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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 28, 2013. 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:
"The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time."
-James Taylor
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District news and information for all k-12 teachers, administrators, and parents from the Elementary Library Media Specialists.
Are you taking a class, teaching research to a class, or looking for specific information on any topic?
Take a look at NoodleTools for a free list of choices that direct you to the best search for your information needs at the following website address:
Click here for NoodleTools!
A small example of what this valuable resource has to offer is this section on finding information from an expert researcher. Don't miss the librarian-created "topic pathfinders" for k-12.
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INFOMINE
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Librarian-selected scholarly sites
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LibGuides
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Librarian-created topic pathfinders
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Infotopia
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Customized safe-search of educator-selected sites
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The Science Fair is coming! The Plymouth Public Schools' Science Fair will be held on Feb. 12th at Plymouth South High School. Students who do well in the local competition will advance to the South Shore Regional Science Fair at Bridgewater State University on March 9. Winners there will advance to the Massachusetts State Science and Engineering Fair at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology May 2-4. Approximately 80 students from Plymouth North and South High Schools are expected to participate. Best of luck to those students! Check out the news about the Science Fair in the Old Colony by clicking the link below: Click here!
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First Annual Giant Indoor Yard Sale ~ Craft Fair
Proceeds for Grade 8 Washington DC Trip
Saturday, February 9th PCIS Cafeteria
9 AM - 2:30 PM
NEEDED
*Items for 8th Grade Yard Sale Table
Start spring cleaning early, get rid of unwanted holiday gifts, recycle books & toys and household items
... donations can be brought to PCIS and PSMS and left in designated boxes.
*Reserve your own Yard Sale or Craft Table Space will be sold ~ Table $15 or 2 for $25
To reserve space call 508-830-4479
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DVC offers trip to Plymouth's Sister City in Japan!
During August of the summer of 2013, Plymouth's Distinguished Visitors Committee (DVC) will again offer a chaperoned cultural enrichment trip to Shichigahama in Japan. The application for student participation can be accessed through the link below. Plymouth's Sister Town has invited eight students, ages 13-15, to be guests in the homes of Shichigahama families.
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PSMS News
Geography Bee Winner
Congratulations to second floor 8th grader Drew Luongo for winning the Plymouth South Middle School Geography Bee last week. In an exciting, hard fought competition, Drew outlasted 32 other classroom level winners to become school champion. He will now take a written test to try and qualify for the state level geography bee.
The Annual Geography Bee is organized the National Geographic Society and is sponsored this year by Google. Students in grades four through eight in thousands of schools across the United States are eligible to participate. All school winners are eligible to win the national championship, which is held in May in Washington, D.C. A $25,000 scholarship is awarded to the national champion. Good luck Drew!
 Students hold signs with their answers.  PSMS Winner Drew Luongo with Mr. Herbert and Mr. Murphy 
Students write answers on their boards .
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Plymouth North High School News
The students in the above picture are signing a banner for Sandy Hook. The banner was designed by the PSHS art students, signed by staff and students during lunches and will be sent to Sandy Hook Elementary students to show our support.
The Plymouth South wrestling team improved to 19-0 with wins over Triton (42-15), Lexington (45-21), Newton South (72-12) and beating last year's Division 1 State Champions - Methuen (45-31). This ended Methuen's impressive 32 match win streak, dating back to last year.
PLYMOUTH SOUTH'S ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
The G & G/PSHS Female Athlete of the week is Melissa Connolly. Connolly has been a terrific senior leader and captain who helps her teammates both in and out of school. In addition to all of the effort she puts into her dancing, Connolly also helped edit the team's music last week. She has really stepped up this season. Congratulations, Melissa.
The G & G/PSHS Male Athlete of the Week is junior Dylan O'Connell. O'Connell, backbone of the hockey team, continues to play outstanding in net. During last week's games, we played against some tough offensive teams and O'Connell turned away close to 100 shots on net. In addition, O'Connell's work ethic and positive attitude make him one of South's top leaders. Congratulations, Dylan!
Mrs. Shea's fashion marketing class is hosting a "Teens for Jeans" drive now through February 10th. Drop off your clean, gently used jeans in the PSHS lobby areas or at JunglePlex, the Plymouth libraries, or St. Bonaventure's parish center. The jeans will be donated to homeless teens. There are over 1.7 million homeless teens and their number one request is a pair of jeans. Last year we collected 378 pairs of jeans and would like to collect 500 this year! Clean out your closet and help support a great cause!
