Community Notes

Heath School ~ June 2, 2023

Our North Star

“When children and teachers feel engaged, safe, and supported we have room to grow and learn through collaboration and risk-taking with our peers.”

Previous "Community Notes" can be found here: https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/domain/718

Dear Heath Community

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Our Practice Vote is Complete! The Winner is ... Cookie Dough!

With 512 people participating and 253 votes going to Cookie Dough, we feel confident that of the flavors on offer (Peppermint Stick, Strawberry, Cookie Dough, and Cotton Candy) that Cookie Dough is the hands-down favorite.

Beside learning about our favorite Ice cream flavors and least favorite (sorry, Peppermint Stick.), we discovered A LOT during the voting process, like:

the technical switches we need to make in order to ensure we have no tech errors next week
ways to efficiently input the paper ballots into the spreadsheet so that we see all of the data in one place
how to think about the data once all of the votes are in and then communicate what the data says to the community

These were the REAL reasons for this practice vote! Thanks for participating and get ready for the REAL vote next week!

Be sure to learn all about the four candidates before the final vote next wee in the "School Renaming Efforts: Getting to Know Our Finalists" section below!

Marking the Moments

June is Pride Month, a time when we recommit to making our school a safe, joyful, and compassionate space for our LGBTQ students, staff, and family members. Our GSA and Rainbow Club are ways we show our commitment and solidarity with LGBTQ folks, whether they are out or not. In a time when Trans youth and LGBTQ folks are under attack in the U.S., we refuse to back down from our unwavering solidarity, kinship, and love.

This mornings Art Show was such a gift. We are so thankful to have Ms. Hockensmith at the wheel of our Art-Department-of-One. Her skill and patience allow each kid to make such beautiful things, so many on display today. It was awesome to see so many families, as well - thank you for coming!

Graduation is June 20th at 4pm in Littlefield Park. While it is an outdoor, public event seating and attendance are prioritized for the families of graduates. More details on celebrating our 8th graders to follow directly to Grade 8 families!

Bravo! Seussical! The Musical!

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Bravo! Brava! to the cast of this year's musical Seussical! The crew of 5th through 8th graders gave it 1,000% and we are so appreciative!

We also whole-heartily thank our Director, Ms. Mary ElizaBeth Peters, and our choreographer, Ms. Perkowski. Together, they made something joyful for us all exactly when we needed it.

"⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐"

Staff Shifts for Next School Year

As is typical, we will have some of our staff members leaving at the end of this year: Brianna O'Connell, Grade 1 teacher, and Jillian Dyment, our Educational Team Facilitator (ETF), have both announced their departures. We will soon be able to announce who our new ETF will be. We thanks them both for their many, many years of generous and effective service!

Melissa Gordon, Grade 6 and 7 math teacher, and McKenzie Shane, one of our Grade 5 teachers, will not be returning to our school next year. Both have done incredible work in our community and for our kids – we are grateful! But due to the budget cuts and collapsing sections, both have lost their positions in the school.

Other shifts and changes are:

Jennifer Harty moves to the Grade 5 team; Julieta Roz, our current Math Specialist, joins the middle school team as our Grade 6 6/7 math teacher.
Suzanne Raskin, a member of the team a few years ago, returns as our math specialist.
We say good-bye to our Kindergarten teacher Erin Murphy as we have lost the .2 FTE she'd be teaching next year due to fewer classroom sections
Laura Brady, one of our Spanish teachers, leaves us for a new gig in Newton - congratulations! Thank you, thank you for these many years with us!
Middle School Health Teacher Katie Goldring heads to a full-time gig across town, joining the Lawrence crew. As much as we will miss her - and she will miss us! - she is excited to be full-time in one place.
We also thank Leah Zaharoff for her love and leadership in Grade 1 this year and wish her only the very best as she moves onto her next adventure: parenthood.
Victoria Ridge, 6-8 Spanish, is taking next year off, traveling and being of service in the world. We look forward to announcing her long-term substitute very soon!

Withdrawing from the Public Schools of Brookline? Please Fill Out This Form

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From the Office of Registration & Enrollment:

All families must complete the withdrawal form in order for PSB to complete a transcript request to send to their receiving school, also; the more information we receive early, the better we can support our school administrative support staff in preparing these records at the end of the year for families to not all come at the last minute AND for class placement/scheduling planning!

The link to fill in the form can be found at https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/withdrawal

Please note that if you will be withdrawing your student at the END of the 2022/23 School Year (i.e. your student will not return for September 2023), please use this form.

Summer Reading

From Our Librarian, Mrs. Anderson

This week and next, students are receiving the much-loved Summer Reading Lists! Students received the list for the grade they are going to next year (e.g. this year's 3rd grade received the 4th grade list). Attached to the flyers is a bookmark with a link to the Heath Summer Reading Website (http://tinyurl.com/heathsummer). There you can find:

summer reading flyers for all grade levels
the extended summer reading lists (this was given out in previous years as a big packet — now we're saving some trees and putting it online)
required reading over the summer for certain grade levels
lots of fun, engaging ways to track summer reading
directions on accessing our free ebooks and audiobooks

Please remember that all Heath library books should be returned to the library immediately. If your child has lost or damaged a book beyond repair, please reach out to librarian Lindsay Anderson immediately lindsay_anderson@psbma.org.

Thank you and happy reading!

School Renaming Efforts: Getting to Know Our Finalists

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Our Four Finalists!

