Blooming with positive news - Holyoke Public Schools€¦ · pared, and I am confident with ......

Spring 2010

Volume 8, Issue 3

Holyoke Publ ic Schools

Inside this issue:

• Meet Peck School’s Family Coordinator

2

• Family Notices • Bullying Essay Winner

4

• Grinspoon Photo

Essay

5

• Helping Haiti

6

• Talking Points

7

• Science

8

• Sports

10

Holyoke Public Schools Connections A Community Working Together

Our Web site: www.hps.holyoke.ma.us

• Spanish Highlights

13-16

By Dr. Eduardo B. Carballo

Superintendent of Schools

How nice to see signs of spring! Students have been working very hard over the winter months, and many have been preparing for various MCAS and MEPA tests in addition to performing their regu-lar school work. The students are looking forward to spring vacation and will have an opportunity to refresh themselves before the next round of testing begins for many of them. They have been well pre-pared, and I am confident with their effort and our continued encouragement and support, they will be very successful. It is impor-tant for them to get plenty of sleep and be well-rested, and the role of their parents in ensuring this is sincerely appreciated. We were pleased to see that the Drop-Out Rate has decreased by almost two full points. This is very positive news, and is the result of ongoing efforts in the district to perform better transitioning from the middle schools to high schools. This could not be achieved without the commitment of the counselors and staff at the high schools as well as the Gateway Program with Holyoke Community College and the ENLACE efforts under the leadership of Jaime Cotto. This downward trend is encouraging, however, we will work diligently to continue improvement in this im-portant area.

It was my pleasure again this year to notify the teachers who were selected as recipients of the Harold Grinspoon Excellence in Teaching Award. This is one of many re-warding roles of being a Superin-tendent. Holyoke Public Schools is very fortunate to have so many outstanding teachers, and as a result, it is not an easy task to select the final seven to be

awarded. Those re-ceiving this recogni-tion for 2010 are: Susan Cohen, Center for Excellence; Nor-mand LeBlanc, Dean Technical High School; Josiah Friedberg, Donahue School; Ana Malave, Morgan School; Justin Cotton, Peck School; Elaine Furtak, Sullivan School; and Carole Gamache, E.N. White School. Our congratulations go to each of them, and our thanks go to all of the dedicated teachers in the Holy-oke Public Schools. The winners are featured on page 5 of this issue of the Connections newsletter. Celebrate Holyoke Public Schools week is April 26 through April 30. Our Rising Stars recognition will take place this year on April 29, beginning with the Merry-Go-Round Reception (in which every-one is welcome) and ending with the banquet at Dean Technical. Each year students in grades six through 12 are recognized for excelling in scholarship, leadership, and citizenship. A complete list of the Rising Stars is on page 15. Congratulations to all of our Rising Stars! Again this year, the Holyoke High School Music Department pre-sented another spectacular musical production which received very positive reviews! This year, FAME, won the praise of the audiences. Our congratulations go to Direc-tor Mark Todd, and to all the stu-dents, staff, and others who worked to support this major effort. The City of Holyoke is very proud of our students’ perform-ances!

As many of you know, Holyoke High School Principal, David Du-pont, will be our next Superinten-dent of Schools. After the April vacation, the “Superintendent-in -Transition” will be coming on- board at the Central Office, and I am looking forward to working side-by-side with Mr. Dupont until the end of the school year as we deal with the many challenging issues he will face in July. The school district is very fortunate to have someone such as Mr. Dupont, who has dedicated his entire life to work on behalf of Holyoke School children. As I end my 8 ½ years as Superintendent of Schools, I cannot think of a better person to replace me in this role.

Holyoke Public Schools

Blooming with positive news

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Eduardo B. Carballo presents Josiah Friedberg of Donahue School his certificate on achieving The Harold Grinspoon

Excellence in Teaching Award.

Rising Stars

5

Grinspoon Winners

Page 5

Connections

Edited by - Kelly Doktor - [email protected] Editor Emeritus: Laura DuPont

Contributing to this issue:

Mission Statement The mission of the

Holyoke Public Schools is to provide educational opportunities for all

students to reach their full potential in a safe, secure,

healthy learning environment while valuing diversity and promoting responsible citizenship.

Holyoke School Committee

Mayor Elaine Pluta

William Collamore

Yvonne Garcia

Margaret Boulais

Gladys Lebron-Martinez

Howard Greaney

Dennis Birks

Michael Moriarty

Cesar Lopez

Devin Sheehan

Nora Burke Patton

Pauline Carriere

Amy Fitzgerald

Josiah Friedberg

Helen Gibson

Yvonne Hilyard

Ellen Jackson

Lois Keefe

Renee LaRue

Alison L’Heureux

Aaron Morris

Cheryl Parzich

Terri Pudlo

Virginia Roche

Hilary Russell

Miranda Smith

Jody Spitz

Sue Werenski

Mary Wright

SPECIAL THANKS TO:

Luz Aguilar

Carmen Sikand

Mike Hines

Aaron Patterson

Jeannie Stone

Judy Taylor

Maria Luisa Arroyo

Meet Peck’s Family Access and Engagement Coordinator

One of the highest priorities of the Peck Full Service Community School is family engagement, and as a result, María Luisa Arroyo has been hired as Peck’s Family Access and Engagement Coordi-nator. Arroyo brings a multilin-gual background of teaching at the high school, GED, and college levels, as well as having rich ex-perience as a local published poet. “I welcome and engage families as their children’s first educators and as true partners at Peck,” said Arroyo. Some of the projects Arroyo is currently working on include organizing a Summer Op-portunities Learning Fair for fami-lies, coordinating a Monthly Fam-ily Conversations/Charlas Series for parents about Supporting Learning at Home, coordinating Peck’s Parents-in-the-Classroom Project, and overseeing the design and development of Peck’s Family Resource Room. Another key component of the Family Engagement work at Peck is the establishment of Peck Par-ents United in Action (P-PUA), a FSCS parent-driven work group that meets three times a month.

