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FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE...
I’ve had several conversations recently with parents who want to continue to
be involved or informed about their children’s education, but who find this
more challenging at FHTMS than at elementary schools.
Certainly, as many kids get older they want more independence
from parents and adults in general.
However, I urge you to not let this get in the way of staying
as informed or involved as you wish. Increasing maturity is fine, but, quiet
frankly, middle school kids don’t have drivers’ licenses, and we shouldn’t
leave the judgement about appropriate communications with school up to them
either. Our school clearly is bigger and different from elementary schools, but
we are divided into eight teams so the school is less impersonal. Here are three
suggestions on what you might do:
• Talk regularly with your daughter or son’s teachers.
While we won’t interrupt teaching for phone calls, every teacher here has
voice mail and e-mail service, so it’s easy to leave a message. Don’t wait
for progress reports or problems—let people know that you are interested and
constructive. This makes it much easier for information to flow both ways.
• Interested in the new things kids are doing in math? Want
to know what happens to the projects that consume hours at home and go to
school? Have you wondered how science, or art, or "shop" (now called
Technology Education) is different from when you were in school? Come find out!
Talk with the teacher and arrange a visit. 20 minutes is fine or longer if you
wish. Some students may protest at this happening, but they’ll get used to it—I’ve
had this confirmed by parents who have done it.
• Offer to volunteer as a chaperone on a trip, in class or
in our Enterprise program. The situation is different than in elementary grades,
but it still will work.
The point is that we—school and families—need to change
the climate so it’s normal for parents to be in this school. Visiting or
calling here is not a statement of distrusting our kids, nor does it mean we don’t
respect their growing independence. Their learning is a team effort where they
are the most important player, but where teachers
and parents are also must be actively—and cooperatively— involved.
Paul Lowe
FHTMS ROBOTICS PROGRAMS BEGINS
Thanks to a grant from the South Burlington Community Education Fund, FHTMS
is launching two program areas (one in-school and one after-school) designed to
allow students to explore computer programming and robotics. The grant, made to
Tech Learning Link, a non-profit project sponsored by the SBCEF to link schools,
community, and high technology, funded the purchase of 15 Lego robotics kits for
use in Technology Education classes and 5 more kits which will begin a
technology lending library maintained by Tech Learning Link.
Mr. Jay Hoffman, school liaison for the project, began using
the robotics in 7th grade technology education classes this past week. Tech
Learning Link, in collaboration with the District Technology Committee and SBCEF,
will sponsor a Robotics Exhibition on June 7th open to students throughout the
South Burlington community. Please watch for a flyer, which will be sent home
with students, announcing details about the exhibition. Information is also
available on www.techlearninglink.org: follow the link to the "SMART Bot
Battle Challenge".
I founded Tech Learning Link after working with Orchard’s
Computer Club and after coaching FHTMS students in a robotics competition last
year. I’d like to thank the students for their great ideas, the SBCEF board,
especially Cindy Elcan, and Mr. Hoffman, Mr. Weiss and Mr. Lowe for working
behind the scenes to make an idea into a reality for our children.
Carol Caldwell-Edmonds
APRIL NEWSLETTER DEADLINE
The upcoming newsletter deadline is Friday, April 12th..
Please have your articles to Margaret Pasqual in the main office by noon. Thank
you.
ANNUAL DRAMA CLUB MUSICAL
GUYS AND DOLLS
MAY 10 and 11
The FHT Drama Club has been hard at work rehearsing lines, designing sets,
locating costumes and fundraising in preparation for its spring production.
Nearly 100 FHT students are involved in cast, stage crew, set building and other
associated activities. Guys and Dolls will open for FHT students on the morning
of May 8 and May 9, followed by public performances on Friday, May 10 at 7 pm
and Saturday, May 11 at 2 pm. All performances will be in the SBHS auditorium.
The drama Club owes a high thank you to the FHT PTO for
sharing the door proceeds with the Drama Club and allowing us to sell
refreshments to hungry and thirsty social-goers at the February social. Thanks
also to Officer Tom Fraga and End Zone for the use of the soda and slushee
machines. Finally, thanks to all Drama Club parents who helped by baking
goodies, chaperoning and selling food. This event was a very successful
fundraiser for the club, thanks to everyone’s participation.
Fund-raising continues every Wednesday with ice cream bar
sales during lunch. Thanks also to parents who have helped or volunteered to
help with these sales. The students enjoy the treats and the proceeds go a long
way toward raising the money we need to put on a great show.
The Drama Club is currently looking for food donations or
opportunities to purchase food items at a discount for several long rehearsals
during the week before the show opens—we’ll have over 100 hungry students to
feed! If you can help, please call Eve Hoar at 658-4505 or Judith Gilmartin at
660-8374.
