June 19
Wow! What a whirlwind these last days are! Just to recap some important points:
The Look Park trip was wonderful with great weather and great company. Thank you Mrs. Kenney, Mr. Banks, Mrs. Mattingly, Mrs. Bramucci, Mr. Schiffer, and Mr. Cortez for being such a fun part of our day!
On Thursday, all materials were collected. Please send in any books and materials (even over the summer) that you find at home.
On Friday, we all enjoyed our visit to Jabish Brook which was followed by the Walruses year end slide show and recognition certificates.
On Monday, we have a half day. Some fun activities are planned but mostly it will be a day to organize, sort and be Walruses one last time. Report cards will be issued at 12:00 when we have our official dismissal.
We will remind students to visit lost and found for the last time. Remainders are donated.
DVD order forms/volunteer essays are due on the last day of school. Delivery of DVDs will be sometime in July.
Thank you again for such a great year with these students!
June 15
The Whimsical Walruses are ready for the middle school!
We hope our weekly information has been helpful in keeping in touch with class and school activities.
We’ve enjoyed teaching your children. We know that this year is such a huge transition year in becoming responsible students and we hope the emphasis on organization, writing and working on projects in a timely manner have made some impact on your children as learners. We thank you for allowing us to be a part of your children’s lives.
Still time for CORIed volunteers to come with us to Look Park! We'll be making up groups on Tuesday.
Last minute questions for chaperones have included: how much do we pay? ($15 if you want a wristband and will be riding the bus, $12 if you just want a wristband and want to pay for your own parking pass)
Students should bring in their own lunches but the food shops are open at 11:00.
Meet at school at 9:00 and driving chaperones can follow us over to Northampton.
We'll be going to Jabish Brook on Friday.
June 10
Tonight, from 5 - 7, Jessica's Boundless Playground will have a picnic social on the lawn.
On Thursday, June 11, Clapp Memorial Library will kick off the summer reading program during the school day.
On Wednesday, June 17 , from 6 - 7:30 PTO is sponsoring the Science and Engineering Extravaganza at the CHCS cafeteria. RSVP Lynette at [email protected]
Thursday, June 18 will be the Boundless Thanks Bash at the Cold Spring Country Club from 7 - 11.Tickets cost $25 and only adults over 18 can attend.
Students received permission slips for our Jabish Brook field trip scheduled for Friday, June 19. Sixth grade students will travel by school bus to meeth many of their 7th grade teachers, see presentations by 7th graders and go on a tour of the school. We'll be back for lunch.
June 8
The days are counting down but we are not doing that. This year has been too much fun to hurry it along.
Phenomenal showcase performances by so many Whimsical Walruses including Mr. Walkowicz. We thank Mr. Guerraz and Mr. Mosall for facilitating such a great night!
Notice this is Spirit Week (see below on June 4)
All students will have their reading levels assessed (for the last time this year!) in the DIBELs tests on Monday and Wednesday.
Students will see the "Tuck Everlasting" movie on Tuesday. They are welcome to bring their own popcorn. We're asking that students not bring sodas, although they can obviously can bring their own drinks.
Look Park permission slips have been due. Please let us know if you can chaperone!
DVD order/volunteer essays have started to come in. The year's DVD is free to students who have done volunteer work and write the volunteer essay.
June 4
Showcase tomorrow!
Spirit Week is from June 8 - June 12
Monday: Pajama Day
Tuesday: Team Day ($1 to wear hat)
Wednesday: Wacky Day
Thursday:Throwback ( time to pull out clothes out of the back of the closet for your kids to wear!)
Friday : School colors (Maroon and gold)
We're showing the movie "Tuck Everlasting" next week as we have just finished the book. The plan is to see it on Tuesday. We're thinking of duplicating our other movie experience and allowing students to bring in popcorn as snacks.
May 31
June has arrived and although there is a sweetness to summer, we will miss our Whimsical Walrus community.
