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Dear Countryside Families,
We hope this message finds you well and that your family has had a wonderful start to the new school year!
The first week of school has been filled with energy, enthusiasm, and a sense of community that truly makes Countryside a special place to be. It has been heartwarming to see our students reconnecting with friends, meeting new classmates, and welcoming the kindergarteners and other new students to our community. Our principal, Beth Herlihy, our dedicated teachers, and our devoted staff have worked hard to ensure a smooth transition, and we are incredibly grateful for their commitment and passion.
Looking ahead, we are excited to announce that we have now posted all open volunteering opportunities with the PTO. Volunteer to be a part of something great—get involved in the PTO and help our Countryside community thrive. There are many ways to be an active PTO member, whether co-leading or volunteering for specific events, joining the mini-grants committee, planning teacher appreciation events, supporting our library, and many more! Your participation is vital to helping us drive our programming and enrich our children’s experience this year; your time, energy, and ideas truly make a difference. Please sign up: here!
Going forward, we'll stay connected through these bi-weekly updates. From time to time, you may also receive email blasts as reminders of notable PTO initiatives or upcoming events. In the meantime, we look forward to seeing many of you at our upcoming Countryside Welcome Back Fall Picnic on Monday, September 15!
Warmly,
Melissa, Steve, and Tera
PTO Co-Presidents
copresident@countrysidepto.org
Coming Up
Coming Up
Wednesday, September 10
PTO Meeting, 7:00 p.m., in Library
Monday, September 15
Welcome Back Picnic, 5:00–7:30 p.m., at the Emerson Community Center field (Rain date: September 18)
Tuesday, September 23
No School, Rosh Hashanah
Thursday, September 25
Early Release Day, Dismissal at 12:10 p.m.
Back to School Night
September Calendar
September Calendar
Updates
Updates
WELCOME NEW FAMILIES!
Welcome to all the new families joining the Countryside community! This year we have new students starting in every grade. It was wonderful to see so many of you at the New Families Welcome Playground Meet-Up after last week's Open House.
We look forward to seeing you at more community events throughout the year. We are so happy to have you here! If you have any questions during your transition, please don't hesitate to reach out to the Welcoming Committee, Beth Harmon and Brigid Tsai, who are available to help.
PTO MEETING
Please join the PTO on Wednesday, September 10 at 7:00 p.m. We will meet in the library, or you can join via Google Meet. Please contact Casey Allen for the items you would like to put on the agenda, or to ask any questions.
Google Meet joining info:
Video call link Or dial: (US) +1 636-373-8966 PIN: 158 919 476#
This meeting is open to all Countryside parents/guardians. We always welcome new involvement and volunteers. We hope to see you there!
WELCOME BACK PICNIC
Welcome back, Countryside! We're thrilled to kick off the new school year with our annual Countryside Fall Picnic. This year it will be held on Monday, September 15 from 5:00–7:30 p.m., at Emerson Community Center field located at 51 Pettee St. in Upper Falls. This year will feature a magician performing a magic show at 6:00 p.m.
Feel free to bring your own picnic dinner or purchase pizza and concessions at the event. We need volunteers to make this celebration a success. We can't wait to see you there!
Reach out to Melissa Monokroussos with any questions.
Volunteers Needed
Volunteers Needed
GET CONNECTED - BE A ROOM PARENT
One of the most important volunteer roles at Countryside is being a Room Parent. Room Parents support teachers, facilitate communications, and help build community. It's one of the best ways to get acquainted, stay connected, and directly impact your child's experience at Countryside. We ideally have at least two Room Parents per class.
Some of the responsibilities include:
Assisting the teacher in organizing special activities (often around a holiday or field trip)
Obtaining classroom materials from the teacher wish list
Being a point of contact for all classroom parents
Supporting the PTO by relaying important updates to classroom parents
Helping plan community-building events for the class and or grade (e.g. playground meet-ups)
Helping to orient and support any new families that join the classroom mid-year in conjunction with the Welcoming Committee
Coordinating December and June teacher gifts
Being a Room Parent takes a few hours a month but the rewards are great! Room Parents work in teams, so why not volunteer with a friend?
If you would like to be a room parent and all slots are full, please reach out to Beth Harmon or Erin Geraghty Kapoor
CREATIVE ARTS AND SCIENCE (CAS)
CAS is a district-wide program coordinated and funded by the PTOs in partnership with the classroom teachers. Each grade level enjoys three enrichment presentations designed to complement the classroom curriculum. Volunteer to help plan some of your child’s most inspiring and fun classroom moments, and to experience the joy of seeing your child and their classmates enjoy these special programs.
We need three parent volunteers per grade to connect with teachers and coordinate the booking of three enrichment presentations per grade. The time commitment for arranging each presentation is approximately 1–3 hours per year. Volunteers are also responsible for attending the presentation (or recruiting another parent to attend) to support the presenter as needed.
Don't worry—our CAS co-chairs, Melissa Monokroussos and Heidi Schmerbeck, will guide you every step of the way in this important and rewarding role. Please click the button below to sign up, or reach out to the co-chairs with any questions.
Thank You
Thank You
“TOPPING OFF” CEREMONY OF NEW COUNTRYSIDE BUILDING
On Thursday, we celebrated the completion of the steel frame of our new Countryside school building with a Topping Off Ceremony. Local leaders, Superintendent Anna Nolin, and Mayor Ruthanne Fuller joined neighbors, community members, and representatives from the architecture, design, and construction teams to watch as the final beam was placed. The ceremony marked a significant milestone in the progress towards our new Countryside building!
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL WELCOME BACK COFFEE FOR PARENTS AND CAREGIVERS
It was great catching up with our Countryside parents on a beautiful first day of school! We had a terrific turn-out and it was wonderful to see this level of engagement as we kick off the year! Thank you to everyone who came and to Principal Herlihy and Steve Lee for organizing the Welcome Back Parents Coffee.
Community Notes
Community Notes
NCE FALL CLUBS FOR ELEMENTARY STUDENTS
Newton Community Education is the place for after-school fun this fall! NCE offers clubs and classes designed to help elementary school children discover new passions and make friends outside the classroom. Kids can learn to play chess (beginner through advanced), build and create in Buildwave, learn cheer basics, or take swimming lessons—and that’s just a small sample of the enriching programs NCE offers! Visit our website to explore the full catalog of clubs!
CUB SCOUTS PACK 210
Who: Boys and girls grades K–5
When: Thursday September 18, 6:00–7:30 p.m.
Where: Carroll Center for the Blind, 700 Centre St. in Newton Centre
What: Kick-off Meeting with Reptiles of New England and frozen treats!
Pack 210 (Friends of Hemlock Gorge) has an exciting year of activities planned including camping, hiking, Pinewood Derby, outdoor activities, community service, overnights, and monthly Den meetings. We are a strong and vibrant Pack! Scouts are encouraged to attend one meeting per month, and we have additional fun events every month. Join to learn more at our Kickoff Meeting. We will have an interactive and educational session meeting our scaly friends, followed by parent Q&A, and allergy-friendly frozen treats (please reach out with food allergy questions). Please email Kevin with questions, or visit our website.
You can find info about upcoming engagement opportunities in and around Newton at NPS Community Notices page here.
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