Pump up those tires, dust off those helmets, and get ready to ride for Bike to School Day. Join the fun and festivities as everyone rides in to school on Wednesday, May 6. It is always such fun and a great way to start the day! We encourage parents to bike with their children on the Rail Trail.

Upon arrival, the cyclists will enjoy fresh fruit, music, and water in the gym. Please consider joining the fun! Several staff members are already planning to bike in. If Ernie the Eagle finds a helmet to fit, he will join us on the trail. Otherwise, he’ll be ready to greet the cyclists at the school.

Groups will be organized to ride in from the East Andover Fire Station, from the Potter Place train station, and from Plains Road. Adults will provide safe crossings on Franklin Highway. The rain date will be the following Wednesday.

Now that the snow has finally left the courtyard, we are seeing much damage to our raised garden beds and plantings. Some weathered the winter better than others. We are looking at building and replacing in a different manner and reclaiming some of the lawn area. A couple of SHARE Day workshops have been designed with this in mind.

SHARE Day is Friday, May 15. Please consider helping out in a general manner to be part of the fun. This is a real community event that involves many Andover residents, Proctor Academy teachers, AE/MS teachers, and students. Give me or Gisela Darling a call for more information. Consider joining us for a spirited and productive community day.

Thank you to our community for supporting all the eighth grade fundraisers! We are down to the wire now. Our iPad raffle was quite successful. There is a scrumptious Mother’s Day breakfast (on Saturday, May 9) which will hopefully be the last big fundraiser before the trip.

The breakfast is going to be amazing! It is being coordinated by chef extraordinaire Laura Powers. The breakfast will run from 7 to 9 AM and coincides nicely with Baseball Opening Day in town. The much-anticipated drawings for the 19 baskets will take place at the end of breakfast.

Andover seniors attending Merrimack Valley High School have been invited to share their Senior Projects at AE/MS on the morning of Tuesday, May 12. It is helpful for our middle school students to learn the scope and expectations of the senior project, and it is a perfect opportunity for AE/MS staff members to reconnect with the MVHS seniors before they graduate and go in different directions.

The dates have been set for June graduations. The kindergarten has their “moving up to Grade 1” ceremony on Tuesday, June 16, in the evening. Our eighth grade students will graduate on Wednesday evening, June 17. Both are big events!