ForWard 10.22.23
Upcoming Events
Thursday, October 26
Ward School Spirit Day
Friday, October 27
Ward Fun Run
Saturday, Nov 4
Grade 3 Parent / Guardian Potluck
Tuesday, Nov 7
5th Grade Bake Sale
Friday, Jan 12
Ward Hockey Night
See all events on our Calendar
News
From the Co-Presidents
What a fun day! SO many families showed up to our first community building event of the year - the Fall Spooktacular. The goal of this event was to bring Ward families together in the spirit of building relationships AND giving back and we are happy to report that we made it happen! See pictures here. October has been a busy month with grade potlucks happening and our first PTO meeting of the year successfully behind us. Now we have lots of thanks to share….
A huge thanks to Kerry Reynolds for taking the lead on organizing the Fall Fest and an amazing group of volunteers who signed up to help and make this event a huge success.
Thank you to Joan Rosenberg for her hospitality hosting second grade families for a fun potluck on Wednesday evening.
Thank you to all who attended our fall PTO meeting last week. The conversation was inspiring and the ideas and feedback during the meeting and since are all extremely helpful to us. For those that could not join us, please take a look at the slides and reach out anytime with questions or feedback. We are excited for the busy year ahead!
And now for a Ward Fun Run UPDATE! As of today:
Highest participation rate - Team Colarusso and Team Kaplan are continuing to lead the way!
SURPASSING fundraising goal - Teams Beaulieu-Jones, MacKenzie, Ritchie
and Kurens….Way to Go!
We are at 92% of our whole-school goal of $8,000 ….can we get there THIS week!?
You can see how our school is doing at the
Ward Fun Run dashboard!
If you haven’t yet registered your child, please take a moment to do so (see registration information below). This is a great opportunity to get friends and family involved in fundraising for Ward School. No donation is too small, and we are confident that together we can reach our goal!
Have a great week,
Rashi Khanna & Bryan Saltzburg
Ward PTO Co-Presidents 2023-24
Ward FUN Run - THIS FRIDAY!
Schedule
8:45 – 9:15 Grades 3-5
9:15 – 9:45 Grades K-2
1. REGISTER YOUR CHILD: Please help support our FUN Run by registering your child here. If you registered your child last year, just go here, login with your credentials, and click the green “add to event” button. Once registered you can easily share your child’s donation page to solicit donations from relatives and friends. Donations can also be sent by cash/check to the school; checks can be made out to WardPTO or venmo to @WardPTO (with the name of child+class). Donations are per child, not per lap. Regardless of donations, all students get to participate in the Fun Run and all students will receive a t-shirt and a sticker!
2. JOIN US: We would love to see you on the day of the event to cheer on your child/ren. There are also several volunteer opportunities including set up, handing out water and snacks, taking photos, guiding students around the course, and helping to clean up!. Sign up here.
Questions? Contact Penny Ismay at ismay@bc.edu or Lexi Lee Sullivanat lexilee180@gmail.com.
Fifth Grade Drive for Newton Food Pantry THIS WEEK
If you didnt get a chance to drop off donations at the Fall Fest, you can send them to school this week between Mon 10/23 - Tues 11/7. The objective of this food drive will be to gather food donations from the community for the Newton Food Pantry. The Pantry will distribute these donations to families experiencing food insecurity. The 5th graders are excited to have the opportunity to help their community, please help them by donating.
Please see the below flier for further details.
