K-4 Family Updates Newsletter
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Dear K-4 Families,
Congratulations on completing our first full week of school!
Students are diving into academics and building daily routines that set a strong foundation for the year ahead.
As educator Katie Novak notes, familiar routines "prime the brain for learning by freeing up cognitive resources for higher-order skills." When students know what to expect—whether it's structured lesson transitions, partner protocols, or voice-level guidelines—they can channel their mental energy directly into learning.
Main Office "Drop Zone" To keep daily routines running smoothly, we have established a "Drop Zone" in the front vestibule for forgotten items like water bottles, instruments, or sneakers. If you need to drop something off:
- Enter through the main entrance.
- Leave the item on the Drop Zone table in the first vestibule.
- Clearly label the item with your child’s first and last name, grade level, and teacher's name (Grades K–5)
Office staff will check the drop zone at 11:00 am and 2:00 pm.
Back-to-School Night We look forward to seeing you next week! Caregivers will attend a General Assembly, hear grade-level presentations, and visit classrooms. Teachers will deliver their presentation twice so families with multiple children can visit more than one classroom.
Wishing a meaningful holiday to those who are celebrating Yom Kippur.
Sincerely,
Sarah
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SEPTEMBER 2026
9/22 - K-4 Back to School Night, 6:00-7:30 pm (details below)
9/23 - 2+2=5 Afterschool Activity, 12:35-2:55
9/23 - Creative Sparks Afterschool Activity, 12:35-2:55
9/24 - SDGs for You and Me Afterschool Activity, 2:50-4:30
9/25-9/26 - Chuseok (Korean)
9/25-10/2 - Sukkot (Jewish)
OCTOBER 2026
10/2 - National Custodian Appreciation Day
10/3 - Shemini Atzeret (Jewish)
10/4 - Simchat Torah Jewish
10/5 - School Picture Day
10/8 - Kindergarten PTO Enrichment: Discovery Museum Bubbles Workshop
10/11-10/20 - Navaratri (Hindu)
10/12 - No School - Indigenous Peoples’ Day
10/20 - Dussehra (Hindu)
10/23 - 2nd Grade Music Performance (details coming soon!)
10/31 - Halloween
Parent-Teacher Conferences
by appointment
10/28, 1:35-4:00
10/29, 5:00-8:00
11/4, 1:35-6:00
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The LPS Food Services team will be at Back to School Night with samples of delicious offerings from the school lunch menu! |
Want to help at school? Join us as a compost helper!
Guide students as they sort their lunch items—volunteer weekly, monthly, or quarterly.
We'd love to have you!
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We’re excited to share that the Lincoln Public Schools have adopted a new communications platform called ParentSquare to help us keep you better informed and more connected with our school community.
With ParentSquare, you’ll receive regular school and classroom communication for all of your LPS students in one place, translated into your preferred language. You will be able to choose how you receive messages - by email, text, app, or web.
To get the most out of ParentSquare, we encourage you to download the free mobile app, available for iOS and Android. You can also access ParentSquare from your web browser at www.parentsquare.com.
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Over the past few years, we’ve had great success working with our local vendors to bring local New England products and produce into our school meals. We’re excited to continue that work this year and bring as many local products as we can to our students!
September Entrées to Look Forward To
September 24
Baked Moroccan Chicken Thighs — featuring local chicken from Maine Family Farms - and Jollof Rice
And remember—every student can receive one free breakfast with milk and one free lunch with milk every school day! Our lunches are served using the Offer vs. Serve model. Students are offered all five meal components and must select at least 3 components, with at least one being a fruit or vegetable.
Students who would like milk only or an additional milk with their meal will need to have money available on their meal account. Additional milk is $0.65 each.
We’re excited to offer students nutritious meals, plenty of choices, and lots of delicious local products throughout the school year!
Adults are also able to purchase lunch daily. In addition to our main entrees, we serve salads with local, hydroponically grown, Little Leaf lettuce. If you would like to purchase lunch, please email your Cafeteria Manager (Lincoln: Ashley Hurley - hurleya@lincnet.org or Hanscom: Alexis Suden - sudena@lincnet.org) by 9AM with your lunch order. Adult lunches cost $5.50 plus tax and include the entree, a milk and all of the choices on the Produce bar.
Menus are always subject to change and you will be notified if there are any entree changes. Menus can always be viewed HERE. This is the best place to view allergy information, see the full menu with all of the offerings and view the menu in other languages.
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September 23, 2026
Join us in-person from 6:30-8:30pm in the Wilson Middle School library to view the presentation of Helping Kids Navigate Friendships, Conflict, & Bullying with Dr. Lisa Damour. Bring a friend, neighbor, or colleague and connect in community!
