Header with wintery barn image
Weekly Bulletin

December 10, 2014

 

The Hartsbrook School

193 Bay Road
Hadley, MA

 

Main Office:
413-586-1908

Admissions:
413-584-3198

 

Quick Links

 Upcoming
 Events

 

7th & 8th Grade Perform at the Holiday Choral Festival

Wed., 12/10, 6pm

 

Solstice Celebration

Thurs., 12/18, 7pm

 

Winter Break

 

Half Day / Assembly

Friday, 12/19

 

No School

12/22 to 1/2

Ongoing

  

Parent Council

Tue., 1/17 7-9pm

 

Parent Meditation

Thursdays, 8:30-9am

Parent Evenings

  

6th Grade

Wed., 12/10 3:30pm

 

 Athletics

Calendar

  

Basketball is in full swing!

~   See Athletics Calendar

December Reflections

As the outer world moves into the season of dark and cold and as we near the shortest day of the year at the winter solstice, inwardly we celebrate the light and warmth that we can kindle to illuminate this darkness. At The Hartsbrook School we recognize this progression with a number of seasonal festivals. 

 

Winter Garden ~ The Winter Garden, this past weekend, presented a beautiful pictorial and experiential reflection of this season for young students and their families.
 

Saint Nicholas Day ~ Early in December, classes celebrate Saint Nicholas, a story which comes to us from Holland. St. Nicholas gives us a chance to reflect on what has gone well and what can be done better in the way that is right for each class.
 

Choral Festival ~ This week, Wednesday, December 10th at 6pm, the 7th & 8th Grade Chorus will perform with other young choral groups at the Holiday Choral Festival at the Helen Hills Hills chapel at Smith College in Northampton.
 

St. Lucia Day ~ The second grade will bring us St. Lucia Day on Monday, December 15th. This comes from the Swedish tradition and we observe it with a procession of second graders offering St. Lucia buns to everyone in the school.  This is part of an overall theme in second grade which is to look at the higher and lower parts of human nature through the study of holy people and of the fables.
 

Hanukkah ~ Begins this year on December 16th and observes the miracle of how the menorah burned for eight days in the re-dedication of the Second Temple when there was only enough lantern oil for one day. Many classrooms will have a menorah for eight days, in commemoration of how long the oil burned.
 

Solstice Celebration ~ On Thursday, December 18th at 7pm we have the Hartsbrook Solstice Celebration at the Helen Hills Hills Chapel at Smith College in Northampton. This extraordinary evening showcases the talents of current students in Grades 7-12 and alumni. Bring your singing voices and join in the celebration!
 

Holiday Assembly ~ And finally, our seasonal celebrations conclude on December 19th when Grades 1-8 gather for our Holiday Assembly in the Piening Hall Assembly Room.

 

Blessings of the season to all of you,

Louise Spear, Faculty Chair

It's Valley Gives Day!
In honor of Valley Gives day, December 10, 2014, please make a donation to The Hartsbrook School's Annual Fund that supports the mission and educational programs of the school.

Holiday Choral Festival ~

Featuring Hartsbrook's 7th & 8th Grade Choir

Solstice Celebration

Announcements

A Winter Reminder From the Farm
As our beloved animals are being tucked into their barns and smaller outdoor pens for the winter, let's remember these are spaces for farm work and quiet visiting in the company of a teacher or responsible adult. Please help make sure that after-school play does not happen around or in the barns. While our dear donkey Penelope is learning so much from her donkey friend Nome and Saphira in the 9th Grade, she is still a donkey in training. Please be extra quiet and observant in the goat and donkey barn for the next few weeks.  Thank you!
Shopping for the Holidays? How About...
Hartsbrook Athletic Gear:  Hartsbrook T-Shirts, jerseys and hooded sweatshirts.
Most sizes available. Call or e-mail Pilar Schmidt (413-586-1908x129 or [email protected]) to check size availability in our stock.

For payment, please bring your check or credit card to Vesna.  Orders can be picked up at Hartsbrook's Front Office in Hartsbrook Hall.
Hartsbrook Calendars for Sale ~ $15
Display copies available in Hartsbrook Hall, Piening Hall and the Homestead.  

