RES Family News
April 19th, 2026
Embedded Files
2nd Graders Put on an
Amazing Puppet Show
After watching many hours of Sesame Street, an idea came to Ms Wood. What if we did this at RES? What are the jobs in our own community? Students could interview real people about their real jobs and find out more about careers and make their own version of "The People in Your Neighborhood." Luckily, the 2nd grade team was onboard to try this crazy idea.
2nd graders picked careers they were interested in, wrote amazing interview questions, and got to interview people in our community that do those jobs. They learned about responsibilities of each job as well as uniforms, tools, and schooling each job requires. They learned how each job has specific challenges and things that make it joyful. They learned how these jobs help support our community to make it a wonderful place to live! Careers students researched were firefighter, doctor, nurse, sports broadcaster, forester, cartoonist, postmaster, farmer, veterinarian, biologist, communications director, engineer, police officer, and police dog.
Barbara Paulson, puppeteer extraordinaire, helped students bring their puppets to life! Students dug into an array of materials -and into the heart of their creative genius- to make one of a kind puppets representing a role in their class play. To this character they gave a unique voice. Through the art of puppet manipulation, each class formed an interdependent puppet troupe, relying on each other to make the puppets, sound, props and scenery seamlessly!
Red Clover Day
Wednesday, April 15th, was the 2nd annual Red Clover Day! 6th graders from CHMS created and led fun filled activities around the different themes of our Red Clover Award books. These ranged from doing a bug soup toss, creating animal art popsicle sticks, a cute owl craft, escape room puzzles, bingo, fishing habitat art, painting rocks, playing musical chairs, and playing an apology guessing game.
At the end of these activities, students came together in the gym to watch a staff basketball knockout game. It was a very exciting game, with Senora Donovan winning by a hair! It was a great day celebrating good books and a great community! This event was a joint effort of school librarians Emily Wood and Sarah Adelman.
Ms.O'Neil's last day was a Cat-tastic celebration!
We recently came together as a school community to celebrate Ms. O’Neil's last day at RES and wish her all the best as she begins her next chapter. Known for her love of cats and the joy she brings to our school community each day, it felt only fitting to honor her with a school-wide, cat-themed celebration.
Students and staff embraced the theme with enthusiasm—sporting cat ears, creative outfits, and plenty of whiskers drawn with face paint. Each classrooms found their own unique way to honor Ms.O'Neil, and the hallways were filled with laughter, creativity, and appreciation for the positive impact Ms. O’Neil has had on our school.
While we will miss her greatly, we are grateful for the memories she helped create and the kindness she shared with so many. We wish Ms. O’Neil happiness and success in all that lies ahead!
What's New
Enrichment Explores the Humane Society
Recently one of the 4th grade classes interviewed Ella from the Humane Society of Chittenden County, as part of their Project Citizen work. During the interview they learned about ways to help, and found out that kid drawn portraits of the animals up for adoption often help them find homes more quickly. Mrs. Roll took that information and ran with it, asking her fellow learners in her Art and Enrichment classes to draw portraits of the animals up for adoption. Some of the animals have already found homes! Many are still available if you are looking to expand your heart and have room in your home. You can go to https://www.hsccvt.org/ for more information.
*Request* Enrichment would greatly appreciate it if students could bring in paper bags from Trader Joe’s for an upcoming art project.
Third Graders Learning About
Marine Life
Students in Mrs. Ayer’s & Mrs. Girouard’s third grade spent Monday afternoon speaking with Ashlee Flanagan, a veterinarian at Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium in Sarasota, FL. Ashlee spoke with us about her work with penguins and sea turtles, the “rescue, rehab & release” work she does, and, of course, shared all the cool facts about these animals!
Third graders are studying Marine Life in our final ELA unit this year and are researching marine animals and making argument essays about their features, habitats, and ways we can continue to help their survival.
First graders building Marble Labyrinths in Enrichment!
1st graders had so much fun building marble labyrinths in Enrichment! A big shout out and thank you to Red Wagon Plants for donating the cardboard trays for the project! They were absolutely perfect.
Through this project, we honed skills: worked on fine motor dexterity, experimented with physics, scale, design, trial and error, process skills, and exercised our creativity muscles!
IT'S HERE!!
The 2026 - 2027 School Calendar is officially out! You can find the link below. Important dates to note are on the right.
Parent/Caregiver Insight for 26-27 Placement
Parent/Caregiver Insight for 26-27 Placement
It is hard to believe, but soon we will begin planning for next school year! we want to share a bit about our student placement process. Our team—classroom teachers, specialists, support staff, and administrators—works thoughtfully to create balanced, supportive learning environments for every child.
