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Our 8th graders will graduate on Monday.  Next fall they move on to high school at Brattleboro, Compass, Putney, and Leland and Gray.  And based on their Portfolio Presentations and Consortium, I am confident that they are well prepared.  I told you about the first Portfolio Presentations last Friday.  Suffice it to say that they continued in the same vein of excellence.  Then, last night at the Marlboro Town House, families and staff gathered to hear each student read a piece of writing that s/he had worked and reworked until it was the best.  Several students shared personal essays which made us laugh or cry or sit in thoughtful silence.  Others read narratives – some full of humor while others had us sitting on the edge of our seats with anticipation.  There were even two science pieces, one demonstrating how well written non-fiction can be and the other masterfully weaving scientific material into a fictional narrative.  Congratulations to Maddie, Alex, Emma, Liz, Charlotte, Nicolai, Skylar, and Audrey!  We wish you all the best and we will miss you!

We have other good-byes - to Sophie and Max and their family; to Brenda Kennedy who moves on to a teaching position in Whitingham; and to Sarah Rosow who will teach at Green Street School. Last week we bid farewell to the All Abilities students and staff.  Thanks to you all for your many contributions to MES!

These are our last Friday Notes for the year.  Gail and I have already begun to plan our Summer Notes, the packet of information which will come to you early in August.  Next year’s calendar is attached.  But, enough of that.  It’s been a privilege to work with you this year and I look forward to next.  May the summer months bring the opportunity for fun with your children as you enjoy long lazy days together.

Yesterday afternoon I participated in the first of the 8th grade graduation portfolio presentations. Starcie and Maddie, assisted by 7th graders Colby and Jackson, shared work from the past two years and read reflections on how the work demonstrates their growth and development in the Realms of Learning. Proud parents, Margo and Richard, and school board member, Gussie Bartlett, listened intently as Starcie, then Maddie presented and the teachers and I asked questions and gave feedback. The students were well organized and thoughtful. I came away with the strong sense that they know themselves - their strengths, challenges, and accomplishments - quite well and that this will serve them well as they move on to high school.

Kavon, Jake and the entire All Abilities Program is graduating from MES. Kavon and Jake move on to further education in new settings. Stephanie Betit is starting her own new adventure which you can learn more about by watching the news on WCAX (channel 3) this evening at 6, 10, or 11pm. Stephanie, along with former MES staff Carol Ortlip and Jake’s parents, Kathy and Bill Vranos, is starting the INSPIRE school for students with autism. Stephanie has earned widespread recognition and respect for her expertise in supporting the learning of students with autism. The National Association of Special Education Teachers has given her the 2008 NASET Outstanding Special Education Teacher Award. We will miss her, Colin Ahern, and Jen Davis next year in many, many ways – including daily trips to the post office and diligent oversight of Tuesday pizza! This year the pizza lunches brought in $600 for our student activities account. Thank you and good luck to Kavon, Jake, Stephanie, Jen, and Colin!!

When you stop by school, please be sure to take in the exhibit in the hall of photographs made by students in 5th/6th and the Junior High as part of an after school class with Eric Maxen of Insight Photography. Perspective, light, and concept are fascinating. Many thanks to Lisa Hecht for making the initial contact and Gail Chaine for following through with scheduling and registration, and assisting at all the sessions.

Other art work took place at the after school program this week as Rose worked with the kids on watercolors. Several parents arrived to pick up their children and found it hard to drag them away.

Exciting events are taking place all over school. A near record of 14 out of 16 eggs hatched into fluffy little chicks in the kindergarten. Kids in the Primary are completing models of a made up town and making maps complete with legend and compass rose. Wes and Leif made sure to include a baseball diamond in their towns. Paige has an Olive Garden restaurant for townsfolk to eat at after they visit the museum. Paul Skye’s town is named Miami and Lindsey’s is a Fairy Tale village. Brenda’s class is off to Ann’s Poetry Studio today and the 5th-6th grade is working hard to complete their study of the human body.

Today Erica Morse, our new 3rd-4th grade teacher, will visit and begin to get to know us. Welcome, Erica!

Please join me in extending a heartfelt thank you and warm welcome home to MES graduate (class of 2000) Brennan MacArthur who has just returned from seven months of service with the Marines in Iraq.