Child-care is provided at all meet-ings. Through P-PUA, families learn about services, supports, and programming located within Peck and its attendance zone, as well as to find out about upcom-ing volunteer opportunities in the school and in the classroom. P-PUA oversees Peck’s Parent Am-bassador Program, which matches the skills and talents of family members with classroom curricu-lar foci and other school-wide needs. Arroyo is also at Peck to connect families with services to address basic and immediate needs. As a Full Service Community School, Peck offers sign-ups and support through the Virtual Gateway’s Common Intake for families need-ing to sign up for (among others) MassHealth, Women, Infants and Children (WIC), subsidized child care, and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) bene-fits. Families can also be referred to in-house medical and mental health services through Peck’s partnership with River Valley Counseling Center’s school-based health center, and a comprehen-

sive Case Manage-ment program is offered for fami-lies in crisis. “Being a part of the Peck commu-nity has been a joy for me as we – faculty, staff, community partners, and families - work together and, as a result, have redefined what ‘community’ is,” said Arroyo. “The excitement and spirit of collaboration I experienced at the 2010 FSCS Full Partnership Meet-ing with over 60 community part-ners, faculty, staff, and parents, affirmed that we as a collective group are moving together in the right direction in the best interest of all our students and their fami-lies.” For more information, contact Maria Luisa Arroyo at (413) 534-2040 or email her at: [email protected].

Maria Luisa Arroyo

Volume 8, Issue 3

http://www.hps.holyoke.ma.us

_____________________

What’s New on the Web

By Judy Taylor

District Homepage

http://www.hps.holyoke.ma.us

NEW • Take a look at the

Announcements section for information regarding the district Grinspoon winners for Excellence in Teach-ing. Photo highlights and teacher profiles are included.

• Click on the Kinder-garten Registration link within the An-nouncements section for contact informa-tion regarding the ap-plication process for children who will be 5 years old on or before September 1, 2010.

• Teacher professional development informa-tion is now listed at: http://www.hps.holyoke.ma.us/teachers.htm

• Updated Annual Meas-urable Achievement Objectives documents are available at: http://www.hps.holyoke.ma.us/ell.htm

HHS Web site http://www.hps.holyoke.ma.us/hhs/index.html

• The Guidance/Career Center link provides weekly announce-ments, college visits, testing information, career options, sup-port, scholarships, and college acceptances.

In celebration of Dr. Seuss’ birthday on March 2nd, the Title I team was busy with a Dr. Seuss Family Night at McMa-hon School. At right, the Cat in the Hat (Ronnie Authier) is flanked by first graders Davis O’Connell (l) and Saman-tha Authier. Below, Antonio Correa reads a Dr. Seuss book with his daughter Chantel.

Dr. Seuss!

The William R. Peck School music teacher Peg Boulanger celebrated Dr. Seuss’ birthday with the kindergarten and first-grade students set-ting Dr. Seuss’ book Green Eggs and Ham to music. The students read the book along with Boulanger and set it to song and used rhythm sticks.

Green Eggs and Ham

The staff of the Holyoke High School student newspaper, The Herald, received seven awards at the 39th Annual Scholastic Press Forum held at American International College in March. The Herald took first place as best newspaper and also first place in photography, profiles, editori-als, and cartoons. The team also placed fourth place for news feature story.

Holyoke Herald wins

On March 15th, students in Suzanne Marx’s sixth-grade math classes at Mor-gan School enjoyed a day-long celebration of Pi, the mathematical explanation of the relationship between the circumference and diameter of a circle. Stu-dents explored the age of philosophy, the history of mathematics, irrational numbers, and different mathematical relationships. The day began with the discovery of Pi. Each student was given a circle of a different size. Using rulers and calculation skills, students measured the circumference of their individual circles. After measuring the circumference and the diameter of their circles, students were asked to calculate the circumference ÷ diameter. Most stu-dents found a number close to 3.1415…Students enjoyed a short read-aloud of Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi by Cindy Neuschwander. Classes also explored The Joy of Pi, by David Blatner. Some students created a “Pi chain” using different colors of paper to represent the digits of Pi. Several stu-dents from each class also participated in a memory contest, with one student memorizing the digits of Pi to the 14th digit! In addition to discovering, reading, and reciting Pi, many students created “Pi Post-ers” for display in the classroom. As a final activity to remember Pi Day 2010, each student was given a Pi pencil with the message “Everyone Loves Pi, It’s Irrational!”. Most importantly, students connected important higher-level mathematical thinking to their own everyday lives and had fun at the same time!

Morgan Mathematicians Celebrate “Pi”

The luck of the Irish was with Kelly School on March 17th. Kelly School once again hosted its annual Irish Luncheon. Members of the Kelly School community feasted on traditional Irish fare, such as corned beef, potatoes, cabbage, and shepherd’s pie. Lavish decorations and upbeat Irish music made the atmosphere festive. Organized by paraprofessionals Noranne Duquette and Diane Baez, the luncheon is one of the highlights of the year at Kelly School. Vice-Principal, Jackie Glasheen, summed up the festive feeling by saying, “It was a fantastic Irish Luncheon, such a great day! I am lucky to work with such terrific people.”

Kelly School annual St. Patty’s Day luncheon

Connections

Parents and Guardians of Current 6th Graders: In order to enter 7th grade in September 2010, documentation of

the following requirements will need to be submitted to the School Nurse:

Physical Exam (done within 1 year or copy of appointment date); 2 doses of Measles vaccine (MMR); 3 doses of Hepatitis B Series vaccine; Tetanus Booster (within last 5 years); and the Varicella

vaccine (or physician documented case). **Beginning in September 2011, the Department of Public Health

is implementing new requirements for 7th grade entry. Those changes will be announced in the Spring 2011 newsletter.

Holyoke Public Schools Eduardo B. Carballo, Superintendent

Now Enrolling for School Year 2010-2011

Children must be 5 years old on or before September 1, 2010.

Applications available at the Student Assignment Office 57 Suffolk Street, 1st floor

Registration by appointment only by calling 534-2007

HPS Summer School

Tentative Dates

July 6 - August 5

Student signups begin in May.

Applications will be available at all

schools.

