Principal's Memo

Principal’s Memo – January 19, 2024

Posted on January 19, 2024

January 19, 2024

Good morning LMS Families,

Happy Friday. This has been a topsy turvy week here, with Monday off, and then the early dismissal for weather on Tuesday. Now we’re seeing real winter temperatures come in. With these temps and the recent snowfall, it’s a good opportunity to remind you that appropriate attire is necessary for our students as they are spending time outside for recess, as well as for a break time. For our grade 3-5 students they need to wear boots, snow pants, coats, hats, and mittens or gloves outside at recess to play in the snow. If you are in need of some of these winter clothing items, you can reach out to our school counselor, Ms. Milligan who will be happy to assist you. The colder temperatures can also mean more time inside, which can lead to more recreational screen time for our students. Please see the document at the end of this memo for some social media safety tips, brought to you by the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the American Psychological Association.

Student Chromebooks

We are seeing a high number of students who are forgetting to bring their chromebook to school, and/or not charged and ready for the day. This creates a lot of problems, number one is their inability to access their education. While we are doing everything we can to supply those students with a device for the day, our supply is limited, and with the amount of students forgetting their devices or having them uncharged, some days we are loaning out our entire stock. Please help us by reminding your child to bring their device every day. Thank you for your partnership with this.

UNE Dental Clinic – February 9th

We have a great opportunity coming up on Friday, February 9th, 2024, with the UNE dental clinic in Portland. They will be providing free oral health screenings, oral hygiene education, dental cleanings, fluoride varnish application, and dental sealant placement. This event will be taking place during school hours and we will provide transportation for students participating.
Please reach out to kgagnon@rsu23.org for more information and to obtain a copy of the permission form.

RSU 23 Health Team Note on cold & flu season

As we head into these winter months, this is a quick reminder to be mindful of cold and flu season. It is important that we work together to keep our children healthy. Viruses/Common Colds spread easily among children in schools. You can help prevent the spread of flu and the common cold by following a few simple steps:

Remind your child to cover his/her nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing. We teach them to cough or sneeze into a tissue, the bend of their elbow, or to cough down into the front of their own shirt to help keep as many germs as possible off of the hands.
Have your child wash his/her hands frequently with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds or use hand sanitizer if soap and water is not available.
If your child is sick and has a fever, keep him/her at home to prevent the spread of illness to others.

Contact our school nurse, Katie Gagnon, at kgagnon@rsu23.org with any questions or if your child will be absent from school due to illness.

Snow/Remote Day Information

Please see the snow/remote day memo sent out by Superintendent Suttie.

Arrival & Dismissal Safety Procedures

I would like to remind everyone that for the safety of our students and staff the back side of our building including our parking lot is not a thruway. We have seen an increase in the number of vehicles using this as a cut through from Jameson Hill Road to Emerson Cummings Blvd and vice versa. We appreciate everyone’s cooperation with this in order to keep our students safe!

Family Vacation Forms

During the school year some families take vacations and ask that we excuse their children from school days. This is not a problem, however, we do have forms to sign off on in order to help students understand the expectations of making up missed work. The forms can be found in the main office. Thanks for your help!

A reminder of a few upcoming dates: