Good afternoon,
I hope everyone had a wonderful vacation week.
This week is Volunteer Appreciation Week. Thank you to all of our volunteers who support our students and run programs that benefit our students. Sowams School would not be the same school without all of you.
This week’s Backpack Express is ready for your reading pleasure.
Sweetheart Dance: Sowams PTO invites you to Light Up The Night at the Sowams Sweetheart Dance on May 17th at Barrington Middle School from 6-8pm. This year's theme is Neon Glow and we will transform under black lights to make you glow! Be creative with attire; dress up or down wearing your favorite white and/or neon colors to shine together! We’ll have a DJ, activity/game stations, and a photo booth to bring the fun. Advanced tickets and RSVP required for $5 per person (Student + Adult = $10). Capacity is limited. Please RSVP at Sowams Dance RSVP link (click here). For additional purchase on-site, there will be food trucks (Pam’s Grill and Kona Ice) and a portrait photo station. Hope to see you there! More information may be found here. Payment is accepted via PayPal (@SowamsRIPTO) or by sending cash/check to the school. Also, if you have already signed up for the dance but have not paid, please do so.
Sowams PTO at Blithewold: The Sowams PTO is happy to sponsor a morning at Blithewold on April 28, 2024, at 10:30 in the morning. A special group rate and information on signing up may be found here. The link to sign up may be found here.
BMS Movie Night: The eighth grade class at Barrington Middle School is inviting students in grades 3-5 to a movie night. The eighth graders continue to raise money for their trip to Washington, DC. More information about the movie night may be found here.
Absences: The state defines chronic absenteeism as being absent from school for 10% of the time. It is extremely important that your child attends school unless they are sick or a family situation (i.e. funeral, adoption process, etc.). Currently, we have 7% of our students considered chronically absent. We will continue to notify families at the end of each month if your child has missed more than 10% of the school year up to that point. Just so you are aware, if a student is absent due to extended or additional vacation time, these absences are considered unexcused absences. (See page 10 of our Handbook for more information about excused and unexcused absences.
Kindergarten Registration: Do you have a child or know a Barrington child who will be five years old by September 1, 2024? If so, the child can be registered for kindergarten for the 2024-2025 school year. We will hold in-person registration during the week of May 6, 2024, from 9:00-12:00 each morning that week. You would need to bring with you your child’s original birth certificate or passport, two proofs of residency, immunization records, and a parent/guardian government issued photo identification card. All registration information may be found here on our district website.
Dismissal: There are a few reminders for parents about our dismissal:
Daycare: If your child is picked up at school by a daycare provider, you need to contact the provider when your child is not attending as well as send a note to the school. The daycares are constantly looking for students who are not attending daycare on a given day and then we have to figure out how the individual child is going home. This holds up dismissal of our school.
Change in going home: If your child is going home a different way, you need to send a note to school with your child. If we do not receive a note indicating the change, your child will go home their “normal” way for that day. It is too busy in the office at dismissal for us to call parents to figure out how your child is going home.
Calls changing dismissal plans: We understand that on occasions pick up plans may change just prior to dismissal. Please contact the school no later than 2:00 to let us know of the change.
Community Notice: There is one community notice regarding Barrington Community Field Hockey.
Have a great rest of your day.
Best,
Jim Callahan
Principal
Sowams School Mission: Everyone learns every day.
Sowams School Vision: Sowams School will engage students to be their best selves.