The Maurice A. Donahue commu-nity is pleased to announce one of its seventh-grade students, Kayla Michon, recently placed 2nd in the NIE (Newspapers in Education) “Kids in Print” annual arts and writing contest. Her essay and pro-file were printed in The Republican’s March 9, 2010 edition. Due to recent news of student suicides related to bullying, this year’s theme addressed what could be done to help put a stop to this consequential and cruel behavior. Tracy Russell, seventh- grade ELA teacher, received a copy of the contest that she shared with the class. Since the students were working on a research unit, Michon was able to incorpo-rate her essay into the class curriculum. Both Michon and Russell worked on the essay together before the start of school and during MCAS prep periods. In Russell’s words, “I am happy for Kayla because she struggled with being bullied at the beginning of the year. She stood up for herself and re-ported the problems to us. The issues were resolved and she

Congratulations Kayla Michon

A positive result from being bullied

ELA teacher Tracy Russell and published author Kayla Michon.

Continued on page 12

Volume 8, Issue 3

Normand LeBlanc, Jr. - Dean Josiah Friedberg - Donahue

Carol Gamache - E.N. White

Ana Malave - Morgan

Elaine Furtak - Sullivan Justin Cotton - Peck Susan Cohen - Center

for Excellence

Letter from Superintendent Dr. Carballo: It is with pride and pleasure that I announce the dis-trict’s 2010 Grinspoon Foundation – Pioneer Valley Excellence in Teaching Award winners from Holyoke Public Schools. The Grinspoon Foundation alloted seven spots to our district this year to recognize and honor teachers for their tremendous impact on chil-dren and their community. This is a prestigious award and honorable recognition to an educator. Every year, I am presented with the difficulty of choosing a limited number of winners in a system with so many deserving teachers. Funding for the awards program is provided again this year from the Irene E. & George A. Davis Foundation, the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Founda-tion, MassMutual Financial Group, Myers Bros. & Kalicka, P.C., The Reminder, Southworth Paper Com-pany, The Springfield Republican, STCU Credit Union, Westfield State College Foundation, WGBY Channel 57, Channels 40 & 22, Big Y, The Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House, and the local YMCAs. The celebration honoring teachers from Holyoke and surrounding com-munities will take place on May 13, 2010 at the Log Cabin in Holyoke. If you have any questions regarding this ceremony or award, you can contact: Carmen E. Sikand, Assistant Director of Human Resources at 413-534-2000 Extension 219 or contact her via email at: [email protected].

Connections

Holyoke Helps Haiti

The classes of Kiely Rigali and Andrew Leveton, from the Center for Excellence, led the humanitarian effort to raise money for Haitian relief. Over $278 was raised, one penny at a time, in an effort to help the Haitian people after the deadly earthquake that struck the Car-ibbean Island. The students from the two classes collected money daily from students and staff. Pictured left to right: Joshua Suriel, Jefforey Johnson, Rick Lee from the Red Cross, Jessie Caisse, Joseph Cintron, and Kiely Rigali, teacher.

Students and staff at Sullivan School raised over $900 for Haitian relief.

E.N. White School fourth-grader, Mary-Catherine Whalen, was upset by the devastation caused by the earthquake in Haiti so she decided to be proactive in do-ing something to help the victims of this disaster. She wrote a letter to Principal Ellen Jackson suggesting a fund-raiser. With help from her classmates, the fourth grade decided on a “Hats for Haiti” day. The students made posters and encouraged their friends to wear their favor-ite hat to school for $1.00. With great pride, the students of E.N. White School presented a check to the Red Cross for $500.00.

Maurice A. Donahue students recently raised money to help the victims of Haiti’s earthquake. This civic effort was named “Helping Hands for Haiti.” The project was a resound-ing success, and exceeded all expectations. Connections is pleased to present the following inter-view with one of the organizers behind the fundraising effort, Iwona Langlois, 6th grade ELA teacher.

Connections: How did you come up with the idea for “Helping Hands for Haiti?” Langlois: Mrs. Leenders (6th grade math) and I were talking about what we could do after we heard the devastating news. We have always made an effort to familiarize our students with events happening in the world. Events like this help students learn compassion and visualize the world beyond their neighborhoods. It is amazing how generous and caring our students are when given the opportunity.

Connections: How did you go about organizing this effort?

Langlois: After doing some research, we talked about the best way to connect our community to it. We came up with “Helping Hands for Haiti” and had every sixth grader work on posters. We traced the hands of students from kindergarten all the way through the eighth grade. The hands were colored in as we reached our fund-raising goals. We chose to donate to the Red Cross because they are a reputable organization. They were engaged with our effort, sending a representative to the school and mailing certificates to applaud our effort.

Connections: What were fundraising goals? Langlois: We thought maybe we could raise about $500. Students were very generous and we raised the bar to $750 but donations eventually exceeded $1000. Lots of pennies! Kids were donating their snack money, allowances and even collected cans. We really worked on letting kids know what it meant to contribute from the heart. What really mattered was not how much they gave, but what was behind it.

Volume 8, Issue 3

• Thanks to a successful grant written by librarian Renee LaRue, the Peck School library collection will soon be expanding. The National Education Associa-tion (NEA) Foundation has awarded Peck School one of only 43 Books Across America $1,000 School Li-brary Grants for 2010. LaRue’s application was one of more than 650 submitted for the grant.

• Robin Marion, one of Peck’s Full Service Community School partners (through Peck’s ACCESS committee), organized “A Day at Hampshire College” for approxi-mately 30 eighth-grade students. Students visited the Hampshire College campus on April 7 to get a tour of the school and receive further college/career guid-ance.

• Thirty eighth-grade students will attend the Westfield State College Early College Awareness Day on May 7. This event takes place every year in an effort to educate middle school students about the possibilities awaiting them in higher educa-tion. Coordinated by Katelyn Shea, Assistant Director of Admission at the college, the half-day program includes a campus tour, a college information game/activity portion, and lunch in the Dining Commons.

• Peck held a Full Service Community School Full Partnership meeting this spring with more than 60 community partners, faculty, administration and par-ents. The meeting was a time to share and to cele-brate progress of the continued efforts to transform Peck into a Full Service Community School.

• Peck is in the midst of making a school video to wel-come families into the programs, services, and oppor-tunities available as a Full Service Community School. A screening party will be held in June.