We look forward to seeing many of you at the Showcase Festival on Friday. We'll be there to support our Whimsical Banders and Chorusers and other talented performers, such as our very own Mr. Walkowicz as the Master of Ceremonies! The show starts at 6:30 sharp, so plan on being there here by 6:15 with students here by 6:00.
Permission slip for our Look Park trip is due as soon as possible. The trip is on June 17, during the school day, and will cost $15. Any CORIed chaperones are welcome! Athough bus space is limited, chaperones can also drive to the park on their own and pay for a $5 parking pass.
The Whimsical Walruses DVD order forms/volunteer essays have been discussed and can be downloadedfrom the Download section.
May 27
Thursday, May 28, is informational night (6 - 7) at Jabish Brook for the parents of sixth graders!
Yesterday's trip to "Tommorowland" was great with well-behaved and entertained students. The movie led to very interesting discussion about plausiblity, story sequence, character development and the price of gas as being $4.25 in the future. A promise that we would not write about the movie was kept.
Belated "Thank you"s to Mr. Banks, Mr. Peel, Mrs. Stevens, Mrs. Anderson, Mrs. Manioudakis, Mrs. Meehan, Mrs. Sedlacek. Thanks to you we all had a safe and fun day at the Great East Festival!
Finally, this week marks mid-term. With the advent of PowerSchool, teachers no longer send home mid-term notices for this last term. Please refer to PowerSchool for grades and progress. Contact us at the addresses at the bottom of this page if you have questions.
May 26
We hope everyone enjoyed a terrific Memorial Day weekend. Some rain would be nice.
It is difficult to believe that we are fast approaching June and then the start of summer, the beginning of the end of our sixth grade year. This has been a year we are truly enjoying. We plan on enjoying it right up until it is over.
The Great East Festival went well with remarkable performances by both the 6th grade Band and Chorus. Both groups received Silver recognition.
Today, Tuesday, is our "Tomorrowland" field trip. All Whimsical Walruses are going! Students need to bring in lunches because we are arriving back at school after the CHCS lunch time. We have to assume movie popcorn will not be enough...
Upcoming dates to remember: June 5 is the Showcase Festival and June 17 will be the forthcoming Look Park trip, with details to follow.
May 17
The PARCC test parks itself in the middle of this week. It is part of the landscape of education now and so we will do our best. I do believe that our kids are ready to face the challenges of 7th grade and that they can do well with the PARCC challenge as well. We will be testing on Tuesday (Math in the morning and afternoon), and Wednesday and Thursday (ELA just in the mornings). The coming Memorial Day weekend will be appreciated.
We anxiously anticipate the annual Showcase Festival on June 5. Table tickets are sold out but there are still tickets available for general seating in rows and bleachers.
Out movie trip is scheduled for next Tuesday. As of this writing, quite a few students have yet to turn in permission slips and money which are both due today.
May 11
Students will be receiving yellow permission slips for the movie field trip taking place on May 26. We will be seeing Tomorrowland rated PG at Cinemark in Hadley for the cost of $13. This includes the movie, bus and a snack pack at the theatre. We would like permission slips and money as soon as possible, but the deadline is May 20.
Sixth graders will have PARCC testing all day next Tuesday for Math and just the morning on Wednesday and Thursday for ELA.
Band and Chorus trip to 6 Flags will be May 22.
May 4
Happy Cinco de Mayo. Another round of PARCC testing is on the horizon but not this week. Jennifer Parker, a guidance counselor from Jabish Brook Middle School, visited with our kids last week and gave them a good idea of what next year will be like for them. The Middle School does a great job preparing our sixth graders for the transition to secondary schooling.
