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Friday notes is a weekly update from Superintendent Gary E. Maestas on the happenings within the Plymouth Public Schools.
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Plymouth Public Schools School Committee Meetings:
The next regular meeting of the Plymouth School Committee will be Monday, January 23rd, 2012. School Committee meetings are held at Plymouth Community Intermediate School in the Little Theatre. Meetings begin at 7:00 p.m.
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Weekly Quote:
"Be the change that you want to see in the world."
Mahatma Ghandi
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District News and information for all k-12 teachers, administrators, and parents from the Elementary Library Media Specialists.
Are you familiar with these three wonderful resources for k-12 educators? All provide a newsletter free of charge with articles, lesson plans, events, assistance for educators, and more.
Teaching History.org provides resources such as: Ask a Historian and Ask a Digital Historian which invite you to email them any question concerning History or historical images. Check out the site, and sign-up for the Newsletter at: http://teachinghistory.org/newsletter-request
Primary Source.org promotes history and humanities education by connecting educators with people and cultures throughout the world.
Check out the site, and sign-up for the Newsletter at: http://www.primarysource.org/newsletter/re-source-newsletter
Facing History.org, actually named Facing History and Ourselves, combats racism, antisemitism and prejudice and nurtures democracy through education programs worldwide. Check out the site and sign-up for the Newsletter/Updates at:
http://www.facinghistory.org/get-facing-history-updates
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West Elementary School News
Mrs. Correia's Class Remembers Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Grade 3
Mrs. Correia's third grade class listened to a story called Martin's Big Words written by Doreen Rappaport. We learned how Martin Luther King used kind words or "big words" to promote peace and respect between all people of the world. The class is also involved in the Peaceful Bus Program. The children used their knowledge about Martin Luther King and the Peaceful Bus Program to write peaceful solutions that will solve problems on the bus and in school.
News from Mrs. DuBois Class, Grade 1
Students in Mrs. DuBois' first grade classroom have been working very hard to make their writing easy for a reader to read. For the past month, they have been trying to add all of the sounds they hear in words, write their sight words in a snap, and add punctuation and spaces. The classroom's goal for the end of the unit was to give their writing to their fourth grade reading buddy in Ms. Keeley's classroom and have them read the story back to the first grade students. It was a huge success! They were so proud of their accomplishments!
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Hedge Elementary School News
One Book, One School
Hedge School launched the school wide reading of Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White before the holiday break. Students who chose to participate were given the book to read with their families on Wednesday. Students and their families will read the book nightly until January 26th. On January 26th, families will come to Hedge School to celebrate the completion of the book, participate in a book discussion and complete several activities.
Throughout the month, students will be given a daily trivia question. This trivia question will help create daily awareness of the book, but will also
encourage deep, attentive, and personally gratifying listening habits.
Mitten Tree
Mrs. Smithıs first grade class collected mittens and hats for those who most need them this winter. Students discussed the importance of giving to others during this season.
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Nathaniel Morton Elementary School NewsDuring the week of December 19th to 22nd the students of Nathaniel Morton "Decked the Halls" and boarded the Polar Express train taking them on a trip around the world. On their journey, students explored decorated hallways of classrooms displays featuring some of the world's countries and their winter celebrations. Their passage was led by grade five student train conductors who narrated each country's culture and festivities. The week ended with students wearing their pajamas and enjoying the story of the Polar Express. While listening to the story, students were treated to a cup of hot chocolate and graham crackers. New pajamas and monitory donations were collected for the Coalition for the Homeless during this week-long event. 
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South Elementary School NewsReading up a storm On December 23, 2011, South Elementary kicked off its annual Winter Warm-Up reading incentive program. "During the cold winter months, we ask students to read at home for a period of nine to ten weeks," says Jan Prendergast, consulting teacher of literacy at South Elementary. "We encourage them to cozy up with a good book (and some hot chocolate!) to make the winter go by more quickly." The goal is to increase independent reading. Open to grades one through four, the program asks students to record the book titles that they have read on a Reading Log. When they have completed reading 10 books, they earn a free book that will be distributed after the program ends on February 29th. Red Robin Restaurant of Plymouth also donated certificates for a free kid's meal that will be randomly distributed to five participating students from each classroom. "Students are well into our Winter Warm-Up and are reading up a storm!" says Mrs. Prendergast. Talking to the animals Dr. Norm Stillman, veterinarian at Court Street Animal Hospital in Plymouth, visited Mrs. DeSantis's third grade class on January 13th for a presentation on animals, including ways to diagnose diseases in animals, and similarities and differences between human and animal illnesses. Dr. Stillman also brought in a microscope so students could get a close-up look at human cheek cells, and shared special items that included a model of a human skull. "Students were excited because they each had an opportunity to come up with a question to ask Dr. Stillman during his visit," Mrs. DeSantis says. "The theme also tied in nicely with related reading and science lessons." The class is reading Charlotte's Web and just completed the book Say Woof: The Day of a Country Veterinarian by Gail Gibbons. Students are also exploring the differences between plant cells and animal cells.   
