LIFE AT THE LOCKE … Issue #11 2020-2021
November 22, 2020
Dear Parents/Guardians, Staff, and Students,
I hope you are enjoying the weekend as we prepare for the holiday season. We only have 2 ½ DAYS OF LEARNING this week, but we will make the most of them.
As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, I would like to wish you all a happy and certainly a healthy holiday season ahead. During the pandemic, we have all had to make sacrifices regarding seeing our family members, and the holidays this year will definitely be challenging. I am thankful for the support you have given to me and our staff this year and I know in the weeks ahead we will continue to work hard to provide positive learning opportunities for our students and to support them emotionally. During this busy time, I hope we all can get a chance to pause and reflect on the positive moments of this difficult year and look forward to the coming months with renewed optimism. Happy Thanksgiving!
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @LockeMiddle and INSTAGRAM: locke_middle_school
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“When you arise in the morning, give thanks for the food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself.” — Tecumseh
HALF-DAY SCHEDULE, Wednesday, November 25th
This Wednesday is a half-day. We have a new schedule for students. Also, because we are in quarter 2, students on cohort 1 will follow their B day (Tuesday schedule) and cohort 2 students will follow their D Day (Friday schedule)
Cohort 1 -- Follow B day (Tuesday) Schedule
Cohort 2 -- Follow D day (Friday) Schedule
Period 1: 8:15 – 8:35
Period 2: 8:40 – 9:00
Period 3: 9:05 – 9:25
Period 4: 9:30 – 9:50
Period 5: 9:55 – 10:15
Period 6: 10:20 – 10:40
VIRTUAL TURKEY TOSS FUNDRAISER
We raised $2000 for the Billerica Food Pantry with our annual fundraiser! Thank you to our staff and families for their donations. Please send Ms. Wells your videos by the end of the day! She is putting together one video for all of your Turkey tosses.
PARENT SURVEY
We are seeking feedback from families about their experience in the learning model of their child. This includes the hybrid, full remote, and dual cohort models. Your input about the learning models is important, so we ask that you take a few minutes to fill out this survey.
Please note that if you have more than one child in different learning models and/or different grade spans, please fill out the survey for each child. (e.g. If you have one child in early HS and one in early ES, or one child in remote and one in hybrid, fill out separate forms for each child.)
Family Feedback Survey - November 2020 (English)
MATH PROBLEM OF THE WEEK
Only a handful of answers last week. I’ll keep last week’s posted for submission and I added a new problem!
180 DAYS OF LEARNING??
We spend 1/3 of the year sleeping (if the average is 8 hours a day).
There are 52 weekends a year.
We have 3 months of summer vacation.
We have 2 days Thanksgiving break.
We have 2 weeks winter holiday.
We have 1 week spring break.
Not counting additional days off for holidays (Martin Luther King, Jr., Labor Day, etc.), my calculations tell me that we have a little less than 1 month left for school. Yet in the United States, we spend 9 months in school.
How can this be?
- verify my calculations,
- explain where I went wrong, and
- show what the real results should be.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE PIE? (Mine is pumpkin!)
Tom, Steve, Annie, and Susan each have a favorite kind of pie. The four choices are apple, cherry, pumpkin, and rhubarb. Use these clues to see which person likes which pie.
- Tom hates apple pie.
- Steve can't stand cherry pie, and his wife doesn't like rhubarb.
- Each woman's favorite pie is made with something that doesn't grow on a tree.
- Annie is learning to make apple pies, since they're her husband's favorite.
Send your answers to Mr. Garas – tgaras@billericak12.com – Show your work! Your answers will be put into a drawing for a dunkins card!
PTO UPDATE AND FALL FUNDRAISER
Hello from the Locke PTO!
Our next PTO meeting is on Wednesday, December 16th at 6:30. We will send out a meeting link soon.
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We kicked off our fall fundraiser with Raise Craze on Thursday! We have already raised over $2000 and completed many acts of kindness! Keep up the great work! And if you haven't registered, go to my.raisecraze.com/A96KZB1 now and start spreading kindness!
Help us reach our goal of 1000 acts of kindness and see what Mr. Garas has in store for us!