• Peck will hold a Family Health and Resource Fair on Friday, May 28 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. More than 20 community organizations will share resources and prevention education with students and families.

E.N. White parent volunteer Janet Langevin creates a special welcoming touch to the school entrance each month. The staff at E.N. White send her this Irish blessing: “May your smile be as bright as a shamrock and your heart be as light as a song, may each day bring you happiness and stay with you all year long.”

McMahon fifth-graders took to the ice at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, where they opened a Springfield Falcons hockey game by sing-ing the national anthem. “There were 16 students who sang, and about 90 supporters from McMahon in the stands,” said music teacher Russell Scott. “They did a great job.” Student Tamara Rivera said, “It was really great to be out there to sing in front of all those people!”

Andrew Crowley (l) and

Brouche Dominguez from Donahue School are the Holyoke Gas and Elec-tric winners of the recent

safety poster contest.

Peck School News...

Christopher Perez from Nicole Fisher’s kindergarten class at E.N. White School gets all wrapped up in Eric Carle’s The Very Busy Spider’s web during a performance to culmi-nate the Eric Carle Author Study unit. Fisher’s student teacher, Miss Blais, assisted the students in devel-oping their roles in the play and cre-ating their own costumes and props.

Connections

Gini Traub, from the Massachusetts Department of Con-servation and Recreation, visited the fourth-grade classes at William R. Peck School to present “This Valley Rocks,” a hands-on geological history demonstration. Students studied different rocks from the Connecticut River Valley, created a mock landslide, observed the effects of erosion, and identified properties of rocks. The students benefited from the interactive activities that supported what they have been learning in their fourth-grade Rocks and Minerals unit. In the photograph above, L to R: Genesis Cruz, teacher Mary Beth DeLisi, Emelymary Almonte and Juan Rosado examine samples of earth materials.

“This Valley Rocks!”

Art and science came together when educators from the Hitchcock Cen-ter for the Environment in Amherst and the Enchanted Circle Theater in Holyoke recently visited fifth-grade classes at William R. Peck School for six days. Ted Watt from the Hitchcock Center and Aaron “Brando” Brandes from Enchanted Circle Theater helped students to see the connections between their respective disciplines through activi-ties that incorporated elements of both. Students made observations of plants and animals on school grounds, shared their experiences through interviews with classmates, and then communicated what they learned to the whole class. They also prac-ticed presentation skills through theater games, designed and conducted an experiment to see which foods mice preferred, and wrote and illustrated poems using sensory details from their outdoor observations. Entitled “Get Out! Inquiry Science Through the Arts on the School Grounds,” the project was funded by the Massachusetts Cultural Council Creative Schools Program.

“Get Out!” Inquiry Science

Ted Watt assists Lissette Almonte with her poem.

Gini Traub, scientist from the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), recently visited the fifth and sixth grade science students at Maurice A. Donahue School. She brought dioramas of three environments and animals commonly found in the Pioneer Valley. Using clues about their animal’s needs and adaptations, students were challenged to match their animal with the best environment. Animal survival and success is based on how well animals can get food, water and shelter. "The collaboration with the DCR is about letting students see and explore the environments and the animals around them in the Pioneer Valley," said Caleb Snow, science teacher at Dona-hue. "Students become excited when they realize that there are animals like bobcats, beavers and otters living in the areas very close to their houses," said Snow. Jailene Delgado, a sixth-grade student, commented on her experience. "My animal was a muskrat and I learned that they live in a lodge in the water. So they need an environment that has plenty of ponds and rivers.”

Department of Conservation and Recreation

Animal Adaptations

Gini Traub and sixth-graders Angel Guzman, Adrian Ortiz, Hector Cabrera and Abdul

Mendoza work on a diorama.

McMahon School’s seventh and eighth-grade students recently boarded buses for the long trip from Holyoke to the Boston Harbor, where students spent the day exploring the wonders at the New England Aquarium. The students received a grant from the aquarium which covered the cost of admission, and students held fundraisers to help pay for the buses. Seventh-grader Anthony Skuse said, “There was an ecosystem from the Caribbean Sea with a fake reef and sharks, turtles and a fish that looked like a tuna along with a fish that sparkled like a diamond.” Science teacher Rachael Gazzillo, one of the trip organizers, said “I was so happy they got to have this rich learning experience.”

McMahon School

New England Aquarium trip

School Chemical Cleanout Campaign This summer, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will be helping the Holyoke Public School district implement a chemical management system which will ensure the schools are free from chemical hazards. In addi-tion, the EPA staff will provide teachers with training in safe chemical man-agement, pollution prevention and Green Chemistry in the upcoming year. By implementing an integrated program, it will provide a healthier environ-ment for students, teachers and support staff.

Volume 8, Issue 3

Fifth-grade students from Sullivan School and Michael E. Jackowski, lead teacher for World Is Our Classroom, Inc., participated in a “design challenge” during a visit to the Hazen Paper Company. The Holyoke Manufacturing Education Initia-tive provides students with hands-on, “real world” applica-tions of science and technology that are linked both to their school curriculum and to the local manufacturing industry. In its sixth year at Hazen Paper, more than 2,400 Holyoke Public School students have participated in the program which is offered to all fifth-graders in the city. World Is Our Class-room, Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c) (3) corporation that seeks to provide the region’s educational community with innovative programs that emphasize real-world experiences that are focused in the areas of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and manufacturing.

The World is Our Classroom

No, they weren’t out at sea! Instead, Kris Machnik’s seventh-grade science class created their own Bottle Biology for a closed ecosystem demonstrat-ing the water cycle to see how all the components of the ecosystems work together ~ soil, water and plants. Two 2-liter plastic bottles were cut and reconfigured to make a giant water bottle for each group. They were able to observe the water cycle with an aquatic plant in the bottom with a wick system. Pebbles and aquatic life could be observed; a tiny guppy in one, a tiny snail in another. The soil provided grass to grow. The ecosystems were periodically moved from sun to shade to provide proof of the effect of the sun on plant growth.