Family input is an important part of this process. If you would like to share insights about your child as a learner, please consider completing this optional My Child as a Learner form by April 10th (one per student). While we value your input, final placement decisions are made by the school team, as we consider many factors to best support all students.
Thank you for your partnership and trust in this process. Please reach out if you have any questions or need support completing the form.
VOLUNTEERING
**If you think you might VOLUNTEER at any point during the school year, please be sure to fill out the Volunteer Form now.**
It is much easier to fill it out now so you can be cleared to volunteer at any point during the school year.
RES PTO
Volunteer Sign-Up for Teacher Appreciation Week
Volunteer Sign-Up for Teacher Appreciation Week
This year we will be celebrating teachers and staff every day of the week, please check-out how you and your student can be involved:
Monday (May 4th) – Sidewalk Chalk Messages
Families are invited to create sidewalk chalk messages of appreciation. This can be done over the weekend or early Monday morning before school. Please watch the weather!
Tuesday (May 5th) – Handmade Cards & Notes
Students are encouraged to bring in handwritten or handmade cards, drawings, or notes for their teachers and staff.
Wednesday (May 6th) – Appreciation Lunch (Potluck)
We will be providing a shared lunch for staff and are asking families to contribute dishes. Please consider signing up for a food item to help nourish our teachers during the middle of their week.
Thursday (May 7th) – Plant Gifts from PTO
The PTO will be gifting seeded plants to teachers as a living reminder of appreciation and growth.
Friday (May 8th) – Breakfast for Staff (Potluck)
We will be closing the week with a breakfast for teachers and staff. Families are invited to help contribute baked goods, bagels, fruit, drinks, and other breakfast items.
We are especially looking for help with the Wednesday lunch and Friday breakfast potlucks.
If you are able, please consider signing up to bring a dish or food item. Every contribution, big or small, helps us create a warm and abundant week for our teachers.
RES Daily Information
ATTENDANCE
Consistent and regular attendance is paramount to student development and success. On time arrival provides a student with the most positive start to the day. If your student will be absent or tardy, please be sure to enter the information PickUp Patrol by 8:00am. Our first priority is your child's safety. If the absence or tardy is not entered into PickUp Patrol by 8:30am the office will begin to contact families. Students are marked absent until they have checked in with the office.
**Information about PickUp Patrol will be sent out by the end of the week**
From the Nurse
Important Dates to Remember
April 20th - 24th: NO School - Spring Break
April 30- Grade 3- Fairy Tale Celebration
May 6- 2 Hour Early Release
Community News & Events
Track is Back!
The Mt. Mansfield Summer Track Program returns for our 32nd year. We are a program open to all athletes from beginners to those looking to specialize in certain events. Athletes will practice and compete based on age groups from 5-6 years old up to the 13-15 age group. It is a great way for younger kids to learn a new sport and helps the middle school athletes prepare for high school. Practices are Monday and Wednesday from 5:30-6:30 at the MMU track. The program starts on Wednesday, June 17th and wraps up on Wednesday, July 15. We have 2-3 meets with other teams from Chittenden County and there is the option of competing at the Vermont Recreation and Parks state meet at the end of the season. Registration is $40 for the first child in a family, $30 for the second, and $20 for each additional child and includes a team t-shirt. The program is run by Mt. Mansfield Track Coach Bill Eschholz and members of the 2025 MMU Track Team. For additional information or to request a registration form please email Bill Eschholz at MMSTXC@gmail.com.
Bus Transportation
Below is transportation information for the upcoming school year. Please contact the Bus Garage with any questions you may have. They can be reached at 802-899-4840 or transportation@mmuusd.org.
Food Service
For the 2025-2026 school year, school meals will continue to be free. Even though there is no charge for snack and lunch, we encourage you to fill out this application for free and reduced-price school meals. If many families fill out and return this form, we will get more money from the federal government for free school meals now and in the future. We will also get more money for other school programs. Filling out this form also helps our community provide free summer meals to all kids, and free meals to kids in childcare. HERE is additional information outlining food service, free and reduced lunch, and common questions asked.
From the District
2025-2026 SY District Calendar
The district has put out the SY calendar for the year.
You can view the full 2025-26 SY Calendar HERE and it was shared in the District Happenings as well!
STAY CONNECTED with WHAT'S HAPPENING @ RES
Richmond Elementary School
Richmond Elementary School
Email: resoffice@mmuusd.org
Location: 125 School St, Richmond, VT 05477
Phone: 802.434.2461
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