Auditions for Showcase are Tuesday May 5 until 5:00
The Massachusetts Book Award party is May 7 until 4:30
Finally, you son or daughter may have come home talking about this year's memory DVD. This is a 30 minute DVD which has many of the pictures of the year and includes music chosen by students. As last day activities are on the disc, the DVDs are delivered to your home. Previously, the DVDs have cost $5 but my solution this year is to have students who want a DVD do 6 hours of volunteering outside of the home. Official forms will be going home soon detailing the requirements but you will have to sign off that true volunteer work has been done. Students will write a short paper on why helping someone else contributes to everyone's lives.
April 27
Welcome back! As we make our way back from April break we will be collecting signed envelopes from the report cards that went out the Friday before vacation. As always, do not hesitate to get hold of us if you have questions about your child's performance in school. Our hope is that every one of our students can finish the school year feeling positive about their year in 6th grade and ready for the challenges of 7th grade.
Massachusetts Book Award party is May 7 from 3:00 - 4:30
Band and Chorus Great East Festival including Six Flags is May 22
April 28 students meet with Ms. Parker, guidance counselor from Jabish
April 17
Report cards were sent home with students today! Included in the envelope is a yellow handout about Jabish Brook. Dates for the calendar:
April 28 students meet with Ms. Parker, guidance counselor from Jabish
May 28 informational night at Jabish Brook
Last week of school: Step Up Field Trip Day to Jabish
Great East Festival field trip permission slips should be in as soon as possible for band and chorus.
April 13
The school year rolls on. The 4th quarter officially begins this week which means that report cards will be going home at the end of the week. As always, let us know if you have concerns or questions about your child's progress. Our working together is a key ingredient to achieving academic success.
The Consumable Contest continues. It is understood that if you were to send in Dixie cups, we would be donating them to Mrs. Fitzpatrick, our school nurse. Of course, the other items like wipes, erasers etc. are infinitely appreciated. Thank you!
This great weather puts us into the mood for SPRING VACATION!
April 6
We are very glad that this round of PARCC testing is in our rear view mirror; however, another round looms ahead in early May. We are interested to see how these test results will be used and skeptical that their use will justify the time, expense and anxiety they spend.
The Consumable Contest ramps up. This week is very important to us: disinfectant wipes!
Students have received permission slips for the Massachusetts Book Award party on May 7, 2015. Out of 96 students in CHCS participating, 19 of them are Walruses!
Third term grades close this Friday with report cards going home next Friday.
March 31
For Thursday, CHCS will recognize Autism Awareness Day. Everyone is to wear blue on that day.
The PTO Consumable Contest begins with homerooms competing for the Tower of Games!
See this year's list of items needed in the classrooms. Erasers get double points this Thursday
March 30
The PARCC testing session (for 6th grade) is over and we have all survived. Let's get moving again.
CHCS t-shirt orders have started again. All band and chorus members need to have a CHCS t-shirt for end of year activities. Country Bank banking program is back in the school lobby on Fridays.
We really could use wipes and tissues. Thanking you in advance.
The school is closed on Friday to observe Good Friday.
March 23
Spring is here; may the snow melt and this winter become a memory.
We are entering testing season with 6th grade PARCC beginning at 9:00 on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday for ELA and Math. We ask for students to get a good night's sleep with limited screen time and begin the days with good breakfasts. As there are positively no electronics used during testing time, we are discouraging Kindles as silent reading options on testing days.
Since we have never been through this before, we are not quite sure of what to expect; however, we will help your kids through it. It will certainly change the nature of the entire week.
Band students will be going to full band on Thursday but will not have sectionals on Tuesday and Wednesday
Our plan is to offer a Board Game afternoon for Thursday. Sign ups for games can include games students bring from home as well as classroom games. We will have to exclude any electronic games.
Thank you for paper towels and wipes!
March 17
The PARCC testing schedule has been changed. Sixth grade will be taking ELA PARCC tests in the morning and the afternoon of March 24, and the morning of March 25. Math PARCC will begin the afternoon of March 25 and continue through the morning of March 26.
March 16
Amazing performances by the sixth grade band and chorus. With 3 shows so successful, maybe they'll open for James Taylor at Fenway this summer!