Students in grades 6-8 from Morgan School had the amazing opportunity to go to MIT in Boston in March to attend the Science Ex-travaganza. Eighth-grade science teacher Yvonne Hilyard and 50 students from the school had the opportunity to tour the campus and talk with other minority students who attend MIT and are going into science-related careers including engineering and technology. Students got to go into a real lab and look at projects that students are working on and participate in making their own mousetrap car, Oobleck, ice-cream, and many other projects. Students learned that anything is possible and science is a great way to discover and develop things in the world including new technology such as with the iPhone and Microsoft products. Eighth-grader Ricardo Vazquez commented, "My favorite part of the trip was when the governor, Deval Patrick, was giving his speech because it was interesting hearing about his life growing up.” Through this trip, students realized anything is possible. If you have an idea for a project, test it out! You could be the next Bill Gates or someday go to the moon. If you have enough determina-tion and motivation you can achieve your goals. Yes you can! ¡Sí se Puede!"

Science in a bottle

Morgan students visit MIT

Robotics at McMahon

By Noreen Ewick

You are probably familiar with robotics in movies, television shows and science-fiction writing. They are able to talk, think, move and feel. But in reality, a robot is just a system of parts. These parts include a movable physical structure, a motor, a sensor system, a power supply and a computer “brain” that controls all of the parts. The computer is programmed or instructed to do specific tasks. Sixth-grade students in Noreen Ewick’s class at McMahon School are learning that and much more! As part of their “Specials” schedule, groups of students participate in a robotics program

twice a week. Working in teams of two, students practice problem solving strategies and communication skills to complete a series of tasks. Incorporating mathematics and science standards, the engi-neering design process, inquiry-based thinking and hands-on activi-

ties; robotics provides an opportunity for the students to show cooperative learning and perseverance. In addition, students are required to write reflection responses after completing a task, and to engage in extension activities that integrate concepts from other curriculum areas. Using LEGO Mindstorms education kits and a curriculum developed in conjunction with UMASS and the Learning Physics with Robotics Curriculum Working Group, students are challenged to identify LEGO building pieces, build a basic robot, program the robot to move forward and backward and respond to different types of sensors. After these basic skills have been mas-tered, students will move on to challenges such as, Light and Dark Scavenger Hunt and Cave Explorer. Student Cameron Hartling said, “It is fun learning to build robots and program them. You have to try and try again.” Deziray DeJesus said, “Robotics is cool, but it frustrated me sometimes, because you have to keep on trying and not give up”.

Eduardo Ramirez assembles his robot.

Summer Connections Newsletter Deadline ~ May 14, 2010

Connections

Visit the Holyoke High School Sports Web Site at: http://www.hps.holyoke.ma.us/athletics.htm

HOLYOKE HIGH SCHOOL:

• The varsity girls’ basketball team finished its season with impressive victories against East Longmeadow, Central and Minnechaug finish-ing with a regular season record of 18-2. They won the league title for the second time in school history and they qualified for the MIAA Playoffs as the #2 seed. They made it to the semi-finals against East Longmeadow where they unfortunately lost by one point after battling back from a 26-point deficit. • The varsity boys’ basketball team finished its season with a record of 11-9 which qualified them for the MIAA Playoffs for the first time in 3 years (2007 was the last time they qualified – the same year they were Western Massachusetts Champions). They received the 7th seed in the playoffs. They lost to Chicopee in the first round of the playoffs. • The indoor track team had three athletes qualify for the State Championships. Erin Corrigan (300 meters), Cody Hodgins (2-mile), and Kris Tardy (300 meters) each participated in the meet at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston. • Two school records were broken in indoor track. Erin Corrigan has a new record in the 300 meter race and Rachel Brochu broke the old shot put record held by Carla Stauber with a throw of 28-00.50. • Indoor Track Highlights from the Western Mass Indoor Track Championships include: • Cody Hodgins placed 2nd in the mile with a time of 4:43. • Boys 4x800 placed 6th with a time of 9:22 with members Cody Hodgins, Rhys Duquette, Jason Arble, and Captain Evan Bibeau • Freshman Rhys Duquette ran a 10:38 in the two mile. • Jonathan Gray places 7th in the shot put with a personal record throw of 40-8.5 • The ice hockey team finished the regular season with a record of 18-1-1 and an overall record of 21-2-1. The Knights won the league title for the 3rd straight season. The team won the Western Mass Championship for the 2nd consecutive season beating Agawam 3-2 in the finals. They lost to Oakmont in the State Finals 4-2. • The swim team won the MIAA and the Referee’s Association Team Sportsmanship Award for both the boys and girls team. Molly Burns qualified for the W. Mass Championships for the second consecutive year in swimming. • Hannah Harazmus qualified for the State Championships in Alpine Skiing DEAN TECH HIGHLIGHTS:

• The Dean boys’ basketball team finished the regular season with a record of 17-3 and they won the Tri-County League Title. The boys’ basketball team qualified for both the State Vocational Tournament and the MIAA Tournament. In the State Vocational semi-finals, they won by 40 points against Cape Cod Technical HS advancing them to the State Vocational Finals. They lost in the finals to North Shore Technical HS finishing runner-up in the State Vocational Championship for the Small Division. The team was seeded 8th in the MIAA Play-offs. In the first tournament game, the Golden Hawks beat Monson High School in the preliminary round of the playoffs. They traveled to the #1 seed New Leadership Charter School in Springfield and unfortunately lost which ended the season. They finished with an overall record of 19-5, League Champions, and Vocational State Runner-Up. Josue Figueroa scored his 1000th point at the State Vocational Semi-Finals at Assabet Regional Technical High School against Cape Cod Technical HS. This was the second consecutive season the team quali-fied for the State Vocational and the MIAA Tournament. • The Dean girls’ basketball team finished the season with a record of 8-8 which qualified them for the MIAA Playoffs for the first time in over 10 years. The girls’ basketball team lost to Hopkins Academy in the first round of the MIAA Division 3 Championship. The wrestling team finished the season with great success. At the Western Massachusetts Championships 5 wresters placed and two quali-fied for the State Championships. David Brazeau and Raul Torres both advanced to the State Championship meet and Travis Wells, Jose Gomez and Gary Charlton placed at the Western Mass Championships.

