Worthington School District
147 Huntington Road
Worthington, MA 01098
413-238-5856
gmorsedobosz@hr-k12.org

Dear Community:

Please see the upcoming events below! The month of March is long, but filled with many activities at the school!

Pancake Breakfast: Community members are invited to R.H. Conwell on Saturday, March 9 from 8AM – 9PM, 1 pancake and 1 sausage $5.00, 2 pancakes and 2 sausages, $10.00.
Juice, coffee, tea and hot chocolate included. Sign up with Ms. Ashley at atompkins@hr-k12.org.

Preschool Open House: Are you interested in signing your little one up for preschool? Come join us on March 9, 2024 from 9-11 a.m. to meet the preschool team and tour the preschool classroom. All interested families are welcome to join us at 8:00 a.m. for a homemade pancake breakfast and then join us in preschool at 9:00. All proceeds will be for future Nature’s Classroom trips.

Book Bazaar: The PTO is sponsoring a book bazaar on March 9th from 8 a.m.-12 p.m. in the Arts room. Books are $2.00 each!

Babysitting Course OFFERING: We are partnering with UMASS Amherst’s 4-H Youth Development program to offer a full day babysitting course to students over April break for students 12 years and older. Mature 11 year olds will be considered as well if availability allows. The class will be held Wednesday, April 17 from 8:30am-3pm at R.H. Conwell. If interested, please contact Nurse Steph ASAP at sfaas@hr-k12.org. FIVE SPOTS LEFT!!!!!

School Choice: For the FY 24-25 school year we have one kindergarten seat and two third grade seats open for School Choice. Applications are due no later than March 8, 2024 at 3:00 p.m.

After-School Program Updates: Session 3 starts March 11! Registration forms will be handed out to students in their classroom on Monday, March 4th and should be returned to school or e-mailed to Mrs. Madden by Friday, March 8th. We will have some of our favorite activities returning and some new activities such as Running Club for grades 3 to 6, Cooking Club for grades 3 and 4, Outdoor Exploration for grades K to 6, and Innovative Filmmaking for grades 3 to 6.

Conwell Adventurers Summer Program:

Registration forms for the summer program are now available! Registration forms should be returned to their classroom teacher or e-mailed to smadden@hr-k12.org by March 15.

The summer program will start July 8th and end August 1st. The program will run Mondays through Thursdays from 8:45 am to 2:45 pm. Students enrolled in R.H. Conwell in grades K to 6 are eligible to attend (K to 6 for the 23-24 school year). Next year’s kindergarten students are also eligible to attend. There is no fee for attending the program due to funding through the DESE 21st Century Community Learning Center Grant. Students must enroll for the 4 weeks. This is a program and grant requirement. Students will be working on projects and activities that build off of each other each day so consistent attendance will be important.

Solar Eclipse: On Monday, April 8, a total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the U.S., and Canada. A total solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the Sun. The sky will darken as if it were dawn or dusk. While no place in Massachusetts will see the sun completely disappear, some parts of the state will see a shadow cover 95 percent of the sun, if weather permits. The eclipse will begin shortly after 2 p.m. and will last about two and a half hours until about 4:30 p.m. We ordered solar eclipse glasses for all the students!

MCAS DATES: Students in grades 3- 6 will be taking the MCAS test during the dates listed below.

ELA: April 2 and 3
Math: April 30 and May 1
Science: May 14 (grade 5 only)

News from the school nurses:

Seasonal influenza (flu) activity remains elevated nationally. Though many associate the flu with the winter months, the flu season can often extend into May! CDC recommends that everyone 6 months and older get an annual flu vaccine as long as influenza viruses

News from the cafeteria:

2024 National School Breakfast Week

What Is NSBW?

National School Breakfast Week (NSBW) celebrates the importance of a nutritious school breakfast in fueling students for success. NSBW, at its core, is about promoting nutritious breakfast menu items in an engaging way for students. This year’s NSBW will be from March 4th – 8th.

The Importance of School Breakfast

The School Breakfast Program provides 12 million nutritious breakfasts to hungry children across the country every day. These breakfasts tend to be more nutritious than the average breakfast a child gets from home or a convenient fast-food restaurant.

What NSBW Aims to Do

By celebrating National School Breakfast Week (NSBW) every year, we’re encouraging all schools to recognize the importance of a healthy start to the day for fueling a child’s academic success.

Did you know children who eat breakfast are more likely to:

Reach higher levels of achievement in reading and math
Score higher on standardized tests
Have better concentration and memory
Be more alert and maintain a healthy weight

But when the school week gets busy, it’s easy for students to rush out the door in the morning without having a nutritious meal. That’s why school breakfast is such a great option! In fact, students who participate in school breakfast tend to have better attendance rates and fewer behavioral problems.

HOTM: www.massfarmtoschool.org

Last month’s HOTM was winter squash, we made roasted butternut, and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies!

We are able to provide treats for special celebrations in the classrooms. Please check out the link here for more information and the order form.

Pancake Breakfast: Saturday, March 9 from 8AM – 9PM, 1 pancake and 1 sausage $5.00, 2 pancakes and 2 sausages, $10.00. Juice, coffee, tea and hot chocolate included. Sign up with Ms. Ashley at atompkins@hr-k12.org.

The cafeteria now has a peanut free table at lunch time due to the presence of a student in the school with a severe peanut allergy.

Upcoming Events:

March 5, 2024: Family Breakfast

March 8, 2024: Noon Dismissal

March 9, 2024: Pancake breakfast beginning at 8 a.m. – 9 a.m.
AND Preschool Open House from 9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. and Book Bazaar

March 14, 2024: K – 6th grade go to Springfield Museum School Committee Meeting at 6:30 p.m.

March 19, 2024: ⅚ graders go to HRHS for the musical, Mary Poppins

March 29, 2024: Family Lunch Have a wonderful weekend!

Warmly,
Gretchen Morse-Dobosz
Superintendent/Principal