Sincerely,
May Chen (maysueki@hotmail.com, Caden's mom)
Sandhya Strobert (sundeestrobert@gmail.com, Meera’s mom)
Third annual Newton Halloween Bike ride - Sunday 10/28 at 4:30pm
This is a super fun, low stress, family friendly ride on 10/28 at 4:30pm. Kids wear their costumes and some brave adults do too. We had a great turnout last year. We will meet at Newton Center playground on the grass between centre at and the tennis courts and ride along the carriageway for roughly 2.5 miles total. We’ll have a costume contest and some snacks and prizes. Any questions, reach out to Jonathon Leib at jonleib@gmail.com
Ward Hockey Night: BC vs UCONN
Join Ward Families for a fun night out to cheer on the BC Eagles as they take on UConn on the Ice, Friday January 12 at 7PM at Conte Forum (on Boston College’s Main Campus). There are a large number of tickets available (budget $10-20/each). Please complete this form as soon as possible to ensure we are able to reserve a large enough block. Specific payment and ticket details will be released to everyone who submits the form.
Important Notes from Principal Brogadir for This Week
Fall Conferences: Fall conferences begin this week. Conferences are a key opportunity to build and strengthen home-school connections! We aim for 100% participation to support the learning for all students. If you have not yet scheduled a conference with your child(ren)'s teacher(s), please do so as soon as possible.
Ward School Spirit Day: Thursday, October 26; All students and staff members are encouraged to wear Ward School spirit wear on Thursday for our Ward School Community block with will include our Harvest fest and a Fun Run Pep rally.
Ward School Fun Run: Friday, October 27: We look forward to sharing in community and healthy movement for our 2nd annual Fun Run. Please be sure all students are dressed in comfortable clothing (layers encouraged), sneakers, and that all clothing is labeled.
How to Talk with Children About the Traumatic Events Happening in Israel and Gaza
The following was shared with NPS by Newton Health and Human Services as a resource for families on how to acknowledge and talk about the crises in Israel and Gaza with children. We hope the following recording and articles are helpful to you.
PDF: How to Make Sense of Tragedies Happening in the World: How to Take Care of Yourself and Your Children in Difficult Times
Event Recording: How to Talk with Children About the Traumatic Events Happening in Israel and Gaza (October 18, 2023)
PDF: Things to Think About and How to Care for Yourself During Times of Disaster / High Stress
Community Notes & Announcements
Together we can make a difference!
Looking for a meaningful volunteer opportunity? Come volunteer with Newton Neighbors, Newton’s mutual aid network. Volunteering is fun and a great way to connect to a network of thousands of other individuals making a difference in our community. Whether you are looking for school volunteer hours, wanting to make an impact in your community, or looking to fill some time, we want to hear from you. Check out our volunteer opportunities here and sign up for upcoming slots, or email us at neighbors@newtonneighbors.org.
Learn-To-Skate lessons with Bay State Skating School
Bay State Skating School is one of Greater Boston’s most established and popular skating programs. We are a Non-Profit Corporation, Celebrating over 50 years! Professional Instructors teach Recreational, Figure and Hockey Skating Skills to beginner, intermediate and advanced skaters ages 4 to 18. Wear either figure, recreational or hockey skates. Helmets are required for ages 4 – 9. Classes at the Larz Anderson-Brookline Rink are held Saturdays 10:45am & Sundays 10:45am, Cleveland Circle Reilly Rink are held Thursdays 4pm, Fridays 4pm & Sundays 1pm, Newton Daly Rink are held Sundays 2:00 pm, and at the West Roxbury Roche Arena Sundays 4:00 PM For information and to register, call Bay State Skating School at 781-890-8480 or visit online at www.BayStateSkatingSchool.org.
New England Camp Fair in Newton on 11/4
The 5th annual New England Camp Fair is in just 15 days. Hosted at the Underwood School in Newton, MA, New England Camp Fair brings 30 day and overnight camps together so you can find the right camps for your kids. Many camps have already started selling out for 2024 (which seems crazy!) - so this is a great way to meet with a lot of different camps and help your families decide what is best for you! The Camp Fair is FREE for attendees, and offers coffee, donuts, and a door prize for the first 50 kids! You can learn more here: https://www.newenglandcampfair.org
Please let us know if you have any questions!
And please continue to follow the PTO on instagram @wardelementary_pto