If you are interested in helping with make-up or hair during
show week, May 6-11, we can always use an extra hand and friendly face—you don’t
have to have a child in the play to help. Please contact Eve or Judy at the
phone numbers above.
SETTING IT STRAIGHT
The FHTMS Newsletter strives to be fair and accurate. To notify the editor
about a mistake, or offer a comment or ask a question, call Sheri Duff at
864-1546.
WANTED: 1940’s VINTAGE CLOTHING donations
for the South Burlington FHTMS musical production of Guys & Dolls. The
costume department needs old mink stoles, women’s hats, dress shoes, tailored
suits and dresses; men’s (loud) double breasted plaid and checked jackets,
fedoras, crazy ties, suspenders, spats and dress shoes, and (red?) band
uniforms. You may drop donations at the middle school office or we are happy to
pick them up! Call Sarah Healy at 860-1654.
I’M INDEBTED TO:
Margo Bycer, Andrea Crook, and Denise McLaughlin for collating, stapling,
folding and labeling the February FHTMS newsletter. You ladies are my saviors!
And Sue Hood for copying the newsletter on a monthly basis. Also Margaret
Pasqual and Sarah Beers for proofing and preparing the newsletter for final
assembly. And finally, Ben Moses for delivering the newsletter to the Bulk Mail
Center.
Sheri Duff
THE LIGHTHOUSE
The FHTMS PTO would like to thank the So. Burlington Police
Department and the So. Burlington Recreation Department for the time and effort
they have invested
ExCEL NEWS
The culminating activities for ExCEL’s interdisciplinary unit about the
Lake Champlain Basin and underwater archeology were field trips to Button Bay
State Park and to the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. The following are excerpts
from friendly letters written by ExCEL students:
Here are the students' instructions:
I am writing to you to explain two places the ExCEL team just visited, the Lake
Champlain Maritime Museum and Button Bay State Park. I have to write an
expository paragraph about each place. Each paragraph must have a topic
sentence, at least three CD’s (sentences which give details about the topic)
and one CM (commentary) in order to meet the standard set for good content. I
also need to proofread and edit my paragraph in order to meet the standard set
for MUGS. Mrs. Currier gave me a rubric I can use to help me do a great job with
these paragraphs. I am going to write a draft first, and then check the rubric
before I write the final copy of this paper, or I can also word-process my whole
letter if I want.
...On Monday, October 1, I went to the Maritime
Museum. At the Maritime Museum I had to put on gloves that archeologists wear,
hold a clipboard and draw artifacts in a grid like an archeologist. Another
thing we did was to go on a replica of the ship Philadelphia. That was fun
because it was very real. The last thing we did was to try to find where some
artifacts belonged. It was fun, but I think there should be more activities
for the kids.
Button Bay was more fun. It was more fun because we could
walk all over the place. Another reason was because my leader gave me Tootsie
Rolls to eat. The third reason was that at the point we could collect zebra
mussels, snails and frogs. (We had to set the frogs free.) I think Button Bay
was great the way it was.
Sincerely, Jessie Cameron
...At Button Bay we went to a place called The Point and collected
zebra mussels. There seemed to be millions of small, black zebra mussels in
the water and on rocks. The zebra mussels were clutching the rocks so we had
to carefully pry them off. Zebra mussels are a big problem in Lake Champlain.
I think zebra mussels are positively disgusting!
Sincerely, Lexi Keller
...On October 1, 2001, my
team went to the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. There was a horse ferry with
a seatbelt to hold you in, and you would walk on a wheel to make gears go
around. There was also a sailboat where we needed to determine where the parts
attached to the boat. This boat was called the Philadelphia. There was a place
with a grid and tools. We used a measuring tape to measure, and then we drew
where the tools were located. The museum was filled with artifacts and many
things to try out. I liked the museum.
Sincerely, Joseph Dupuis
...When we went to the Lake Champlain Maritime
Museum, there were a lot of activities that we did. One of the ones that we
did that was my favorite, is when everyone in my group tried on Underwater
Archeologists’ gloves. The gloves were made of heavy duty material with grip
padding on the palm of them. When we got our gloves on, we went inside the
grid made of bars made into six five by five squares. Underneath the grid was
a boat and some artifacts. Our task was to record our findings of the
artifacts with pencils on paper that were inside one of the squares. One
person would measure the artifact, and the other person would record it. After
everyone was done with his/her grid, we all sat down outside the grid and put
the papers together to see what the whole area looked like. I learned a lot
from that activity. I now know how hard it is to write like underwater
archaeologists with those weird gloves. Everyone including me, enjoyed that
activity and probably learned something from it, too.
Sincerely, Caity Dion
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