Now, accepting orders, calendars will arrive by 12/12. Make payments in the main office to Vesna. Please make checks out to The Hartsbrook School, with Land Stewardship in the memo.

News Flash ~

Whole Foods gives a 10% Return in December
 

Amazing news.. for each $100 you spend on Whole Food scrip, $10 will be given to The Hartsbrook School.
 

Help us take the advantage of this opportunity! 
  • Be sure to use scrip cards for December Whole Food shopping!
  • Sign-up now for a monthly standing Scrip order and we will purchase all the Whole Food scrip in advance, taking advantage of this 10% deal. 

We wish to thank our Scrip community participants including Esselon, River Valley Market, Big Y, Stop & Shop and now our local Whole Foods store.

 

Scrip Monthly Order Form

 

For questions, contact Vesna in the Main Office (413) 586-1908

Felting Classes  
with Artist Eva Camacho-Sanchez

Join us for the last few felting classes with Eva, a talented fiber artist and a Hartsbrook parent. Wet felting is the process of combining layers of wool roving and/or wool yarns into one flat piece of felt fabric. During these classes, you will learn the basic techniques of wet felting while making beautiful presents, from flowers to wall hangings.  Open to all skill levels. 

DATES/PROJECTS
  
Monday, 12/15 * 9:00am-12noon
Small Wall Hanging
      Cost: $35 Material fee: $5
 
Wednesday, 12/17 * 5:00-9:30pm  
Luxurious Designer Scarf 
Cost: $75  Materials fee: $25 
Includes hand-dyed merino wool and silk  
to create a very special gift.

The Holiday Season:
Putting the Genie Back In the Bottle

 

Kim John Payne

Here comes the Holiday Season. Something to look forward to and something that many parents also dread. "The whole thing is like being hit by a sensory tsunami," commented one mom who was wondering if there was another way to do it. While our kids are living life at such a fever pitch through the school year is it possible to down shift the pace as we move into the holidays?

 

TOO MUCH, TOO FAST, TOO SOON

We are now living in a post excess era. We have seen what excess has done to our economy and to our environment. And, hardly a day goes by when we don't see another high profile article about the excess of screen time and digital overload our children are experiencing, most recently, the NYT Growing up Digital, Wired For Distraction.

 

What about educational excess? With the national attention of the films Waiting for Superman and also Race to Nowhere, many are now questioning if education is also a part of the culture of excess.

 

It's around this time of the year that we are given a chance to make some choices about the pace of life, and it's not easy. Somewhere inside us we know this is a time of "peace on earth", of family connection (maybe those two images don't exactly line up) and yet the pressure to speed up, do more and brave the "sensory tsunami" of Holiday Season shopping and celebration is acute.

 

THE SIMPLE HOLIDAY SEASON

What about a "Simple Holiday Season"? It could be easy on the wallet and easy on the nerves. It's possible, it really is. Let's establish some ground rules. Four of them to be accurate...

 

#1. Clutter.

Do we really want more of it in our homes? With the financial pressures most people are under nowadays, the deluge of gifts has not lessened just the amount they cost..."We are just buying more and more crap" says Heidi Stevens from the Chicago Tribune who is writing a piece on this theme for their Sunday Magazine. It's stuff we don't want, will likely break, is annoying and just plain junky. Speak to our major bearers of clutter (I mean gifts), extended family and especially Grandparents about your wish for simplicity. Thank them for raising you in such a way that led you to make conscious parenting choices that they gave you the strength to not be manipulated by marketers and the morals to not confuse love and care with "stuff". Framing a conversation about your parenting values first takes the potential sting out of a request to keep the gifts simple.

 

#2. Rhythm and Predictability.

The holidays shake the normal rhythms of family life. The normal pillars of our days such as waking up times, school or work, meal and bed times are the things that give our lives shape. This is especially true for children, as it provides a feeling of safety and security. The temptation during the holidays is to let all that go and to relax all those routines. However there is a great big danger here to achieving some semblance of family sanity and it is this... if we take away our well-oiled rhythms we take away the structure that makes navigating family life possible. And the double whammy here is that during the holidays we have more time together and our family interactions are at their most intense.

