LIFE AT THE LOCKE … Issue #14 2022-2023
December 4, 2022
Dear Parents/Guardians, Staff, and Students,
I hope that you are enjoying the weekend. It is a busy time of year and we are certainly busy at the Locke with 5 DAYS OF LEARNING this week! Let’s see what’s happening …
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“December: A month of lights, snow, coziness, and feasts; time to make amends and tie up loose ends; finish what you started and make your wishes come true.” — unknown
SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
Monday – C Day – HW Club, Late Buses
Tuesday – D Day – Day 60, Trimester 1 ends
Wednesday – A Day – HW Club, Late Buses
Thursday – B Day -- HW Club, Late Buses, Orchestra Concert – 7:00 PM, Marshall
Friday – C Day
END OF TRIMESTER 1
The last day of trimester 1 is Tuesday, December 6th. Report cards will be published to the ASPEN portal on Thursday, December 15th.
BOOK FAIR THIS WEEK
The book fair will be this week from December 6th – 10th. The book fair will be open on Saturday the 10th during our holiday fair. For more information on the book fair, please go to this link:
Parents, if you would like to volunteer to work at the book fair, please complete this form.
The schedule for the students during the week is as follows:
Tuesday: 5th Grade A team Reading Classes (A1 during first half of period, A2 during second)
Wednesday: 5th Grade B Team Reading Classes (B1 during first half, B2 during second)
Thursday: 6th Grade English (6A during first half, 6B during second)
Friday: 7th Grade English (7A during first half, 7B during second)
Saturday: Holiday Fair 9 am-2 pm
HOLIDAY FAIR
The PTO is having a holiday fair on Saturday, December 10th from 9:00 AM -2:00 PM. There will be crafters, vendors, bake sales, and more!!
LOCKE MONSTERS ROBOTICS UPDATE
On Saturday, December 3rd, the Locke Monsters robotics team competed in their first VEX Robotics competition of the 2022-2023 season. The Locke Monsters fielded four different robots that were each designed, built, programmed, and operated by a team of students. It was a busy day, with each team being interviewed by the judges, competing in 8 different elimination matches as well as skills competitions. All of the teams showed great spirit, sportsmanship, and problem solving skills over the course of the day.
Special congratulations to Caroline Gorski, Sabrina Gorski, Shakti Meiyur, Dhyey Patel, and Elise Skelton. The members of team 8025D were presented with the Judges Award at the end of the day. According to the VEX Robotics website, "The Judges Award is presented to a team that the Judges determine is deserving of special recognition. Judges consider a number of possible criteria for this award, such as team displays of special attributes, exemplary effort, and perseverance at the event. or team accomplishments or endeavors throughout the season that may not fit under existing awards but are nonetheless deserving of special recognition."
CLOTHING DRIVE
The Locke Pride Alliance is having a clothing drive to benefit the House of Hope in Lowell. Please see the attached flyer for more information. The drive ends on Wednesday, December 14th.
HOMEWORK CLUB
HW club will continue throughout the school year. It will meet in the library every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 1:45 – 2:45. Students do not need to sign up ahead of time for HW club. Students will report to the library immediately after school and sign-in. Students can attend as many days as the parent/student believes are necessary. Students are expected to stay for the full hour.
TURKEY TOSS – A BIG SUCCESS!
We had a raucous time at the Turkey Toss! (back for the 1st time in 3 years) Thank you for your generous donations to the Billerica Food Pantry. We raised slightly over $4700 !! See some fun photos from the festivities on our Instagram page.
PTO CORNER
The PTO welcomes all families to the Locke. We will be meeting monthly to plan several events throughout the year. We are always looking for volunteers to help plan great programs that will benefit our students. Please email us at billericalockepto@gmail.com
PTO Events/Information:
- We are looking for vendors for our upcoming Holiday Fair! Please fill out the attached form if you are interested in having a table. Vendor Form
- We are having a holiday fair on December 10th from 9:00-2:00 PM. There will be crafters, vendors, bake sales, and more!!
