pane. When you click on this icon your child's report card will appear on the screen. You can scroll to see the entire report card and choose to print it, if you'd like. Anytime you click on the Report Cards icon, the most recent report card will generate. Quarter 1 report cards will be available to view on Thursday, November 9th at 2:30 PM.
Blue Ribbon Award for Volunteering
This past Wednesday Memorial School was recognized once again at the state level for our dedicated volunteer program during the 2016-2017 school year. I would like to thank all of you who contributed in any fashion to support Memorial teachers and students. Our school's success could not be what it is without the support of our volunteers. A special Thank you as well to our Volunteer Coordinators, Barbara Hardy and Elise Johnson who have given many hours to assist in any way they can!
New Volunteer Training Opportunity
We have an exciting opportunity to have parents who have a special interest in science and math. John Boucher, Bedford’s Math and Science Curriculum Coordinator, is offering a training for parents to sign up to volunteer for science lesson and Australian Math Task training. If interested you can visit the link below.
Holiday Help
The holiday season is approaching and the excitement is building, as we look forward to happy celebrations with family and friends. This is a busy time for many of us, and children can sometimes become overwhelmed. Eating a healthy diet, getting extra sleep and having some quiet time may help your child to stay healthier.
We recognize that holiday anticipation may not be joyful for all students and families, and instead brings stress, fear and even sadness. As always, our school community is here to assist you, if needed. Please let us know if you are in need of assistance. Through the generous donations of others in our school community, we can help. If you know someone that may be having difficulty, please encourage them to let us know. All assistance is confidentially given. We hope that all Memorial children who celebrate this time of year can experience wonderful memories to share with friends and family.
For those families who would like to help support us during this time of the year, we truly appreciate your generosity. What a wonderful gift you are teaching your own children! Donations may be sent into the nurse’s office.
Any questions can be directed to:
Anna Cook,School Nurse,627-1776 ext.23204 or
Lisa Pleat, School Counselor,627-1776 ext. 23206
Reminders from the health office:
Immunizations and Physicals:
The New Hampshire state law requires written documentation of vaccines being up to date and on file in the nurse's office as well a physical on file at the start of preschool, start of kindergarten and if new student to school. Please send in updated physical and immunizations. The school nurse is updating health files and request to please send in updated physicals and immunization records. See the NH Department of Health and Human Services web site for more information regarding immunizations at: http://www.dhhs.nh.gov/dph/immunizations/school.htm
Illness or communicable diseases
Due to some children having a compromised immune system, we are asking all parents to practice the following guidelines. This will protect everyone from the spread of germs in the classroom. Having a compromised immunity system makes certain children susceptible to becoming ill.
- Keep your child home if he/she experiences any of the following symptoms: a fever of a 100 degrees or higher, vomiting and/or diarrhea, respiratory symptoms such as persistent cough, and unclear nasal secretions (green/yellow).
- Do not send your child back to school until he/she is symptom free for at least 24 hours.
- If your child is diagnosed with strep or conjunctivitis, do not have him/her return to school until he/she has been on antibiotics for 24 hours, and is feeling better.
- Notify the school nurse of strep or any communicable illness your child may have.
You can also decrease your child’s chance of illness by reminding him/her of:
- Good handwashing techniques, especially before eating and after using bathroom
- Not sharing water bottles
- Covering a cough in his/her sleeve
- Using tissues to blow his/her nose, followed by handwashing
Absentee Line:
It is helpful and important to inform nurse on absentee line as to what symptoms your child is exhibiting. The nurse tracks trends of illness to help keep school healthy.
Pediculosis
The AAP (American Association of Pediatrics) no longer recommends mass screening for head lice. Since most cases are found by parents, here is some information to help you determine if your child has head lice.
The primary symptom of head lice is an intense itching, caused by louse bites to the scalp. The areas of the scalp most affected are the nape (back) of the neck and behind the ears. Adult lice are grayish brown wingless insects that are as tiny as a sesame seed. They shy away from light and are very hard to see. Nits (eggs) are tiny but they are firmly glued to the hair shaft, most often near the scalp. They appear as shiny whitish ovals. Their centers get darker as they mature. After they hatch, empty nit casings look transparent. Nits hatch in just 7-10 days. To check for nits, use natural light or bright light. Begin by lifting and separating hairs behind the ears and at the nape of the neck. It is virtually impossible to remove nits from hair without a fine tooth comb or by pulling with tweezers, unlike dandruff. If you suspect your child does have head lice, notify the school nurse for verification and treat with an over the counter treatment recommended by your doctor. Your child will also need to be checked by the school nurse prior to returning to class.
Thank you for helping to keep a healthy school for all!
Bedford PTG
COFFEE WITH SUPERINTENDENT CHIP MCGEE – All are welcome to join us on Thursday, November 2nd 9:30 – 10:30am at BCTV (10 Meetinghouse Road, Bedford). Our special guest, Superintendent Chip McGee, will discuss the current happenings in our district followed by a Q&A. Light refreshments will be served and your children are welcome to attend. If you are unable to attend, but would like your questions answered, please send them to bedfordnhptg@gmail.comahead of time and we will ask them for you!
