October 13, 2025
Dear Parents/Guardians, Staff, and Students,
I hope you are having a great 3-day weekend! (despite the rain) We only have 4 DAYS OF LEARNING this week, but we have a busy schedule ahead as usual. Let’s see what’s happening …
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“We will be known forever by the tracks we leave.” – Dakota Tribe
SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
Monday – No School
Tuesday – B Day
Wednesday – C Day – Advisory Schedule, HW Club, Activities Begin
Thursday – D Day – HW Club, Activities
Friday – A Day
AFTER-SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
Activities will begin this week. If you have any questions regarding enrollment, please contact the main office.
If you are picking up, there are two options for pick-up at 2:45. Please note that the entrance and exit will be via Urban Street. DO NOT ENTER ON ALLEN RD.
1. Please enter via Urban Street and pick-up between the crosswalks in the circle in front of the school. For student safety, students should not cross the street to be picked up.
2. Park in the teacher lot and walk up to the front of the school to pick-up your child.
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.
HALLOWEEN DANCE!!
We are having a Halloween Dance on Friday, October 24th from 6:00 – 8:00 PM. Please see the attached flyer for more details.
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.
HALF-WAY POINT OF TRIMESTER 1—ASPEN CHECK
Tuesday, October 14th, is day 30 of the school year and the halfway point of trimester 1. You can check your child’s academic progress on Aspen. If you need an Aspen account or need your password reset, please email portalhelp@billericak12.com. Include your full name and your child’s name in your request. If you have any questions regarding your child’s academic progress, please contact your child’s teachers.
RIDDLE/JOKE OF THE WEEK
1. What do you call a chicken that haunts your house? 2. What did the mother ghost say to the baby ghost as they drove down the street?
Last week’s answers: 1. Why are vampires bad at art? — They can only draw blood. 2. Why are graveyards so noisy? – Because of the coffin!
MATH PROBLEM OF THE WEEK
COUNTING CANDY!
The children sorted their 70 candies in 4 categories. They had lollipops, sour candies, chocolates and gummy candies. They counted: 1 dozen lollipops and 2 dozen sour candies. All the gummy candies were in equal groups of 5. There were more chocolates than gummy candies. How many chocolates could they have? (there is more than one possibility.)
Last Week’s Answer: 15 Apps in total
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.
BEACON SANTA
Please see the attached application form for Beacon Santa. Beacon Santa provides assistance to families in need during the holiday season.
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 first meeting last week. Please see the minutes attached here.
LOCKE GEAR is for sale! Go to this link to purchase. A portion of the price goes to the PTO.
UPCOMING PTO EVENTS:
Wednesday, October 22nd – PTO Meeting 6:30 PM
Tuesday, October 28th and Wednesday October 29th – Trinket Sales at lunch
Wednesday, November 19th – Ice Cream Social 6:00-7:30 PM
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
MEDICAL INFORMATION
Our school nurse is Janice Roberts – jroberts@billericak12.com
· Students may drop off EpiPens, inhalers, and any over the counter medications.
· A parent or guardian must drop off any prescription medications.
· All medications need to be accompanied by a medication order from the student’s physician and with either an Anaphylaxis Action Plan or Asthma Action Plan as applicable
· If families need copies of these forms they can be found on the Billerica Public Schools website: https://billericak12.com/school-nursing/
· Also, as a reminder:
ALL 7th GRADE STUDENTS must submit proof of TDaP (tetanus/diphtheria/pertussis) and MCV4 (meningitis) vaccines, as well as an UPDATED physical exam, by 9/30/25
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
Donate Clothing, Shoes, and Books! Please see attached fundraiser flyer for the Billerica Scholarship Foundation
UPCOMING DATES
All Dates are also on our master calendar on the Locke website.
· Monday, October 13th – No School
· Wednesday, October 22nd – PTO Meeting 6:30 PM in library
· Friday, October 24th – Halloween Dance 6:00-8:00 PM
· Monday, October 27th – Talent Show 6:00 PM Auditorium
· Tuesday, Wednesday October 28th and 29th – Trinket Sales at lunch
· Tuesday, November 4th – No School
· Wednesday, November 5th – Day 45, Quarter 1 Unified Arts Classes End
· Wednesday, November 5th – Make-up Picture Day
· Thursday, November 6th – Quarter 2 Unified Arts Classes start
· Thursday, November 6th – Parent Conferences 6:00-8:00 PM
· Wednesday, November 12th – PTO Meeting 6:30 PM Library
· Thursday, November 13th — Parent Conferences 6:00-8:00 PM
· Friday, Saturday November 14th and 15th – Locke Play 7:00 PM
· Wednesday, November 19th – Ice Cream Social 6:00 PM
· Wednesday, November 26th – Half Day 10:40 Dismissal
· Thursday, Friday November 27th and 28th – Thanksgiving Recess
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