Deer Families
Deer Hill School News . December 13, 2019
Dear Deer Hill Families,
Welcome to the last newsletter of not only 2019 but also the decade! With concerts and spirit days, playing in the snow and embarking on field trips, learning is occurring both formally and informally, inside and outside of the classroom.
At Deer Hill we are unpacking our learning and assessment practices by beginning work around the third goal in our School Improvement Plan: During the 2019-20 school year Deer Hill School will evaluate and calibrate its assessment and grading practices in order to emphasize student mastery and align them to our standards-based progress report. What that work looks like this year is the initiation of conversations at staff meetings, in our School Council, and through committee work around what it means to be a learner, how we measure student progress, and how we effectively communicate that progress to families. A blog on this topic that I found to be relevant (as well as concise!) is “Learning to Learn Beyond the Test” by George Couros, a leader in the field of education. You might find it of interest as well. Additionally, at our last staff meeting teachers engaged in a text protocol around another blog post, “Grades, Learning, and Change” by Aaron Hogan. We are at the very beginning of our current examination of our practices around student learning and assessment, and like the graphic in Hogan’s article, I believe it will not be a linear process. However, I do feel that all stakeholders, most importantly our students, will greatly benefit from our journey.
With a week left before the break, I’d like to wish you all a joyful and restful break. Thank you so much for your partnership with our school.
All the best,
Alex Sullivan
Principal, Deer Hill School
P.S. Our next newsletter will be published on January 10, 2020.
Pick Up & Drop Off Safety Reminder
Thank you for remembering that the pick up and drop off location for Deer Hill students arriving and departing by car is the back parking loop. It is an efficient and safe process that is completed quickly each day. If you choose to use the front parking lot for this purpose, please understand that the expectation is that adults park their vehicles and escort their students across the crosswalk at arrival/stand ready at the school doors to escort them back across the crosswalk at dismissal. Students are NOT to cross to waiting cars and NO cars are allowed to idle in the front lot during arrival and dismissal times. I greatly appreciate your respect of these safety policies, even on the days when I can’t personally be out there to give friendly reminders.
Deer Hill Winter Concert
The Deer Hill Winter Concert was a cheery evening after a snowy day! 5th grade Band students and the Deer Hill Chorus delighted the audience with their musical talents performing songs including Christmas in the Kitchen (complete with chefs on utensil percussion!), Oh Hanukkah, A Million Dreams, and Love Is an Open Door. Many thanks to our Music Department, Mrs. Lewis and Mr. DeWaal, for their efforts that night and each day.
Deer Hill Knits Hats for Rosie's Place
A message from Mrs. Berman, Deer Hill Art Teacher and Knitting Coordinator: Students have been hard at work knitting hats for Rosie’s Place. We now have more than 70 finished hats hanging in the display case! PLEASE be sure to keep knitting. This winter will be cold and we are trying to help as many homeless women and children as possible. In 23 years we have given over 3300 hats to Rosie’s, and we are hoping to deliver a bunch more this year. I hope to deliver the hats before the holiday break. As things get busy during this holiday season, please don’t forget to keep knitting. This is a great chance for children to learn that they can make a difference in a person’s life by making something special to keep them warm. Thank you for your support.
Deer Hill First Lego League Participants
This year Deer Hill launched a First Lego League (FLL) team as a result of a CEF grant submitted by 4th grade teacher, Mrs. Corkhum, and co-written by current 5th grader, Nicholas Askjaer. The Cohasset Coastal Creators demonstrated their robotics skills and formally presented their design solution to the perils of natural disasters at the FLL competition at UMass Dartmouth last Sunday. It was an impressive start to this new STEAM program!
Dictionaries for 3rd Graders
Each year the Rotary Club presents Deer Hill 3rd graders with new dictionaries. This year’s copy was extra schnazzy (would that word be in the dictionary?!?) and included lots of extra features, including the longest word in the English language (if you want to know what THAT is, ask a 3rd grader!). We greatly appreciate the generosity of the Rotary Club.
CHS Band and Chorus Visit
Another musical treat this holiday season was the annual visit from the Cohasset High School Band and Chorus. Not only did Deer Hill students love the festive music, but 4th graders enjoyed super-sized fun on the playground with chorus members who stayed to play. For staff members at Deer Hill, many describe this visit as their favorite day of the year. Thank you CHS Music Department!
Winter Recess Reminder
Time outside to play is an important part of our school day, and we go out to recess in all kinds of weather! Please make sure that your children are prepared for cold weather and outdoor recess with appropriate clothing such as hats, boots, mittens, etc. When there is snow on the ground, snow pants are strongly encouraged.
Progress Reports Available on Aspen
On Monday, December 9th, Term 1 progress reports became available online using our new Aspen Student Portal. Thank you to the many families who have created student Aspen accounts and have reviewed their children’s progress reports. If you are having any difficulties with this new process, please call the Deer Hill office, and we will gladly assist you.
Blast into 2020 with the Read A Thon!
January will be here before you know it, and this year our Read A Thon is coming early to boost the winter doldrums! The theme is Blast into 2020: Reading through the Decades (I feel some spirit days coming our way!). The Read A Thon will begin with our kickoff assembly on Friday, January 10th and will run from 1/10/19-1/31/19. The closing ceremonies will be held on Wednesday, February 5th. Look for more details in the coming weeks. Happy reading!
Deer Hill Dates
Early Dismissal, Staff PD: 12.13.19, 12:40
Festive Sweater Spirit Day: 12.19.20
Flannel Friday Spirit Day: 12.20.20
No School: 12.23.19 - 1.1.20; Winter Break
School Council: 1.9.20, 3pm
Read A Thon: 1.10.20 - 1.31.20
No School: 1.20.20; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Early Dismissal, Staff PD: 1.24.20, 12:40
Flyers of Interest
Deer Hill School
Alexandra L. Sullivan, Principal
Email: alsullivan@cohassetk12.org
Website: https://www.cohassetk12.org/
Location: 208 Sohier St., Cohasset, MA, USA
Phone: 781-383-6115
Twitter: @DeerHillSchool