LIFE AT THE LOCKE … Issue #15 2019-2020
December 8, 2019
Dear Parents/Guardians, Staff, and Students,
I hope you are enjoying the cold weekend. We have a busy 2 weeks ahead before the holiday break. We are back to a full 5 DAYS OF LEARNING this week! Let’s see what’s happening …
Monday, December 9th is an “A” Day. Please plan accordingly for the week.
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“None of us is as smart as all of us.” — Ken Blanchard
AFTER SCHOOL THIS WEEK
We will have HW club and late buses on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday this week. Fall activities have been completed.
REPORT CARDS
Report cards will be published on Wednesday, December 11th. They can be found on your Aspen home page under published reports.
BOOK FAIR THIS WEEK
Our first book fair of the year will be running this week, Monday through Friday! Proceeds from the fair will go towards supporting the Locke library. The fair will be open Thursday night during parent conferences, so make sure to stop by and support the library. Parents can also shop the online fair until December 14 by visiting http://www.scholastic.com/bf/
E-Wallets for the Book Fair:
Parents can now visit the Locke’s book fair site to set up an e-wallet for their students. E-wallets are a secure, cash-free way to shop the fair. Simply create an account for your student and authorize a spending limit on your credit card. The funds will become immediately available for use on our register when your students check out. Learn more at: http://www.scholastic.com/bf/
FALL MUSICAL
Our fall musical “A Charlie Brown Christmas” will be Friday 12/13 and Saturday 12/14 at 7:00 PM. Tickets are $12 for adults and $7 for students. Tickets will on sale at lunch this week and at the door. We hope to see you there!
PARENT CONFERENCES
Parent conferences are on Thursday, December 12th from 6:00 – 8:00 PM. We are using a computer program called PTC wizard to schedule conferences. Conferences will be 5 minutes long and each teacher will have 24 openings. There is a possibility that a teacher will be booked and you will not be able to schedule a conference with a particular teacher. If that does occur, I encourage you to utilize email, meet individually with the teacher at another time, or schedule a team meeting. The link below will take you to the website to schedule your parent meetings. If you already have an account, you can log-in. If you do not have an account, you will need to register and create an account. You will also need to know your child’s teachers’ names in order to schedule the meetings. The site will provide a list of names for you to choose from. The attachment included here provides step by step directions on how to set up your meetings. If you have any questions, please contact me. The site is now open to schedule conferences. Here is the link:
HOLIDAY CONCERTS!!
Our band, chorus, and orchestra are busy preparing their holiday concerts. Please come out to hear some great music. Please see the calendar below for the dates.
TURKEY TOSS – A HUGE SUCCESS!
A tremendous thank you to staff, students, and families for donating to our Turkey Toss fundraiser. We raised $1975 and received 2300 food items to help local families this holiday season. The food items have been delivered to the Billerica food pantry. All homerooms met the challenge and we had a lot of fun down in the gym on Wednesday. Thanks to Ms. Wells, Ms. Higgins, and our student council students for organizing the event. We have pictures and video on our twitter feed.
MATH PROBLEM OF THE WEEK
Last week’s answer: 16 tissues per minute
HOLIDAY SPIRIT
A local charity is wrapping holiday gifts for local needy families. When 8 volunteers work together, they can get all of the gifts wrapped and distributed in 6 hours. How many hours would it have taken if there had been 12 volunteers, each working at the same rate?
Turn your answers into the office. SHOW YOUR WORK. The correct answers will be put in a drawing for huge, tremendous prizes!
PARENT CORNER
The holidays can be a stressful time for adults and children. The American Psychological Association offers the following tips to parents:
Strengthen social connections – We know that strong, supportive relationships help us manage all kinds of challenges. So, we can view the holidays as a time to reconnect with the positive people in our lives. Accepting help and support from those who care about us can help alleviate stress. Also, volunteering at a local charity on our own or with family can be another way to make connections; helping others often makes us feel better, too.
Initiate conversations about the season – It can be helpful to have conversations with our kids about the variety of different holiday traditions our families, friends and others may celebrate. Parents can use this time as an opportunity to discuss how some families may not participate in the same holiday traditions as others. Not everyone needs to be the same. It is important to teach open-mindedness about others and their celebrations.
Set expectations – It is helpful to set realistic expectations for gifts and holiday activities. Depending on a child's age, we can use this opportunity to teach kids about the value of money and responsible spending. We need to remember to pare down our own expectations, too. Instead of trying to take on everything, we need to identify the most important holiday tasks and take small concrete steps to accomplish them.
Keep things in perspective – On the whole, the holiday season is short. It helps to maintain a broader context and a longer-term perspective. We can ask ourselves, what’s the worst thing that could happen this holiday? Our greatest fears may not happen and, if they do, we can tap our strengths and the help of others to manage them. There will be time after the holiday season to follow up or do more of things we’ve overlooked or did not have the time to do during the holidays.
Take care of yourself – It is important that we pay attention to our own needs and feelings during the holiday season. We can find fun, enjoyable and relaxing activities for ourselves and our families. By keeping our minds and bodies healthy, we are primed to deal with stressful situations when they arise. Consider cutting back television viewing for kids and getting the family out together for fresh air and a winter walk. Physical activity can help us feel better and sleep well, while reducing sedentary time and possible exposure to stress-inducing advertisements.
ASPEN – PARENT PORTAL
For Parent Account login assistance or to re-set your password, please email: portalhelp@
ABSENCES
Attendance is an important part of overall student success. If your child is going to be absent, please call 978-528-8650 to report the absence. You can leave a voicemail at this number which goes directly to our secretary. You may also email our secretary, Ms. Brewster at nbrewster@billericak12.com
PTO CORNER
We have two open spots on the PTO: Secretary & Treasurer. We are also looking for help with the following programs:
Special Programs Coordinator
Labels Program (Box Tops, etc)
Locke Apparel
School Time Fundraisers
Scrip Gift Card Program
Scholastic Book Fair
Walkathon
Field Day Chairperson/Committee
If you are interested in any of these positions, please contact the Locke PTO
Email: billericalockepto@
Facebook: www.facebook.com/
Important Upcoming dates:
- Book Fair – December 9th-13th
- Report Cards Published – December 11th at 2:00 PM
- Band Concert – Wednesday, December 11th—7:00 PM Marshall
- Parent Conferences – December 12th, 6:00-8:00 PM
- Locke Musical – Friday, Saturday , December 13th and 14th 7:00 PM
- Orchestra Concert—Monday, December 16th – 7:00 PM BMHS
- Chorus Concert – Tuesday, December 17th – 7:00 PM BMHS
- 6th grade Field Trip – Wednesday, December 18th
- 7th Grade Field Trip – Thursday, December 19th
- Half-Day – Friday, December 20th – 10:40 Dismissal
- Holiday Break – December 21st – January 1st
- Return to School – Thursday, January 2nd , 2020
One attachment this week
If you have any questions, please contact me at tgaras@billericak12.com or call at 978-528-8655. Have a great week!
Warmest regards,
Tony Garas, Principal