March 8, 2026
Dear Parents/Guardians, Staff, and Students,
I hope you are enjoying the weekend. Daylight saving time is here and it’s going to be warm this week! It is a busy time of year in the month of March and we are back with a full 5 DAYS OF LEARNING this week! Let’s see what’s happening …
FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM: locke_middle_school
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“I want every girl to know that her voice can change the world.” – Malala Yousafzai, (March is women’s history month)
SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
Monday – D Day – HW Club, Activities, School Site Council 5:00 PM
Tuesday – A Day – Robotics Team Presentation at School Committee
Wednesday – B Day – Early Release 11:40 Dismissal, No after-school programs
Thursday – C Day – HW Club, Activities
Friday – D Day
EARLY RELEASE DAY – Wednesday, March 11th
Wednesday, March 11th is an early release day. Students will be dismissed at 11:40 AM. There are no after-school programs.
BOOSTER-THON FUN RUN FUNDRAISER
Our biggest fundraiser of the year is here – The Locke Monster Fun Run! Registration is now open, and every student who registers by March 9th will receive the coveted Garas homework pass. This is a very special homework pass that can be used in any class! Be one of the first to register and help us reach our fundraising goal!
Our goal is to raise $15,000 for student enrichment, including field trips, end of year events and more and we need your help. Save the date and stay tuned for more details on how you can support our cause.
· Register online at MyBooster.com
· Fundraiser Kickoff – 03/09/2026
· Event Day – 03/18/2026
Stay tuned for more information about daily prizes and incentives for students, parents, AND teachers- there are lots of fun things in store, so don’t forget to keep your eye out so that you don’t miss out!
MCAS CALENDAR
Please see the attached calendar for MCAS testing dates this year.
ROBOTICS UPDATE
Our Robotics team won the sportsmanship award at the recent state championships. Congratulations to our students! The team will be presenting at the school committee meeting on Tuesday, March 10th. They will be discussing the robotics program and giving a demonstration.
The Locke Monsters Robotics Team is also holding a Lottery Ticket fundraiser to raise funds for our team. We are selling raffle tickets for a chance to win a book of 100 MA State Lottery tickets ($10 version). We will be selling a total of 300 raffle tickets at $10 each. Once all of the tickets are sold, the winner will be selected and notified. You can Venmo Mrs. Tolleson (one of the coaches) @jmtolleson1 if you would like to buy a raffle ticket. The cost is $10 per raffle entry. Please include your name and phone number in the memo/note line so that you can be entered into the raffle and notified if you win.
7th GRADE PARENT INFORMATION NIGHT
If you were unable to attend the BMHS parent presentation, please see the attached information that was shared with families. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
DISTRICT REPORT CARD
Please see the attached letter from Lori McDermott – assistant superintendent
RIDDLE/JOKE OF THE WEEK
This Week – 1. Why couldn’t the flower ride a bike? 2. What did the dirt say to the rain?
Last week’s answers: 1. Why did the girl learn the trumpet in February? – She wanted to be in the March-ing band. 2. Why was the calendar so busy before April? – Because there was so March to do.
MATH PROBLEM OF THE WEEK
Happy p Day !!
Pi day is March 14th because the number Pi is equal to 3.14159 …
Warren is throwing a pie party for his entire school to celebrate the occasion. He figures out that to feed all his guests and have a good variety of pie flavors, he should make 15 pies. The recipe he is using calls for 2¼ cups of flour per pie crust. He only has 1 cup of flour in his kitchen, so he will need to buy more. Flour is sold in 5-pound bags. To figure out how many bags of flour he needs to buy, he weighs the 1 cup of flour he has. The 1 cup weighs 4.8 ounces. To make all 15 pies, how many bags of flour does Warren need to buy?
Last Week’s Answer: The student entered Jaylen’s class and was born in March.
Send your answers to Mr. Garas – tgaras@billericak12.com – Show your work! You can win a Dunkin gift card and the highly coveted math certificate!! We will have prizes on Friday this week.
CHROMEBOOK INSURANCE
Parents and Guardians, please see the attached flyer outlining the benefit of Chromebook insurance. We are encouraging families to consider insurance based on the frequency that we see students with Chromebook damage.
LOCKE SCHOOL SITE COUNCIL
Our school council met on February 9th. Please see the minutes for the meeting. All related documents for the council can be found on our website.
