Hello JFK Families!
We had a special assembly today from Mad Science! They engaged in different experiments and explained the science behind each one! The students seemed to have a great time - ask them all about it!! A special thank you to our PTO for providing this opportunity to us and to Mr. Sabo for organizing this at the school level.
I hope you have a great weekend!
Mr. Brennan
Family Gratitude Night - This event will take place on Tuesday, December 13th from 6:00 to 7:00 PM. We hope you can join us. See the attached flier for more information.
Student Attendance Matters! - Please keep in mind that the school day officially begins at 8:40am. We ask that students arrive at school before 8:40 am so that they have time to walk to class and get settled in. Working in partnerships with our families will ensure that all our children come to school on time and ready to learn each day. A few tips from attendancematters.org
Set a regular bedtime and wake up with an alarm clock.
Lay out clothes and pack backpacks the night before.
Don’t let your child stay home unless he or she is truly sick.
If your child seems anxious about going to school, talk to their teacher or a staff member for advice on how to make him/her feel comfortable and excited about learning.
Ask for help if you need it. We are here to work with you! Let us know if we can support you!
Milford Public Schools Attendance Policy
MPS Expanding Community Connection Center to Serve all MPS Families -
The Milford Public Schools started a Community Connection Center at Pumpkin Delight Elementary School just prior to the pandemic. The purpose of the center was to form a bridge between families and the multitude of community services available in Milford and beyond to help support our families. This service is now being expanded to include all 8 elementary schools. The Coordinator of the Community Connection Center can connect families with information and solutions for a wide variety of family needs: child care, parenting skills, literacy skills, food insecurity, job search, financial assistance, and many, many more. Please contact either Mary-Kate Williams or Cara Dascenzo to have a chat about how they can help support you and your family. You can also connect with the Coordinator through your social worker, school counselor, or psychologist. MPS is pleased to offer this service at a time when many of us can use a partner to help navigate challenging times. Please reach out.
Mary-Kate Williams Cara Dascenzo
203-882-6094 203-301-5664
Pumpkin Delight Calf Pen Meadow
Community Connection Center - This week's Community Connection Center's Newsletter (CCC News) has links to a voluntary safety recall and free tours to the Governor's Mansion. Each week information about Milford's providers & their programs are listed . You will also find ideas for family friendly activities & places to visit. And don't forget that the CCC website is also updated with links to community resources. Have a Safe & Healthy weekend!
Mary-Kathryn Williams, Coordinator
Community Connection Center
Important Food Service Information - Free Meals Continue Through December 2022 Back in August, the Milford Foodservice department confirmed it would continue to provide breakfast and lunch at no charge this school year, thanks to limited federal funding we received through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) and the subsequent allocation to the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE). At that time, we reported we would provide free meals to students until the funding source was depleted. We also stated that we would provide all of our families with a 30-day notice of when we anticipated the funds would be depleted.
As of today, we are confirming the Milford Foodservice department will continue to offer lunch and breakfast to students at no charge through December 2022.
We do, however, expect the Free Meal program will end at the end of December and meals will once again need to be purchased starting in January 2023.
To prepare for this change in our Food Service program we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the online payment portal we use here in Milford, called Titan. This service gives families the opportunity to create an account for the entire family that is convenient and easy-to-use. Click HERE to learn more about Titan.
Families that previously completed a Free/Reduced-Price Meals application and were approved for the program will still be able to receive free/reduced price meals. If you did not complete a Free/Reduced Price Application this year but believe your family would qualify, we strongly urge you to complete the form that is linked below now so your child’s meal service will not be interrupted.
2022-23 Free/Reduced Price Online Application
2022-23 Free/Reduced Price Meals Printable Application
We will continue to provide updates – with a specific end date for the program – as we get closer. In the meantime, we are grateful for the funding we have received to date from our state and federal sources and are thankful for our Milford Foodservice Team and their impeccable service throughout this program. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your school’s cafeteria manager.
Winter Arts Season - Please see the attached flier with concert dates throughout the district.
Specialist Spotlight - Spanish
¡Hola from Señorita Polansky!
I can’t believe it is already December! We are making our way through our first unit of the year all about Identity- who we are. Kindergarten has been working on Greetings and Feelings in Spanish. Ask your child “¿Cómo estás?” and see if they can tell you (or show you with gestures/facial expressions) in Spanish! In 1st grade we have been learning about physical descriptions and then wrapping up our Identity unit with a fun “Guess Who?” game to see how well students really know each other in their class! 2nd graders have been learning to express likes and dislikes and we have also incorporated our “Estrella Del Día, or Star of the Day, where a different student is highlighted in each class and we talk about what they like to do all in the target language. 3rd and 4th graders have spent the past few weeks learning and talking about their birthdays, asking others “¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?” (When is your birthday?), in an interview style activity and learning about birthday traditions in other Spanish-speaking countries. Click HERE to watch some of our 4th graders in Mr. McAloon’s class practice their greetings- ¡Muy bien amigos!
Wishing everyone a very happy and healthy holiday season!!!
Rachael Polansky
Important Dates:
Friday, Dec. 9th - Mad Science Assembly - Spin, Pop, Boom!
Tuesday, December 13th - Family Gratitude Night
Pictures from this week at JFK!
PTO News
The Holiday Store was a blast!!
The holiday store was a huge success this week! The kids had so much fun picking things out. A big thank you to all of our parent “elves” for helping set-up and run such a fun event!
Spirit Night at Urban Air was awesome!
Thank you to everyone who came out last night for our JFK Spirit Night at Urban Air! It was impossible to track all the kids, because they had such a blast running all over the place. Even more fun - JFK PTO will get 20% of all the proceeds!
Mad Science hit JFK Today!
Today was the Spin, Pop, Boom! assembly from the folks at Mad Science. It was a bubbly, popping good time! Next week all the students will get to do the in-class experiment kits that mimic one of the cool experiments they saw today. Thank you again to Mr. Sabo for making science so fun and accessible for our kids!
January Starts Membership Month!
In January, we’re kicking-off a membership drive for those of you who haven’t quite gotten around to joining the PTO yet. Hopefully, you’ve been able to enjoy one of our fun family events - or you’ve heard your kids talk about one of the fun, in-school activities we sponsored. It’s never too late to support the PTO! Here are links for Family Membership forms and Staff Membership forms..
Stop & Shop Community Program
We have again been chosen by Stop & Shop to be the recipient of their Community Bag donation program. That means that for every reusable bag they sell during the month, the JFK PTO gets $1. You know you need plenty of grocery bags this time of year, so be sure to swing by the Stop & Shop right off of Bridgeport Ave and stock up!
Attention 5th grade families
We would like to be able to reach out to 5th grade families directly throughout the year to gather information for the yearbook (pictures, memories etc ) as well as the end of year celebration planning opportunities. If you have a 5th grader, please complete this form as soon as possible to avoid missing out on our important communications about your child's final year at JFK!