Norrback Avenue School

🍽️✨ Look What’s Coming Back on February's Menu! Say hello to Chicken and Veggie Dumplings with Soy Sauce, paired with a tasty Edamame Salad and a sweet Fortune Cookie! 😋 This delicious combo will be back on the February menu – don’t miss it! 🌱🍜

🚗 Become an Automotive Instructor - Chapter 74🚗 Worcester Technical High School is seeking a skilled Automotive Instructor! Join our team and inspire the next generation of automotive professionals. Visit the link here to apply: https://buff.ly/4h9YTcD

Worcester Public Library Hosts Book Drive for WPS Educators 📚 Thank you to our friends at the Worcester Public Library for hosting an amazing book drive! Over 12,000 books were donated to WPS K-3 grade educators, helping them build and refresh their classroom libraries. Thank you to Worcester Public Library for your continued support to literacy in our schools!

Standard Response Protocol and Reunification Training with The I Love U Guys Foundation 🦺 Worcester Public Schools administrators recently participated in intensive safety training led by The I Love U Guys Foundation. It was the second large-scale staff training since the summer. The two-day session, held at Worcester State University, focused on ensuring our staff are fully prepared to reunite students with their families in the case of a school evacuation. WPS takes a proactive approach to ensuring safety and positive school climates. The district operates from the I Love U Guys safety framework with clear protocols, procedures, and a common language to ensure a systematic and organized response to any situation. Special thanks to Jim French of The I Love U Guys Foundation for leading this hands-on training with our staff! 🔗 Learn more about WPS’s safety protocols: https://www.worcesterschools.org/page/safety

🔥 Get Ready to Savor the Flavor! 🔥 Have you tried the new Chicken Banh Mi Sandwich yet? Served with crispy Sweet Potato Fries, it’s bold, fresh, and bursting with flavor! 🥪🍟 🌟 Exciting New Items Coming Next Week: 🥖 Chicken Philly Sandwich with crispy Baked Fries – a satisfying, savory delight! 🥗 Taco Salad Bowl – choose between Beef or Plant-Based Meat, packed with all the taco goodness you love in one tasty bowl! Check out what’s on the menu and try something new today! View the full menu at https://buff.ly/47lkI4R Let us know which dish you’re most excited to try! 👇

❄️ Worcester Announces Winning Names in “Name A Snowplow” Contest ❄️ The City of Worcester has officially announced the four winning snowplow names that will keep our streets clear this winter! These names were selected after a fun and creative naming contest with our own Worcester Public Schools students. A huge shoutout to all participating students and classes for the clever submissions! The winning names and classes are: 1️⃣ Scoop Dogg - Mrs. Stephanie Trainor’s Grade 6 Class, Francis J. McGrath Elementary School (pictured in this post) 2️⃣ Sleetwood Mac - Ms. Victoria Alexander’s Grades K-2 SAIL Class, Norrback Avenue School 3️⃣ William Scrapespeare - Ms. Aimee Kewley’s Grades 9-12 Theater Magnet Class, Burncoat High School 4️⃣ Snow More Mr. Ice Guy - Ms. Sydney Lamothe's Grades 9-10 Advisory Class, University Park Campus School

📚✨ Attendance Matters! 🏫 January has 19 school days — let’s make every day count! 🙌 Consistent attendance keeps students on track, boosts academic success, and builds lifelong habits. 📝💪 Together, we can show up, learn, and thrive! 🎓🌟 For more tips on maintaining good attendance, visit: https://buff.ly/4h75OTc

🏫 School Enrollment Begins Soon! 🎒If you are enrolling your child in the Worcester Public Schools for the 2025-26 school year, registration opens on January 2, 2025. The Parent Information Center will begin scheduling appointments on January 6, 2025. Visit the WPS Enrollment website for details: worcesterschools.org/enrollment

🏫 School Enrollment Begins Soon! 🎒If you are enrolling your child in the Worcester Public Schools for the 2025-26 school year, registration opens on January 2, 2025. The Parent Information Center will begin scheduling appointments on January 6, 2025. Visit the WPS Enrollment website for details: worcesterschools.org/enrollment

Friendly Faces of Norrback Avenue School! 🤗 We recently stopped by Norrback Avenue School to see our learners in action! Norrback is a "HUB" school within the Burncoat Quadrant, hosting several district programs, including SAIL, Life Skills, and LAB. It is also piloting a modified CKLA curriculum in SAIL K-2 classrooms, focusing on strategies for teaching beginning reading skills. To support students in the Life Skills program and help them practice functional skills, Norrback has developed two programs: Life Skills Lends a Hand and Norrback Buddies. The Life Skills Lends a Hand program provides leadership opportunities, such as delivering announcements, mail, and special requests around the school. The Norrback Buddies program pairs 3-6 grade students with peers in the Life Skills program for activities like literacy, crafts, and cooking. The LAB (Language Achievement and Beyond) program supports students with language-based learning disabilities, helping them become confident, self-advocating learners. LAB serves PreK-6 students, fostering creativity and critical thinking to ensure students can apply learned strategies across various settings. Norrback Avenue School served 490 students in the 2023-24 school year and hosts Pre-K through Grade 6. It opened in 1999 and is the elementary school of two-time U.S. Olympic bronze medalist Stephen Nedoroscik!