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PCIS News
PCIS's winter season of interscholastic athletics is underway, and approximately 100 student-athletes have begun training and practicing for their competitive seasons.
This winter, Apollo's housemaster Andy Scichilone will spend his afternoons on the mat as PCIS's newest wrestling coach. Coach Scichilone brings high school and college wrestling experience to the program. Currently, forty-five PCIS student-athletes have been preparing for the upcoming wrestling season. Wrestling continues to grow in popularity amongst PCIS students and features both male and female wrestlers. The student-athletes will be donning new uniforms with matching head gear.
On the court, Coach Mike Martin and the girl's basketball team continue their dominance and are off to another fantastic start with wins over PSMS and Silverlake. Coach Martin recognizes the rare feat of last year's undefeated season, but at the same time holds high expectations for this year's team. Additionally, Coach Martin has strengthened the coaching staff by teaming up with PCIS Physical Education teacher Emily Manion. Coach Manion will assist in the education of the girl's basketball team.
On the boy's side, PCIS physical education teacher Kevin Cobban will be guiding the boy's team. Coach Cobban brings 20+ years of coaching experience to the court. In addition, the boy's team returns five members from last year's group. All in all, the team's talent should make them amongst the most competitive programs on the South Shore.
Finally, on March 9th all members of the community are invited attend PCIS's 3rd annual Basketball Bonanza-a fundraising event. Basketball Bonanza is a night of entertainment culminating in a light-hearted Student vs. Staff basketball game. The night includes food, prizes, and a ton of laughs. Tickets can be purchased at the door and more information is to come within the next couple of weeks.
Students can obtain sports information by viewing the "Athletic Information Board" located in the cafeteria at PCIS. Additionally, parents can find sport specific schedules and coaches' emails by visiting the Plymouth Public School's website. For other questions regarding the PCIS Interscholastic athletics program please email the Athletic Director at asorensen@plymouth.k12.ma.us
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Plymouth North High School News
Marks Close for Term 2 on Friday, January 20th.
FIRST Robotics Team #23 Kicks Off 2012 Season
Last Saturday, the FIRST Robotics Competition team from North/South High School watched the competition launch via live feed from NASA.
FIRST stands for "For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology." FIRST, overall, is a program to inspire students to use their skills from the classroom in a hands-on environment. FIRST Robotics Competition is the high school branch of FIRST. The "Kickoff" is the start of the six-week build season for the FRC teams. These teams have six weeks to build a robot with specific requirements that are announced at kickoff as well as the challenge. With the help of mentors, the students have six weeks to build a functional robot.
This year's challenge, called "Rebound Rumble," (link to animation of the game) is played on a 27-foot by 54-foot court with four scoring hoops of three different heights at each end. Two alliances of three robots each are able to operate their robots from walls at the ends of the court. The objective of the game is to score as many points as possible in the hoops by using bridges to cross over a barrier in the center of the field. For each height scored, teams are awarded a certain amount of points.
This year's team is currently sponsored by Entergy, Raytheon, and Solidworks. The team has a build schedule of 7 days a week for 6 weeks at Plymouth North High School. You can check out the teams progress and view contact information on the team website at www.pnta.org.
2011-2012 DECA Awards and Accomplishments
The Plymouth North High School DECA Chapter is having a very successful year in 2011-2012. We have had over 140 Marketing students become DECA members for the 2011-2012 school year. Of those 140 members, 119 attended the District One DECA Conference at the Hyannis Resort and Conference Center on January 5th & 6th, 2012. We had a very successful conference taking home many 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place testing medals and trophies. We had thirty one students qualify directly from competition at the District One Conference to State DECA Career Development Conference and Competition. We also have about 15 students working on various written business, entrepreneur, and marketing plans which they will present at the state conference. Any student that qualifies at the state conference will be able to attend the International Career Development Conference which will be held at Salt Lake City, UT in May 2012.