- Trinket sales: December 19th – 21st
MATH PROBLEM OF THE WEEK
TWO PROBLEMS
- Michael is baking cookies. His cookie recipe calls for 1.75 cups of sugar and makes 24 cookies. If he wants to scale the recipe to make exactly 18 cookies, how many cups of sugar will he need? Express your answer as a mixed number.
- The Ten Finger calculator company periodically checks random calculators before shipping crates out to customers. On Wednesday, 12 calculators from each of 64 crates of 144 calculators were tested. Two of the tested calculators were found to be defective. Based on this rate of defect, how many total calculators are expected to be defective?
Last week’s answer: -- $64.99
Send your answers to Mr. Garas – tgaras@billericak12.com – Show your work! You can win a Dunkins gift card and the highly coveted math certificate!!
RIDDLE OF THE WEEK
Last week’s answer: What is the main difference between Thanksgiving and April Fools’ Day? – On Thanksgiving we are thankful and on April Fools we are prankful!
This week: What begins with T, finishes with T, and has T in it?
NEWSLETTER REMINDERS
CHROMEBOOKS
Students are required to bring their school-issued Chromebooks to school every day. It is important that students remember to bring their Chromebooks every day. We have only a few in the office to let students borrow. Students should charge their Chromebooks overnight. All teachers will be setting up a google classroom for their students where assignments will be posted and where assignments can be turned in electronically. If your child does not have a Chromebook, please contact the main office at 978-528-8650. We also highly recommend purchasing a protective case for the Chromebook.
LATE BUSES
Late bus runs have begun and will run on every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The buses usually arrive at the Locke at 3:10 PM. We have 3 late buses. The late buses have different stops than the usual routes. Please review the attached routes with students.
BUS ASSIGNMENTS
Students that ride the bus can only ride on their assigned bus in the morning and afternoon. Students are not allowed to ride different buses to be with friends after school. If there is an emergency reason that a student needs to ride another bus, please contact Mr. Peters.
The bus routes for the year are located on the district website:
https://www.billericak12.com/
If you have any questions regarding bus assignments, please contact our assistant principal: Phillip Peters: ppeters@billericak12.com -- 978-528-8654
ABSENCES
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
FROM THE BILLERICA PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Wanted! Substitute Teachers!
If you are looking to earn additional income and need a flexible schedule, then Substitute Teaching may be the perfect part-time job for you! Please visit our website at www.billericak12.com and go under 'Human Resources' and 'Employment Opportunities" to apply.
Wanted! Paraprofessionals!
We are looking for full-time paraprofessionals to provide hands-on support to teachers when preparing lessons. These are full-time positions with benefits. Please visit our website at www.billericak12.com and go under 'Human Resources' and 'Employment Opportunities" to apply.
Wanted! Substitute Cafeteria Workers!
Great opportunity for on-call part-time work. These positions are approximately 3 hours a day and perfect hours for those who need a flexible schedule. Please visit our website at www.billericak12.com and go under 'Human Resources' and 'Employment Opportunities" to apply.
UPCOMING DATES – ALL DATES ARE ON OUR WEBSITE
- Tuesday, December 6th – Last Day of Trimester 1
- December 6th through 10th – Book Fair
- Thursday, December 8th – Orchestra Concert, Marshall 7:00 PM
- Saturday, December 10th – Holiday Fair, 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM
- Monday, December 12th – School Site Council – 5:00 PM, Locke Library
- Monday, December 12th – PTO Meeting – 6:30 PM Locke Library
- Monday, December 12th – Choral Concert, BMHS -- 7:00 PM
- Wednesday, December 14th – Band Concert, Marshall – 7:00 PM
- Thursday, December 15th – Trimester 1 Grades Published
- December 19th through 21st – Trinket Sales during lunch
- Tuesday, December 20th – Orchestra Concert, 12:45 Locke Auditorium
- Friday, December 23rd – Half-Day
- December 26th through January 2nd – Holiday Recess
- Tuesday, January 3rd – School Resumes
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