Take the night off from cooking and support the PTG! DINNER AT PANERA BREAD – Our new monthly event will take place on the first Thursday of each month beginning November 2nd 4-8pm. If you choose to dine at Panera at Colby Court, a percentage of the proceeds will be donated back to the Bedford School District. A hardcopy of their flyer must be turned in and electronic versions not accepted. You can find a copy of the flyer here: Panera Flyer
It’s getting to be that time of year for buying gifts and the Bedford PTG is here to help with our ANNUAL GIFT CARD FUNDRAISER! A gift card is the perfect gift for any occasion! For every gift card you buy, a percentage of the value of the card is donated by the sponsoring retailer to our schools while 100% of the value of the card that you purchased is available for you to spend! Order forms were sent home with children in grades K-8 and the due date for the first round of gift cards is Wednesday November 1st for pre-Thanksgiving delivery. For those students attending BHS, or for those who would like to download an order form please click here, Gift Card Order Form. For more information about this program, click here Gift Card Program. HAPPY SHOPPING!
Amazon smile! Speaking of buying gifts, did you know that every time you buy on Amazon, you can support the Bedford PTG? Simply visit https://smile.amazon.com/ and select “Bedford NH PTG” as the organization that you’d like to support. Now, every time you shop at smile.amazon.com, Amazon will donate a percentage to the Bedford PTG.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!! - Our annual Ski and Skate Sale will take place on Saturday, November 18th from 9AM-2PM at Bedford High School. Drop off items for consignment on Friday, November 17th from 5PM - 8PM. Visit our Ski and Skate Sale page to find out more information. If you would like to sign up to volunteer, please email BedfordPTGSkiSkate@gmail.com.
HELP THE PTG - HELP THE PTG - Help the PTG continue to bring exciting programs/speakers to our schools like Eyes on Owls, Abenaki Story Tellers, T.I.G.E.R. Anti-Bullying performance, Ed Gerety Youth Speaker, and Chris Herren Motivational Speaker. These events cannot happen without the support from parents and teachers in the Bedford community. There is still time to help, simply click on the PayPal link at www.bedfordptg.org to make a donation or send in a check payable to Bedford PTG in an enveloped marked “PTG Support” with your name, email address and child’s school. Bedford PTG appreciates your support.
BeBOLD Speaker Series
Dr. Carolyn Morgan will be presenting her “Growing Resilience Program” at the Bedford Public Library on Monday, October 30th from 7pm to 8pm. Click HERE for more info.
Bedford Goes Red
Join the Bedford Community and support our efforts in battling addiction. Let’s light up our homes and businesses in red between 10/23 - 10/31. Click HERE for more information.
Memorial School Homework Club
Our 4th grade teaching team has Homework Club up and running. It will run every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday at 7:30am in the computer lab for 3rd and 4th graders. It’s a great opportunity for kids access technology, , work on long term assignments or keep up with the daily homework.
Sample a Smoothie Day!
We will be offering samples of a Fresh Fruit Smoothie for our students in the Memorial cafeteria during lunches on October 30th. Please note on the menu calendar it states that is will be offered on the 31st, but we felt with that being Halloween, there may be lots of other fun activities going on, so we are officially changing it to that Monday the 30th. Talk to your students about the offering. It will be samples only and any student in the cafe can come up and try one. Please double check the ingredients below, in case there are any questions of allergies. If your child is allergic to ANY of them please instruct the NOT to partake in the sample.
Fresh Orange Tropical Smoothie
Ingredients: Bananas - Carrots - Pineapple - Strawberries - Yogurt (plain skim milk)
8th Annual Witch Way to the 5K - REGISTRATION OPEN
Join us for the 8th annual Witch Way to the 5K on Saturday, October 28, 2017. The kids 1K race starts at 9:30am and the adult race begins at 10am at Lurgio Middle School. Click here to register. We are also always looking for sponsors - for more information click here.
Pat’s Peak Learn to Ski and Ride Program
This is a five-week Learn to Ski or Snowboard series for students in grades 1-8. The program runs Friday, January 5, 12, 19, 26 and February 2. Rentals are available. You must provide your own transportation.
Login info: 3:30 PM lessons: bedford3302018 or 4:30 PM lessons: bedford4302018
Registration deadline will be November 15th. Contact Kim Ahnen at kim.ahnen@comcast.net or at 918-0110 with any questions. Join the Bedford NH Pats Peak Ski and Ride 2018 Facebook page for more information.
Bedford Education Foundation
The BEF is holding their annual fundraising event on November 17th from 7pm to 10pm at the Bedford Village Inn. The theme is Nostalgic November. For more information on the event and how to purchase tickets, click HERE. Questions can be directed to info@befnh.org
Book Fair!
Mark your calendars! The Memorial Book Fair is Monday, November 27 - Friday, December 1.
Help spread the joy of reading! All are invited to attend the Memorial Book Fair Volunteer Orientation meeting Friday November 3, at 9:30am in the school library.
Memorial Spirit Wear
You can order Memorial School clothing online! Please go to www.bedfordwear.com. Click Schools in the menu bar, and select Memorial School. An order typically takes 7-10 business days to be delivered. As a bonus 10% of profits come back to the school.
Important Dates
- October 18- Picture Retakes
- November 2- Coffee with the Superintendent- 9:30am at BCTV
- November 9- Report Cards open on PowerSchool for viewing
- November 10-No School in observance of Veteran’s Day
- November 18- Annual PTG Ski and Skate Sale
- November 21- Spirit Day! Wear your favorite sports attire
- November 22-24-No School, Thanksgiving Recess
- November 27-December 1- Scholastic Book Fair
- November 30- Math and Literacy Night
- December 7- Ellis Island Day- Grade 4
- December 19- Spirit Day! Pajama Day