Volume 8, Issue 3

Athletes pictured clockwise: The Holyoke High School bas-

ketball team; Juan Lopez receiv-ing the Most Outstanding Player

Award at the 2010 Hoophall Classic; Sean O’Donnell, HHS hockey; Zeila Quinones, Dean

basketball; Monique Heard; HHS basketball; Foster Alston;

Dean basketball; David Brazeau, Dean wrestling; and the HHS

Swim Team.

Photos by www.sweetdogphotos.com

Connections

On Thursday, March 18, 2010, Maurice A. Donahue held its first MCAS Pep Rally and Ice Cream Social for students and parents. Over 200 people were in atten-dance at the event, and teacher volunteers diligently created sundaes for each and every individual. High-lights of the night included a motivational speech by Principal Amy Fitzgerald, a performance from the sixth grade, and a slideshow showing staff and students readying themselves for the test. Also included in the evening, was the world premiere of the music video for “Beat it (the MCAS).” This video included lyrics writ-ten by sixth-graders under the direction of Iwona Lan-glois; choral singing directed by our music teacher, Ray Crooks; and video-editing by Donahue’s award-winning Library Media Specialist, Josiah Friedberg. Above, Cathy Desrosiers enjoys ice cream with the children. The energy at this event was palpable, and if enthusiasm is any indication of test results, this year will be Dona-hue’s best yet. If other schools are interested in view-ing the video, please contact Principal Amy Fitzgerald for a DVD.

The spirit of greatness is alive and well at E.N. White School! There were cheers, hoorays and “thumbs ups” her-alding in the gymnasium as Principal Ellen Jackson presented E.N. White students with Certificates of Achievement recognizing MCAS proficiency. Every year, Principal Jackson invites parents and students to join together to acknowledge the hard work of all E.N. White students during the busy MCAS testing season. The embossed certificates serve as a positive incentive for students to strive for their personal best as they participate in the rigorous Mas-sachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System.

Above, Hector Abreu and Belkis Santiago were crowned King and Queen on this particular day by fourth-grade math teacher Julie Griffin-Pluta. Students are chosen daily as a math motivator to recognize hard work and good math energy.

• The Latency/Adolescent Program at Morgan School has been participating in a program spon-sored by the Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society titled Character Education Program. Lori Swanson, the Education and Outreach Manager for Dakin brings shelter animals that have been abused, neglected, and/or mistreated. As the students work with these animals they naturally develop empathy and understanding for them. The students also begin to have a better understanding of themselves and others, build social skills, and increased feelings of

competence. It has long been known that children who experience difficulty in social relationships benefit from engaging responsibility with animals. In addition, the program assists in averting animal cruelty and in turn improves our relationships with each other by teaching acceptance, compassion, and integrity.

• Maria Pelcher from the Holyoke Fire Department has been visiting the Latency/Adolescent Program at Morgan School talking with students about fire safety. Pelcher has brought different guest speakers in-cluding a firefighter from the Springfield Fire Department as well as an arson investigator. The students have learned about the dangers of playing with fire, ways to remain safe in the event of a fire, as well as potential fire hazards in the home.

Morgan School Latency Program By Alison L’Heureux, LICSW

Trying on fire equipment

Continued from page 4 …is much happier coming to school. She found a way to turn a trying experience into an opportunity to help all the young people of Holyoke.” Here is an interview with Kayla Michon:

Connections: What inspired you to write this essay?

Kayla: I’ve been bullied before and I wanted to help put a stop to it.

Connections: Do you have any advice for anyone experiencing being bullied? Kayla: Just ignore them and walk away. If you argue or fight with them, sometimes people will think that you are the one who started the fight, and you will get in trouble.

Connections: Do you have anyone you’d like to thank for helping you with this achievement? Kayla: Mrs. Russell helped me by telling me about the contest and helping with some of the words. I also want to thank my older sister, Jennifer (at Holyoke High), for helping me.


Volume 8, Issue 3

Primavera 2010

Estos son los puntos mas sobresalientes del Boletin

Escuelas Publicas de Holyoke

Floreciendo con noticias positivas

Por Dr. Eduardo B. Carballo

Superintendente de Escuelas

Es tan agradable ver señales de la primave-ra! Los estudiantes han estado trabajando muy fuerte durante los meses de invierno, y muchos han estado preparándose para va-rias pruebas de MCAS y MEPA además de hacer su trabajo escolar regular. Los estu-diantes esperan con mucha ilusión las vaca-ciones de primavera y tendrán una oportu-nidad de refrescarse antes de que la siguien-te ronda de pruebas comience para muchos de ellos. Ellos han estado bien preparados, y yo confío que con su esfuerzo y nuestro estímulo y apoyo continuo, ellos serán muy exitosos. Es importante para ellos dormir y descansar, y el papel de sus padres es ase-gurar que esto es sinceramente apreciado. Estábamos muy complacidos ver que ha disminuido el abandonar la escuela por casi dos puntos completos. Estas son noticias muy positivas, y es el resultado de esfuerzos en el Distrito para trabajar mejoren la tran-sición de las escuelas intermedias a escuelas secundarias. Esto no se podía lograr sin el compromiso de los consejeros y personal en las escuelas secundarias así como el Programa Gateway con el Centro Universi-tario de Holyoke y los esfuerzos de ENLA-CE bajo el mando de Jaime Cotto. Esta tendencia hacia abajo es alentadora, sin embargo, trabajaremos diligentemente para seguir la mejora de esta área importante. Fue un gran placer de nuevo este año en notificar a los maestros que fueron selec-cionados como recipientes de la Excelencia de Harold Grinspoon en el Premio de la Enseñanza. Este es uno de los muchos pape-les provechosos de ser un Superintendente. Las Escuelas Públicas de Holyoke son muy afortunadas tener a tantos maestros excep-cionales, y como resultado, esta no es una tarea fácil de seleccionar los siete finalistas para ser premiados. Aquellos recibiendo