The DECA District competition took place on January 10th-11th in Falmouth, MA and the following individual students have qualified for the State Competition:
Carly Fernandes - two 1st place medals, one 3rd place medals and 1st place overall
Sara Schlect - 2nd place medal
The following students finished in the top 10 overall - Jesse Parks, Devin Messenger, Dan Johnson, Sara Schlecht, Brendan McGowan and Chase Reed.
For team competition, the following teams have qualified for the State Competition:
Sara Mahan and Mercedes Anderson - 6th place overall
Jameson Giamo and Alex Hunt - 1st place medal, 4th place overall
Michael Flohr and Brendan McDonnell - 3rd place medal, 4th place overall
Zack Darsh and Liam McKee - 3rd place medal, top 10 overall
Kristen Eckman and Amanda Ward - 3rd place medal, top 10 overall
Rachel Lafountain and Shelby Arnold - 1st place medal
The following teams finished top 10 overall - Nate Benjamin and Celio DaSilva, Andrew Creed and Max Stephens, Kaleigh Reddington and Alyssa Richards
The following students achieved a certificate for achieving competency for National Marketing Standard Exam. 48 out of 50 students achieved the National Standard Requirements. There were 750 students at the District Marketing Competition in Falmouth: SENIORS: Shelby Arnold, Katherine Buker, Haley Cannucci, Andrew Creed, Zach Darsch, Celio DaSilva, Nicole Dzengeleski, Brent Eaton, Carly Fernandes, Michael Flohr, Jameson Giamo, Alex Hunt, Dan Johnson, Rachel LaFountain, Brendan McDonnell, Liam McKee, Devin Messenger, Kyle Nickerson, Sara Schlecht and Max Stephens. JUNIORS: Mercedes Anderson, Shannon Anzuoni, Nate Benjamin, Dan Broderick, Ashley Cesero, Kristen Eckman, Steve Kennedy, Alex Krastanov, Sara Mahan, Brendan McGowan, Greg O'Brien, Jesse Parks, Mike Schmidt and Amanda Ward. SOPHOMORES: Leanne Anderson, Hailee Clines, Ryan Dillan, Tyler Glennon, Drew Guadagno, Ryan Harty, Shanlea Kernen, Samantha Marino, Chris McDonnell, Shawn Peckham, Kaleigh Redington, Alyssa Richard and Emily Schlecht.
On Thursday, January 17th, we hosted our second annual Senior Project Showcase. Congratulations to all students listed below who did a fantastic job with their presentation. The mission of the program is highlighted as well as specific students and titles.
Senior Project Mission Statement
The purpose of the Senior Project is to empower all students to explore an area of great personal interest that extends beyond the classroom setting. Through this project based learning, students will apply knowledge and collect research that culminates with a showcase demonstrating their learning stretch. Students will produce physical / written products, oral presentations, and portfolios.
"7 P's"
Proposal
Paper
Practicum
Product
Portfolio
Presentation
Punctuality
The Senior Project will reflect applications of learning, critical thinking, and problem-solving. Personal employ-ability skills such as responsibility, persistence, and independence will also be explored.
