Mathewson Elementary School
PAWprint September 2, 2022
Hello Bulldog Families!
What a PAWtastic week! Thank you for all your warm welcomes back to school and all your support. We hope that your child(ren) has come home with a pawsitive first experience about their first three days of school. This year will be filled with fun and learning. Over this year you will be invited in for social gatherings and learning celebrations. In fact Dr. Cutaia, Supt. of Schools, and Mayor Blake heard that Mathewson was soooooooo pawmazing that they even came to visit and learn from us during this first week. A special thank you to the Mathewson PTA, Mrs. Gonski, our custodial team (Bill, Eddie and Dave) and many more who worked behind the scenes to help ensure all ran smoothly on day one.
Next week we will continue to learn lots of new things together, including what to do when a fire drill or lockdown drill occurs. While this can be scary at first, I assure you our staff will help your students feel comfortable about our safety practices as we all practice together. Don’t forget you have an extra day of rest this weekend as we celebrate Labor Day on Monday so no school. We look forward to seeing you on Tuesday!
Below is some important information for you to know (some new, some old, but all important... Woof!):
Bus/Food/Media Tags: Students new to MPS and our school will be receiving their id tags soon. Currently these have not arrived but we are anticipating them any day now. This will make lunch and book check out much easier.
Chromebook Insurance: You Can Renew When You Enter the Parent Portal - Many parents have reached out to us to ask about Chromebook Insurance. We are happy to report that our low-cost Chromebook Insurance program is WELL worth the annual renewal fee ($25 per year). If you’ve got kids, then you already know there’s always the potential for something to happen to the Chromebook during the year: cracked screen, broken hinges, water damage, just to name a few. Do yourself a favor. Purchase the insurance – it will give you peace of mind and save you a lot of aggravation when something goes wrong. You can renew your insurance right on your Parent Portal account when you first sign in next Thursday. If you have any questions, please contact our BIDS dept. at (203) 783-3446.
Grade 4 & 5 Instrument Selection - It's that time of year where our 4th & 5th grade students may choose to play an instrument at school. We have many opportunities available -- woodwinds, brass, percussion, strings and several others.To get started, click on THIS LINK to see the many choices -- then click on the REGISTRATION form to let us know what you would like to try! (And, for parents, there's lots of other great information on the website. Check it out!). If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to your school's music teacher (you can find the teacher for your school listed on the website).
Foodservice News: Meals Will Once Again be Free: As we begin the 2022-23 school year, the Milford Foodservice department will continue to provide breakfast and lunch at no charge (for a limited time). This benefit has been made possible by federal funding through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) and the subsequent allocation to the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE). We are receiving this limited funding under the Free School Meals for Children grant. Due to the fact that this funding is limited, we will provide free meals to students until this funding source is depleted. There are many factors that will affect how long we will be able to offer free meals: enrollment, participation in the school lunch program, and the number of families registered for the Free/Reduced Price program. We estimate we will be able to offer free meals to all students for the first few months of school. As we monitor the available funds we have left in grant, we will provide you with a 30-day notice of when we anticipate these funds will be depleted. Once the funds are depleted, families will begin paying for full-price meals, once again, as they did before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Free & Reduced Price Meals Application: As a participant in the National School Lunch/Breakfast Programs, the Milford Food Services department is here to support you. Once the funding described above is depleted, families will still be able to apply to receive continued Free or Reduced Price meals by completing the Free/ Reduced Price Meals Application. We strongly recommend you complete the form NOW so your child's meal service will not be interrupted. The form can be found online on the district website on the Foodservice page.
Staff Shirts: This year our Bulldog Crew is rocking bright red shirts that show off our new staff theme of Mathewson + “the most pawsitive place in town”! On Fridays throughout the year you will see staff wear our staff shirts (new and old) to show unity and a love for our school! Staff donates money to “dress down” during the year and the funds help to support a number of worthy causes for our school, school families and community. We hope you enjoy seeing a more relaxed view of our crew on Fridays!
Let’s have a PAWmazing year!
Melissa Currier
Melissa Currier, Principal
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Important Dates, WOOF!
September 5th: No School-Labor Day
September 13th: Mathewson PTA Meeting @ 7 pm--virtual! Link will be posted here soon!
September 15th: Mathewson Open House. Sessions will be held between 6-8 pm--more information to come
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@ BePAWsitiveMPS