Light refreshments will be served. Not able to attend live? Join us virtually instead! Learn more and register here.
Event Details
Healthy relationships begin early and evolve as children grow. Every stage of childhood brings new friendship challenges and opportunities to build essential social and emotional skills. Dr. Damour will share practical, evidence-based strategies for helping young people build healthy relationships, navigate conflict, and respond to bullying with confidence.
Drawing on decades of clinical experience and the latest research on child and adolescent development, Dr. Damour's compassionate approach helps caregivers:
- Understand what's developmentally typical
- Recognize when additional support may be needed
- Respond to the everyday social and emotional challenges children and teens face with confidence
Accessibility
Spark Kindness is committed to providing events that are accessible to all community members. Please contact us with accommodation questions or requests at info@sparkkindness.org. Spark Kindness is an Autism Welcoming Organization.
About Our Presenter
Dr. Lisa Damour is the author of three New York Times best sellers: Untangled, Under Pressure, and The Emotional Lives of Teenagers. She co-hosts the Ask Lisa podcast, works in collaboration with UNICEF, and is recognized as a thought leader by the American Psychological Association. Dr. Damour is a regular contributor to The New York Times and CBS News and the creator of Untangling 10to20, a digital library of premium content to support teens and those who care for them. Learn more: drlisadamour.com
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Monday, Oct. 26, 2026
7:00 pm to 8:30 pm
Kennedy Middle School (Auditorium)
165 Mill Street
Natick, MA 01760
For parents, caregivers, educators, and community members who support children and teens of all ages.
Do mornings feel rushed? Is homework a daily challenge? Does your child need frequent reminders to get organized, manage time, start tasks, or follow through? Executive functioning skills—the skills that help us plan, organize, manage time, regulate emotions, and complete tasks—are essential for success at home, in school, and in everyday life.
Sarah Ward will share practical, easy-to-implement strategies to help children and teens strengthen these skills and develop greater independence and confidence. Participants will learn how to support young people in organizing materials, managing time, breaking tasks into manageable steps, creating effective routines, and taking greater ownership of their responsibilities.
Participants will leave with tools to help young people:
- Build effective study habits and homework routines
- Organize materials and manage tasks
- Better understand time and plan ahead
- Initiate and complete assignments more independently
- Develop confidence and self-advocacy skills
This interactive program will provide caregivers with practical strategies they can begin using right away to help children and teens become more organized, independent, and prepared for the demands of school and life.
Accessibility
Spark Kindness is committed to providing events that are accessible to all community members. Please contact us with accommodation questions or requests at info@sparkkindness.org. Spark Kindness is an Autism Welcoming Organization. ASL interpretation is available upon request. Request must be made no later than 7 business days prior to event.
About Our Presenter
Sarah Ward, M.S., CCC/SLP has over 30 years of experience in the treatment of executive dysfunction. She is an internationally recognized expert on executive function and presents seminars on the practical strategies she has developed with her Co-Director, Kristen Jacobsen. Together, they created the 360 Thinking Executive Function Program, which received the Innovative Promising Practices Award from CHADD. Their latest work, The Time Tracker Program—a groundbreaking three-volume book series—has received high acclaim for its innovative approach to shifting students from adult-managed to self-regulated time management. Sarah has presented to over 2,200 public and private schools and organizations across the globe. In recognition of their international impact on executive function skills in education, Sarah and Kristen were named one of the Top 10 Professional Development Providers for 2023 by Education Technology Insights Magazine.
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6 Ballfield Road
Lincoln, MA 01773
ph: 781-259-9404
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Sarah Collmer, K-4 Principal
scollmer@lincnet.org / 781-259-9400 x 2300
Alison Bryan, Interim METCO Director
abryan@lincnet.org / 781-259-9400 x 1146
Allie Sears, Student Services Coordinator
asears@lincnet.org / 781-259-9400 x 1139
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Joyce Jennings, RN - School Nurse
jjennings@lincnet.org
Alana McLaughlin, School Nurse Assistant
amclaughlin@lincnet.org
Tel: 781-259-9407
Fax: 781-259-2705
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Catalina Gonzalez
K-8 Administrative Assistant
cgonzalez@lincnet.org
Carolyn Morrissey
K-8 Administrative Assistant
cmorrissey@lincnet.org / 781-259-9408
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Kerri Martinec
Student Services Administrative Assistant
kmartinec@lincnet.org / 781-259-9400 x 2203
Nanette LaRochelle
Administrative Assistant to the Principals
nlarochelle@lincnet.org / 781-259-9404
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If your student needs financial assistance, please review these links. Applications are submitted by US Mail or In-person Drop-Off or by Confidential Fax: 781-259-9246. EMAIL is not confidential.
The town also has financial support available as well.
All applications are confidential.
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