The following is a list of student names and their projects:
A. Booth
Addiction
A. Risconi
Emergency Room Nursing
A.Freeman
Creating Clothing Brand
A.Morrill
Creating an effective learning environment for an elementary classroom
A.Reynolds
The Effects of Social Media on Journalism
B. Lacey
Inclusive Classrooms vs. Resource Rooms in Public Schools
B. Reed
Understanding Early Childhood Behaviors
C. Disher
The Process of Studio Recording
C. Folger
Physical Therapy High School Athletes Receive
C. Hynes
The Directors Role in Video Production
C. Kelleher
The Benefits of Sports Psychology
D. Galligan
Veterinary Medicine and the Cost of Caring for an Animal
E. Clinger
Building a Guitar
H. Alzarez
Child Psychology with a Focus on Play Therapy
H. Christian
Alzheimer's Disease: the Patient, the Family and the Care Givers
H. Clark
Biomedical Research with a Focus in Catheter Heart Surgery
H. Zion
Domestic Violence and the Long Term Effects
I.Tillman
Business Aspect of Culinary Arts
J. Boncek
Law Enforcement Concentrating on Safety in the Community
J. Perry
The Benefits of Prehab and Physical Therapy
J. Zimmerman
A Nurse's Role in Emergency Medicine
K. Cicchetti
The Role of a Guidance Counselor in the Life of an Adolescent
K. Gilmore
Drug & Alcohol Addiction
K. Klimchuck
Graphic and Logo Design
K. Paulo
Dog Training
M. Kessell
Horse Racing: The Negative Effects and Aspects
M. Martin
Women in the Military
M. Payne
The Different Roles Nurses Play while Treating Illnesses
P. Randlett
Physical Therapy
P. Reilly
Performance Automotive: Details of Building a NASCAR
P. Silva
Underwater Welding
R. Laudermilk
The Psychology of Pediatric Oncology
R. Moores
Adoption
R. Smith
Military Psychology: PTSD
S. Bryson
The Effects of Social Media on the Food Industry
S. Murphy
How Haute is too Haute: the Study of Fashion
S. Pelrine
The Glamorization of Forensic Science in the Media
S. Turso
Psychology of Aggression
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Plymouth South High School News
 Ian Allen breaks the school record in the 300 m dash places 4th. Claire O'Donnell- breaks school record in 300m dash places 4th. Boys Sprint Relay-(G. Marinos, A. Provo, I. Allen, M. Bambrick) places 5th. Girls Sprint Relay-(L. Whalen, M. Fracallossi, C. O'Donnell, N. Borofski) places 7th. Girls 4x200 Relay- (C. Willis, C. O'Donnell, K. Higgins, M. Fracallossi) places 9th. SADD and the Chris Herren Project SADD and the Chris Herren Project "Purple Initiative", asked all students and staff to wear PURPLE on Tuesday, January 15th. Wearing purple that day showed support for others by helping to break the stigma of addiction, bring awareness to the dangers of substance abuse and shed light on effective treatment practices. Donations Mr. Murphy, Mrs. Giatrakos and their English students worked together to come up with ways to help those in need. One of the programs that the teams came up with is for staff and students to bring in donations of clothing, toys, and blankets/sheets. The donations will be collected throughout the month of January and donated to Big Brother Big Sister Donations! Donation boxes are located at front entrances and each floor near staircases. Project Growth Magic Show Fundraiser in honor of paraprofessional Donna Johnson  The magic show held at the new Performing Arts Center at Plymouth North High School on Saturday January 12th to benefit the Project Growth Program was a great success. The event raised almost $2,000 to benefit the Project Growth Program at Plymouth North High School and to purchase a memorial to Project Growth paraprofessional Donna Johnson, who passed away of lung cancer in 2011. Ticket sales at the door doubled the attendance to nearly 400 people who were witness to a wonderful show of masterful illusions and mind-boggling magic tricks. Even those sitting in the front row could not fathom how magician and illusionist David Brisbois was able to cut his daughter into three pieces or return to whole a dollar bill torn in two and found inside an uncut lemon chosen by an audience member at random! Many were heard to say "How did he do that"? The show was spectacular. Thank you to all the people who attended the show. Special thanks to all the Project Growth students and Best Buddy members who helped sell tickets, Mr. David Grossman, and the entire Brisbois family for all their time and effort.  PNHS DECA Student Winners at the DECA Districts in Falmouth The students pictured are some of the PNHS competitors that placed at the Districts One DECA Conference. The event took place at the Seacrest Conference Center in Falmouth. These students will go on to the Boston for the state competition. Congratulations and great job, we look forward to seeing more great things from the DECA team. |
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An Authentic Assessment Experience
This week, students from Tracy Riordan and Kate Biagini's fifth grade class at Indian Brook Elementary School traveled to Plymouth North High School to share and defended their argument-based research projects with students from Sarah Brown's tenth grade World Literature class.
Earlier in the month, Mrs. Riordan's sophomore daughter had participated in book talks with teachers and adult community members, and she thought it would be a great idea to have her own students have a similar experience.
Based on a joint reading-writing workshop unit, the fifth graders presented their research to their high school partner, utilizing their essay and an accompanying visual display. High school students, serving in a mentor role, had the opportunity to ask questions, probe for more information, and provide feedback. The fifth graders were thrilled with the experience, with comments including: "The high school students had so many great questions," and "They really cared about my topic." This authentic assessment experience was a great success for all involved!
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Gary E. Maestas, Ed.D Superintendent
Plymouth Public Schools
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