este reconocimiento para el 2010 son: Susan Cohen, CFE - Centro para la Excelencia; Normand Le-Blanc, Escuela Secundaria Dean Técnica; Josiah Friedberg, Escuela Donahue; Ana Malavé, Escuela Morgan; Justin Cotton, Escuela Peck; Elaine Furtak, Escuela Sulli-van; y Carole Gamache, Escuela E.N. White. Nuestras felicitacio-nes van a cada uno de ellos, y nuestros agradecimientos van a todos los maestros dedicados en las Escuelas Públicas de Holyoke. Celebre la semana de las Escuelas Públicas de Holyoke el 26 de abril hasta el 30 de abril. Nuestro reco-nocimiento de las Estrellas Crecien-tes – Rising Stars ocurrirá este año el 29 de abril, comenzando con la Recepción de Merry-Go-Round (en la cual cada uno es bienvenido) y terminando con el Banquete en la Escuela Dean Técnica. Cada año los estudiantes en los grados seis a doce son reconocidos por sobresalir en beca, liderazgo y ciudadanía. Usted leerá más sobre esto más adelante. ¡Felicitaciones a todas nuestras Estrellas Crecientes! ¡Otra vez este año, el Departamento de Música de la Escuela Secundaria de Holyoke presentó otra producción musical especta-cular que recibió revisiones muy positivas! Este año, FAME, ganó el elogio de la audien-cia. Nuestras felicitaciones van al Director, Mark Todd, y a todos los estudiantes, per-sonal, y otros que trabajaron para apoyar este esfuerzo principal. ¡La Ciudad de Hol-yoke está muy orgullosa con las interpreta-ciones de nuestros estudiantes! Como mucho de ustedes saben, nuestro Principal de la Escuela Secundaria, David Dupont, será nuestro próximo Superinten-dente de las Escuelas. Después de las vaca-ciones de abril, 'el Superintendente en Transición' vendrá a La Oficina Central, y deseo trabajar al lado con el Sr. Dupont

hasta el final de año escolar mientras trata-mos con muchas cuestiones desafiantes que él tendrá en julio. El Distrito Escolar es muy afortunado en tener a alguien como el Sr. Dupont, que ha dedicado su vida entera para trabajar con los Alumnos en Holyoke. Ya que termino mis 8 ½ años como Super-intendente de Escuelas, no puedo pensar en una mejor persona para sustituirme en este papel.

Dr. Eduardo Carballo felicita a Ana Malave en su Premio de Grinspoon.

Connections

2010-2011 La Escuelas Publicas de Holyoke Eduardo B. Carballo, Superintendente

EMPEZANDO EL 5o DE ABRIL 2010

Los niños tienen que cumplir los 5 años en o antes del 1o de septiembre, 2010.

Solicitudes disponibles en LA OFICINA DE ASIGNACIÓN

57 Suffolk Street Primer Piso Matricula por cita solamente

Llame: 534-2007

María Luisa Arroyo: Coordinadora de Compromiso y Acceso de Familia de la Escuela

Una de las prioridades más altas de la Escuela de

la Comunidad de Servicio Completo de la Escuela

Peck es el compromiso de familia, y como resul-

tado, María Luisa Arroyo ha sido contratada

como la Coordinadora de Compromiso y Acceso

de Familia de la Escuela Peck. Arroyo tiene ante-

cedente de enseñanza multilingüe de la escuela

secundaria, GED, y niveles de colegio, así como

experiencia como un poeta publicado local.“Doy

la bienvenida a familias como sus primeros educa-

dores de niños y como compañeros verdaderos

en la Peck,” dijo Arroyo. Algunos proyectos en

los que Arroyo está trabajando actualmente in-

cluyen la organización de Oportunidades para

Familias de una Feria de Aprendizaje en Verano el

viernes, 16 de abril, coordinando una Serie de

Conversaciones/Charlas Familiares Mensuales

para padres en como Apoyar el Aprendizaje en el

Hogar, Coordinando a los Padres de la Peck en

Proyectos del Salón de Clase, y supervisión del

diseño y el desarrollo del Salón de Recurso de

Familia de la Peck.Otro componente clave del

trabajo de Compromiso de Familia en la Peck es

el establecimiento de Padres Unidos en Acción (P

-PUA), FSCS un grupo de trabajo conducido por

padres que ese reúnen tres veces por mes. El

cuidado de los niños es proporcionado en todas

las reuniones. Por P-PUA, las familias aprenden

sobre servicios, apoyos, y programación localizada

dentro de la Peck y su zona de asistencia, así

como oportunidades de voluntario próximas en la

escuela y en el salón. El P-PUA supervisa el Pro-

grama de Embajador Paternal de la Peck, en la

cual iguala las habilidades y talentos de miembros

de familia con enfoque curricular y otras necesi-

dades de toda la escuela. Arroyo está también en

la Peck para unir familias con servicios para dirigir

necesidades básicas e inmediatas.

Como una Escuela de Comuni-

dad de Servicio Completo, la

Peck ofrece registros y el apoyo

de Entrada Virtual para familias

que necesitan registrarse (entre

otros) MassHealth, Mujeres,

Niños y Niños (WIC), cuidado

de niños subvencionado, y Programa de Ayuda de

Nutrición Suplementa (SNAP). Las familias tam-

bién pueden ser referidas a servicios de salud

mental y médico interior por la sociedad de la

Peck con el centro médico a través del Centro de

Consejería de River Valley, y un programa de

Consejería de Caso completo es ofrecido para

familias en crisis. Para más información, póngase

en contacto con María Luisa Arroyo al (413) 534-

2040 o

[email protected].

Virginia Rivera and Michael Polanco son el rey y la reina del día en clase de matemáticas de Julie Griffin-Pluta grado cuatro en la escuela E.N. White. Un nuevo rey y una reina son elegidos cada día como un factor de motivación de matemáticas en el fin de re-conocer el trabajo duro y una energía de matemáticas buena!

El programa de latencia/adolescente en la escuela de Morgan han estado participando en un pro-grama patrocinado por la Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society titulado programa de carácter educativo. Lori Swanson, la educación y el Man-ager de extensión para Dakin trae consigo sus animales de refugio que han sido objeto de abu-sos, descuidados y maltratados. Los estudiantes también comienzan a tener un mejor entendimiento de sí mismos y a otros, construir ha-bilidades sociales y el aumento de los sentimientos de la competencia. Durante mucho tiempo ha sido conocido que benefician a los niños que experimentan dificultades en las relaciones sociales de incurrir en responsabilidad con animales. Además, el programa ayuda a evitar la crueldad animal y a su vez mejora nuestras relaciones unos con otros mediante la enseñanza de la aceptación, compasión e integridad.

