| Save the Date |
| Apr 4, Thursday – 3rd Grade Enrichment: Museum of Science (Motion, Forces, and Energy) Apr 7-9, Sunday-Tuesday – Thompson Drama Project performances Apr 11, Thursday – Arlington EATS Community Dinner, 6 pm Apr 11 and 12, Thursday and Friday – MCAS ELA 3rd Grade Apr 15-19, Monday-Friday – NO SCHOOL, Spring Break Apr 22-26 – Earth Week Apr 22 and 23, Monday and Tuesday – MCAS ELA 4th Grade Apr 24 and 25, Wednesday and Thursday – MCAS ELA 5th Grade Apr 24, Wednesday – PTO Meeting, 7-9 pm, Library Apr 25, Thursday – 3rd Grade Field Trip: Plimoth Plantation Apr 26, Friday – Spirit Day: Backward Day Apr 26, Friday – 1st Grade Field Trip: Franklin Park Zoo |
| School Calendar Click here for Thompson’s Google Calendar to get school holidays, early release days, and PTO events on your own calendar. Click here for a printable version of this month’s calendar. The Arlington Public School Calendar is @ www.arlington.k12.ma.us/calendar. |
| PTO Update |
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Happy Spring everyone! Hard to believe we
have only 3 more months of the school year left to go. Feels like it
was September just yesterday! As the weather gets warmer, we get busier! Here is a brief overview of upcoming enrichment activities: Kindergarteners will visit the Stone Zoo and participate in an in-school program to learn about tide pools. 1st Grade will visit the Franklin Park Zoo, participate in an African Drumming workshop and the Discovering Justice program, with a visit to the Courthouse. 2nd Grade will visit the Farrington Nature Linc reserve. 3rd Grade’s social studies curriculum will have them learn about colonial times with a visit to Plimoth Plantation and attend a workshop lead by the First Light Foundation on Wampanoag culture. They will also attend an in-school workshop by the Museum of Science on Motion, Force and Energy. 4th Grade will watch an IMAX movie at the Museum of Science on Lewis and Clark. 5th Grade will visit the Old South Meeting House, learn about birds of prey and visit Urban Air as their final Thompson field trip. In addition, there are two author visits planned. Kindergarten through 4th grade will participate in a visit from author Jason Chin, and author Toni Buzzeo will visit grades 1-3. Thank you to the teachers for their support and to the entire Enrichment Team for organizing these programs. Enrichment accounts for the majority of the PTO budget, and the success of our fall Direct Donation Drive, the sale of the Arlington Community Card, and other smaller fundraising efforts, allows us to support existing programs and to continue to explore new and innovative ones. Outside of enrichment programming, the Green team will be organizing activities for Earth Week April 22nd to April 26th. Teacher appreciation week will be celebrated from May 6th to May 10th. Watch this space and emails from room parents on how you can help make the week special for our amazing teachers and staff. We will wrap up the year with the Skating Party on Saturday, April 13th and the Family Picnic on Thursday, June 13th. Although the Thompson Drama Project is not a PTO event, we can’t wait to see the talent of our young actors and the hard work of the Thompson Drama project team bring the Phantom Tollbooth, in the form of a play and musical, to life on April 7th, 8th and 9th. During the last quarter of the school year, the PTO will be recruiting for 2019-2020 open positions. We have many parents who will be stepping down from the board or event chair roles. Not all PTO roles require a significant time commitment, many can be done with a minimal time commitment. The PTO needs parent participation to continue to offer Thompson students these amazing opportunities. If you are curious about how you can be more active in the PTO, or would like to be part of the PTO board, please reach out to us. Nandana Mewada and Christy Macinta-Murphy |
| Thompson News & Events |
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Thompson Drama Project We’re pleased to present two productions of the Phantom Tollbooth this year! Our directors and actors have been working hard, and we hope you will come see the results in our own Thompson Auditorium. |
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The play:
Sunday, April 7, 3:00 p.m.
Monday, April 8, 7:00 p.m.
THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH
by Susan Nanus, Based on the book by Norton Juster
“The Phantom Tollbooth” is presented by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. The musical: Sunday, April 7, 1:00 p.m. Tuesday, April 9, 7:00 p.m. THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH JR. Music by Arnold Black Book by Norton Juster and Sheldon Harnick Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick Based on the novel by Norton Juster. Presented through special arrangement with Musical Theatre International (MTI). |
| Tickets will be available at the door for $5 (cash only). Both shows will also be performed for Thompson students during the day on Monday, April 8. We want to thank all the volunteers and donors that make this production possible! |
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Ice Skating Party Saturday, April 13th, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm Join your Thompson friends at the Thompson Skating Party! Saturday, April 13th from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm the entire Ed Burns Arena will be reserved for Thompson skaters. Bring your own helmet and skates or borrow them for FREE! Food will be available for purchase at the snack bar or vending machines. Entry to the event will be $3 per skater. The PTO needs volunteers for this event. Sign up here to help! |
| Green Team News Thompson will kick off our new Gardening Curriculum with Earth Week April 22nd-26th. This year’s theme is Ecosystem Superheroes; The Pollinators, Bees and Butterflies, Pollinator Plants and Trees, and Stewards of the Earth. On Wed. April 24th Thompson will host a work day to create pollinator garden beds from 2:30 – 6 pm. On Fri. April 26th students will have the opportunity to create pollinator habitats during the school day. Earlier that week first graders will put together pollinator garden kits. Please consider being part of Thompson’s efforts to create pollinator habitats during Earth Week! |
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Cause + Event Boston: Support Thompson PTO The 5K run/walk, Cause + Event Boston, is coming back to Arlington on Sunday, May 12 (Mother’s Day) at 8:00 am. This race is unique – at least 50% of each runners’ registration fee is donated to their charity of choice. You can select the Thompson PTO or your favorite charity. Over the past four years, Cause + Event has donated almost $1500 to the Thompson PTO as a part of the $80,000 donated to participants’ selected charities. This is the goal race for the FitGirls program so there will be 250+ 4th and 5th grade girls running the 5K including the Thompson team! Register today and learn more at the Cause + Event Boston website. Register soon, last year the race sold out a month ahead of the race. Not a runner but want to get involved? Consider volunteering! It takes about 100 amazing volunteers to make this race happen each year. Questions? Want to volunteer? Contact Sara Wilkinson: swilkie49@hotmail.com |
| Community News & Events |
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Plant a Street Tree!
This
spring the Town of Arlington wants to plant 50 new street trees in the
Thompson School area (out of 150 total new trees being planted in Town
this spring). Request one now – click this link!
The Tree Warden will select an appropriate tree for the location, and
the Town will plant it with a Gator bag for watering. You’ll just need
to water the new tree for a few growing seasons so it can get
established. If you have any questions, please email Phil Tedesco at philip.tedesco@gmail.com. |
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APS Budget Plan Released
The plan is available here: http://www.arlington.k12.ma.us/administration/budget/fy20/fiveyeardraftapsbudgetplan.pdf This initial draft will continue to be revised based on feedback from the public, funding availability, and changing needs. There will be a forum on Wednesday, April 10 at 7 pm at the Gibbs School with members of the Administration and the School Committee to review and discuss the draft five-year plan. The School Committee is very interested in public feedback on the plan, including thoughts on which items might be the highest priorities and on items missing or not fully addressed by the plan. Comments can also be submitted by email to: kfitzgerald@arlington.k12.ma.us. |
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On March 23rd, our yearly fundraiser, beats for EATS, raised over $80,000! Each $1 raised will provide 3 meals to food-insecure neighbors. Thank you to all who support our mission of “Neighbors Serving Neighbors”. In April, we are looking forward to a Community Meal on Thursday April 11 at 6pm and Vacation Lunches. Please join us! |
| Stories! Movement! Art! @ Gore Place Want something to do during April school vacation? Stories! Movement! Art! will provide students in grades 3-6 the opportunity to tell stories through their art! By using low-tech materials, we’ll create art that physically moves or uses optical illusion to showcase movement! This program runs Monday, April 15 to Friday, April 19 from 1-3:30pm. The program will take place inside the Carriage House at Gore Place in Waltham (the large building next to the parking lot). This program is $20 for the whole week, or $5/day. Tickets: https://art-workshop.bpt.me |