KES News

Dear  KES Families,

Happy Friday!  I hope you are all well today. I have only a couple things to share this week, but first and foremost, I wanted to say that It was wonderful seeing so many families at the KEPTA Ice Cream Social yesterday. That was the most guests we have had here at KES in a couple years, and it felt really nice. The weather was perfect, the Fairy Garden looked beautiful, the kids all had fun, and we didn’t run out of ice cream! It was also great to see so many of our former (older sibling) students looking quite different than the last time most of us saw them. Huge thanks goes to our dedicated KEPTA for hosting such a great event!

Next on my list… Picture Day is coming to KES! Information about Picture Day should have already been distributed from your child’s classroom teacher, but please mark your calendars for October 18th, and plan to dress your child in their very best. These photos make such great keepsakes and Christmas gifts, you won’t want your child to miss out. 

And finally, RSU 21 will be collaborating with Northern Lights Healthcare to offer Influenza Vaccine Clinics at each of our schools in RSU21 November 2nd-4th, 2022. Our KES Flu Clinic will be Friday, November 4th. These clinics will be open to all students of RSU 21. Information, with links, on how parents can pre-register students and sign consent forms can be found here 2022 RSU 21 Student Influenza Clinic Flyer. More information will be forthcoming about the specific times and details concerning this clinic. 

Please enjoy your weekend.

Yours in Education,

Mr. Quinn

KES Absence Reporting Form

September 23, 2022

Dear KES Families,

Happy Friday! I hope you are all well today. We had a really nice start to the day today as twenty four members of the Peer Helpers club from KHS participated welcoming students as they arrived this morning at KES. Along with our regular duty staff, the Peer Helpers joined us in greeting students as they climbed out of cars, and streamed off our buses, helping everyone at KES to “Start With Hello”. In addition to “Start With Hello” the Peer Helpers host many great events across our district. I think one of the nicest things they do is make a commitment to refrain from participating in negative talk about their peers or their teachers. As always, some of our little ones were shy, and others collected as many fist bumps between the curb and the front door as possible. 

While I am talking about morning drop-off, I just want to thank our parents for helping make the process go so smoothly. One of the things we ask is that cars pull up as far as they can towards the Stop sign, so we can unload as many cars as possible at one time. Having said that, if you find you are one of only three or four vehicles pulling in at the same time, which is sometimes the case as Drop Off is beginning or ending, then it is fine to just stop nearest the front doors. There is no need to make everyone walk all the way to the end of the sidewalk, once we are down to a handful of cars.

Thank you to all who are using our KES Absence Reporting Form to let us know when your student will be out for any reason. It makes a huge difference to our nurse and office staff and we appreciate your support with this.

I lament that we had to postpone the KEPTA Ice Cream Social, but given the rain that we had, it was clearly the right decision to make. We look forward to the rain date for that event which is this coming Thursday afternoon from 4:00pm to 6:00pm in the Fairy Garden.

And finally, just a reminder that the start of a new year is a great time to set goals for improving student attendance. Student attendance is one of the biggest factors related to student achievement that parents can influence. I will continue to share reminders throughout the year but if you are having trouble getting your child to come to school, please reach out to me for help. We are happy to support parents who are looking for strategies. Remember, they say eighty percent of life is about showing up… so let us know how we can help!

Have a great weekend! 

Yours in Education,
Mr. Quinn

September 16, 2022

Dear KES Families,

I hope you are all well on this beautiful late summer day. Today marks the end of the first full week of school, and I’m so proud to say how well the children have settled in and what a great job they are doing. Many of the little ones are excited to be eating at Sharkbites, the KES Cafe’ for the first time. We have now had two Evacuation Drills and all of our students have done and exceptional job. Half of our Pre-K population had their vision and hearing screenings today, and they all did a great job helping make the process go smoothly. 

It was so nice to see so many parents at the first KEPTA meeting of the year. I can't remember when there has been such a turn-out. KEPTA is one of the best ways to participate in your child’s education and this year they plan to offer meetings both during the day, and in the evening. The next meeting is on October 7th at 8:30am. We are bringing back the KES Ice Cream Social from 4:00-6:00 PM, Thursday, September 22nd, and KEPTA plans to help organize our Spaghetti Supper for Honor Flight Maine later in the fall. Over the years, KES has sent four local WWII veterans and one local Korean War veteran to see their memorials in Washington D.C on Honor Flight. We want to continue this great work for a great organization, so be on the lookout for information about the Spaghetti Supper in the coming weeks.