District One DECA Marketing Competition
January 5th & 6th, 2012.
Plymouth North High School - Marketing Education Results:
Overall Winners: (31)
Victoria Gilmore 1st
Team of Mike Ahlstedt & Cam Groezinger 1st
Matt Moore 1st
Shannon Raeke 1st
Shawn Wescott 1st
Jared Bramhall 2nd
Anna Colbert 2nd
Connor O'Dwyer 3rd
Team of Trevor Metcalfe and Nick Santos 3rd
Team of Karen Roth and Robert Wallace 3rd
Team of Jake Holmes and John (Sug) Reardon 3rd
Team of Sean Folan and John Myette 3rd
Team of Nicole Varrasso and Taylor Rankin 4th
Team of Emily Pickett & Emily Cleland 4th
Brandon Kirsch 5th
Team of Emily Pieroni & Megan Roy 5th
Hannah Conley 6th
Danielle Worrell 6th
Benjamin Pieroni 7th
Emma Bowman 7th
Taylor Cloran 8th
Sarah Liskov 8th
Gemma Henderson 8th
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Plymouth South High School News Bring your Jeans!
The PSHS Marketing class is working with the group "Teens for Jeans." The Fashion Marketing students are asking for all students to donate jeans to this campaign. The Jeans should be new or gently used and they will in turn be donated to homeless teens. For the school donating the most jeans, Aeropostale will award the school that donates the most jeans $5,000.00, a new pair of jeans for every student, and a party! The collection starts on Tuesday, January 17th so clean out your closets this weekend! Thanks for your generosity!
Advanced Placement Breakfast: January 13, 2012- PSHS
All students who are enrolled in Advanced Placement (AP) Courses were recognized this morning at Plymouth South High School. For the second consecutive year, t-shirts were purchased by the school and they were designed by a student, Tyler Scaglarini. In addition, senior Jessica Hawker produced the shirts for the 130 students invited to the breakfast this morning. In addition, staff and students in our technical studies program created a plaque that will be hung at PSHS with all student names who are in AP classes. A picture of the group is below! 
DECA Results for District Competition
For the first time, 100% of our marketing students were called to the stage for achievement awards and/or medals for their test/roleplay scores. See below:
Principles of Business Management & Administration - achievement awards for Kristen Eckman, Alex Krastanov, and Greg O'Brien
Principles of Finance - achievement awards for Steve Kennedy and Mike Schmidt; a second place medal in test 1 for Sara Mahan
Priniciples of Hospitality & Tourism - achievement awards for Mercedes Anderson, Paige Rossi, and Amanda Ward. Amanda was a 6th place overall and is eligible for state competition.
Principles of Marketing - achievement awards for Shannon Anzuoni, Dan Broderick, and Ashley Cesero
Business Law & Ethics - achievement awards for teams Dan Johnson & Liam McKee; Nate Benjamin & Celio DaSilva; and Aydan Carver & Jazz Hicks. Aydan and Jazz were finalists for their overall scores.
Buying & Merchandising - achievement award for Halie Cannucci & Nicole Dzengeleski; a third place medal in roleplays for Nicole Chandler & Alex Josephson. Alex & Nicole placed 2nd overall and are eligible for states.
Hospitality Services - achievement award for Rachel LaFountain & Dan Reilly; a first place medal in test 4 for Halie Grobleski & Bryanna Manning.
Marketing Communications - achievement awards for the teams of Andrew Creed & Max Stephens; Katie Buker & Sara Schlect; and Shelby Arnold & Elsa McGilvray. Shelby & Elsa were 4th place overall and eligible for states.
Sports & Entertainment - a first place medal in a roleplay for the team of Tim Grandy & Jon Jaros; an achievement award for the team of Brent Eaton & Devin Messenger. Brent & Devin were overall finalists.
Travel & Tourism - achievement award for the team of Zack Darsch & Alex Hunt; a 2nd place award in test 1 for Brianna Corsini & Amy Drazek. Brianna & Amy were 3rd place overall and eligible for state competition.
Human Resources - achievement award for Kenna Andrews.
Quick Serve Restaurant Management - Brendan McDonnell received an achievement award for testing.
Restaurant & Food Service - Jesse Parks received an achievement award for testing.
Retail Merchandising - Carley Fernandes received a 2nd place in roleplays and place 4th overall making her eligible for state competition. Jameson Giamo placed 3rd in testing and was a finalist in the Top 8 making him eligible for states.
