• This week marked the end of the first trimester in the Lawrence school district, so that means students can take a deep breath and note that the year is one-third over.

It also means there is no school today for elementary students, PreK-5. Teachers will be working today recording and reporting grades. It’s also a professional development day for elementary classified staff.

Sorry, middle and high school students (and teachers). You still have to show up.

Elementary students will also be out Thursday and Friday next week, Nov. 8-9, for parent-teacher conferences. Parents and guardians are urged to contact their schools about scheduling conferences.

• The Lawrence and Free State high school football teams are both playing in first-round playoffs tonight. Lawrence High School travels to Gardner-Edgerton for the 6-A regional match. Free State is hosting Olathe North.

Students in the Free State video department will be webcasting the game live over its website: http://www.citylinktv.com/lawrence-free-state-hs-fstv.

Scott Smith is the video and broadcast teacher at Free State who has been organizing the webcasts this season.

Smith and his students should be congratulated just for attempting such a thing.

Kickoff is at 7 p.m. Coverage begins at 6:55.

• The Lawrence school district will hold five more pre-bond public input sessions next week. The purpose is to get public feedback and comments about a proposed bond election in the spring to fund building improvements and technology upgrades.

Officials from Gould Evans Associates, the architectural and design firm that is handling the planning process, will present overviews at each meeting about the needs and possible improvements in mind for each building.

Two meetings are scheduled for Monday and will run concurrently. The first begins at 6 p.m. at Quail Run School, 1130 Inverness Drive. The second begins at 6:30 p.m. at Prairie Park School, 2711 Kensington Road.

Another session will be at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 6 (Election Day) at Deerfield School, 101 Lawrence Ave.

Two more will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 7. The first begins at 4:45 p.m. at Woodlawn School, 508 Elm St. The second is at 6 p.m. at Lawrence High School, 1901 Louisiana St.