Dear Riverside Families, We hope everyone enjoyed last night’s Family Math Night with Greg Tang and this week’s Math Marathon. We loved seeing so many children doing the Math-A-Rena! Please don’t forget to submit a photo of your child’s completed game board via My Page by Sunday, February 5th at 5pm. With chilly weather in the forecast, it's perfect timing for a school-wide Pajama Day. On Friday, February 10th, everyone is welcome to wear pajamas to school in celebration of two fundraisers - the CSC's week-long pajama drive for the Domestic Violence Crisis Center and a district-wide effort to support children battling cancer. Please see below for more information. Lastly, if you're looking for indoor activities this weekend, please make sure to check out the Community News section below, including a Valentine's Day-themed party for a wonderful cause. Calendar reminders for the next few weeks include: February 5 – Last day for Math Marathon game board submissions
February 6 - 10 – CSC's Pajama Donation Drive
February 10 – Pajama Spirit Day & Fundraiser
February 13 - 20 – Winter Recess, Schools Closed
March 3 – Pizza Bingo Stay warm and enjoy the weekend! Allison Maus & Clare Johnson
PTA Co-Presidents |
| PAJAMA DAY AND DRIVE TO MAKE SOMEONE SMILE Bring a smile to a child's face at the Domestic Violence Crisis Center in Stamford by donating pajamas from February 6th - 10th. The Community Service Club will have collection bins outside the main doors for your children to drop off their donations. Pajamas must be NEW (with tags), come as a set (not just bottoms, not just tops, and not nightgowns) and are needed in all sizes ranging from newborn to adult XXL (for teens). Have fun pajama shopping! As a bonus, Riverside students will get to wear pajamas to school on Friday, February 10th and may bring in an optional donation of $1 or more that day! All money raised will go toward funding vital childhood cancer research, clinical trials and care for patients at Connecticut Children's Hospital. Please visit this link if you prefer to make a donation online, and thank you for your support! |
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| STILL TIME TO JOIN THE MATH MARATHON! By Sunday, head to the Math Marathon website to download an at-home game board of fun math enrichment activities for your student! Remember to submit your student’s gameboard with any number of activities completed by this Sunday at 5:00pm via your RivPTA.com MyPage (scroll to “Forms”) for a chance to win a $50 gift card to the National Museum of Math gift shop (1 winner per grade). The highest participating class per grade will win an extra recess! Thank you to all who joined last night’s Virtual Family Math Night with Greg Tang! For anyone who missed it, a recording of the session will be available on Thursday, February 9th from 4:00pm - 7:00pm. Please email Mrudula Madkaikar or Lauren Ellis for the recording link. |
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| PHOTOS FROM MATILDA JR. NOW ON THE RIVERSIDE REEL Are you looking to see photos from the school’s performance of Matilda Jr? They are now available to view on the Riverside Reel (the PTA’s secure, members-only media share site featuring photos & videos from PTA events and programs). Log in to check them out! Do you have other photos from the show, or any other PTA events and programs, that you’d like to share? If so, please send them to riversidereel@gmail.com. |
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| WINTER SALE: 10% OFF SPIRIT WEAR! Celebrate the beginning of February with a week of savings! Use promo code WINTER10 to receive 10% off your Spirit Wear store purchase until Tuesday, February 7th. Whether you need warm, fuzzy PJs and winter hats for a ski trip or shorts and tees for a beach getaway, stock up on RIVERSIDE gear for your family before February break! ** Discount applied at checkout. Offer expires at 11:59pm on Tuesday, February 7th. ** |
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| GO GREEN THIS VALENTINE'S DAY! As we prepare to show family and friends love this Valentine's Day, let's show the Earth some love, too! Try avoiding plastic, throwaway trinkets and focus on recyclable store-bought or preferably homemade greeting cards. Start saving all your magazines, newspapers and old cards for original, bold and homemade designs! For inspiration, please visit this link or consider joining local valentine-themed arts and crafts workshops! |
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| HOLIDAY LIGHTS, TREX & TERRACYCLE UPDATES THANK YOU from the Green Committee for supporting the Holiday Lights and Trex Plastic Film Drives! Riverside families and staff donated 51 broken light strands that were recycled through the Greenwich Recycling Advisory Board (GRAB) and over 130 lbs of plastic film for Trex! Additionally, with thoughtful recycling from our students and specific support from the second grade, over 26 lbs of snack wrappers and 13 lbs pounds of GoGosqueeZ pouches have been recycled through the TerraCycle recycling program! Let’s keep working together to show how much Riverside cares! |
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| AFTERS DISMISSAL PROCEDURE REMINDER Winter Afters are now in full swing! As a reminder, please add a Recurring Dismissal for Afters in School Dismissal Manager. If your child normally attends Afters but will not be attending on a particular day, it must also be noted in Dismissal Manager so your child is not sent to Afters. Dismissal from Afters is generally from the assigned classroom or the front lobby. The onsite Enrichment Coordinator will open the school’s main doors at 4:15pm, and she will be available to direct you to the appropriate classroom. All parents or caregivers must sign their child(ren) out from Afters, unless you have notified the school that your child has permission to walk/bike home. For any questions, please contact Virginia Lockhart or Luisa Lander. |
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| ENRICHMENT PROGRAMS Upcoming Enrichment Programs - February 7, 8: CT Historical Society’s On the Move (Grade 4)
- February 8: High Touch High Tech’s Zoom to the Moon (Grade 1)
- February 8: Riverside Rhythms presents Reggie Harris’ Music and the Underground Railroad (All Grades)
- March 8: Stamford Museum and Nature Center's CT Rocks and Minerals (Grade 3)
- March 27-31: Dance Residency with Hip Hop Fundamentals (All Grades)
These programs are paid for by your generous donations to the PTA. Thank you!