 

So here is the tip. Maybe alter the times but not the rituals. The table still needs to be set, teeth brushed, room tidied and so on. If we hold onto these predictable moments in a child's life they will offer familiar points of decompression and provide safety release valves that are all the more important during the hubbub of holiday season. So, sit down each night, think about it and make some choices that are humble enough to be do-able about the structure of the following day and then, without becoming maniacal, stick to them.

 

#3 Scheduling.

Rather than adding fuel to the soul fever that many of our kids experience during the school year, let's try and cool it down. Do less. Consider staying at home rather than facing the frenzied airports or frantic highway scenes. Rediscover "the gift of boredom". If your kids say to you "Dad there's nothing to do", your response can be "Mmm, that's a pity." If they return saying "But there's really nothing to do." Your response, "Oh, that's really a pity." LET THEM BE BORED. No TV, no unpaid parent event organizer. You must become more boring than the boredom. Boredom is simply the precursor to creativity. Soon projects, games, creative play breaks out, these activities can last for hours and the big pay off... you get to relax and read a magazine (or might I add, the Huffington Post).

 

#4 Filter Out the Adult World.

"Kids hear way too much adult conversation these days. It amazes me what adults say in front of children," commented a Grandmother at a recent workshop I was facilitating. This becomes even more intense over the holidays as we spend so much time together in mixed age groups. Three simple questions to ask before you say anything in front of your child, "is it true, is it necessary, is it kind?" If the answer is "yes" to all three then you are on pretty good ground. If not, defer. Say it later when you can enjoy the conversation within adult company.

 

Excessive TV and computer time is a hot topic and certainly something to be conscious about especially in the holidays. Maybe I'll post some thought on this soon.

 

Lastly, we hear the word "authenticity" a lot these days, but it especially applies during the Holiday Season. If we are trying to give our kids a balanced life and we are trying to keep it simple, it does not look good to them when we cave in to Holiday Season pressure. Being true to yourself does not have a Holiday Season exclusion clause in the contract and we certainly don't want to model to our kids that values are optional. As touchy a subject as it is, our first loyalty as parents is to our kids, not to their uncles, aunts and grandparents and certainly not to marketers.

 

In his renown enthusiasm Henry David Thoreau, once wrote to his teacher, Ralph Waldo Emerson.... "Yes! We must simplify, simplify, simplify." Emerson wrote back, "Don't you think one 'simplify' is enough?"

 

Kim John Payne

 

Reprinted in full from the Huffington Post

 

Kim John Payne is the author of Simplicity Parenting. Using the Extraordinary Power of Less to Raise Calmer, Happier and more Secure Kids. (Ballantine Books/Random House). You can see more at www.simplicityparenting.com.

 

His wife, Katharine Payne, is the Hartsbrook Sixth Grade Class Teacher and his 2 children attend The Hartsbrook School.

New Chess Club 

 

Celebrating Our Community

Christmas Concert ~

Featuring our own Peter Irvine on percussion!

 

Tim Eriksen & Trio de Pumpkintown Annual concert of Christmas music, including sing-a-long carols, with Zoe Darrow (fiddle) and Peter Irvine (percussion)

 

When: Saturday, December 13  7:30pm

Where: Black Sheep, 79 Main St, Amherst, MA 01002

Tickets: $10 at the door, limited seating

 

More info: https://www.facebook.com/timeriksenmusic

Greenfield Holiday Concert ~ Singin' in the Land


 

 

Featuring our own Meg Fisher, Magdalena Toran and Galen!


 

When: Saturday, December 13th 7:30pm

Where: Wesley Methodist Church, 98 North Maple Street, Hadley MA
 

Tickets: $14/$11 (seniors/students)

To benefit Village Harmony in Macedonia and the SIT CONTACT Program.