Animales ayudando a los niños

El Rey y

La Reina

Maria Arroyo

Volume 8, Issue 3

Un resultado positive de acoso escolar La comunidad de la Escuela Maurice A. Donahue está contenta de anunciar que uno de nuestros estudiantes de 7timo. grado, Kayla Michon, recientemente estaba en el 2ndo. Lugar en el NIE (Periódicos en la Educación) “Niños en la competencia anual de “Lectura y Escritura”. Su composición y perfil fueron escritos en el periódico The Republican en la edición del 9 de marzo de 2010. Debido a noticias recientes de suicidios de estudiante relacionados con la intimidación, el tema de este año se dirigió lo que se podría hacer para ayudar a poner un pare a este comportamiento con-siguiente y cruel. La Sra Tracy Russell, maestra de ELA - Artes de Lenguaje Inglés de 7imo. Grado de la Escuela Maurice A. Donahue, recibió una copia de la competición que ella compartió con la clase. Ella notó el in-terés de Kayla, que trajo un borrador el lunes siguiente. Ya que ellos están trabajando en una unidad de investigación, Kayla pudo incorporar su composición en el plan de estudios de la clase. Kayla y la Sra. Russell trabajaron juntas en la composición antes del prin-cipio de escuela y durante períodos preparatorios de MCAS. En las palabras de la Sra. Russell, “estoy feliz por Kayla porque ella luchó con ser intimidada a principios del año. Ella se defendió y nos re-lató los problemas. Las cuestiones fueron resueltas y ella es mucho más feliz de llegar a la escuela. Estoy también contenta que la ex-periencia demostró fructuosa para ella. Ella encontró un modo de convertir una experiencia de tentativa en una oportunidad de ayu-dar a toda la gente joven de Holyoke.” Este reportero de Uniones estuvo muy contento de tener la opor-tunidad de entrevistar a Kayla.

Uniones: ¿Qué le inspiró a escribir esta composición?

Kayla: he sido intimidada antes y quise ayudar a ponerle un pare.

Uniones: ¿Cómo se siente ser una autora publicada?

Kayla: Se impre-sionante. Voy a salir a comer mañana para cele-brar. No sé cuantas copias del periódico tiene mi familia, pero tenemos muchas. Uniones: Escuché que hay un premio. ¿Qué es, y qué planea hacer con el premio? Kayla: gané setenta y cinco dólares. Estoy ahorrando para un viaje a Florida en mayo. Uniones: ¿tiene usted algún consejo para alguien experimentando ser intimidada/o? Kayla: Sólo ignorar y no hacer caso y alejarse. Si usted discute o pelea con ellos, a veces la gente pensará que usted es el que comenzó la pelea, y usted se meterá en problema. Uniones: ¿tiene usted a alguien que le gustaría agradecer por ayu-darle con este logro? Kayla: La Sra. Russell me ayudó diciéndome sobre la competencia y ayudándome con algunas palabras. Ella me ayudó con tres bosque-jos antes de entregarlos finalmente. También quiero agradecer a mi hermana mayor, Jennifer (de Holyoke High), por ayudarme.

La Sra. Tracy Russell y Kayla Michon

Dean Tech Emilys Barbosa

Gary Charlton

Xaviel Colon

Angelica Pacheco

Ashlie Roche

Center for Excellence Joseph Houle

Joshua S. Montero

Sullivan Ryan Beauregard

Lauren D’Addario

Wilmarie Guzman

Kelly Anfernee Hernandez

Shaline Serrano

Cyd Marie Troche

McMahon Kaitlin Laflamme

Kristian Munoz, Jr.

Angel Sanchez

Superintendent’s Picks: Caitlin Anable (HHS) and Stephanie Jusino (Dean)

Holyoke High Evan Bibeau

Kiara Calderon

Rhiannon Goebel

Victoria Hepworth

Jailah Hernandez

Elizabeth Hurley

Britney Lopez

Timothy Moskal

Timothy Paradis

Miguel Torres-DeLeon

Margaret Walsh

Jonathon Yee

Donahue David Douglas

Cristian Luis Pedraza

Imalay Vargas

E.N. White Emmanuel Lopez

Maura McAndrew

Emma Price

Peck Kody Guedes

Angel Ortiz

Naudia Sanchez

Morgan Jermith Alvarez

Vicdaly Ortiz

Neysh M. Rodriguez

Connections


Media Center

c/o Kelly Doktor

500 Beech Street

Holyoke, MA 01040

Connections

April

Wed., April 28 ~ White ~ Bingo for Books

May

Wed., May 5 ~ McMahon ~ Career Night

Mon., May 10 ~ Kelly ~ Bingo for Books

Wed., May 12 ~ White ~ Bingo for Books

Thurs., May 20 ~ Dean Tech ~ Celebrating Successes

Mon., May 24 ~ Donahue ~ Bingo for Books

Wed., May 26 ~ Morgan ~ Eric Carle Literacy Night

June

Tues., June 1 ~ McMahon ~ Aloha Bingo

Mon., June 7 ~ Kelly ~ Aloha Bingo

Thurs., June 10 ~ White~ Aloha Bingo

Mon., June 14 ~ Morgan ~ Aloha Bingo

Los acontecimientos comienzan a las 6:30 menos que se indique.

Events start at 6:30 unless noted.

Título I - Noches de Familia Title I - Family Nights

La geometría es divertida Varios padres pre-GED en los Caminos al programa de alfabetismo de familia de Éxito están cortando y pegando formas tridimensionales - octaedros y dodecahe-drons y formas geométricas con 12 lados para compartir con sus niños. Si usted está interesado en nuestro programa por favor llame a Marisol al 538-5770 o Jody al 534-2026. Crédito de foto Manuel Frau /El Sol Latino

dodecahedron

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