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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 special meeting of the Plymouth School Committee will be Monday, May 20, 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:
"Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young."
~Henry Ford
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Run for 1!
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District news and information for all k-12 teachers, administrators, and parents from the Elementary Library Media Specialists. Looking for a new idea about teaching the significance of Memorial Day to k-12 students? Visit: http://www.internet4classrooms.com/links_grades_kindergarten_12/memorialday.htm and see over 1,000 suggestions by and for teachers. Interested in a site that provides (mostly free) recommended educational Apps in all curriculum areas for iPod touch, iPAD, and iPhone users? Go to: http://www.internet4classrooms.com/links_grades_kindergarten_12/apps_web2_tools.htm . |
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Frank Silva Jr., Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds, receives an award!
May 5th through the 11th has been designated as Drinking Water Week by Governor Duval Patrick.
I am pleased to inform you that Mr. Frank Silva Jr., Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds received a 2013 Public Water System Award and a Governor's Citation for "dedicated service in maintaining a safe and abundant supply of clean water" at the Plymouth South Elementary School on May 7, 2013.
Mr. Silva received his award at the 2013 Drinking Water Awards Day which was held May 7, 2013 at the Springfield Technical Community College in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Mr. Silva received his award from Mr. Kenneth Kimmell, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection.
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Visual and Performing Arts Department News
7:00pm Plymouth South Middle presents Beauty and the Beast
7:00pm PCIS Choral Concert
- Congratulations to all Nathaniel Morton Elementary students who participated in the Spring concert last Friday. Fantastic job by all!
- Congratulations to all the performers at North High School's Spring Concert. It was a wonderful show!
- Congratulations to all of the artists who had work displayed in South High School's Senior Art Show. It was a fabulous show!
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Science News
State Science Fair Awards Addition
Both Veronica Holmes and Jessica Morgan received awards at the State Science Fair held May 2-4 at MIT. However, it was incorrectly reported that Veronica Holmes received Honorable Mention only. Veronica also received a $10,000 scholarship from UMASS Dartmouth to be paid over four years. Great work Veronica! You have made Plymouth very proud!
Awesome Collaboration Takes Place
The Galaxy Project - What Lies Beyond Our Stars?
Ms. Campbell's 6th grade class at PCIS was part of an exciting collaboration with the planetarium and Insight Observatory to image objects beyond the visible stars in our night sky. The students were given remote access to high-powered telescopes located in New Mexico and Spain. Each group was asked to image an item in deep space found near the patch of sky containing the constellations of Ursa Major, Leo and Virgo. The images that the students took of galaxies, a globular cluster and a planetary nebula are breathtaking! A large printout of the night sky along with the students' images is on display near the entrance of the planetarium. This hands-on experience not only taught the students a great deal about remote imaging with a telescope, it enabled them to grasp the profoundness of the images they captured.
Special thanks to Monica Ares, Planetarium Program Instructor, and Michael Petrasko, Plymouth Public Schools Technician. Together they designed this amazing opportunity for our students that they hope will grow in the years to come.
For more information on our collaborators, please check out the following: Monica Ares, Planetarium Program Instructor Blake Planetarium @BlakePlanet (Twitter) Insight Observatory Muir Evenden and Michael Petrasko
@InsightObs (Twitter)
Muir Evenden and Michael Petrasko have been involved in amateur astronomy for over 30 years. Their passion for astronomy evolved from visual observing using binoculars and small telescopes to image processing utilizing CCD cameras attached to larger telescopes on robotic mounts. Throughout the years their interest in astronomy continued to flourish as they were both among the founders of the Cape Cod Astronomical Society. Muir and Michael now wish to take their passion for astronomy a step further and give back to the community by inspiring and fostering students with their science education by allowing them to be involved with actual astronomical research projects using remote robotic telescopes at various locations around the world and with the proposed 16" robotic telescope to be based in New Mexico.