It was wonderful to see so many of you at the Spring Concert and Art Show – and what a show it was! After seeing and hearing the “pieces” of this work all year, it’s such a pleasure to have it all pulled together and presented by the excited students and received so enthusiastically by the appreciative families. Jazz, “Practicing Until the Cows Come Home”, self-portraits, rubbings, color wheels, and much more – and each piece represents perseverance, practice, attention and care – as well as the development of many skills. Thanks to you and to teachers, Lauren von Krusenstiern, Charlene Morse, David Tasgal, and Michael McKinney.

Starting next week 8th graders will be presenting their graduation portfolios to a panel consisting of their teachers, Rachel and Tim, another staff member and me. They will present work they’ve selected from the past two years organized into the Learning Realms: Communication, Problem Solving, Personal Development, Civic and Social Responsibility, and Knowledge. Each Realm will be introduced with a reflection by the student on his/her growth in that area. At the presentations,
a 7th grader will support each 8th grader and get a glimpse of what’s expected of them next year. I look forward to these celebrations of learning.

Next Tuesday is Field Day! We will spend the afternoon in fun multiage activities. Please be sure your child is dressed appropriately with good running shoes and clothes that can get wet (and dirty).

Last week I highlighted students teaching other students and I missed one outstanding example. Morgan and Max from the Primary have been studying the planets with Pam. They did lots of research and then put together a Power Point which they presented to the rest of their class. Did you know Mars has two moons? We all learned lots!

Congratulations to our Fitness Day participants: Frida, Liam, Delaney, Morgan, Sequoia, Devin, Calvin, Isobel, KJ, Rose, Luci, and Mesa. MES was well represented and received recognition for excellent sportsmanship as well as fast running and high jumping!

CUSTODIANS ARE NEAT
And we all agree! Today at Sing we appreciated our wonderful custodian, Tim Burns, by presenting him with cards, songs, pictures, pledges, and a banner inscribed with the statement above. In addition to all Tim does to keep the school looking good, he is also completing the certification necessary to do our water testing. There’s so much more to his job than meets the eye. Thanks, Tim!

I’m delighted to announce that Erica Morse will be our new 3rd-4th grade teacher. Erica is currently teaching 1st-2nd grade at Surry Village Charter School in NH. She is a graduate of MES and the daughter of our music teacher, Charlene. Erica will spend a day with us before the end of the year and will introduce herself more completely in a future Friday Notes.

Skits, soliloquies, and elevator jokes entertained all of us who attended the Junior High drama evening at the Whittemore Theatre. They started off with the play they took to Costa Rica. They wrote this as an answer to the question, “How does what we do in Vermont affect the people and country of Costa Rica?” In English and Spanish the play showed how choices we make around energy use and consumption contribute to global warming which in turn is having a direct affect of the cloud forests of Costa Rica.

The small size of our school means that everyone participates in activities that, in a larger school, might only include a self-selected group. All of the Junior High students went to Costa Rica and all of them participated in last night’s drama performance. Both of these events involved huge learning curves for everyone - for some more than for others. Taking risks and developing self confidence contribute to our learning. Another aspect of that learning is the appreciation we develop for each other as we learn about strengths and interests that come through in new situations. Several of the skits reminded me of how important it is to work together well. Mandy, Starcie, and Colby were so in sync in the last skit – a great example of cooperation coming to fruition.

Other scenes from our week at MES include Brenda’s class presenting their water projects and David’s class visiting downstairs to learn about the human bodies created by the kindergartners. The 5th and 6th grade students will use this as a beginning point for their own study of human biology.

On Monday morning teachers arrived to find an assortment of baked goodies in the staff room. On the playground on Tuesday we were serenaded by the band, Wendy and the Lost Boys, and three lucky staff members had their names drawn for massages. Yesterday a Middle Eastern feast was delivered at noon. Delicious! And today flats of flowers appeared for us to take home for our gardens. Thank you to all of P&F under Susanne Shapiro’s leadership! This has truly been Teacher Appreciation Week.

P&F is also in the spotlight for sponsoring TV and Screen Turnoff Week. Students who completed their pledges had their names in a drawing for certificates for Brattleboro Books and Altiplano. Rose, Liam, Adaylia, Frida, Aleah, and Wes had their names drawn this morning at Sing. Last Friday Tammy Purcell called Bingo for an enthusiastic crowd who also enjoyed snacks brought in by Jen Aither. Thanks to Susan Kunhardt and all of you who helped to make this happen.

