Ski Program

The Manchester Essex Regional Schools Ski & Board Program will be offered again this year to students in grades 3-12 in both Manchester & Essex!! Lessons in skiing or snowboarding will be given but not mandatory at Bradford Ski Area in Haverhill on six consecutive Mondays this winter starting on January 6^th!  Please visit this site for all the information!

"Night of Stars"

Please come and support The Spaulding Education Fund "Night of Stars" this Sunday November 17th- 2 shows at 4:00 pm and 5:30 pm.

 Purchase your tickets today... at www.spauldingeducationfund.org or at the door on Sunday night!  

Thanks to Spaulding our school now has IPads, Nooks, Sound Systems, Artists & Poets in Residence, the Kiln, Vegetable Gardens and so many amazing programs.

Exciting News Announcement! MMES School-wide Yearbook!

The PTO is excited to announce a whole-school yearbook this year!

As many of you know, at the end of each academic year each fifth grader receives a memorable and creative yearbook that captures each student in pictures and words; it's a priceless memento of their time at Memorial School.  This year, we are pleased to share with you that in addition to the fifth grade yearbook, we are producing an all-school yearbook for children in Pre-K through Grade 4.  This soft cover, black and white yearbook will feature, for each class, (1) individual portraits, (2) a class photo, and (3) a selection of candid photos.  You will be able to order the all-school yearbooks online later this year for $15, and they will be distributed in June.  Stay tuned!

MERSD Elementary Counseling Service

 A Message from Allison Collins, Student Services Director:

Dear Parents,

Over the past two years, the District has begun the process of evaluating and refining counseling services PK-12 in an effort to best serve children with social and emotional needs.  At the elementary level, this resulted in expansion of our school psychologist positions at Memorial and Essex and a transition from guidance counselors to school adjustment counselors in both buildings this year.   In addition to supporting children in coping with short-term academic and social concerns, both of our new counselors bring strong clinical expertise in working with students with significant mental health challenges.

With the introduction of our school adjustment counselors this fall at Memorial and Essex Elementary Schools, counseling services will focus on research-based practices that improve outcomes for preschool and elementary children. Parents and students who have become accustomed to our informal “lunch bunch” model will notice a transition to individual and group counseling targeted to more specific student needs.  Our new model of group counseling will focus on topics such as anxiety management, divorce, and conflict resolution, which will be offered in 8-12 week sessions in an effort to reach as many students with social-emotional needs as possible. 

Parents referring a child for counseling services can begin this process by contacting Suzanna South (Essex) or Laura Carlson (Memorial) to discuss the child’s needs.   In considering your child’s need for services, please keep in mind that students have limited opportunities to receive counseling during the school day without missing academic classes.  In order to prioritize students who require short or longer-term services individually and in groups, students referred for counseling will be screened by the school adjustment counselors, who will assess needs and recommend appropriate interventions. 

Ms. South and Ms. Carlson are also available to consult with parents by phone or in person regarding academic, social-emotional, and peer issues that may arise for your child.  If you are interested in pursuing community-based counseling services outside of school hours, Ms. South and Ms. Carlson can assist you in navigating this process as well.  More information on accessing community-based resources is also available on the Student Services website located at www.studentservices.mersd.org.

Please do not hesitate to contact me by phone (978-525-6060) or e-mail (collinsa@mersd.org) if you have any questions or concerns regarding District counseling services.

Sincerely,

Allison Brown Collins

Director of Student Services

Good News for MMES!

Please see the message below from the Manchester Bike and Pedestrian Committee:

A public hearing for the Safe Routes to School Design for the Manchester Memorial Elementary School is Thursday, November 21, at 7PM at Memorial’s auditorium.  Please plan to be there and let’s pack the house! 

The Safe Routes to School Program is funded by the Federal DOT, run by the State DOT, and provides planning, design, engineering and construction costs to projects that improve safe access to schools.  The intersection of Lincoln/Summer and access in and out of Memorial School has been awarded an improvement project.  This will significantly improve the intersection of Lincoln and Summer and includes sidewalks, crosswalks, and curbing that will immensely improve safety at key points near the school.    Work is slated to start next spring.

The SRTS Project was initiated and driven by Manchester’s volunteer Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee and then approved by the Board of Selectmen and the School Committee.

We invite the community to hear about, see, and comment upon the proposed plans in a meeting in the Memorial School Auditorium on Thursday, November 21, at 7:00 PM.

Manchester Bike and Pedestrian Committee

MMES Book Drive...Update!

Thank you to the Parkins Family who were our first donors of gently used books for our MMES book drive!  They brought in three huge bags of books that will be sorted and handed out to our classroom libraries to give students even more titles to choose from!  Pass the word to your friends...if you have any gently used, unwanted children's books (chapter books or picture books), please send them in for us to repurpose in our classrooms.  There is a bin in the lobby marked "MMES Book Drive" for you to drop them off.  Thanks so much!

I was able to dip into our newly developed volunteer pool to find a parent who has volunteered to label and sort the books based on their guided reading level.  One of parents has worked in the past as a reading teacher and has been hard at work organizing the books that have been sent in.  A big thank you goes to Petra Wilkes for sharing her time and knowledge with us!

If you missed the link to put your name in our volunteer pool, here it is:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1gLwcOuxvYVtGBfMNeXr4CA9BZnJ2t6-lzjRSqSC60ho/viewform

Thanks to all of you who have volunteered to help us out at MMES!