Hello OCRS families,
We hope that our students enjoyed the April Break and we're looking forward to welcoming everyone back to school on Monday. Believe it or not, we only have just over 8 weeks of school left this year, so we're entering the home stretch!
Continuing Focus on Student Attendance
As we enter the final few months of school, it's important that we all continue to work together to focus on making sure that students are at school and on-time each day. As compared to last year, we've made significant improvements in the percentage of our students that are considered chronically absent (absent greater than 10% of the scheduled school days). Thank you for working with us in prioritizing attendance with your child!
If any family has questions or is having issues getting their child to school on-time, every day, please reach out to your child's teacher and/or Mr. Barrette and we will work with you to figure out ways to work with you and support your child. We will also continue to reach out to families whose children are considered chronically absent.
5th Grade Science Assessment and RICAS Math Assessments
FYI, our 5th graders are scheduled to take the RIDE Science Assessment on May 1st and 2nd and all of our 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students are scheduled to take the RICAS Math Assessments on May 14th and 15th. These dates can be found on the OCRS Calendar, but we also wanted to highlight the dates to help families plan ahead in terms of appointments that require students to miss part of the school day.
OCRS' Got Talent!
We are continuing an OCRS tradition by having a "talent show" type event at the end of the school year! This event is "OCRS' Got Talent!" and is going to be held on Friday, May 17th at 6:00 PM in the Smithfield High School Auditorium.
The event will be free and open to ALL OCRS families to attend, even if you do not have a student performing. We would love to have LOTS of OCRS families and friends in the audience!
ONLY students in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades will be eligible to perform in the event. Students can perform solo or with a group. Performances can be musical, dance, comedy, magic, lip-sync, drama, etc.
Students will have a maximum of 3 minutes for their performance and they will need to get their performance pre-approved by Mr. Barrette. This will make sure that all material is appropriate for an elementary aged audience.
If any 3rd, 4th or 5th grade student would like to sign up to perform, please complete this online form. Mr. Barrette will touch base with the student and schedule a time for the student to preview their performance for approval for the show.
PTA "Totally 80's Dance" on May 3rd, 6:00-8:00PM
The OCRS PTA invites you to join us for a "Totally 80's" Family Dance on Friday, May 3rd from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the OCRS gym!
The PTA encourages students to come with their family dressed in your best 80's gear! There will be a DJ, photographer, and light refreshments. The cost of the event is $10 per adult and $5 per child (children under 3 are free).
Use this link to go to the Cheddar Up app to purchase tickets, https://my.cheddarup.com/sign-up-via-pos-code?code=T5c2d8Z39595f
PTA General Meeting, Wednesday 4/24 at 6PM
The OCRS PTA has a general membership meeting scheduled this upcoming Wednesday, April 24th at 6:00 PM in the OCRS Media Center.
We encourage parents/guardians to attend PTA meetings in-person. Like the last few meetings, Smithfield High School students will attend this meeting to supervise and play games with younger OCRS students that parents need to bring with them to the meeting. The SHS students have been a BIG hit with both younger students and families, so we encourage families to come out to the meeting in person, even if it means bringing a younger OCRS student with you.
Bolt's Trail Adventure/Hiking Challenge
OCRS' own P.E. teacher, Mr. Gruczka, has organized "Bolt's Trail Adventure" Hiking Challenge here in Smithfield starting on April 13th and running through May 20th. Students and families are encouraged to hike the wonderful trails in Smithfield to look for "Bolt", one of this years' American Heart Association's "Heart Heroes". Please see the linked flyer for more details and happy hunting for "Bolt"!
Sign Up for Summer Recreational Smithfield Youth Basketball
Registration for the SYBA summer recreational basketball is now open! See the linked flyer for all of the details. Registration can be completed online at https://smithfieldhoops.com.
Upcoming Dates and Events
View and subscribe to the OCRS Public Events Calendar at https://oldcounty.smithfield-ps.org/o/old-county-road-elementary/page/monthly-calendar. Click on the "Add to Google Calendar" button to subscribe to the calendar using your own calendar app.
PTA Meeting, Wednesday 4/24 at 6PM
5th Grade D.A.R.E. Ice Skating Party, Tuesday 4/30 from 5PM to 7PM
5th Grade RIDE Science Assessment, Wednesday 5/1 and Thursday 5/2
PTA "Totally 80's Family Dance", Friday 5/3, 6PM to 8PM
SSELAC Color Run, Saturday 5/4, 9AM to 12PM at Deerfield Park
Teacher Appreciation Week, Week of May 6th
RICAS Math, Tuesday 5/14 and Wednesday 5/15
OCRS' Got Talent!, Friday 5/17 at 6PM in the SHS Auditorium
Thank you,
Mr. Barrette
Vocabulary Parade Fun!