Students brought you their midterms last Friday. Please sign and return them, if we asked you to do that.
Call or email (see the bottom of this page for email contacts) if you have any questions.
March 9
I am feeling the coming presence of spring even though my roof is still coated white. Bring it on.
We will be sending home Warning Notices to any students with a current average below 70% in a subject.
Our target date is this Friday. The idea is to use this information as motivation.
The Winter Concert for 6th grade concert and band is Tuesday, March 10 beginning at 7:00.
Spring pictures are on March 12. Students received packets last week.
PARCC testing is coming: English Language Arts and Reading days are 3/24, 3/25, 3/26 and
Math days are 3/31, 4/1. Testing begins at 9:00 and ends at 10:30.
March 3 Winter Concert is postponed until March 10 at 7:00
March 2 March comes in like a lion..................
Let's hope it goes out with some spring in its step. We are nearing the midpoint of this the third quarter of the school year. That means that we will be sending out a few "let's get it going" notices to students who are below the 70% average line. That generally means that required work has not been getting done. Those notices will not be going home this week but we will be encouraging kids in school to try their best to avoid having to take one home.
The CHCS Chorus and Band Winter concert is on Tuesday, March 3 at 7:00 here at CHCS. Please come to support all the musical Walruses who will be performing. All performers should arrive at school by 6:15. There will be an afterschool rehearsal on Monday (band students should have their instruments) from 3:30 to 5:00.
Remember that the March 13 professional day has been cancelled to make up a snow day. It will be a regular school day with students reporting on schedule.
February 24
Additions to the weekly update include Math Acuity testing for all of CHCS. This is a math test taken on computers and is on Tuesday for the sixth grade. Also, all students will be tested for scoliosis in PE classes on Friday, February 27 and Monday, March 2. Parents who do not want the postural screening must submit written documentation from a physician that a screening has been done.
February 23
There is nothing like a wintry February vacation to make us all want to break out of the house and come back to school! We do hope everyone had a relaxing time off as we hope for some signs of spring.
We are still accepting, with gratitude, donations of tissues and cleaning wipes.
Send in your boxtops! Mrs. Marley, our CHCS librarian, is sponsoring some sort of competition between homerooms with prizes offered.
February 10
Winter's wintry offerings have made it difficult for us to get momentum, which is important in learning and teaching. We will do the best we can with this challenge just as you no doubt are dealing with the snow on your home front.
Students with signed purple permisssion slips will be seeing the movie "Mr. Peabody and Sherman" on Friday. We also have permission to wear pajamas, bring in cocoa mix, and popcorn for this movie so it should be fun. It should be noted, as before, students have to bring in their own cocoa mix and their own popped popcorn as sharing of food is not allowed.
February 2
There will be no doubt about groundhogs seeing shadows with this storm! With 3 snow days down, we need to brace ourselves for the next 6 weeks. But what a great gift to allow everyone to watch a great SuperBowl without worrying about school the next day!
We are now into the official second half of the school year. Every once in awhile I scroll through the photo gallery of this site and it never fails to remind me how lucky I am to be here, doing this job, working in this community. There are twists and turns in the 180 day road that is sixth grade but it is quite a ride.
You should have seen the report card that went home last Friday. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.
Let's hope the weather allows us to get in some good weeks of learning before we enjoy February vacation. I don't want to rush the time with this collection of kids but I will welcome spring.
All CHCS students will go through DIBELS testing this week to evaluate fluency.
On another note, Mrs. Brown in the 6th grade classroom across from our team desperately needs a television monitor. If anyone has an extra television to donate to the school, it would be greatly appreciated!
January 25
This will be a challenging week as winter storm Juno threatens to dump a significant pile of
Wow! What a whirlwind these last days are! Just to recap some important points:
The Look Park trip was wonderful with great weather and great company. Thank you Mrs. Kenney, Mr. Banks, Mrs. Mattingly, Mrs. Bramucci, Mr. Schiffer, and Mr. Cortez for being such a fun part of our day!