And then there’s the playground! An able crew of workers under Dave Snyder’s direction got all the decking on the new structure. They plan to return tomorrow morning at 9am. Please come lend your hand!

Unless you’re headed down to BUHS for Girls on the Run… Taylor, Shawna, Katie, Luci, Aliza, Yarrow, Roshika, Sequoia, Grace, and Isobel will be running a 5K race. Thanks to Aliza’s mom, Madonna, and Katie’s mom, Carol, for heading up this great activity.

Throughout the year 4th-6th grade students have worked with Janine Manninen, our district math and science curriculum specialist, on Math Olympiad, a problem solving program. Last Friday, Erik, Ethan, Max L., and Isobel represented MES at the district competition and tied Dover Elementary for first place. Congratulations!

Welcome home to Ellen! After 3065 miles of cycling she dipped her front wheel in the Atlantic Ocean on May 2nd. Ellen is coming in every Friday to lead Sing with Tim and today we heard funny stories of all the different ways she and her fellow cyclists deterred the barking and biting dogs along their route. We’re glad you’re back, Ellen.

Thanks to all of you who completed the School Survey. The Action Plan committee is compiling the results and will have a summary for you before the end of the year. If, by chance, your survey is lying on the kitchen counter, there’s still time to send it in.

Should the Junior High accept a $750 grant towards the Costa Rica trip from Vermont Yankee? Should the Junior High continue to sell Mocha Joe’s coffee even though it does not carry the Fair Trade label? Is ecotourism good for Costa Rica? These questions were debated by Junior High students this week as one of the many ways in which their field research experience in Costa Rica is embedded throughout the curriculum. Next Tuesday evening they’ll present some of their learning to parents. All parents and community members are welcome.

Meanwhile, the 3rd-4th grade is conducting its own field research on wetlands and ponds by observing the amazing changes that take place in pond water collected in an aquarium and then traveling to the Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center to deepen their learning.

MES teachers are learning, too! Tomorrow is the second annual gathering of the New England Coalition of Progressive Educators, a regional branch of the Coalition of Essential Schools. Many of us will attend in order to experience and learn more about the importance of “personalization” and “depth over breadth”, two guiding principles in our work with your children. This meeting also provides a good opportunity to meet with other educators who are excited and knowledgeable about the craft of teaching. As a pre-conference day, we will have six such educators, one from Williamstown, MA and five from Maryland, visiting MES today to learn more about how we “do school”.

There are several parent/family opportunities coming up!! Don’t forget Family Bingo Night tonight at 7pm! P&F has organized this fun event to celebrate TV/Screen Turnoff Week. Refreshments and prizes are promised! Then, be sure to send in your child’s completed pledge, signed by you, on Monday. Next Friday, at All School Sing names will be drawn for gift certificates.

Saturday morning, 9-12, is Playground Workday. Izzie’s dad, Dave Snyder, has organized the materials and figured out next steps on the plans. Please join us for the next phase of construction. The kids are eager to play on the new structure!

Next Wednesday and Friday classes will be sharing their favorite poems from their work with Ann Gengarelly this year. We will publish the 2008 edition of Paper Feelings for them to read from and then it will go home. We hope that many of you can join us for these special readings! Please check the schedule below.

Over the next few weeks 4th and 8th graders will be taking the Science part of the NECAP assessment. This test is given in 3 sessions of 45-90 minutes. The last session includes a hands-on exploration and should be interesting! If you have any questions, please give me a call.

Welcome to Brenda Kennedy as the 3rd-4th grade teacher and to Elaine Ahnell, the assistant in that classroom. As many of you know, Brenda is the mother of Liam and Mesa and has been the assistant in the 3rd-4th grade classroom all year. She has also contributed her energy and talent to MES in many other ways – particularly to P&F, the Parents and Friends group. Elaine is an experienced teacher who retired from Connecticut and relocated to Wilmington. We are so lucky to have these two high caliber educators to finish out the year in the 3rd-4th grade classroom.