Michael became interested in astronomy at the age of 8 when he first got a glimpse of the moon through a small refracting telescope he received for Christmas. Michael has since been an avid Deep-Sky and Planetary observer independently discovering an extra-galactic supernova in the galaxy M66 in the constellation Leo on February 11, 1989. Michael currently holds a position at the Plymouth Public Schools in Plymouth, Massachusetts as a Computer Hardware and Software Specialist. Michael is also currently the Evening Events Coordinator for the W. Russell Blake Planetarium that is located in the Plymouth Community Intermediate School in Plymouth, MA.
Muir also developed his preoccupation with astronomy at a young age, and was fortunate to have access to an 8" telescope through his teenage years by which to develop his passion for deep sky observing. After moving to the southwest US to attend the University of Arizona, Muir eventually came to reside in Mesa and later Sedona, where he developed an interest in CCD imaging and automated image capture using his own robotic telescope (a Paramount ME/C14 combination). Muir currently holds a position as a software engineer for a large telecommunications company, and hopes in the future to leverage his development experience in the field of astronomy.
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Manomet Elementary News
Grade 5 students at Manomet (as well as their families) have a lot to be proud of. At the start of the year, they set a fundraising goal of $6,100 to fully fund their overnight trip to The Museum of Science, as well as an extended day trip to Old Strurbridge Village. We are pleased to report that through events such as "Candy Bingo", a car wash, and "Movie Night", they not only met this goal...they SHATTERED it! These students are now getting ready for the first of these two big trips as they head off to the Museum of Science next Thursday. Congratulations to all of these boys and girls...and have fun!
Manomet Elementary held its annual art show on Thursday, May 9th. The theme of Ancient Egypt shimmered throughout the school. Ornate sarcophaguses and a Great Sphinx mural created by the students, under the direction of Mrs. Hanby, added a theatrical flair to the event. Works in clay, as well as paintings of animal imagery, were the primary focus of the art. 
Animals were a prominent subject throughout the show. 
Animal masks created by Grade 5. 
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The Great Sphinx mural and sarcophaguses adorn the cafeteria display.
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Faith Duquette's gorgeous Egyptian portrait. 
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4th graders, Gwen Enos (L) and Alex Stec (R), use plaster (left) and foil (right) techniques to create Egyptian-inspired art.
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 Nina Paress' whimsical cat-a beloved animal of ancient Egyptians. 
Rowan Cotti's animal sculpture. 
A looming sarcophagus adds drama. |
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South Elementary School News
Incredible Creatures
Springtime brings along creatures and bugs, and lots of different sights and sound. Students in Mrs. Shaw's first-grade class used their senses to experience nature with Mary Beers, a naturalist from the Thorton Burgess Society, who visited the classroom for some hands-on learning about insects and birds.
"The children were excited to explore with artifacts such as birds, feathers, eggs and nests," Mrs. Shaw says. "They enjoyed listening to recordings of common backyard birds."
Ms. Beers also brought a collection of bug models and artifacts for the children to examine up close with magnifying glasses. Students had a fantastic time learning facts about insects and birds and their importance to our ecosystem:
- Molly S.: "I got to look at all different kinds of bird eggs. They were different sizes and colors."
- Matthew: "I got to pretend that I was a woodpecker. I used tweezers to pick up pretend bugs out of a fake tree. It was very fun."
- Maya: "I loved pretending that I was a hummingbird. I got to use a water dropper to suck up pretend nectar just like a real hummingbird does. I also got to pretend that I was a duck feeding off of the bottom of a pond."
- Kendra, Taylor and Leeland: "This is so much fun!"
Teacher Appreciation
South Elementary students showed their appreciation for all staff members by writing special notes on leafs and butterflies and then our PTA parents made a beautiful display on the wall entering our cafeteria. Thank you staff and students for your kindness!
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West Elementary School News
This is part two of the West news entry from the April 12, 2013, edition of Friday Notes. This entry includes additional photographs of wordles that replaced those in the original West Instructional Media Center display (shown in the April 12th Notes entry) as well as those in the Plymouth Public Library Children's Room display. Space limitations prohibited showing all of the wordles in one display in the West IMC. The explanation of the use of wordle/word cloud technology to enhance curriculum in the classroom is repeated from the April 12th Notes entry in the paragraphs below.
