Dear Medway families,
As we begin to see a decline in reported positive COVID-19 cases throughout our community, we hope that this finds you and your families well. Please continue to remain vigilant and reach out to your child’s school with questions as they arise. As you know, last week Governor Baker and Commissioner Riley announced updated school COVID-19 testing options. In the updated plan, districts like Medway who participate in DESE’s pooled testing program can opt into receiving rapid antigen tests that can be distributed to staff and students for use, as needed. In doing so we would have the ability to end contact tracing within our schools, as well as the Test and Stay program. Pooled testing would continue to be available to students and staff. We are finalizing a communication to families, with instructions on how to opt your child into this new testing program, which we anticipate will be shared on Friday when we send the weekly COVID update.
Please find several district informational updates below.
Be well,
Armand Pires, Ph.D.
Superintendent of Schools
Online Absence Requests and COVID -19
We would like to inform families that you can now enter absence requests online within the Infinite Campus Parent Portal system. Simply log in, choose MORE from the left menu then Absence Requests to complete the online request form. We have added two new absence request reasons to simplify our processing during the current COVID-19 surge. Please indicate if your child will be absent for COVID-T (tested positive) or COVID-C (close contact) to help us better track absences.
School Safety and Security Update
We are pleased to invite families to join us for a webinar focused on Safety and Security. This event will highlight the district’s efforts to date and also provide a look forward as we continue to engage in efforts to maintain the highest level of attention on these vital practices. This informational event had previously been part of our regular communication plan and the COVID-19 pandemic impacted our information sharing. We hope that you will join us on Tuesday, February 15, 2022 at 6:30 p.m. Please pre-register for this webinar here.
Kindergarten Registration Begins!
Kindergarten registration will be starting soon for the 2022-2023 school year. 2022-2023 school year kindergarten students must be 5 years old by August 31, 2022. Registration information will be available in the superintendent’s office, the McGovern School, and online. We will publish additional information as it becomes available. We look forward to welcoming our Class of 2035 to the Medway Public Schools!
Mid-Year Assessments
The way in which educators ensure that they are keeping a current pulse on where students are in their learning and social and emotional development is through assessment. Educators assess all the time through observations, written tasks, student conferences, quizzes, some tests, etc. A few times over the course of the year, we take a deeper look at student progress. These assessments include both diagnostic and summative assessments and are typically facilitated at the start, mid-point, and end of the year.
Now that we are at the midpoint of the 2021-2022 school year, we are in the process of conducting our mid-year assessments using iReady Math and Reading and DIBELS as assessment tools in K-5 and IXL Math and English/Language Arts as assessment tools in Grades 6-10. We are also facilitating the Panorama assessment which measures students' social and emotional skills. Building and teacher leaders will be looking at the results of these mid-year assessments over the next couple of weeks in an effort to understand the growth that students have experienced since the beginning of the year, establish opportunities for intervention and enrichment both within their classrooms and within our support programming, and adjust their instructional practices to meet the needs of our learners. Questions regarding these assessments, or any student performance inquiries should be directed to your child(ren)’s classroom teacher.
Medway High School Features Project Based Learning (PBL) Work
At the school committee meeting last Thursday, January 20, in partnership with Dr. John Murray, Medway High School educators Joan Hallett and Shanley Heller shared their Project Based Learning work. The presentation highlighted the challenges that were overcome and the success in the implementation of PBL. The presentation can be found here.
Medway T.H.R.I.V.E. Event Recording
Medway T.H.R.I.V.E., in partnership with the Medfield Public Schools, hosted a parent/guardian opportunity over the last couple of weeks that first featured the viewing of the documentary Chasing Childhood. Last week, families had the opportunity to participate in a question and answer session and presentation with one of the contributors of the documentary, Dr. Peter Grey. The purpose of these opportunities is to share ideas with our families. A copy of the recording can be viewed here.
Medway High School Senior Internship in Education Program
We are excited to share that Medway High School has been accepted to participate in the High School Senior Internship in Education Program (HSSIEP) program. In this program, seniors who are interested in the education field may be selected to participate in a paid internship program beginning this winter. The HSSIEP program is an initiative sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that provides seniors an experience in the field of education in hopes of encouraging future educators to enter the teaching profession.
Medway High School is partnering with schools across Medway including Medway Middle School, Burke-Memorial School, McGovern School, and Medway Daycare. Students will be individually assigned to a classroom during a time that best fits into their schedule. This could be during the school day if there is time available, after school, or during school breaks. Each intern will be assigned a supervising teacher. In addition to their supervising teacher, interns will receive training.
Medway Foundation for Education Trivia Bee
The Medway Foundation for Education (MFE) is pleased to host the return of the annual MFE Trivia Bee. This event is a time honored tradition that features a DJ emcee who uses music to provide clues for each question. The event will take place on Wednesday, March 2 in the Medway Middle School Cafeteria from 7:00-9:00 p.m. The funding generated from participation in this event benefits MFE’s grant giving efforts for innovative ideas that come directly from our faculty and staff. Please consider participating in this great event. A registration form can be found here.
Medway Friends of the Performing Arts: Music in Our Schools Month
For the second year, the Medway Friends of Performing Arts (MFPA) is excited to take part in the National Music In Our Schools Month this March. Our theme is Music Connects Us. Music has a way of connecting people and its importance has never been more prevalent than over the past two years. To celebrate this, we will be showcasing all the wonderful work our teachers and students are doing in each of the Medway schools. If there are students who are interested in submitting a short video sharing how music connects them or what music means to them, please email the MFPA for additional details at medwayfriendsofperformingarts@gmail.com. Stay tuned for the video release in March!
Upcoming Events
January 26, 2022 | MSPTO Meeting, Virtual, 7:00 p.m. |
January 27, 2022 | Middle School Trivia Night, Middle School Cafeteria or Virtual 7:00 p.m. |
February 3, 2022 | School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 6:00 p.m. |
February 8, 2022 | MFPA Meeting, Virtual, 7:00 p.m. |
February 9, 2022 | Kindergarten Night of the Arts, McGovern Elementary School, 5:30 p.m. |
February 10, 2022 | School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 6:00 p.m. |
February 16, 2022 | MEPTO Meeting, Virtual, 7:00 p.m. |
February 21-25, 2022 | No School: Winter Vacation |
March 2, 2022 | MFE Trivia Bee, Medway Middle School Cafeteria, 7:00 p.m. |
March 3, 2022 | Public Forum on FY23 Budget, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 5:00 p.m. School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 6:00 p.m. |
March 8, 2022 | MFPA Meeting, Virtual, 7:00 p.m. |
March 9, 2022 | First Grade Night of the Arts, McGovern Elementary School, 5:30 p.m. |
March 11, 2022 | Early Release: Grades K-12 |
March 12, 2022 | MEPTO Shamrock Shuffle, Medway High School, 9:00 a.m. |
March 17, 2022 | Public Hearing on FY23 Budget, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 5:30 p.m. School Committee Meeting, Presentation Room, Medway Middle School, 6:00 p.m. |
March 18, 2022 | Medway High School Spring Musical, Footloose, Medway High School Auditorium, 7:30 p.m. |
March 19, 2022 | Medway High School Spring Musical, Footloose, Medway High School Auditorium, 2:00 p.m. Medway High School Spring Musical, Footloose, Medway High School Auditorium, 7:30 p.m. |
March 21, 2022 | Choralpalozza, Medway High School Auditorium, 7:00 p.m. |
March 23, 2022 | Bandapalooza, Medway High School Auditorium, 7:00 p.m. |