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Today we say good-bye to Jodi. At a very moving All School Sing each class honored her, sang songs to her, and shared memories as well as thoughts as to what her future may hold. The staff sang a special version of “Bye, Bye, Miss American Pie” (written by Judy) and Judy, Gail, and Sarah gathered pages from the whole school for Jodi’s own V.I.P. book. Jodi’s class presented her with a quilt they made, with a lot of help from Sandy Pentak. Each child created a unique square with decorations ranging from embroidered trees and imprinted photographs to math problems. It’s gorgeous! Jodi, we thank you for all that you’ve given to us in your eighteen years at MES. Your love and knowledge of the natural world and your commitment to your students’ social and emotional, as well as intellectual, development are only a few of the things that make you an outstanding teacher and beloved colleague. We wish you all the best!!

You’ll be hearing more about the Junior High trip to Costa Rica, so for now I’ll say it’s good to be home! We all learned so much and, as we traveled from Monteverde to San Luis to Playa Hermosa, we received many compliments on the students’ knowledge, their interest and attention, and their good behavior. Good job, Junior High! And thank you to everyone here who kept school running smoothly.

The process for hiring a new 3rd-4th grade teacher is underway. The committee undertaking this important work consists of P’tricia Wyse, Tim Hayes, Pam Burke, Lauren Poster and me. We’ve received many applications from well qualified candidates and hope to select someone by the end of May.

And now it’s time for Spring Vacation! May this wonderful weather continue so that your children and you can enjoy each other’s company as you watch the trees bud and the flowers bloom. We’ll all return relaxed and ready for many exciting end of year activities. See you on April 28th.

As we’re winding down with the March Reading Challenge Brenda and Jodi’s class continues to tantalize us with their book reviews. Last Friday we heard from Max, Calvin, Bridger and Sheldon and this week from Roshika, Yarrow, Sequoia, Sophie and Eddie. Great job!

Attached to this week’s Friday Notes (and available here) is a School Survey which the Action Plan Committee is sending out to get your input on how MES is doing. Every few years we ask parents to complete a survey. In a small school we often think we know how you feel but we often find out that there are both compliments and concerns we haven’t heard. This survey is one way of strengthening communication and evaluating our school/community environment. We value your input. Please take the time to complete it and return it to school by April 16.

Please look for a letter in the mail about upcoming emergency evacuation drills which will take place at MES later this month and in early May.

The Junior High is heading down to Costa Rica! They’ve been knocking themselves out fine tuning and rehearsing the play they’ll present there. I can’t wait to see it - which I will as I accompany them on this trip along with Rachel, Tim, and Peter, as well as parent chaperones Robin White, Phillip Johansson, and Jen Carr. I go down this Saturday to visit friends and prepare the way for the group’s arrival on Wednesday. We return on April 16th. In my absence David will be acting principal.

Last Friday (and a few afternoons this week) the school hummed with the purposeful sounds of your children sharing their work and their learning with you. Thanks for showing how you value their education by attending these conferences. And thank you to Junior High students Starcie, Zoe, and Mandy for providing childcare for younger siblings so that you could give your student your undivided attention.

Please come back on Monday at 6:30 p.m. for the Learning Fair where you’ll get a chance to see what kids are up to in other classes. A mural of maple sugaring in kindergarten, a quiz of your weather wiseness in the Primary, water experiments in 3rd/4th, shadow puppets in 5th/6th, and diagrams of a cloud forest ecosystem (Costa Rica!) in the Junior High are just a few of the wonderful things in store for you!

I forgot to tell you about the teachers’ professional learning work last Thursday on our early release day. We have used the three half-days during the year to work with Pam on improving our technology skills. Teachers are integrating technology into the classroom more and more, as well as using it in their own research and planning. This is a challenging field for many of us and there is so much to learn!

The After School Program (MASP) is running a regular program and will soon publish a weekly activity schedule so you and your child can decide to attend based on her/his interests. To reserve a spot, please leave a message on the MASP line – 246-6277. And just to entice you, Rose is planning to do water colors on Monday, March 31. We are committed to strengthening MASP and, to help with this, we’ve received an anonymous donation of $500 to put towards partial scholarships. I’ll have details on how to apply for this in next week’s Notes.

Thank you to the many parents who have volunteered to help with the search and hiring of the new 3rd-4th grade teacher. I’ll let you know the composition of this team next week. In the meantime, please join me for coffee or tea next Friday and we’ll discuss the attributes and qualities we want in our new teacher.

There are big changes in store for MES next year. After 18 years, Jodi will be leaving us. I was not happy to accept her letter of resignation but I know she’s thought long and hard and that it’s the right thing for her at this time. Please join me in wishing her well and thanking her for all she’s given to the school and to each of us.