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| EARLY MORNING PROGRAM IN THE GYM Let your children run off their energy before school! The Early Morning Program now heads to the Gym at 8am on Tuesdays and Thursdays, giving students a bit more exercise as the weather outside gets colder. If dropping off after 8am, please bring them to the front door. The drop-in rate is $18 per day, and you may register your child and get more information here. Please contact Melissa Goldstein or Anne Akyuz with any questions. |
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| SAFETY DUTY: MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN JUST 15 MINUTES! Safety Duty is an important part of keeping our children safe at Riverside School. Volunteers make the morning drop-off process more efficient and secure. Volunteers assist children as they exit their vehicles in the front driveway from 8:30am - 8:45am daily and help to enforce the “Rules of the Road.” Sign up online. For more information, contact Sean Sullivan. |
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Distinguished Teacher Awards: Now Open for Nominations! Do you know a teacher, social worker, or specialist who goes above and beyond in his or her work with students? If so, we encourage you to nominate him or her for the 2023 Distinguished Teacher Awards! Visit the GPS webpage dedicated to DTA for information on eligibility, nomination procedures and forms, and key dates. Completed nomination forms can be submitted in person or electronically in a single email by March 9th at 5:00pm. |
PTAC Academic Excellence Committee Workshops "Fostering a Love of Learning at Home" Series We have another amazing opportunity on February 27th at 9:15am for elementary school parents to learn more about hands-on strategies they can use to support their children at home both with review and enrichment. OGS Principal, Jennifer Bencivengo, has put together an amazing four-part series, "Fostering a Love of Learning at Home," and all GPS elementary school parents are invited to join in the conversation! All sessions will be offered both in-person at OGS' media center and virtually through Google Meets. If you are interested in attending any or all of this discussion series, you must register by using this link. |
Subscribe to Receive Greenwich Public Schools Newsletters Make sure you are receiving GPS e-newsletters directly to your inbox! To subscribe, select the relevant newsletters below and click the orange "Follow" button on the right side of the page. |
Kids for a Cause Valentine's Day Party This Weekend including Arts & Crafts with Ms. Roth! Breast Cancer Alliance (BCA) and the Local Moms Network invite you and your little ones to a Valentine's Day-themed open house party this Sunday, February 5 at Norwalk Art Space. There will be several arts & crafts activities (which Riverside's Ms. Roth will be orchestrating), a cookie-decorating station, delicious snacks and treats as well as a few other surprises. It promises to be a fun afternoon for children (and adults!), supporting the wonderful work of the BCA. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit this link. |
February is Black History Month Black History Month / African American History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and their central role in U.S. history. Black History Month is a great time to honor the contributions and legacy of African Americans across U.S. history and society—from activists and civil rights pioneers such as Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks and many other leaders in industry, politics, science, culture and more.
The month-long recognition originated in 1915, a half a century after the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States, based on the work of Carter G. Woodson, a Harvard-trained historian, and Jesse E. Moorland, a prominent minister, at an organization they founded that is known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH). In 1976, President Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month and it has been recognized in February ever since -- coinciding with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. For more information, please visit Black History Month - History.com.
Please visit the PTAC DEI Websitefor more events and information!
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Make Your Own Valentines! The Big Picture is hosting Valentine's Day-inspired Friday workshops TODAY and February 10th. Please consider joining them to make your class cards, home-made frames and DIY flower pots. Planting your own seeds is hugely eco-friendly and can create some lasting family memories this Valentine’s Day! |
EMS Drama Club Presents High School Musical The Eastern Middle School 2022-2023 Drama Club will perform the Disney musical “High School Musical” in the school’s Lee Book Auditorium TODAY (at 7:30pm), and February 4th (at 4:30pm). Thursday’s tickets are $10, and Friday and Saturday’s tickets are $20. Assigned-seat tickets can be purchased online. Doors open 45 minutes before the show, and a concession stand with home-baked goods will be available. This is a great show for the whole family! |
Mental Health Panel sponsored by The Special Education Advisory Council The Special Education Advisory Council (SEAC) is hosting a virtual winter enrichment session for parents. Come learn about resources and at-home strategies to help your child from a panel of GPS social workers and psychologists on Tuesday, February 7th at 7pm. Here is the zoom link to join
Meeting ID: 899 4818 1437
Passcode: 6srMFG You can submit questions to the panel anonymously via this form through Monday February 6th. |
The Flinn Gallery: "GLOW" The Flinn Gallery (our town’s non-profit art gallery), located on the second floor of Greenwich Library, is hosting its 4th show of the season, "GLOW", from February 9 – March 22. GLOW features four abstract artists with two- and three-dimensional artworks that intersect with themes of color, transparency, process, and materiality that invites visitors to lean in and examine the close relationship between colors and discover the way ambient light plays upon color illuminating artworks that appear to glow, pulsate, and float in space. The opening reception will take place on February 9 from 6-8pm. |
Trivia Challenge - Friday, March 3, 2023 It is time to start practicing your trivia and gathering friends and family far and wide. This year's Trivia Challenge, sponsored by the Greenwich Alliance for Education, will once again be a virtual event and promises to be another great night. Click for event details, buy tickets or donate an item to our Auction! |
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| SUBMISSIONS Have something to add? Email us at: peekweekriv@gmail.com/ Deadline for submissions is 3pm on Wednesday of the school week |
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