Greetings!
 The term "progressive" has many connotations. And its root word, "progress," has a special meaning at High Meadows this year.
You can see at the campus entrance that the construction of our new Maintenance Facility is well underway (read more below). Students are making great strides on their collective studies of this year's Emphasis topic, South America. And our faculty is working hard not only on this year's student experiences, but also preparing for an exciting shift in our multi-age program and all of the benefits it brings.
In so many ways, we are all people "in progress." And High Meadows is the perfect place to live what "progressive" is all about!
Cheers,
Jay Underwood, Head of School
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Maintenance Facility Nears Completion
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Construction on the Building Moving Quickly
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| | Truss installation begins on the maintenance building. |
Although construction started months ago on the school's new maintenance facility and sewer infrastructure, it's become more visually apparent that High Meadows will soon have a new building at the bottom of our driveway. Walls are going up; the trusses for roofing have been completed; and the parking lot has been poured. Michael Rhodes, Director of Technology and Facilities, notes, "With all the rain we've had this fall, the building is a little behind schedule. But the good news is that they will be finished before Camp starts in June." The new maintenance building will provide a place for our facility tools and vehicles; will store our cleaning supplies; will accept large deliveries; and will house our dumpsters--all of which means we will have less traffic and trucks on campus so our students are safer.
The progress on the maintenance facility is obvious to see, but work is also ongoing on a significant improvement that none of us will see (and, hopefully, smell)! The City of Roswell requires that we connect the remainder of our buildings (Preschool, Franklin House and Stone Cottage) to the city's sewer system. (They are currently on an outdated septic system). Work has begun on this project as well, and it should be completed at the same time as the Maintenance Building.
In keeping with High Meadows' guiding principles, the Building Committee has worked with the architect to keep the environmental impact minimal. First, the building was strategically sited to minimize tree impact. Among other green features, the building will feature low-flow plumbing fixtures, high-efficiency HVAC and LED lighting to maximize energy efficiency, and a green retaining wall will minimize heat island effect and carbon footprint.
Although a maintenance facility and sewer infrastructure may not, at first glance, seem to impact our students' learning environment, these projects play a vital role in keeping our campus safe, well-maintained, and beautiful.
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Debate Team Are State Champs for 12th Year in a Row
For many schools, winning back-to-back state championships are a source of pride. But here at High Meadows, we take it one step (or 10 steps) further. The High Meadows Middle Years Debate Team earned their twelfth consecutive State Championship at Georgia State University this past week. Competing against approximately 500 students, High Meadows had the top two teams in the Varsity division.
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| | Members of the Debate Team pose with their medals after a Tournament earlier this year. |
Bryn Robinson and Gray Torres were the State Champs, with Taryn Robinson and Abby Clingman finishing right behind them, earning second place. Both top teams were undefeated! Gray Torres earned Second Place Speaker in the varsity division, narrowly missing the top spot by 1 speaker point. In the Junior Varsity division, Yana Gokhman and Sophia Volpe went undefeated and finished in Fourth Place overall. Congratulations to everyone on the team and their coach Middle Years teacher Isaac Wolf! We're impressed!
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Cells, Microorganisms, and DNA
By Fourth/Fifth Student Brianna Katz
Do you know what a plant cell and an animal cell is? The Burke/Yardley class does! We have been studying microorganisms and cells. One of the fun activities we did was shrinky dinks. Lila Savu's grandma, Lyn Savu, came in and showed us how to do it. We learned that a plant cell has a cell wall. We had a picture of a plant cell and an animal cell and then we chose which one we wanted to do. You put the picture under the plastic sheet and then we traced it. The paper we traced it on is a special plastic that can go in the oven. When it goes into the oven it shrinks. We got to color it whatever color we wanted.
