Week of November 13th, 2023
Important Dates:
November 20th & 21st - Half-Day Dismissal 12:15 pm & Parent Conferences
November 22nd - Half-Day Dismissal at 12:05 pm
November 23rd & 24th - No School - Thanksgiving Recess
11/28 - Picture Retake Day
12/1 - Term I Ends
12/25 through January 1st - Winter Recess - No School
Highlights
Thank you to the families and community members who have reached out in appreciation to thank SU staff for their hard work and dedication to our students! In the recent US News and World Report Swallow Union was ranked #8 this year (we've moved up!). Clearly, our town is proud of their school and everyone in it! Thank you to our amazing team of educators who bring their talent and positive energy each and every day into our school and classrooms to engage our students in high-level learning while always looking at the whole child. #grateful #goTI-GRRR's #8isGRRReat
Spirit Week
What a wonderful kick-off for our first Spirit Week of the year ~ Kindness Day!
I feel this way because:
Our student council representatives greeted everyone with acts of kindness and task cards with their kindness buckets! Each student was able to pick an act of kindness to follow through on during the day. Some of the kindness acts were to thank a teacher, a school nurse, a bus driver, and a custodian. They were also encouraged to ask a friend how they are doing today, hold the door for someone, and to sit with a new friend at lunch.
Special thank you to Mrs. Gerteisen, Ms. Ban, and Mrs. Schneider for bringing the kindness buckets/task cards to our school today and for the empowering Kindness Bulletin Board!
An additional thank you to Mrs. Schneider for coming in to talk with some of our students about what kindness means to them so that she could create this amazing video for us to share with all of the students.
Please check the video out: Swallow Union World Kindness Day- 2023 Video
2nd Annual Turkey Trot
Students had the opportunity to trot their way around the backfield during our Turkey Trot event on Thursday. Whenever there is an opportunity to bring our students together in a way that involves strengthening our school community by having fun, cheering on one another, and getting in some physical activity, our Swallow Union Family rocks it!
Ti-GRRR Awards
G ~ We believe that one can develop a GROWTH mindset and learn new things.
R ~ A RESPECTFUL school community member is considerate of others.
R ~ A RESPONSIBLE school community member takes care of themselves, others, and their environment.
R ~ A RESILIENT school community member takes on challenges, learns from mistakes, and experiences growth through this process.
Congratulations Abby Ravagno (3B) for your Responsibility in putting back together a broken utensil caddy that had made it to the trash. You worked hard to repair it, had the class sign it, and left it for Mrs. Bushnell in better condition than it was beforehand!!
3M is stepping it up showing their stripes as Ti-GRRR’s!
Shout out to Marshall Fritz (3M) for thinking of a classmate on your own when you realized that friend had left behind their Chromebook on the way to Technology. You took it upon yourself to go back to the class for them and help them out. Way to show others ways to be Responsible!
Ms. Karen Nardone, Whitson’s Lead Cook, has nominated two students this week! Bradley Rainford (3M) for being a super helper in the lunch line when he helped a friend remember his lunch number. Way to be Respectful and kind, Bradley! And James Mertes (3M) for his Resilience in the lunch line chaos remembering his lunch number each and every day!
GDRSD CORI Requirements
This past week it came to my attention that there was much confusion regarding whether or not volunteers coming into the school during the school day require a CORI Check. This confusion seems to come from past practice before me. So to be clear, ANY adult volunteering (in school events or out of school field trips) is required to be CORI’d regardless if they will be alone with a child or not. Once you have a CORI on file, it lasts for three (3) years. If you are not sure you have an up to date CORI, please email Mrs. Dzwonek (dzwonek@gdrsd.org) and inquire. CORI forms require you to be in person with a legal Driver’s License and you can complete this form in the school office. Any questions or concerns, please reach out. The GDRSD CORI Form can also be found on our school website.
Swallow Union Spirit Wear
It’s a great time to get some Swallow Union Spirit Wear, and delivery will be in time for the Holidays!
Place orders at Swallow Union Apparel Store - Orders due Sunday 11/19/23 or scan the QR code below. Orders are due by Sunday, November 19 and will be distributed by mid-December. 10% of the proceeds go to the Swallow Union PTO! Please include your student’s name and class in the Student Field when checking out (ex: John Doe (1C)
Loaves and Fishes
This is not just a place where you get a few cans of soup and a box of pasta. Here's a few key points that our GDRSD Nursing Coordinator, Lorinda Dishington Ortiz, M.Ed., BSN, RN, learned when she recently spoke with them.
They serve both Groton and Dunstable - last year only 3 Dunstable families came, but there are surely more in need. So we want to get the word out.
There is no income requirement - this is great for families that do not qualify for food stamps, but are still struggling to make rent/mortgage, car payment, or other bills. By coming to the food pantry the families get an average of $400-$500 worth of food a month. That frees up a big chunk of change to put towards other expenses.
They want to reach people before they are in crisis - if a family is struggling to get bills paid they want them to come in before they have a late payment or are facing eviction/foreclosure.
It's OK to come even if you have a nice house and fancy car. Things can happen to anyone that can tip the scale in the wrong direction - reduced work hours, unexpected emergencies like a furnace needing replacing, an unexpected medical bill that insurance didn't cover.
It's really good food. They often include meat, cheese, eggs, produce, bread, toilet paper, paper towels, pads/tampons, diapers, formula, Ensure. They even have toothbrushes, toothpaste, and sometimes pet food. There are gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan options as well. They really work with people to get them the food they like and the things they need.
What they have asked of us is how can they help reach our school community? What barriers do you see or suggestions that you have that I can pass along to them? Would a presentation to staff be helpful? Please let me know if you have some suggestions!
Their website is here https://loavesfishespantry.org/
Holiday Help - Community Agencies
Once again, the Groton Commissioners of Trust and the Masons are offering to help families in need this holiday season. They want to provide assistance to any of our families by giving them holiday meals and gifts. If you know any families that might be able to use some help this year please feel free to let us know or fill out this form and return to the Swallow Union Health Office or it can be emailed to the nurses directly (email links are on the form attached HERE). The deadline for Thanksgiving Meals is November 10th and the deadline for Holiday Meals is December 8th.
School Start Time
The school day begins right at 8:55 am and both bus and parent drop off areas are completed at this time as well. If you bring your child to school after this time, please park in the parking lot and walk your child into the office to be signed in. Please do not drop your child off at the front door alone and please refrain from parking in the fire lane for safety reasons.
Absences
If your child(ren) will be absent for any reason, parents/guardians are responsible for notifying the school by calling in the absence. All student absences must be reported by 8:55 am by calling (978) 649-7281, choose option #1 and provide your child(rens) name, teacher, and reason for absence. Anyone who calls after this timeframe may receive an automated call regarding your child’s absence from school without notification. This is in place to ensure all students are accounted for either at home or in school.
Wellness Policy
Below please find the District’s Wellness Policy that we follow in order to ensure we are reinforcing healthy habits as well as student allergies. Teachers will be working with their Room Parents, School Administration, School Nurses and our PTO to ensure food that comes into school for school sponsored events (not including PTO sponsored events) such as special classroom events and school-wide gatherings, adhere to this policy. Thank you in advance for helping us with this throughout the school year.
SEPAC Events
G-D Special Education Parent Advisory Council
Community Education Fall Offerings
Groton Dunstable Community Education is proud to offer a variety of Fall Programs for all ages and interests:
-Click here to view our catalog.
-Visit our website for details, account creation and registration.
-Have any program ideas? We would love to hear from you. Please contact the GDCE office