HOMEWORK CLUB
HW club will continue throughout the year. It will meet in the library every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 1:45 – 2:45. (not on early release Wednesdays) Students do not need to sign up ahead of time for HW club. Students will report to the library immediately after school and sign-in. They can attend as many days as the parents/teachers believes are necessary. Students will receive help with assignments, organization, preparing for assessments, and are expected to stay for the full hour. Parent pick-up at 2:45 is required.
PTO CORNER
The PTO welcomes all families to the Locke. We will be meeting monthly to plan several events throughout the year.
LOCKE GEAR is for sale! Go to this link to purchase. A portion of the price goes to the PTO.
UPCOMING PTO EVENTS:
Wednesday, March 18th – Fun Run
Wednesday, March 18th – PTO Meeting 6:30 PM Library
Our PTO Facebook page is: “Billerica Locke PTO”. Click on the link below to take you there:
ESSAY CONTEST
The Billerica Adventure Series Corporation is sponsoring its annual essay contest related to the environment. Please see the attached flyer for more details.
FROM BMHS
Please see the attached flyer for a class of 2026 fundraiser.
Also, please see the attached information regarding the “Adopt-a-Senior” program.
FROM BILLERICA PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Kindergarten Registration for the 2026-2027 School Year
Online registration for Kindergarten will open on March 1. We have two in-person registration days where parents who would like some support with the registration process may come in person. Those dates are Monday, March 2 from 3-6 PM and Friday, March 6 from 8-11 AM in the Town Hall Auditorium. Details are available on our website.
REMINDERS
CELL PHONE POLICY
Our cell phone policy is that all student phones/smart watches are to be kept in student lockers and turned off for the duration of the school day. If parents need to contact students, please contact the main office.
ABSENCES
If your child is going to be absent, please call 978-528-8650 to report the absence. You can leave a voicemail at this number which goes directly to our secretary. You may also email our secretaries, Ms. Brewster at nbrewster@billericak12.com and/or Ms. O’Brien at lobrien@billericak12.com
BUS ASSIGNMENTS
Students who ride the bus can only ride on their assigned bus in the morning and afternoon. Students are not allowed to ride different buses to be with friends after school.
The bus routes for the year are listed at this link.
If you have any questions regarding bus assignments, please contact our assistant principal: Phillip Peters: ppeters@billericak12.com — 978-528-8654
LUNCH/BREAKFAST
All breakfast and lunches are free to all students again this year. Students will be receiving a 4 digit pin code that they will need to use when they get breakfast or lunch. Breakfast will be served beginning on the first day. It will be “grab and go”. Students can grab a breakfast in the cafeteria when they come in and then report to homeroom. They can eat breakfast in homeroom. Students are not allowed to bring in breakfast/drinks from Dunkin, Starbucks, etc.
UPCOMING DATES
All Dates are also on our master calendar on the Locke website.
· Monday, March 9th – School Site Council Meeting, 5:00 PM Library
· Monday, March 9th – Booster-Thon Fundraiser Starts
· Tuesday, March 10th – School Committee Student Presentation
· Wednesday, March 11th – Early Release 11:40 Dismissal
· Wednesday, March 18th – Booster-Thon Fun Run Event
· Wednesday, March 18th – PTO Meeting 6:30 PM Library
· Tuesday, March 19th – Day 120, Last Day of Trimester 2
· Friday, March 20th – Spring Dance 6:00 – 8:00
· Thursday, March 26th – Musical 7:00 PM Auditorium
· Friday, March 27th – Musical 7:00 PM Auditorium
· Saturday, March 28th – Musical 2:00 PM Auditorium
· Friday, March 31st – Report Cards Published 2:00 PM
· Friday, April 3rd – No School
· Wednesday, April 8th – MCAS ELA Session 1
· Thursday, April 9th – MCAS ELA Session 2
· Friday, April 10th – Day 135 End of Quarter 3
· Monday, April 13th – Quarter 4 Unified Arts Classes Start
· Monday, April 13th – Locke School Council 5:00 PM Library
· Wednesday, April 15th – PTO Meeting 6:30 Library
· April 20th through April 24th – Spring Break
· Monday, April 27th – Return to School
· Wednesday, April 29th – Group Pictures
If you have any questions, please contact me at tgaras@billericak12.com or call at 978-528-8655. Have a great week!!
Warmest regards,
Tony Garas, Principal