On Thursday, all materials were collected. Please send in any books and materials (even over the summer) that you find at home.
On Friday, we all enjoyed our visit to Jabish Brook which was followed by the Walruses year end slide show and recognition certificates.
On Monday, we have a half day. Some fun activities are planned but mostly it will be a day to organize, sort and be Walruses one last time. Report cards will be issued at 12:00 when we have our official dismissal.
We will remind students to visit lost and found for the last time. Remainders are donated.
DVD order forms/volunteer essays are due on the last day of school. Delivery of DVDs will be sometime in July.
Thank you again for such a great year with these students!
June 15
The Whimsical Walruses are ready for the middle school!
We hope our weekly information has been helpful in keeping in touch with class and school activities.
We’ve enjoyed teaching your children. We know that this year is such a huge transition year in becoming responsible students and we hope the emphasis on organization, writing and working on projects in a timely manner have made some impact on your children as learners. We thank you for allowing us to be a part of your children’s lives.
Still time for CORIed volunteers to come with us to Look Park! We'll be making up groups on Tuesday.
Last minute questions for chaperones have included: how much do we pay? ($15 if you want a wristband and will be riding the bus, $12 if you just want a wristband and want to pay for your own parking pass)
Students should bring in their own lunches but the food shops are open at 11:00.
Meet at school at 9:00 and driving chaperones can follow us over to Northampton.
We'll be going to Jabish Brook on Friday.
June 10
Tonight, from 5 - 7, Jessica's Boundless Playground will have a picnic social on the lawn.
On Thursday, June 11, Clapp Memorial Library will kick off the summer reading program during the school day.
On Wednesday, June 17 , from 6 - 7:30 PTO is sponsoring the Science and Engineering Extravaganza at the CHCS cafeteria. RSVP Lynette at [email protected]
Thursday, June 18 will be the Boundless Thanks Bash at the Cold Spring Country Club from 7 - 11.Tickets cost $25 and only adults over 18 can attend.
Students received permission slips for our Jabish Brook field trip scheduled for Friday, June 19. Sixth grade students will travel by school bus to meeth many of their 7th grade teachers, see presentations by 7th graders and go on a tour of the school. We'll be back for lunch.
June 8
The days are counting down but we are not doing that. This year has been too much fun to hurry it along.
Phenomenal showcase performances by so many Whimsical Walruses including Mr. Walkowicz. We thank Mr. Guerraz and Mr. Mosall for facilitating such a great night!
Notice this is Spirit Week (see below on June 4)
All students will have their reading levels assessed (for the last time this year!) in the DIBELs tests on Monday and Wednesday.
Students will see the "Tuck Everlasting" movie on Tuesday. They are welcome to bring their own popcorn. We're asking that students not bring sodas, although they can obviously can bring their own drinks.
Look Park permission slips have been due. Please let us know if you can chaperone!
DVD order/volunteer essays have started to come in. The year's DVD is free to students who have done volunteer work and write the volunteer essay.
June 4
Showcase tomorrow!
Spirit Week is from June 8 - June 12
Monday: Pajama Day
Tuesday: Team Day ($1 to wear hat)
Wednesday: Wacky Day
Thursday:Throwback ( time to pull out clothes out of the back of the closet for your kids to wear!)
Friday : School colors (Maroon and gold)
We're showing the movie "Tuck Everlasting" next week as we have just finished the book. The plan is to see it on Tuesday. We're thinking of duplicating our other movie experience and allowing students to bring in popcorn as snacks.
May 31
June has arrived and although there is a sweetness to summer, we will miss our Whimsical Walrus community.
We look forward to seeing many of you at the Showcase Festival on Friday. We'll be there to support our Whimsical Banders and Chorusers and other talented performers, such as our very own Mr. Walkowicz as the Master of Ceremonies! The show starts at 6:30 sharp, so plan on being there here by 6:15 with students here by 6:00.