Sports & Entertainment - achievement awards for Kyle Nickerson, Mike Flohr, and Connor Enegess.
Congratulations!
Martin Luther King Scholar
Congratulations to Santiago Narino who has been chosen as the PSHS Martin Luther King Scholar. Santiago is a senior who truly emulates many of the values of Dr. King. Congratulations to Santiago and his family!
WATD Breakfast
Last Sunday, a number of our football players were recognized at the annual WATD breakfast. The students were honored for their hard work on the gridiron this past season. The players are:
Todd Bazarewsky, Dylan Oxen, Jason Lamb and Andrew Bochman
Dartmouth Relays
The students below participated and attended the Dartmouth College Relays last weekend. This was another opportunity for students to see athletics first hand at the collegiate level. Thanks to Coaches Tracey and Slattery for providing this opportunity for the students.
Grant Solis, Spencer Fitzgerald, Cam Thissell, Nathan Moultan, Jason McCue, Max Bassett, Elizabeth Pisto, Carolyn Sessler, Holly Sessler, Alli Messina, Lauren Richard & Alyssa Richard.
MIAA Publication
Congratulations to senior Joey Colbert who was recently recognized by the MIAA for his essay entitled "The Art of Giving." Joey's essay was submitted to the MIAA and selected as only one of 64 finalists in the state and was published in their booklet, "Sportsmanship: A Game Plan for Life, Volume IX." Congratulations again!
Save the Date: Chris Herren!
Many of you may have heard about former Boston Celtic Chris Herren. Recently there was a documentary on ESPN. Chris Herren is speaking at high schools throughout Massachusetts and the country regarding his rise and fall from fame. He was a well-known basketball player at Durfee High School in Fall River, went on to play on a college scholarship, and was then drafted by the Celtics. Chris will be sharing his story about how drugs took over his life and as a result he lost it all. Chris will be speaking at Plymouth South High School on Friday, March 23rd at 9:00 a.m. for the entire student body. Students in grades 11 and 12 will see him live in the gym while we will use our new technology to broadcast his speech live to all classrooms for students in grades 9 and 10.
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Guidance Department NewsImportant Financial Aid Information for Seniors and their Parents: Need help completing the FAFSA? Free Assistance is available on FAFSA Day 2012 (formerly College Goal Sunday)! Sunday, January 29th, 2 PM, at Cape Cod Community College Monday, January 30th, 6:30PM at Massasoit Community College Families will have access to financial aid administrators and FAFSA experts to answer questions and assist families through the process.Visit www.FAFSADay.org to register for site locations, dates, and times, and get information on what to bring. High school students: Massachusetts Maritime Academy is offering a spring High School Dual Enrollment program for high school students focusing on the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields. The Dual Enrollment program provides the opportunity for qualified high school students to take a transferable introductory college course at no cost (excluding books-financial assistance available). For more information and to register for the spring 2012 dual enrollment program, please click on the link below: Click here for more information and to register for the Dual Enrollment program.
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Unified Arts Department News
Monday night at School Committee artists were awarded certificates for their artwork showcased at Central Office. Artists from Elementary through High school had their work on display from July through December and also during the School Committee Meeting. Artists and their families enjoy a small reception following the ceremony hosted by the Unified Arts Department.
Plymouth North High School presented a Winter Piano recital - Congratulations to: Katrina Borofski, Katie Donegan, Kelly Flaherty, Chris Greenwood, Jessica Keene, Leslie Moron, Evan Paul, Haley Peterson, Jessica Robidoux, Rachel rose, Erin Studholme, and Samantha White for a wonderful recital.
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School Health Services Information
As flu season is starting to gear up with an increased incidence of flu cases being reported by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health over the past two weeks, many of our students will be protected from the flu thanks to their participation in the student flu clinics held at our two middle and high schools in November, 2011. This marked the third year that School Health Services has run flu vaccine clinics for our students. Because we had extra vaccine available this year, an evening clinic was held in December for elementary students to receive the flu vaccine. Approximately 350 students were vaccinated against the flu in the School Health Services Program. Thanks to the School Nurse Educators who make this program possible to keep our students healthy! Remember, even if you have received the flu vaccine, it is still important to protect yourself from exposure to flu and other infectious illnesses by frequent hand washing, coughing and sneezing into the bend of the elbow (instead of into the hands), eating a healthy diet, drinking lots of water, being physically active, and getting enough sleep.
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Gary E. Maestas, Ed.D Superintendent
Plymouth Public Schools
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