Dear Farmland Families,
Wow! The Farmland community was treated to a spectacular International Night on Wednesday, April 20 th! It
was so wonderful to see so many of our families attending and enjoying the evening with families and friends. I
loved seeing some of our Farmland Alumni who have moved on to middle school and beyond. Many thanks to
our families which hosted the cultural display tables: Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Ecuador, India, Israel, Japan,
Korea and Turkey. The activities, artifacts, clothing, treats, and posters were amazing. I loved “re-visiting”
countries I have been to and adding the others to my “Bucket List” of where to go when I eventually retire. Our
children’s performances were the highlight! Children are always the highlight of every event! The
performances were incredible- the exquisite national clothing, the precision in the motion in the dance
performances and sword exhibitions, the music and voices of our children, and, best of all, the beaming faces
full of pride as they performed. And, to think International Night almost did not happen this year as the PTA
had difficulty getting volunteers to sign up to be part of the planning committee, host a table, or organize a
performance. What a loss that would have been for our children. Please consider participating next year. The
large of number of families in attendance shows what an important event this is to our community.
A huge debt of gratitude for Amanda Michalowicz and Vicki Dunn for taking on the responsibility of chairing
this event as well as their roles as PTA President and PTA Vice-President. That is awesome
dedication! Thanks to our wonderful staff who came out to support their students- Mrs. Ruffa (our awesome
Master-of-Ceremonies!), Ms. Smith, Ms. Unnithan, Ms. Rachel, Ms. Strauss, Mr. Trachtenberg, Mrs. Hanifin,
Mrs. Gleeson, Mrs. Kasab, Ms. Bernard, Ms. Dinkin, and Mrs. Khokhlova. Recognition and appreciation to
Nick Morper for handling the sound and technology portion of the show!
Please make sure to remember that there will be no school on Tuesday, April 26 th as it is Election Day and the
building will be used as a polling station. Also, Thursday, April 28 th is” Take Your Child to Work Day.” This
is an American tradition to permit children an excused absence to attend their parents’ place of work to learn
what they do. Please be courteous and inform your child’s classroom teacher ahead of time if you plan to keep
your child out of school that day. Notice helps the teachers be able to plan appropriately knowing how many
children will be attending. You do need to send in an email or note to your classroom teacher to inform them of
why your child is absent.
The WJ Cluster Representatives are conducting a survey to gather parent input on the secondary school
approaches to relieve overcrowding in the cluster that have been developed by the WJ Roundtable group. Please
use the following link and complete the survey by Monday, May 9th.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FarmlandES
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TildenMS
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WalterJohnson
“With the New Day comes New Strength and New Thoughts.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
Make the most of your new day, every day.
Warmest regards,
Mary
Mary Bliss
Principal
Farmland ES