🎄✨ Festival of Lights Sparkled in Worcester! ✨🎄 Thank you to everyone who joined us for the Festival of Lights on Worcester Common! A special shoutout to our WPS scholars, including performers from Burncoat High Quadrivium Chorus, Midland Street Elementary, North High School, and South High School, for making the evening unforgettable. Your talents lit up the night and made the evening unforgettable! 🌟 Stay tuned for more events celebrating the season. 🎶❄️

📢 Help Shape WPS Core Values! The Worcester Public Schools are developing core values to guide our actions, culture, and decision-making. These values are the foundation of our community, and we need your input! 👉 Participate by January 15, 2025—your voice matters! Help define the values that will shape our Strategic Plan, to be announced in Spring 2025. Join now: https://buff.ly/3D9RCu1

🦃 ✨ Wishing our students, families, and staff a joyful Thanksgiving filled with gratitude, reflection, and appreciation for the diverse traditions, histories, and cultures that enrich our communities.🍁 We are thankful for the opportunity to learn, grow, and support one another. May everyone have a restful and enjoyable break! 💛

More than 50 staff and community partners were celebrated at Worcester Public Schools Evening of Innovation! It was a great night to honor the incredible staff and community partners who make a difference every day. View the complete list of honorees: https://buff.ly/3OhAvcb

Thank You Veterans for Your Service!🫡 Veterans Day honors military veterans for their service and sacrifice. It’s a day to show appreciation for those who have served to protect our country. Click here to learn more about the significance of Veterans Day and how you can honor those who served: https://buff.ly/3IOnULk

📚✨ Attendance Matters! 🏫 November has 16 school days — let’s make each one count! 🙌 Consistent attendance helps students stay on track, succeed academically, and build great habits. 📝💪 Let’s show up, learn, and thrive together! 🎓🌟

✨ Staff Development Day Highlights! ✨ Today, hundreds of dedicated educators from Worcester Public Schools came together for a day of professional development. Through interactive workshops and teamwork, they focused on enhancing their skills to better support our WPS scholars. Pictured here are some of the Highlights: Special Education Session: Collaboratively developed IEPs with guidance from Special Education staff and Evaluation Team Chairs. Nutrition Team Trainings: The day started with Project Bread chef Sherri presenting a shawarma seasoning blend recipe and a shawarma rice bowl concept. The Burncoat quadrant held a managers meeting, while team members participated in ServSafe classes, CPR/Choke training, and a Managers 101 session for staff with less than 90 days on the job. 👏 A heartfelt thank you to all staff for your dedication to excellence and student achievement!

No School on Tuesday, November 5 Teachers have a professional development on Tuesday, November 5 🗓️ so there will be no school for students! 🏫

Seasonal Clothing Donation from Cradles to Crayons 🧥 Recently the Family and Community Engagement Office received its annual donation of seasonal clothing packs from Cradles to Crayons! Thanks to this amazing partnership, schools were able to order specific items for students, and Cradles to Crayons did the rest, delivering a truckload of essentials just in time for winter. The items donated included long sleeve shirts, pants, sweaters, socks, underwear, and winter coats! 🚚✨ A huge shoutout to everyone involved—especially our fantastic wraparound coordinators and the dedicated staff from the McKinney-Vento office—who helped sort and distribute these much-needed donations! We can’t wait to see these items go to our WPS families! 🧦💖

Hispanic Heritage Month at Norrback Avenue School! Fourth graders at the Norrback Avenue School recently learned more about Hispanic Heritage Month during a lesson taught by World Cultures educator Shan-Shan King. Throughout the lesson, scholars explored the many unique Hispanic cultures and learned where Hispanic countries are located on the world map. They also learned about the achievements of Hispanic idols such as Lin Manuel-Miranda, Cesar Chavez, Frida Kahlo, Sonia Sotomayor and others! Students also learned how to do the merengue, the national dance of the Dominican Republic. The class wrapped up the lesson with a fun dance session!