I am excited to announce that we can begin having Volunteers in our classrooms again. Teachers at each grade level are currently working on what that will look like, so opportunities to volunteer will be shared through your child’s teacher’s newsletter. Other forms of volunteerism, such as Foster Grandparents the Barbara Bush Foundation’s “Read Squad” (Formerly known as Teen Trendsetters) will begin in a few weeks, live for the first time since the 2019-2020 school year.

Just a gentle reminder that pocket knives and jack knives are not allowed to be brought to school. If staff become aware of a student with a knife, no matter how small, the knife will have to be taken and held in the KES office until parents or care-givers can come retrieve it. Thank you for your help with reinforcing this rule

Finally, please see the Newsletter  from our wonderful Art Teacher, Miss Allard.

Have an amazing weekend.

Yours in Education,
Mr. Quinn

SeaShore Trolley Museum Flyer

September 2, 2022

Dear  KES Families,

I hope you are all well today! I’m so happy about what a great start to the year we have had here at KES. I've heard lots of great reports of summer activities from the kids, so thank you for all you do to increase their experiences and expand their minds during their time at home. Our first and second graders came in on Monday and hit the ground running like old pros. I’ve visited all of the 1st and 2nd grade classrooms, and everyone seemed to settle into their routines really quickly. On Wednesday, our Pre-K and Kindergarten students joined us with hardly a tear! The teachers all report having sweet classes, and many of the Kindergarten teachers remarked at how our Kindergarten students arrive ready to learn on the first day now that so many of them have already been with us for a year in Pre-K. With only a few glitches, Mrs. Towne and I both commented on what a smooth first week we had. So, I believe that most of our students are settling in nicely. If that is not the case for your child, please reach out to us. Of course, your child’s classroom teacher is your first stop regarding support, and Mrs. Boswell, in the office, is also available for questions and assistance. At KES we have a dedicated support team that includes both myself and Mrs. Towne, our school counselors, Miss Wright and Mr. Muir, our school social worker, Jessica Blastos, our school nurse, Allison Laverierre, and our school resource officer, Audra Blaney. Between all of us, we are more than happy to work with homeroom teachers and provide additional support for any child who needs it… even if it’s just a little extra TLC... so please just let us know! Our email addresses are as follows:

Mr. Quinn- rquinn@rsu21.net
Mrs. Towne- etowne@rsu21.net
Mrs. Boswell- mboswell@rsu21.net
Nurse Allison- alaverierre@rsu21.net
Miss Wright- kwright@rsu21.net
Mr. Muir- amuir@rsu21.net
Mrs. Blastos- jblastos@rsu21.net
Officer Audra- ablaney@rsu21.net
 

I want to thank parents who are reporting when their child will be out using the
KES Absence Reporting Form. This information goes directly to Nurse Allison and Mrs. Boswell and is relayed to the individual classroom teachers. It avoids the office having to call if your child is out for any reason, and we really appreciate you using this means of communication.

While we are not ready yet to invite volunteers and audiences into the building, I want to encourage all members of our school community to participate in our dedicated PTA, KEPTA (Kennebunk Elementary Parent Teacher Association). It is still the best way to become involved and make a difference in your child’s school experience. Meanwhile, I would be remiss if I did not mention how nice it was to have so many parents at KES last week. We’ve always prided ourselves in our connections with families, and not having as much of that for the last few years has been hard. Thank you to everyone who attended our Sneak-a-Peek events. It has also been great seeing so many of you in the pick-up and drop off lines. 

Next week we will have our first Evacuation Drill for the year. This first one is always announced in advance so children can be prepared. We do not actually pull the alarm, rather we make an announcement to remind them, and then another announcement a few minutes later to begin the drill. Surprise drills with the alarm ringing will come later! 

And finally, on Thursday, September 8th, our local Cub Scout pack is holding a recruitment night. Please see this flyer with information.

I hope you all have a great weekend! 

Yours in Education,
Mr. Quinn