Permission slip for our Look Park trip is due as soon as possible. The trip is on June 17, during the school day, and will cost $15. Any CORIed chaperones are welcome! Athough bus space is limited, chaperones can also drive to the park on their own and pay for a $5 parking pass.
The Whimsical Walruses DVD order forms/volunteer essays have been discussed and can be downloadedfrom the Download section.
May 27
Thursday, May 28, is informational night (6 - 7) at Jabish Brook for the parents of sixth graders!
Yesterday's trip to "Tommorowland" was great with well-behaved and entertained students. The movie led to very interesting discussion about plausiblity, story sequence, character development and the price of gas as being $4.25 in the future. A promise that we would not write about the movie was kept.
Belated "Thank you"s to Mr. Banks, Mr. Peel, Mrs. Stevens, Mrs. Anderson, Mrs. Manioudakis, Mrs. Meehan, Mrs. Sedlacek. Thanks to you we all had a safe and fun day at the Great East Festival!
Finally, this week marks mid-term. With the advent of PowerSchool, teachers no longer send home mid-term notices for this last term. Please refer to PowerSchool for grades and progress. Contact us at the addresses at the bottom of this page if you have questions.
May 26
We hope everyone enjoyed a terrific Memorial Day weekend. Some rain would be nice.
It is difficult to believe that we are fast approaching June and then the start of summer, the beginning of the end of our sixth grade year. This has been a year we are truly enjoying. We plan on enjoying it right up until it is over.
The Great East Festival went well with remarkable performances by both the 6th grade Band and Chorus. Both groups received Silver recognition.
Today, Tuesday, is our "Tomorrowland" field trip. All Whimsical Walruses are going! Students need to bring in lunches because we are arriving back at school after the CHCS lunch time. We have to assume movie popcorn will not be enough...
Upcoming dates to remember: June 5 is the Showcase Festival and June 17 will be the forthcoming Look Park trip, with details to follow.
May 17
The PARCC test parks itself in the middle of this week. It is part of the landscape of education now and so we will do our best. I do believe that our kids are ready to face the challenges of 7th grade and that they can do well with the PARCC challenge as well. We will be testing on Tuesday (Math in the morning and afternoon), and Wednesday and Thursday (ELA just in the mornings). The coming Memorial Day weekend will be appreciated.
We anxiously anticipate the annual Showcase Festival on June 5. Table tickets are sold out but there are still tickets available for general seating in rows and bleachers.
Out movie trip is scheduled for next Tuesday. As of this writing, quite a few students have yet to turn in permission slips and money which are both due today.
May 11
Students will be receiving yellow permission slips for the movie field trip taking place on May 26. We will be seeing Tomorrowland rated PG at Cinemark in Hadley for the cost of $13. This includes the movie, bus and a snack pack at the theatre. We would like permission slips and money as soon as possible, but the deadline is May 20.
Sixth graders will have PARCC testing all day next Tuesday for Math and just the morning on Wednesday and Thursday for ELA.
Band and Chorus trip to 6 Flags will be May 22.
May 4
Happy Cinco de Mayo. Another round of PARCC testing is on the horizon but not this week. Jennifer Parker, a guidance counselor from Jabish Brook Middle School, visited with our kids last week and gave them a good idea of what next year will be like for them. The Middle School does a great job preparing our sixth graders for the transition to secondary schooling.
Auditions for Showcase are Tuesday May 5 until 5:00
The Massachusetts Book Award party is May 7 until 4:30
Finally, you son or daughter may have come home talking about this year's memory DVD. This is a 30 minute DVD which has many of the pictures of the year and includes music chosen by students. As last day activities are on the disc, the DVDs are delivered to your home. Previously, the DVDs have cost $5 but my solution this year is to have students who want a DVD do 6 hours of volunteering outside of the home. Official forms will be going home soon detailing the requirements but you will have to sign off that true volunteer work has been done. Students will write a short paper on why helping someone else contributes to everyone's lives.