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| | Burke/Yardley students show off their "cells." |
Next we punched a hole in the shrinky dinks. Ms. Savu brought clips to attach to the shrinky dinks so we could put them on our book bags. We had so much fun studying about microorganisms. During this unit we made blood soup, and then we had a visit from High Touch, High Tech. Roswell Environmental Center came in to talk with us about diseases, and last but not least, Detective Allen (Mrs. Allen's husband) came in and talked about DNA. We learned so much and loved all the activities we did.
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"Sharky School Supplies" Open for Business
By First/Second Teachers Marli Goro and Liz Thompson
In the Great White Shark classroom, we dove right into learning about our new Emphasis unit, South America! However, we are still hosting the class store that we had planned during our previous unit of study on Trade. The students created a business plan for what we would sell, how we would display our items, the name of our store, and marketing and advertising strategies. If you take a walk through the Early Years Building, you will see plenty of our store flyers in strategic places: above the water fountains, on the backs of bathroom stall doors, on paper towel dispensers, and many other eye-catching places. We are selling items such as calculators, pencils, markers, erasers, gel pens, and more... everything costs $1.00 or less! When you purchase your items from Sharky School Supplies, the students guarantee that you will receive the correct amount of change. Sharky School Supplies is open Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 8:10 - 8:30, so come visit us outside the Great White Shark classroom!
Student shows off her purchases.
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Great Gatsby Gala
April 30, 2016
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Ticket sales are well underway and we expect to have a sold-out event. Please purchase your tickets before Spring Break to help us have a proper count for food . Tickets will not be available for purchase at the event.
If you own or work at a local business, be sure to check out the Gold and Table Sponsorship levels on the Gala website. Being a Gala Sponsor is a wonderful way to advertise to potential customers. Please email Development Manager, Angela Lockard with any questions.
We will continue to update the website as the event draws closer, so be sure to check back in at www.highmeadows.org/GGG for all your Gala needs. Can't wait to see you all jazzed up on April 30th in your best Gatsby style attire! We are looking forward to a roaring good time!
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We have a matching gift challenge that will raise a total of $30,000! If the High Meadows Community can raise $15,000 from now through Spring Break, the Noble Family will match, dollar for dollar what we raise.
The only way we will be successful in such a short amount of time is if each of you make your gift now instead of waiting til the end of the school year. Please help us reach $15,000 of new gifts.
It takes teamwork. Together we can do great things.
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Emphasis Night
Thursday, March 31
5:30-7:00 pm
Classrooms
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Spring Break
No School
HMS Closed
Monday, April 4-
Friday, April 8
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Community Gathering, Parents Welcome
Tuesday, April 12
9:05-9:25 am
Community Center
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S.H.A.R.E. Meeting
Thursday, April 14
8:45-9:45 am
Library
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Fourth-Grade Trip to Wahsega
Thursday, April 14-
Friday, April 15
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The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe
Thursday, April 14; Friday, April 15; and Sunday,
April 17
5:00 pm
Barn Theater
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Reserve Your Tickets for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
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Immerse yourself in fantasy with The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Tickets for the Middle Years spring production are available now. Tickets are free but due to limited seating, ticket reservations are required. The show runs approximately 75 minutes. Showtime is 5 p.m. on April 14, 15 and 17. Feel free to contact Ms. Wright or Mrs. Lindsay with any questions! |
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2016 Camp Registration
Now Open
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Registration for summer camp is underway. Spots are filling quickly so register soon! Visit www.highmeadowscamp.org for programming and registration details.
The following sessions are full:
Session 1- Grasshoppers (rising K) & Seniors (rising 5th-9th grades)
Session 2- Seniors (rising 5th-9th grades)
Session 3- Grasshoppers (rising K) & Super Seniors (rising 3rd-4th grades)
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High Meadows has a weather station. Located on the roof of the Early Years Building, the station is part of the Earth Networks WeatherBug system of tracking stations. Want to know exactly what the weather is at High Meadows? Or want to see the forecast for the area? The link is found on the http://my.highmeadows.orgpage. Click on the Our Weather Station link. Or Click here! |
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