 

For more info: www.marycaybrass.com
 

Community Bulletin Board 
CHRISTMAS TREES: Come to Hillside Christmas Tree Farm in scenic rural Chesterfield for cut-your-own and pre-cut live trees and wreaths. We grow Balsam and Fraser fir trees and naturally regenerated White pine trees.  We are located on Rte. 143 in Chesterfield and are 5 miles from Rte. 9 in Williamsburg. Open and staffed on week-ends with self-service available during the work week.  My son also sells trees at Atkins Farms in Amherst which we have grown in Chesterfield and Worthington. Louise Spear 413-296-4068
 
SKI HELMET: Giro, silver, size small (probably best for a 5-7 year old), free.  Well loved by many Moskovitz children, but in good shape.  Call Heidi 413-219-1289.

HOLIDAY SINGALONG: Sunday December 14 at 2pm, North Hadley Congregational Church, Rt 47 N River Road, North Hadley, MA. Holiday Sing-a-long - Join us for our annual sing of holiday favorites Singing led by Justina Golden and Sylvie Tardif along with some special guests. All singers and listeners welcome. Refreshments to follow. Donations welcome. Contact: Polly Keener (413) 584-5461

 

THEATER IMPROV CLASSES FOR CHILDREN AND TEENS: Theater improvisation increases spontaneity, creativity, and self-confidence ... and it is playful and fun!  A ten-week session begins in January at the Florence Civic Center. Grades 5 - 8: Wed. from 3 pm - 5 pm; grades K - 4: Thurs. from 3:30 pm - 5 pm. Late arrivals can be accommodated. Hartsbrook parent Jean Zimmer and her children enthusiastically endorse these classes. Heidi Haas, a clinical social worker with a specialty in child and family concerns, has taught theater improv and anti-bullying workshops throughout the valley since 1996. To register, call Heidi Haas at 413-584-5562, email [email protected], or visit her website, www.heidihaasimprov.com

HOUSE FOR SALE by owner: It's just 12 minutes from Hartsbrook in South Amherst. Wonderful 10 room/2600 sq. foot Cape with three bedrooms, 1 � baths, sunny kitchen/great room, 15x20 family room & dining room, living room with woodstove, wrap-around screened porch, 3 bonus rooms, full, dry basement, solar panels, perennial gardens. Great neighbors, great energy, and just up the hill from Brookfield Farm. $345,000. Rosie Pearson 413.253.9871. All info at www.1325BayRoad.com  

 
HELP AROUND THE HOUSE? Dear Parents and Faculty, Do you need help with odd jobs around the house, lawn maintenance (leaf raking, lawn mowing) or babysitting? Whether it's heavy lifting, or helping your child with homework  THE ELEVENTH GRADERS ARE AVAILABLE!!!!!! If you are interested in hiring an eleventh grader please call or text Nora Weber at 413-687-3287, or email Izzy Lederman at [email protected].
 
VIOLIN LESSONS: Are you interested in enhancing your child's progress in violin with private lessons? I have been teaching in the Pioneer Valley for over four decades. Many of my students, past and present, have hailed from Hartsbrook. I currently have a few openings in my program. Please phone me if you would like further information. Rose Lander 413-586-1137

ACUPUNCTURE HEALING ARTS: Amherst area. Families, adults and children. Use non-needle or needle method. happinesswaveacupuncture.info 413-207-2862 or [email protected] 

 

The Community Bulletin Board is for small classified-type advertisements. Each submission costs $5.00, is limited to 3 paid repeats and should be no more than 4 lines of text, about 45 words. Payment for Community Bulletin Board submissions should be made by Friday of the publication week. Please drop off or mail payment, to The Hartsbrook School, 193 Bay Road, Hadley, MA 01035.  No charge for advertisements for free events or nonprofit organizations. Submit ads to: [email protected].

 

General Policy for the Bulletin  No political or religious advertisements.  No competitive program advertisements.  No fundraisers.  The editors will decide placement of advertisements and may edit for content and length.  The Hartsbrook School retains the right to choose not to print any advertisement.

Hartsbrook: Clarity of Thought ~ Warmth of Heart - Strength of Purpose