Hooksett Memorial School Principal’s Report - May 2019 Inspiring Excellence Together

Golfing at HMS

“The First Tee” visited HMS and loaned our PE department equipment for a three week golfing unit. With guidance from “The First Tee”, this unit helps to build character, instill life-enhancing values, and promote healthy choices through the game of golf. During the unit, students learned the basics of alignment and swinging the club for putting, pitching and chipping. Students also learned how honesty, patience, and perseverance are paramount to being successful in golf.

National Invention Convention - Nationals are to be held at the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Dearborn, Michigan - May 29th - May 31st. Congratulations to fourth graders Parker Boulanger and Taylor Arvanitis who earned spots at the National Invention Convention in Michigan. Taylor’s invention, No Fuss Toothbrush, placed First at the Invention Convention Regional competition and Parker’s invention, Brace Case, placed Second at the Invention Convention Regional competition. Both students plan to attend the National Invention Convention in May with their families and we wish them the best of luck. Thanks to the Hooksett School Board and the families of Hooksett for their support! Wellness Presentation for Parents & Families Monday, May 20, 2019 - 6:30PM - HMS Media Center Representatives from the three Hooksett Schools collaborated and presented to Hooksett parents and families about the varied health, wellness, and guidance programs available within the Hooksett School District. This is the same presentation that was delivered to the Hooksett School Board in February 2019. Along with the building administration, the following staff members will be presenting:

Fred C. Underhill School Hooksett Memorial School Cawley Middle School

Ben Loi Principal

Stephen Harrises Principal

Matt Benson Principal

Kathy Jenkins Health and Physical Education Teacher

Maggie Lemay Health and Physical Education Teacher

Brad Largy Assistant Principal

Candace Lord School Counselor Hooksett School District Marie Lander

Health Teacher

Cindy Libby School Nurse

Cindy Nusbaum Food Service Director

Bernadette Olsen Family and Consumer Science Teacher

HMS Book Fair & Expo Nights Our annual Scholastic Book Fair was scheduled for the week of April 15 through April 19th. Students and staff had an opportunity to purchase books and other educational items. In addition, our students and families had the opportunity to visit the Book Fair during the two Expo Nights, where students and families viewed examples of learning and work from throughout the school year. The nights, as always, were very well attended,

Falcon Naming Contest - Ms. Amato’s Grade 4 Classroom Ms. Amato’s 4th graders have been avidly watching the Manchester NH Falcon Cam (a joint effort of the New Hampshire Audubon Society, the Brady Sullivan Properties, and Single Digits Corporation) since the adult pair began their “nestorations” of this year’s scrape. The pair of Peregrine Falcons reside at the Brady Sullivan Tower at 1750 Elm Street in Manchester. They are awaiting the arrival of their 5 eyasses, due to hatch early in May. As part of the Falcon Cam, there is also an accompanying “chat.” The members of the chat, as well as the members of an associated Facebook Page (Manchester NH Falcon Fans), chose Ms. Amato’s class to

help decide on names for the eyasses. The class worked from a list of nine New Hampshire trees. After the students were paired up, they were assigned a tree to research. Their task was to create a short presentation “campaigning” for their tree to be one of the five names selected. They included research on trees and falcons, slogans, photos, drawings, and poetry. The students will present and then vote for their top five names. As the eyasses hatch, the following names will be assigned depending upon the outcome of the voting: Blue Spruce (Blue); Catalpa, Juniper (June); Poplar (Poppy); Red Maple (Red); Sassafras (Sassy); Sugar Maple (Sugar); Walnut (Wally); or Willow. Winning names will be on the HMS website ASAP. GSLA Granite State Leadership Academy Assistant Principal Annie Kelly has completed the three year Granite State Leadership Academy. It is a rigorous program aimed at honing leadership skills for educators. Over three years, Ms. Kelly has attended workshops, retreats, written papers, and discussed all aspects of education with her fellow GSLA Cohort I students. Working collaboratively with other school leaders over the course of those three years has been an invaluable experience and has helped prepare Ms. Kelly and all GLSA Fellows to take on the many challenges of being school leaders. This program was created by the New Hampshire School Administrators Association and led by Dr. Carl Ladd, the NHSAA Executive Director and a former Superintendent of the Year. Ms. Kelly is now considered a GLSA Fellow. Principal Stephen Harrises will be starting the GSLA Cohort IV program this fall. National Library Week The Hooksett Memorial School Media Center celebrated National Library Week April 8-12th with a fun Breakout EDU event, “An Adventure in Time”. Student groups worked collaboratively to solve a series of puzzles and clues featuring digital time, analog time, train schedules, time zones, and military time in order to open “Father Time’s Vault” (a locked box). Stations and props around the Media Center connected to books that feature time, such as The Invention of Hugo Cabret and The House with a Clock in Its Walls. Each group had to be successful in order to find their groups’ key or code to open one of the five locks on the “vault”. Students found it challenging to make their way through the stations in the 30 minutes allowed, but their comments afterward showed their determination to succeed:

