Five Things you Need to Know Today" is a Patch column that provides readers with essential, daily information at a glance. Check back later for more, and let us know what you think of the new feature in the comments section.

1. Partly cloudy skies will hang above Needham for most of today, but scattered snow showers and flurries will begin to fall in the evening. Forecasts then call for steady snow to begin falling with winds averaging between five and 10 miles per hour. Three to five inches of snow are expected tonight.
2. The Board of Selectmen will meet tonight at 500 Dedham Ave. at 6:45 p.m. Among agenda items are an update on the Minuteman School feasibility study, as well as a presentation by the Department of Public Works on the state of snow removal in town.
3. The Retired Men’s Club of Needham will be meeting at 10 a.m. at the Presbyterian Church. Needham resident Susan Retik-Ger will be the guest speaker.
4. U.S. Army Colonel James Brown will be the guest speaker during the Rotary Club lunch at the Sheraton Hotel today. Brown will speak about U.S. military affairs around the world.
5. In sports, boys freshman basketball takes on Framingham in Needham at 3:45 p.m., the girls hockey team takes to St. Sebastian’s School at 5 p.m. to play Dedham, boys JV basketball plays Framingham at 5:15 p.m., boys varsity swimming faces Newton South at 6 p.m., boys varsity basketball plays Framingham at 6:45 p.m. and the girls gymnastics team is in action against Braintree at 7 p.m.