What a mad dash to the finish these final months of the school year always are! It's hard to believe that after today there are only 28 school days remaining. Our kinders to 4th graders will be wrapping up their current grade levels and preparing to move up, and our wonderful 5th graders close out their NFS journey with E-School, fun events in their classrooms, and PTO-sponsored 5th grade celebrations.
May and June are busy months for the PTO and we are greatly in need of help for some of the most fun volunteer opportunities of the year. Check out the Sign Up Genius below for quick and easy ways to get involved in Staff Appreciation Week (starting Monday!). Many kiddos at NFS have read the fantastic book "Have You Filled a Bucket Today," and staff appreciation week is always such a "bucket-filler" -- for the wonderful teachers and support staff at school and for all of us who get to celebrate them.
We are also planning the amazing lawn fete, the ice cream social (and foam party!!!!), and 5th grade celebrations. These are wonderful community events that our students remember for years (some of us remember our own lawn fetes and carnivals!), and we cannot make them happen without more NFS families stepping up to help cover a shift, make a delivery, work a grill, or manage an activity. There are so many ways to get involved that suit all personality types and scheduling needs. Please join us!
As mentioned above, we have so many fun activities planned for teacher appreciation week next week when we will honor all school staff! From bouquet making and breakfast goodies, to a yummy catered lunch, sweet candy bar, and gift card raffle, we are excited to shower these incredible people who do so much for our children. There are lots of fun opportunities to donate and get involved in this feel good week. Click below for the Sign Up Genius for specific tasks and items! Here is a list of slots we are still trying to fill:
Sunday afternoon: Chalk designs to welcome staff in the building (bring the kids!)
Gift Cards: could use about 17 more for Friday's raffle (any denomination!)
Fresh Fruit for Tuesday's breakfast: could use one more
Coffee for Tuesday's breakfast: 3 more boxes of Joe
Two more coolers of drinks (soda, seltzer, etc) and ice for Wednesday's luncheon
Set up and clean up for Wednesday's luncheon
Candy for Thursday's candy bar
Candy station clean up Thursday afternoon (super quick!)
Come out to see our amazing students perform at the talent show on Tuesday, May 16, 2023 at 6:30PM! Please note the location has changed back to the NFS Gym.
Please help to spread the word to any Portsmouth families you know that the elementary schools need incoming kindergarteners to register as soon as possible so they can make plans for next school year.
There are 14 spaces left for the Seacoast Artspot fundraiser on next week's early release day. We are grateful to Artspot for hosting this fun event for our community. Sign up now to reserve your child's spot for some fun creative activities and to raise money for the school!
Our basket raffle is in full swing and will be held during our annual Lawn Fete on Friday, June 2nd. Here’s how the raffle works! Each grade is asked to collect items for a themed basket. Families then bring in new items or gift cards that correspond to their child’s grade theme. Each classroom has a box to collect donations from now through Friday, May 26th.
Please donate! This year’s themes:
Kindergarten- Family Fun (family games, snacks, bbq stuff, local gift cards for takeout)
1st Grade- Gardening (gardening supplies)
2nd Grade- Spa Day (candles, lotion, comfy socks, bath salts)
3rd Grade- Creative fun (art supplies)
4th Grade- Movie Night (boxes of candy and microwave popcorn, DVDs, movie passes, blankets, store gift cards (for DVDs and snacks).)
5th Grade- A day at the beach (beach supplies)
The week of the Lawn Fete, each day a different basket will be on display in the school lobby, so be sure to stop by and check them out. Then, join us on June 2nd for some family fun and a chance to win!
2023 T-Shirt Contest!
Snag your limited edition student-made NFS t-shirt! Due to PTO fundraising and a generous donation from Prime Bucholz, we are able to offer t-shirts for staff and students at no cost this year! Families can choose to purchase additional shirts or make a donation to help offset the cost of the PTO and get shirts on every NFS kid! We REALLY need forms returned to classroom teachers by Friday, May 12th so we can ensure a quick turnaround.
Let's support our friends from the Portsmouth High School Parent Advisory Committee and the Portsmouth Middle School Parent Teacher Association! Let's get the community out and party like it's 1986 - enjoy a night of nostalgia, big hair, and totally tubular tunes!
LIVE BAND - Girls Just Want to Have Fun | Dancing, Light Fare and Apps, Cash Bar | Tickets $40
Proceeds will support the PMS PTA and PHS PAC. These organizations are parent-led groups with goals to build a strong community among parents, teachers and students and to raise funds for needs outside of the school’s budget including field trips, supplies and specific requests from teachers, and financial support for after-school and extra-curricular programming.
Are you looking for a way to get more involved and give back to the school? Don't worry if you haven't attended PTO meetings or haven't volunteered yet. You are encouraged to throw your hat it. All those interested should plan on attending our final PTO meeting of the year on May 23rd at 6:30. We will hold elections during that meeting. For those who want to be involved but want a smaller commitment, we will also start to put together teams/committees for next year's staff appreciation, community events and other projects.
A message from Principal Simons: "We have 7 weeks left of school and during that time I would love to celebrate our amazing New Franklin staff. I'm asking families to send in a Staff Shout Out Form for those staff members who have made a difference for you and your child. You can fill out as many forms as you want and please don't forget our amazing paraeducators and literacy tutors. I'll be sharing your shout-outs to staff in my weekly staff newsletter." Fill out the form and celebrate our amazing NFS staff:
May 23rd: Final PTO meeting of the year and elections
May 31st: 4th grade recorder concert, 1:00 NFS gym
June 2nd: Lawn Fete
June 13th: Ice cream Social
June 15th: Last day of school!!!!
Charitable donations help the New Franklin School Parent Teacher Organization to support the education and well-being of our children at New Franklin School and serve to enhance and maximize the education of every child, while aiding them in achieving their highest potential.
The New Franklin School PTO is a 501(c)(3) non-profit whose membership includes all parents, legal guardians, teachers and staff at New Franklin School. Our mission is to support the education and well being of children at New Franklin School and foster relationships among the school, parents/guardians, and teachers. We strive to promote open communication and understanding between all members of the New Franklin School community.