● “We worked together and used teamwork to crack the code.” ● “We had difficulty but succeeded!” ● “We almost failed because we were running out of time but we found the key!”. ● “I helped by thinking hard the whole time”. ● “We succeeded because we worked together nicely and didn’t argue” ● “We all had different skills that we were good at”. ● “We tried every idea and when one person failed the other tried and then the other.”

Girls on the Run 2019 (GOTR) HMS is excited to be offering the program Girls on the Run again this year. It was a huge success last year! Girls on the Run is a national organization that sponsors a running platform to encourage positive self-esteem among young girls. They inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using a fun, experience-based curriculum which creatively integrates running. The teams meet twice a week and then will run a non-competitive 5K in June which gives them

a tangible sense of achievement as well as a framework for setting and achieving life goals. For more information please visit www.girlsontherun.org . CMS Musical - Beauty and the Beast, Jr. The whole school community went on a field trip to the Cawley Middle School to watch the play, Beauty and the Beast, Jr. performed by Cawley Middle School students. The students truly enjoyed getting to see the eight grade students put on a fantastic performance and left CMS excited to participate in the CMS Musical themselves one day! Congratulations to all the students who participated and all the staff who made this possible. Thank you so much for including our HMS students in the experience!

Quote to Note “Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one.“

Malcolm Forbes

Respectfully Submitted,

Stephen A. Harrises, Principal

Upcoming Events at Hooksett Memorial School

May 2019 5/1 - Gr. 3 Field Trip - Bear Brook/Kids Making a Difference/Girls On The Run 5/2 - Girls on the Run/Peer Leader Meeting 5/6-5/10 - Teacher Appreciation Week 5/6 - Foster’s Golf Camp/Girls on the Run 5/7 - Girls on the Run 5/8 - Girls on the Run/Kids Making a Difference 5/9 - Girls on the Run 5/10 - Fitness Friday 5/13 - Girls on the Run/Foster’s Golf Camp 5/14 - Girls on the Run 5/15 - Gr. 5 Field Trip - Lexington & Concord Trip/Girls on the Run/KIds Making a Difference 5/16 - 5GM/5DB - Field Trip to Audubon/Girls on the Run/Peer Leader 5/20 - Foster’s Golf Program/Girls on the Run 5/21 - Gr. 3 Field Trip to Bear Brook Park/Girls on the Run 5/22 - Kids Making a Difference/Girls on the Run 5/23 - HMS Spring Concert/Girls on the Run 5/24 - Gr. 4 Field Trip to Head School /Fitness Friday 5/27 - Memorial Day - No School 5/28 - Gr. 4 Field Trip to Head School/Girls on the Run 5/29 - Gr. 5 Field Trip to Audubon/Girls on the Run 5/30 - Gr. 4 Field Trip to Head School/Peer Leader Meeting/Girls on the Run 5/31 - Gr. 4 Field Trip to Head School

June 2019 6/3 - Foster’s Golf/Girls on the Run/Music Festival 6/4 - Girls on the Run 6/5 - Grade 5 to 6 Orientation/Girls on the Run 6/6 - Girls on the Run 6/7 - Fitness Friday/EMS Week Assemblies 6/10 - Foster’s Golf/Grade 2 to 3 Orientation 6/11 - Field Day 6/12 - Grade 5 Field Trip to Audubon 6/14 - Last Day of School