April 27
Welcome back! As we make our way back from April break we will be collecting signed envelopes from the report cards that went out the Friday before vacation. As always, do not hesitate to get hold of us if you have questions about your child's performance in school. Our hope is that every one of our students can finish the school year feeling positive about their year in 6th grade and ready for the challenges of 7th grade.
Massachusetts Book Award party is May 7 from 3:00 - 4:30
Band and Chorus Great East Festival including Six Flags is May 22
April 28 students meet with Ms. Parker, guidance counselor from Jabish
April 17
Report cards were sent home with students today! Included in the envelope is a yellow handout about Jabish Brook. Dates for the calendar:
April 28 students meet with Ms. Parker, guidance counselor from Jabish
May 28 informational night at Jabish Brook
Last week of school: Step Up Field Trip Day to Jabish
Great East Festival field trip permission slips should be in as soon as possible for band and chorus.
April 13
The school year rolls on. The 4th quarter officially begins this week which means that report cards will be going home at the end of the week. As always, let us know if you have concerns or questions about your child's progress. Our working together is a key ingredient to achieving academic success.
The Consumable Contest continues. It is understood that if you were to send in Dixie cups, we would be donating them to Mrs. Fitzpatrick, our school nurse. Of course, the other items like wipes, erasers etc. are infinitely appreciated. Thank you!
This great weather puts us into the mood for SPRING VACATION!
April 6
We are very glad that this round of PARCC testing is in our rear view mirror; however, another round looms ahead in early May. We are interested to see how these test results will be used and skeptical that their use will justify the time, expense and anxiety they spend.
The Consumable Contest ramps up. This week is very important to us: disinfectant wipes!
Students have received permission slips for the Massachusetts Book Award party on May 7, 2015. Out of 96 students in CHCS participating, 19 of them are Walruses!
Third term grades close this Friday with report cards going home next Friday.
March 31
For Thursday, CHCS will recognize Autism Awareness Day. Everyone is to wear blue on that day.
The PTO Consumable Contest begins with homerooms competing for the Tower of Games!
See this year's list of items needed in the classrooms. Erasers get double points this Thursday
March 30
The PARCC testing session (for 6th grade) is over and we have all survived. Let's get moving again.
CHCS t-shirt orders have started again. All band and chorus members need to have a CHCS t-shirt for end of year activities. Country Bank banking program is back in the school lobby on Fridays.
We really could use wipes and tissues. Thanking you in advance.
The school is closed on Friday to observe Good Friday.
March 23
Spring is here; may the snow melt and this winter become a memory.
We are entering testing season with 6th grade PARCC beginning at 9:00 on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday for ELA and Math. We ask for students to get a good night's sleep with limited screen time and begin the days with good breakfasts. As there are positively no electronics used during testing time, we are discouraging Kindles as silent reading options on testing days.
Since we have never been through this before, we are not quite sure of what to expect; however, we will help your kids through it. It will certainly change the nature of the entire week.
Band students will be going to full band on Thursday but will not have sectionals on Tuesday and Wednesday
Our plan is to offer a Board Game afternoon for Thursday. Sign ups for games can include games students bring from home as well as classroom games. We will have to exclude any electronic games.
Thank you for paper towels and wipes!
March 17
The PARCC testing schedule has been changed. Sixth grade will be taking ELA PARCC tests in the morning and the afternoon of March 24, and the morning of March 25. Math PARCC will begin the afternoon of March 25 and continue through the morning of March 26.
March 16
Amazing performances by the sixth grade band and chorus. With 3 shows so successful, maybe they'll open for James Taylor at Fenway this summer!
Students brought you their midterms last Friday. Please sign and return them, if we asked you to do that.
Call or email (see the bottom of this page for email contacts) if you have any questions.