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The students in Grades 4 and 5 at West Elementary recently completed the Massachusetts Children's Book Award Program. The Program encourages reading for pleasure while at the same time exposing students to various literary genre. Students also focus on the elements of fiction as well as the concepts and themes of the books that they choose.
The Plymouth Public Schools Strategic Plan includes the goal of blending of new technologies with curriculum to enhance the classroom experience and familiarize teachers and students with the use, mastery, and application of these technologies to promote teaching and learning.
The students at West used the wordle/word cloud technology during Library/Media classes with Ms Linda Shannon to focus on characterization in the novel MAKE WAY FOR DYAMONDE DANIEL by Nikki Grimes. Each wordle in the display contains words chosen by the student creator that describe one of two main characters (Dyamonde or Free) in the story.
The display of wordles featured this week is currently in the West Instructional Media Center. Additional wordles will be displayed there during the last week of April due to their large number and space limitations in the IMC. They, together with randomly selected West student wordles currently on display in the Plymouth Public Library Children's Room, will be featured in an upcoming edition of Friday Notes. The display at the Public Library ran through May 15.
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The photographs that follow include the Plymouth Public Library display (first photo) followed by the current display in the West IMC.
Thanks to Elyse Robbins, the West Art teacher, for the wonderful West IMC photographs in both entries and to Margaret McGrath, Head of Children's Services for Plymouth Public Library, for her special photograph of the West wordle display in the Plymouth Library Children's Room.
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Plymouth North High School News
Nicole Borofski signed her National Letter of Intent for her athletic scholarship to attend Stonehill College. She will run Cross Country and Track for Stonehill. Congratulations Nicole!
ACL Championship Meet Plymouth North Girls had three league champions.
Claire O'Donnell- 100 meter Dash
4 x 100 Relay-
Chelsea Willis
Micaela Fraccalossi
Kelsey Higgins
Claire O'Donnell
4 x 800 Relay-
Jordan Callahan
Sophie Gorton
Allison Gordon
Nicole Borofski
- High Honors Congratulatory Gathering - On Thursday, May 23rd Plymouth North High will honor those students who received high honors during term one, two or three. One hundred and fifty three students will receive an award. Congratulations to those students for their accomplishments.
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Plymouth South High School News
Thanks to senior art students and teachers Ms. Quinn and Mrs. White for the sixth annual senior art show that took place on Thursday of this week. The evening was a wonderful display of incredible talent and hard work.
Congratulations to the girls track team for winning the ACL meet last night. The girls had 4 individual champions- Jayci Andrews in the 200m, Cassandra Stout in the Javelin, Maddie Braz in the Shot Put and Discus, and Alyson Messina in the Triple Jump and 400m hurdles in a school record time. The girls 4x400 team of Jayci Andrews, Alyssa Richard, Rachel Melisse, and Aly Messina also took home first place while setting a school record.
Maddie Braz set 2 more school records this week in the shot and disc. She is now #2 in the State in disc at 123'3" and #6 in shot at 37'6".
The following Plymouth South High Schools Students visited South Middle School today to do a presentation on Anti-Bullying. Anthony Schena, Dylan Oxsen, Shaun Duncombe, Brendan Harty, Sam Bazarewsky, Emily Belcher, Julia Daly, Bri Fragata, Lexy Halpin, Christina Jaros, Amanda Marcotte, Dylan Finlay, Drew Guadagno and Ryan Harty.
Upcoming dates: Sunday, May 19th - Senior Athletic Awards 6:00 PM
Friday, May 31st - Class Day
Wednesday, June 5th - Senior Awards Night 7:00 PM
Thursday, June 6th - Senior Dinner Dance
Saturday, June 8th - Graduation 1:30PM
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Gary E. Maestas, Ed.D Superintendent
Plymouth Public Schools
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