From the Principals

Dear YES Families,

We hope this message finds you well, and that you had a joyful holiday season filled with warmth and cherished moments with your loved ones. As we embark on the new year, we extend a warm welcome back to school for all of our students and families.

We trust that the holiday break provided a refreshing opportunity for rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation. The new year brings with it a renewed sense of optimism, and we are excited about the learning adventures that lie ahead for our students. We look forward to our first day back in school together on Thursday, January 2.

As we resume our academic journey, we encourage you to stay connected with us. We value open communication and collaboration, and we are always here to address any questions or concerns you may have. Your involvement in your child's education greatly contributes to their success, and we are grateful for your active participation.

We look forward to the next few months being filled with achievements, growth, and wonderful memories for our school community.

Wishing you and your family a prosperous and joyous new year!

Warm regards,

Ryan Gleason, YES Principal & Molly Kilpatrick, YES Assistant Principal

January 2025 News

CONFERENCES, NEW ELECTRONIC REPORT CARDS & MAP ASSESSMENTS: JANUARY- MARCH

February and March is the winter parent-teacher conference window. Later this month classroom teachers will be setting up mid-year parent-teacher conferences.

Yarmouth Elementary School reports on learning standards twice a year, once at mid-year and again at the end of the school year. Report cards are an "invitation to a conversation" and this will be a nice opportunity to celebrate your child's growth while also hearing about their next steps to keep growing as a learner.

In February, you will be able to access your child's electronic report card via PowerSchool. You will have access to your child’s report card before you conference with their classroom teacher. The portal allows you to access your child’s report cards and their historical progress from year to year.

In late January, we will be sending out a separate email to let you know when report cards are available. That email will also describe how to access your child’s report cards during each marking period.

We also have the upcoming winter administration of the NWEA MPG/MTY reading and math assessments. The schedule is as follows:

Grade 2 & 5 Reading and Math: 1/23 and 1/30.

Grades 3 & 4 Reading and Math: 1/22 and 1/29.

As you know, these assessments help to inform our instructional practices in supporting learning growth.

Beginning this winter, you will also be able to access your child's testing scores on the PowerSchool platform. Instead of mailing home hard copies as we have done historically, we will now be posting the results on PowerSchool at the close of each testing window just as we do with the electronic report card.

We will also reach out to you in February when those results are posted to share where you can access this information on your child's PowerSchool account.

CALLING ALL SUBSTITUTES!

As we enter the winter months, it can be difficult for schools to find substitute teachers, and YES is no exception. We are grateful for the substitute pool that we currently have but there continues to be a need. When we do not have enough available substitutes to cover classrooms that certainly can have an impact.

If you have ever considered becoming a substitute teacher we would love to have you talk to us! We now offer paid shadowing opportunities. Please feel free to reach out directly to us or the district office (207-846-5586) for more information.

CAR TAG REMINDER- THANK YOU!

After a reminder in December, most of our families are remembering to post their car tags or display the Pik My Kid app at pick-up time. We really appreciate your attention to this!

We still need to make sure that all of our families are doing this consistently. Over the next few weeks, if you do not have a car tag displayed the staff on duty will be giving reminders to have this prominently posted. This is an important safety protocol practice that we need to have in place as not all staff know who each parent/caregiver is.

WINTER WEATHER REMINDERS

Despite the lack of snow so far this year, it is inevitable that winter weather will be upon us at some point again. Please make sure that your students are coming to school with the proper winter gear.

At a minimum, winter jackets, hats, gloves, and boots are necessary each day this time of year. As the snow piles up, students will need snow pants to play in the snowy areas of the playground as well. Here are some reminders of our playground winter procedures:

We will NOT go outside if the temperature on our website is 5 degrees or below. There are a number of sites to check for temperature, but for consistency, we will use the one on our YES website. Wind chill plays into this but fluctuates within seconds. The effect of a consistent wind chill combined with a temperature of 5 or below, may cause us to stay inside.
Students need to have a winter jacket on and their legs covered (no shorts) if the temperature is below 40 degrees.
Students who want to play on the snow banks on the playground must wear boots and snow pants.
Students who want to play in the wood chip area when it is covered with snow must wear boots.
Students who want to roll, crawl around, etc., in the wood chip area must wear boots and snow pants. Put a simpler way, if students are going to get wet in the snow, they need boots and snow pants!

Thank you for your help in reinforcing these expectations at home with your children so we can keep them healthy this winter.

Yarmouth PTO News

The Yarmouth Schools Glow Run: Save the Dates!

We're excited to introduce this year's main PTO fundraiser, the Yarmouth Schools Glow Run. Our goal this year is to raise at least $20,000 for classroom enrichment, field trips, teacher appreciation, and special events to benefit ALL students the PTO serves. Last year, Glow Run earnings made up 60% of the PTO's annual budget!

We’re excited for this fundraising experience because it offers three important things to our school community:

A user-friendly fundraising platform. It's so easy for families to register and pledge!
A fitness-focused event that includes ALL of our students grades 5-8.
Lots of fun! Glow Run offers weeks of community building and whole grade incentives to students and staff. Not to mention the epic silly string battles and other experience-based motivators.

As a family, you will work together asking friends and family to donate on your student’s Donation Page at MyBooster.com. The best part is, you can still support our school just by SHARING about the fundraiser!

Key Dates to Remember:

Sign up begins online at MyBooster.com – 01/03/2025 (You will search for Frank H. Harrison Middle School or Yarmouth Schools Glow Run.)

Fundraiser Kickoff in school – 01/17/2025

Event Day – 01/29/2025 (This school-wide event is sure to be an unforgettable experience for all students.)

More details to come! Follow our social pages for updates on our fundraiser.

If the spirit of giving moves you to support the PTO with a donation this year, we will gratefully receive it and immediately put your dollars to work for every Yarmouth student. Thank you and we hope you and your families are having a happy and healthy holiday season!

The Yarmouth PTO is looking for volunteers at all levels! Please visit our quick volunteer survey and indicate any areas of interest. We can't wait to have you join us!

Want to keep in touch? Sign up for the Yarmouth PTO newsletter on our website and never miss a piece of PTO news!

The next PTO meeting is Thursday, January 16th at 4 pm in the YES library. All are welcome!

MLK, JR. DAY: MONDAY, JANUARY 20, 2025: NO SCHOOL

On the third Monday of every January, we observe Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This is a day for the nation to reflect upon the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a minister, civil rights activist, and nonviolent leader. Dr. King was considered the most influential leader in the Civil Rights movement, which aimed to end systematic racial segregation and discrimination.

Dr. King (often referred to as MLK) played a key role in creating the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He received many awards and honors – most notably the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. Despite his early passing, Dr. King had an enormous, lasting influence on the Civil Rights movement and continues to be remembered as one of the most influential nonviolent leaders in world history. We will have no school on Monday, January 20 to honor the work of Dr. King.

Family School Alliance Follow-Up: Childhood Anxiety - A Community Conversation

In December the Parent-School Alliance topic focused on Childhood Anxiety. At the meeting there were several questions asked by parents that were answered by the panel of clinicians from Well Space Maine. You can find the questions and answers from the clinicians here. Also, here are some mindfulness activities that were shared during the presentation that you can use at home.

Thank you to the clinicians from Well Space for sharing this important information with our Yarmouth school community!

YES Newsletter