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Toy Town Elementary School

Newsletter March 2015

Kathryn Vanderhoof, Principal

Laura Weiderman, Assistant Principal

Mari-Jane Thurlow, Principal Secretary

Jeanette Perry, Office Secretary

Sue Vaillancourt, School Nurse

Phone: 978-297-2005

Fax: 978-297-3011

Nurse: 978-297-3771

Supt. Office: 978-297-0031

Food Service: 978-616-1467

At Toy Town Elementary School, we are getting ready to begin state assessments. The Performance Based Assessments are

given after about 75% of the curriculum for the school year has been taught. Those are scheduled for March and early April.

The End of Year Assessments begin in May. The sessions are scheduled for 40 to 60 minutes, depending on the grade level and

subject matter. All students are allowed up to 30 minutes longer if needed. Testing is scheduled to be completed by 1:30 in the

afternoon for all classes. We believe our students are well-prepared to use the technology skills necessary to navigate the

assessments. We have been addressing the Common Core Standards at Toy Town since 2011 and continue to work toward

curriculum mastery for all students in each area. We have hard working, competent students that will do their very best. Our

staff looks forward to getting the results this year rather than waiting for the next school year as we have done with the MCAS

tests. The timely results will better enable us to plan for the academic needs of our students.

PBA Assessments

3rd Grade

Math - March 17 and 18

ELA - March 25, 26, and 27

4th Grade

Math - March 19 and 20

ELA - March 30, 31, and April 1

5th Grade

Math - March 23 and 24

ELA - April 2, 6, and 7

End of Year Assessments

3rd Grade

Math – May 11 and 12

ELA - May 18

4th Grade

Math – May 6 and 7

ELA - May 19

5th Grade

Math – May 4 and 5

MCAS Science – May 13 and 14

ELA - May 20

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School Improvement Council

Members of the School Council for 2014-2015

Kathryn Vanderhoof

Principal Annemarie Aidonidis

Special Education Teacher

Laura Weiderman Assistant Principal

Deb Vaughan Special Education Teacher

Eric DeHays Parent Melissa Pandiscio Grade Three Teacher

Alissa Campbell Parent Tony Dellasanta Physical Education Teacher

Shannon Coffin Parent Kyle Scrivines YMCA, Community Rep

Steven Sroczynski Parent

The Council will be meeting the first Thursday of every month from 4:30-5:30 p.m.

In the Superintendent’s Conference Room.

The next meeting is Thursday, April 2, 2015

March and April Calendar

March 5, 2015 School Council Meeting 4:30-5:30 pm

March 16, 2015 Professional Development Day No School

March 17 – April 7 PARCC Assessment

March 19, 2015 Winnie the Pooh Kids 7:00 pm TTE Auditorium

March 20, 2015 Winnie the Pooh Kids 7:00 pm TTE Auditorium

March 21, 2015 Winnie the Pooh Kids 7:00 pm TTE Auditorium

April 3, 2015 Good Friday ½ day Breakfast and lunch served

April 20-24, 2015 Spring Vacation No School

Mrs. Daigle’s Class

What I like about winter.

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Toy Town Elementary

Did you know…by Miss Murray

The fall of 1997 was a great time to

be a 4th grader at Toy Town

Elementary School. The bottom floor

was no quite ready for occupancy due

to renovations to the building. So…for

two months we held classed in Old

Murdock (now the Senior Center). We

were going to school in a historic

building!

Most 4th graders from Toy Town at

that time are now 25 and 26 years

old. They remember going to class in

the building where many of their

grandparents and great aunts and

uncles and older neighbors went to

high school. And the bonus was we

didn’t go back to school until after

Labor Day that year!

REMINDER…PLEASE KEEP THE OFFICE UP TO

DATE WITH CURRENT PHONE NUMBERS and

EMAIL ADDRESSES.

PLEASE BE SURE YOU CHILD IS DRESSED FOR

THE WEATHER. STUDENT’S MUST HAVE SNOW

PANTS AND BOOTS TO BE ALLOWED IN THE

SNOW.

OUTDOOR RECESS FOR 20 degrees and

HIGHER.

Student of the Month

Magdalena Phelps

Toy Town Elementary School is

proud to announce our February,

2015 Student of the

Month. Magdalena Phelps, from

Mrs. Zelnia’s third grade class, has

been chosen for this award.

Maggie has shown many great

qualities that make her a

wonderful student. She always

carefully checks her work, strives

to do her best, and puts forth her

best effort. She has a great sense

of humor and loves to share her

thinking in small groups and in

whole class discussion. She is also

a good friend and is always

available to help everyone.

Maggie is honest and respectful.

Mrs. Zelnia calls her ‘a gift to my

class’.

Congratulations, Maggie, on

becoming Student of the Month

and thank you for helping to make

our school a happy place for

others.

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What to Do When Your Child Hates Reading

Do you have to beg your child to sit down and read; for school or for pleasure? They may tell us they

don’t really care about reading, but if we could wave a magic wand and make them accurate, fluent,

expressive, comprehending readers, not one of them would turn us down. But there isn’t such a wand,

and we know that they will never become readers if they don’t read. So how can we get them to do what

they don’t want to do in order to help them become what they must? Try these simple, but meaningful

steps to help move your reluctant reader toward a book-filled future:

1. Zero in on your child’s interests. A magazine with his/hers name on the label becomes a personal

invitation to read.

2. Start small. Read sports scores in the newspaper, a short magazine article, comic books, jokes, riddles,

or watch a related video or movie before or after reading.

3. Practice shared reading. Take turns reading a page, section, or chapter; even with older students.

Chat about the reading in a conversational tone.

4. Create a comfortable environment. Keep books handy in the car, kitchen, at the doctor’s office; for

those waiting times.

5. Provide them with “how-to” books, and the materials. Show them how books give step by step

directions to care for a new pet, or learn a new skill.

6. Let your child see you read. Actions speak louder than words.

Mrs. Holly Visco, Reading Specialist

Mrs.

Chamber’s

Class

Black

History

Month

Biographies

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News from the Art Room…By Mrs. Leroy

After working on a successful paper weaving project earlier this year Grade Four is

weaving again! We are working with patterns, colors and texture to create a

potholder.

Kenny DeHays and Tylor Sears Annabelle Merante and Nickalas Laplaca Jonathan Pare and Dominic LeBlanc

Lillian Skawinski and Angelina Dellasanta Aurora Smith Jason Ingman and Donovan Campbell

Laughable Limericks

By Mrs. Zelnia’s

class

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