Of course, this means we will be hiring a new 3rd-4th grade teacher for next year. I need a parent to be part of the hiring committee. This includes reviewing applications and participating in the interviews. Most of this work will take place at the end of April and beginning of May. Please call me if you are interested.

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How are you doing with your reading contract? One parent told me that it’s helping her find more time for the pleasure reading she enjoys while it’s encouraging her husband to get to his magazines and newspapers. And, of course, this is great modeling for their kids who are reading, as well!
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It’s good to be back! Of course there are no guarantees that the weather will behave but I fervently hope we won’t have any more cancellations. The forecast looks good for our last day of Winter Sports on Monday. Skiers and boarders will go to the Mountain. Skaters will return to the Marlboro Town Park where we had a great time this week! In addition to bringing sleds, kids should also bring snowshoes if they have them. We’ll take a small group on a snowshoe hike through the nearby woods.
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Fresh snow for our Winter Vacation! I hope you all enjoy the week ahead.

Remember, we come back on Monday, March 3 for our last day of Winter Workshops and then Winter Sports in the afternoon. Since the ice rink will be closed, the skaters and the “alternative” group will go sledding. Please send your children with appropriate clothing and favorite sleds!

On Monday evening at 6:30 you are all invited to the Outback to see what kids have learned and created during Winter Workshops. The evening should be delightful and varied with performances by dancers, drummers, and Japanese style storytellers and exhibits of pottery and books.

Today was Ellen’s last Sing until May. She leaves for San Diego on March 4th and will start pedaling her way back across the country soon after. She’s scheduled to arrive on the east coast on May 1st. We had a geography lesson as we looked at maps on the Outback wall and identified all the states she’ll be cycling through. Then we sang songs such as “This Land is Your Land” and “Oh, Susanna!” and finished with “Black Socks” – a favorite even if you’re not in a situation where doing laundry may be a challenge. Good luck, Ellen!

And, welcome to Sarah Rosow! She was an intern in Judy’s room last year and she will be Ellen’s sub for the rest of the year. We feel so lucky to have Sarah back at MES.

Town Meeting means school budget time. My deepest gratitude to the School Board and to Gail Chaine for all their work in helping to prepare a budget that is fiscally responsible and will enable us to continue to provide a strong education for your children. At Town Meeting the townspeople will also have the opportunity to approve a $5000 contribution towards the After School program. The need for quality after school care is clear and we hope to continue to strengthen it with affordable enrichment activities. In researching how other programs are funded, we’re finding that support from the local community is often an essential ingredient. We look forward to presenting this at Town Meeting and hope you will be there to voice your support!

See you at the Winter Workshop Showcase on Monday, March 3rd at 6:30 p.m.

Happy Valentine’s Day! Continue your celebration at the Junior High Valentine’s Dance this evening, 7-9:30 p.m. Delicious snacks and groovy music!

The Winter Workshop Showcase is coming up right after vacation. Please mark your calendar for Monday, March 3 at 6:30 p.m. The Outback will be set up with an exhibit of pottery and books while drumming, storytelling, and dance are performed on the “main stage”.

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On Tuesday WTSA reported that all the schools in Windham Central Supervisory Union were closed. This caused confusion for many of you. Because the weather and road conditions in Marlboro are often different from Townshend or Jamaica and because we have our own buses, we always make our own call about school cancellation or delays. Unless “Marlboro School in Marlboro, VT” is reported, we’re open. Again, your best source of information is the school web page, marlboroschool.net, or WTSA or WKVT. Both of these radio stations also have websites listing cancellations and two hour delays.

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When we speak of educating the “whole child”, we mean looking at social and emotional education as well as academic. The social/emotional curriculum at MES is front and center as it supports the academic curriculum. We know that kids need to be “available” for learning, meaning they need to be able to focus their energy on the task at hand and not what happened at recess. One of the hardest lessons to learn in school is that what’s fair should be based on what we need and that isn’t the same for everyone. This means kids need different supports. So, when children feel that something is unfair, we can help them to think about what the other people’s needs might be.

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On Monday we’ll get back in the swing of our winter schedule with Winter Workshops in the morning and Winter Sports in the afternoon. While the kids are off at Winter Sports the teachers will be taking a close look at our math program and identifying areas where we need to place more attention. Math is so different from what we as adults remember learning. More and more emphasis is put on using math skills to solve real world problems.

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