After careful deliberation, significant time doing research, and lots of introspection, the Student School Naming Committee is excited to announce our four finalists for our new school name! The finalists are (in alphabetical order):

Ruth Batson
Ellen & William Craft
Roland Hayes
John Woodrow Wilson

✨✨✨ Resources on each candidate are here✨✨✨

Ruth Batson

Ellen & William Craft

Roland Hayes

John Wilson

✨✨✨ All of these links live on this document

(https://docs.google.com/document/d/1437-iyXEnXpflu66e2Kj_NA_5lnrLdNcF_P8Cw0q8yw/edit?usp=sharing) and on our website (https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/renameheath) ✨✨✨

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Each week, we report updates on the renaming process here. Past "Community Notes" newsletters can be found here: https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/domain/718

The "School Name: History & Resources" website page is also updated regularly:

https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/renameheath

PowerPoint from Feb 9 School Committee Meeting

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/18xY-JTcM5vrkOM0lZWPBqJDBfvIRUcXpCD6_Rci_56o/edit?usp=sharing

Climate Action Group: Sustainability Corner!

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We are proud to launch our Sustainability Corner, an initiative of our 6-8 Student Climate Action Group.

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Do you worry about climate change? Find hope through action with Brookline Mothers Out Front at a drop-in community coffee. Stop by anytime for casual climate conversation. Mothers Out Front welcomes everyone - mothers, fathers, grandmothers, non-binary parents, non-parents, and allies in Brookline.

Join us! Tuesday, June 13 from 10:00 - 11:30 am at Hemlock Grill, 1281 West Roxbury Parkway, at the Brookline public golf course. RSVP or just stop by! https://bit.ly/MOFCommunityCoffee or RSVP via Facebook

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We'd like to gauge interest in a school-wide Sustainability Food Fest. Will you take this quick google poll? https://forms.gle/SW1gypGzcQ4nRmAb9

Upcoming Events

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Last day of school is June 21 – NOON DISMISSAL!

Monday, June 5th: Grade 4 Rainbow Club, 11:20-11:50am
Monday, June 5th: Grades 7/8 Track & Field meet, Downes Field, 3:00-5:30pm
Monday, June 5th: Grades 5-8 Heath Chorus Concert, BHS, 7:15-8:15pm
Tuesday, June 6th: Grades 6-8 GSA, 10:35-11:15am
Tuesday, June 6th: PEEK & Practice (incoming Kindergarten students), 1:15-2:15pm
Tuesday, June 6th: Grade 4 Band Concert, FRR, 7:30-8:30pm
Wednesday, June 7th: METCO Connections Breakfast, 7:30-8:00am
Wednesday, June 7th: Grades 6-8 Student Climate Action Group, 10:35-11:05am
Thursday, June 8th: Kindergarten Pineapple Project, 8:00-10:30am
Thursday, June 8th: AAPI Student Affinity Group, 10:35-11:15am
Thursday, June 8th: Grades 5/6 Track & Field Meet, Downes Field, 3:00-5:30pm
Friday, June 9th: PEP, 8:05-8:30am
Friday, June 9th: Grade 8 Astronomy Museum, 8:45-10:15am
Friday, June 9th: METCO Connections Cooking with Chef Guerra, 1:40-3:00pm
Friday, June 9th: Model UN meeting, 1:45-4:45pm
Monday, June 12th: Grade 5 Rainbow Club, 11:20-11:50am
Monday, June 12th: Rain Date: Grades 5/6 & 7/8 Track and Field, 3:00-5:30pm
Tuesday, June 13th: 5th -->6th Transition Presentation, 8:15-9:30am
Tuesday, June 13th: 8th Grade Field Games at Eliot Park, 9:30-10:30am
Tuesday, June 13th: Grades 6-8 GSA, 10:35-11:15am
Tuesday, June 13th: 8th Grade Scavenger Hunt (front of the school), 12:10-1:10pm
Tuesday, June 13th: 8th Grade Graduation Rehearsal, 1:10-1:40pm
Tuesday, June 13th: 8th Grade Extra Recess and Ice Cream truck (front playground), 1:45 - 2:30pm
Wednesday, June 14th: 2nd Grade Artist Unit Celebrations - 2A, 2S, 2T, 8:00-9:00am
Wednesday, June 14th: 3F Biography Presentation, 8:15-8:45am
Wednesday, June 14th: Grades 6-8 Student Climate Action Group, 10:35-11:05am
Thursday, June 15th: 3L Biography Presentation, 8:15-8:45am
Friday, June 16th: 5th Grade Arcade Games, Auditorium, 8:00-10:30am
Friday, June 16th: 3H Biography Presentation, 8:15-8:45am

Field Trips:

Monday, June 5th: Grade 3 Trip to Old North Church, 9:00am-1:30pm
Thursday, June 8th: Grade 5 Trip to Freedom Trail, 8:15am-2:30pm
Wednesday, June 14th: Grade 8 Trip to Six Flags, 8:00am-5:00pm
Thursday, June 15th: Grade 8 Trip to Launch Framingham, 9:30am-2:30pm
Friday, June 16th: Grade 8 Trip to Level 99, 9:00am-1:40pm

In Closing

The end of the year activities have begun. With the last PTO meeting today, Art Show complete, the the school play over we head into the final stretch. On Monday we have only 12 days left in the school year. Lots to do still, so buckle up!

~ Asa