At A Glance: Dates: November 10 - November 30
Our Goal: $5,000 & 1000 Acts of Kindness
Curious how fundraising through kindness works? Check out the brief video (https://raisecraze.com/
#Lockeschoolspreadskindness
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Anyone looking to start holiday shopping? Scrip is a great way to do it. Order gift cards to all your favorite places with one single order and the Locke will receive a percentage back! Your cost is the same! A few of the larger percentages are LL Bean 16%, Old Navy/Gap 14%, and 99 Restaurant 13%.
The attached order form does not have all the gift cards Scrip offers. Feel free to add your own if you see it on their website www.shopwithscrip.com.
You can return your order and payment to the school, email it to the PTO (billericalockepto@gmail.com), pay via Venmo (@CheriGargalianos), or pay online through Scrip.
You can print your gift cards at home or we will have contactless delivery prior to the holidays. Please make sure we have a contact number for you.
Please let us know if you have any questions and as always, thank you.
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You can keep your family safe while supporting the Locke by ordering one of these handmade masks. They are comfortable, very breathable, and can even be customized!
PARENT RESOURCES
Parents, please see the link for a video with some great tips for motivating students in the remote environment.
7 Tips for Motivating Students During Remote Learning
FLU SHOTS
As you know, all students are required to have a flu shot by December 31, 2020. Please send your child’s flu shot information to our school nurse: Janice Roberts, jroberts@billericak12.com
TRANSITIONS
We are establishing a more structured timeframe for making student transitions between models of instruction. (hybrid to remote or remote to hybrid) Transitions will now take place on the Monday of the 1st week of each month. Any requests that are submitted prior to the 15th of the month will take place on the 1st of the following month. Please send requests to Mr. Garas, tgaras@billericak12.com
Requests Submitted | Transition Date |
October 26 – November 15 | November 30 |
November 16 – December 15 | January 4 |
December 16 – January 15 | February 1 |
January 16 – February 15 | March 1 |
February 16 – March 15 | March 29 |
March 16 – April 15 | May 3 |
No requests accepted after April 15 | |
VIRTUAL ABSENCES
We are accounting for all students both when they are in school or at home.
On Wednesdays, attendance will be taken for both cohorts in homeroom at 9:15 on a google meet.
On the days that the cohorts are home, students must attend the support staff meeting with Ms. Rogers for 6th and 7th grade or Mr. Smith for 5th grade. Homeroom teachers will also send out a quick question to ensure that students are present. Attendance will be posted by 2:00 on those days. If your child has been marked “virtually” absent, you will be notified via email the next day.
If your child is going to be absent either virtually or live, please call 978-528-8650 to report the absence. You can leave a voicemail at this number which goes directly to our secretary. Please leave a reason for the absence. You may also email our secretary, Ms. Brewster at nbrewster@billericak12.com
NEW LIBRARY INFORMATION –Books are still available!
Check out library books from the Locke library! The process for requesting library books online has become even simpler! Using Destiny Discover in your BPS Quick Links, you no longer need to log into the library catalog. Please see Ms. Cabral's updated instruction video on the Locke library website: https://
Returning library books: Students who still have library books that were checked out last year should please return them to the main office. There will be a library book bin for you to return the books. Late slips will be going out for overdue books this week. Any books that are from elementary school can still be returned in the bin. If you have any questions, please email Ms. Cabral at pcabral@billericak12.com
UPCOMING DATES
- Half-Day (Staff and Students)......Wednesday, November 25, 2020
- Thanksgiving Day (Holiday- No School)....Thursday, November 26, 2020
- Thanksgiving Recess (Holiday- No School)...Friday, November 27, 2020
- Trimester 1 Ends...Thursday, December 10, 2020
- Report Cards Published (Trimester 1 & Quarter 1)... December 17, 2020
- Half-Day (Staff and Students)...Wednesday, December 23, 2020
- Winter Break (No School)...December 24, 2020 to January 1, 2021)
- Schools Resume… Monday, January 4, 2021
- Quarter 2 ends (Last day for unified Arts Classes)...January 29, 2021
- Quarter 3 begins (Unified Arts Classes Change)...February 1, 2021
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