March 9
I am feeling the coming presence of spring even though my roof is still coated white. Bring it on.
We will be sending home Warning Notices to any students with a current average below 70% in a subject.
Our target date is this Friday. The idea is to use this information as motivation.
The Winter Concert for 6th grade concert and band is Tuesday, March 10 beginning at 7:00.
Spring pictures are on March 12. Students received packets last week.
PARCC testing is coming: English Language Arts and Reading days are 3/24, 3/25, 3/26 and
Math days are 3/31, 4/1. Testing begins at 9:00 and ends at 10:30.
March 3 Winter Concert is postponed until March 10 at 7:00
March 2 March comes in like a lion..................
Let's hope it goes out with some spring in its step. We are nearing the midpoint of this the third quarter of the school year. That means that we will be sending out a few "let's get it going" notices to students who are below the 70% average line. That generally means that required work has not been getting done. Those notices will not be going home this week but we will be encouraging kids in school to try their best to avoid having to take one home.
The CHCS Chorus and Band Winter concert is on Tuesday, March 3 at 7:00 here at CHCS. Please come to support all the musical Walruses who will be performing. All performers should arrive at school by 6:15. There will be an afterschool rehearsal on Monday (band students should have their instruments) from 3:30 to 5:00.
Remember that the March 13 professional day has been cancelled to make up a snow day. It will be a regular school day with students reporting on schedule.
February 24
Additions to the weekly update include Math Acuity testing for all of CHCS. This is a math test taken on computers and is on Tuesday for the sixth grade. Also, all students will be tested for scoliosis in PE classes on Friday, February 27 and Monday, March 2. Parents who do not want the postural screening must submit written documentation from a physician that a screening has been done.
February 23
There is nothing like a wintry February vacation to make us all want to break out of the house and come back to school! We do hope everyone had a relaxing time off as we hope for some signs of spring.
We are still accepting, with gratitude, donations of tissues and cleaning wipes.
Send in your boxtops! Mrs. Marley, our CHCS librarian, is sponsoring some sort of competition between homerooms with prizes offered.
February 10
Winter's wintry offerings have made it difficult for us to get momentum, which is important in learning and teaching. We will do the best we can with this challenge just as you no doubt are dealing with the snow on your home front.
Students with signed purple permisssion slips will be seeing the movie "Mr. Peabody and Sherman" on Friday. We also have permission to wear pajamas, bring in cocoa mix, and popcorn for this movie so it should be fun. It should be noted, as before, students have to bring in their own cocoa mix and their own popped popcorn as sharing of food is not allowed.
February 2
There will be no doubt about groundhogs seeing shadows with this storm! With 3 snow days down, we need to brace ourselves for the next 6 weeks. But what a great gift to allow everyone to watch a great SuperBowl without worrying about school the next day!
We are now into the official second half of the school year. Every once in awhile I scroll through the photo gallery of this site and it never fails to remind me how lucky I am to be here, doing this job, working in this community. There are twists and turns in the 180 day road that is sixth grade but it is quite a ride.
You should have seen the report card that went home last Friday. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.
Let's hope the weather allows us to get in some good weeks of learning before we enjoy February vacation. I don't want to rush the time with this collection of kids but I will welcome spring.
All CHCS students will go through DIBELS testing this week to evaluate fluency.
On another note, Mrs. Brown in the 6th grade classroom across from our team desperately needs a television monitor. If anyone has an extra television to donate to the school, it would be greatly appreciated!
January 25
This will be a challenging week as winter storm Juno threatens to dump a significant pile of
SITE MAINTAINED BY VICTORIA BLUNT and STEVE WALKOWICZ
CHESTNUT HILL COMMUNITY SCHOOL, BELCHERTOWN, MA
LAST UPDATED June 21, 2015
CHESTNUT HILL COMMUNITY SCHOOL, BELCHERTOWN, MA
LAST UPDATED June 21, 2015