November 23, 2025
Dear Parents/Guardians, Staff, and Students,
I hope you are enjoying the weekend as we prepare for the holiday season. We only have 2 ½ DAYS OF LEARNING this week, but we will make the most of them.
As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, I would like to wish you all a happy and healthy holiday season ahead. We have much to be thankful for at the Locke. Our staff, families, and students have created a positive learning community and we are committed to being an environment where all can grow and succeed. I know in the weeks ahead our staff will continue to work hard to provide tremendous learning opportunities for our students and to support them academically and emotionally. During this busy and often stressful time, I hope we all can get a chance to pause and reflect on the positive moments of this year and look forward to the coming months with many days of learning. Happy Thanksgiving!
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“I am grateful for what I am and have. My thanksgiving is perpetual.” — Henry David Thoreau
SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
Monday – A Day – HW Club, Activities,
Tuesday – B Day
Wednesday – C Day – Turkey Toss!, Half-Day Schedule, 10:40 Dismissal, No after-school programs
Thursday – No School
Friday – No School
HALF-DAY – Wednesday, 11/26
Wednesday, November 26th is a half day. Dismissal will be at approximately 10:40 – 10:55. For the safety of students, we need to wait for the buses to arrive to dismiss students. This is dependent on when the buses leave the high school. Walkers and pick-ups will be dismissed after bus students.
THE TURKEY TOSS IS COMING …
Turkeys will be flying again in the Locke gym on Wednesday morning. We are raising money for the Billerica Food Pantry and other local charities. The last day to turn in donations is Tuesday, November 25th. Please see the attached for more information.
TOYS FOR TOTS DRIVE
The Locke Middle School is hosting a Toys for Tots toy drive. Collection boxes are available in the lobby of The Locke Middle School through Friday December 12, 2025. We are collecting new, unwrapped toys for ages infant to 18 years old. According to our contact at Toys for Tots, there are typically fewer toys donated for older children.
LOCKE SCHOOL SITE COUNCIL
Our school council met on November 10th. 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 believe 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.
CHROMEBOOK INSURANCE
We are pleased to share that we are officially launching our new Chromebook insurance option for students. This program provides affordable coverage for accidental damage and other issues, helping families avoid unexpected repair or replacement costs.
Coverage will be available through our partner, Get Cover, and parents can access the enrollment portal here: BPS Chromebook Insurance.
Insurance Details:
· Dell 3100 Chromebooks (all units issued prior to 2025): $31.85 for 1 year
· Dell 3120 Chromebooks (new units distributed in August 2025): $76.85 for 4-years
· Coverage includes accidental damage, spills, and drops
More information can also be found on the BPS Helpdesk site.
RIDDLE/JOKE OF THE WEEK
1. How did the turkey get home for Thanksgiving? 2. If pears grow on pear trees and apples on apple trees, where do turkeys grow?
Last week’s answers: 1. What key can’t open any doors? A Tur-key! 2. What do you call a group of musical sweet potatoes? A yam session.
MATH PROBLEM OF THE WEEK
Eat your fruit! (same as last week)
Ms. Hernandez bought 7 pieces of fruit for the week. She bought apples, oranges, and bananas. What are the different combinations of fruits Ms. Hernandez could have bought? Show your work using pictures, words, or numbers. Hint: Think about using a table to organize your work.
Last Week’s Answer: 20 faces
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.
BOOK FAIR – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
If you are interested in volunteering at the book fair, please see the attached sign-up genius.
MESSAGE FROM OUR NURSE
One of the issues currently being addressed by the Health and Wellness Department, along with Billerica School Nurses, is chronic absence. Chronic absence — missing 10 percent or more of school days due to absence for any reason—excused, unexcused absences, and suspensions—can translate into students having difficulty learning to read by the third-grade, achieving in middle school, and graduating from high school. This isn’t simply a matter of truancy or skipping school. In fact, many of these absences, especially among our youngest students, are excused. Often absences are tied to health problems, such as asthma, diabetes, and oral and mental health issues. Other barriers including lack of a nearby school bus, a safe route to school or food insecurity, make it difficult to go to school every day. There will be a series of posts/links to help students and families surrounding the issue of chronic absence and the importance of regular school attendance over the next few weeks:
● 10 Facts About School Attendance
LOCKE HOLIDAY TREE
Thank you to all who donated to the Locke tree at the public library. Also, thank you to the PTO for setting it up. See the attached photo of the tree. It looks great! – I hope I win!
PTO SURVEY
The Locke Middle School PTO plays an important role in building a strong school community, supporting our teachers and staff, and creating meaningful experiences for our students. We would love the input of parents/caregivers to help us understand how you would like to be involved and how we can make participation easier and more enjoyable. If you would please take a moment and complete this survey, we would truly appreciate it!
PTO CORNER
The PTO welcomes all families to the Locke. We will be meeting monthly to plan several events throughout the year. We had our November meeting last week. Please see the attached minutes.
LOCKE GEAR is for sale! Go to this link to purchase. A portion of the price goes to the PTO.
UPCOMING PTO EVENTS:
Wednesday, December 17th – PTO Meeting 6:30 PM Library
Our PTO Facebook page is: “Billerica Locke PTO”. Click on the link below to take you there:
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.
SCHOOL TIMES
School starts promptly at 7:30. Students should be in their homeroom at 7:30. The car drop-off time for students is 7:10 — 7:25. Students will be allowed to enter the building at 7:10. From 7:10 – 7:20, students who enter the building will be supervised in the cafeteria. Students will not be allowed in before 7:10 AM.
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.
FROM THE COMMUNITY
Turkey Trot Road Race – See attached flyer
Scholarship Foundation Trivia Night – See attached Flyer
UPCOMING DATES
All Dates are also on our master calendar on the Locke website.
· Wednesday, November 26th – Half Day 10:40 Dismissal
· Thursday, Friday November 27th and 28th – Thanksgiving Recess
· Monday, December 1st – Day 60, Last Day of Trimester 1
· Monday, December 8th – School Council Meeting, 5:00 PM
· Tuesday, December 9th – Chorus and Orchestra Concert BMHS 7:00 PM
· Wednesday, December 10th – Band Concert Marshall Middle 7:00 PM
· Thursday, December 11th – Report Cards Published
· December 15th – 19th – Book Fair
· Wednesday, December 17th – PTO Meeting 6:30PM Library
· Thursday, December 18th – 7th Grade Field Trip
· Tuesday, December 23rd – Half-Day 10:40 Dismissal
· December 24th through January 4th – Winter Break
· Monday, January 5th – Return to School
If you have any questions, please contact me at tgaras@billericak12.com or call at 978-528-8655. I look forward to a great school year!!
Warmest regards,
Tony Garas, Principal