The Third grade has been enjoying learning about Pilgrims.  Through our simulation activities, students get to experience many things the Pilgrims experienced.  Each activity gives the students a chance to try to learn from the Pilgrims, and then be more successful than they were.    We have crossed the stormy Atlantic Ocean, built houses in the wilderness of the New World, and have made decisions on what we would be willing to eat in order to survive.  Next week we will go to Plimoth Plantation to travel back in time and see what life was really like in 1627, seven years after the Pilgrims first landed.

Running Tips Taught This Year

• Run tall (no leaning forward or back)
• Keep your head up and chin parallel to the ground
• Head, knees, feet and hands should face forward
• Stay relaxed not tense- "light as a feather"
• Land on the balls of your feet- "quiet feet"
• Swing opposite arms than legs, using your shoulders NOT elbows
• Run at a controlled pace for your longer runs- "neighborhood running"
• Build endurance- add a little more distance each time you run (you are not going to run 3 miles when you haven't done 2-3 miles a few times before)

The second year with running club was a success. It was offered to 4th and 5th grade students 2 days after school. We started off working on running fundamentals and form before adding distance. We had fun playing games and doing drills to increase speed and agility. I worked to make it noncompetitive and just for fun and learning. Kids made their own goals and we worked to help them reach these. The goals ranged from 1 to 3 miles. All students reached their goals and most importantly, improved in many ways. I look forward to my new group when I offer this again next fall.  

                                                        Mrs. Kaminski

Outdoor recess clothing:                                                                                                                                        

                Our students will be playing outside every day, sometimes twice a day for recesses.  We are now approaching the colder seasons of late fall and winter, and some of our students are forgetting to bring a warm coat.  We suggest that you remind your child of the outdoor temperature to insure that they are warm at play.  Please be aware that after wet weather, we may have some puddles on the playground.  You are encouraged to send a spare set of dry clothing to school for your child to change at school should they become wet during outdoor recess.  Please label the clothes with your child's name, so they can keep the bag in their cubby here at school.  Thank you!

Cold and Flu season approaching

This is the season for an increase in the number of cases of colds, flu, intestinal, & GI viruses, conjunctivitis, and even strep throat and pneumonia.  Parents are asked to consider the following suggestions from the school nurse in order to limit the exposure of healthy children to those who are ill, and to ensure that those who are ill will have as rapid a recovery as possible:

1)      If your child has a fever (99.6* or above), please keep your child at home for an additional 24 hours of fever-free time (OFF fever-control medicines) to ensure adequate rest and the opportunity for the immune system to recover.  Your child may still be contagious if he/she has a fever at night, but is fever-free in the early morning. 

2)      If your child has vomited during the night, keep him/her home for at least another 24 hours until you know that he/she is eating regular foods without difficulty and is no longer experiencing nausea or abdominal pain.

3)      If your child has a persistent cough not controlled by over-the-counter medications, please contact your health care provider, as they may have an underlying bronchial or lung infection or pneumonia.

4)      If your child has one or both eyes with a red appearance to the sclera (white area), and/or drainage from the corners which is yellow, and/or yellow crusts on lashes and lids which are itchy and/or swollen, please keep them home and consult your health care provider.  Conjunctivitis is very contagious, and children with this infection must be on medications for a minimum of 24 hours and no longer draining from the eye to attend school.

Frequent hand washing is the number one prevention for the spread of germs and disease within your family as well as in school.  Concerns regarding your child's illness, or duration of his/her symptoms should be addressed to your family health care provider.  Thank you for your assistance to help ensure the health of all students (and staff) at our school.

Annual Holiday Food and Gift Drive:       

The holiday season is rapidly approaching. This time of year Memorial School loves to give back to its community by having a food drive that will benefit Sanborn families as well as the local food bank and seniors at Packer Meadows   In the spirit of generosity and good will, the Student Council members, students, and staff of Memorial School would like reach out to families and citizens in our community who are in need of our assistance.    

If you are willing to help by donating any of the following needed items, your generosity in this holiday season would be most appreciated. 

Food Supplies:  tea, cocoa, coffee, flour, sugar, juice boxes/cans, canned vegetables and fruits, spaghetti sauce and pasta, rice, Bisquick, stuffing mix, powdered milk, peanut butter, tuna fish, raisins, hot or cold cereals, and snack foods. Any non-perishable items would be appreciated.

Paper and Personal Products:  paper towels, toilet paper, tissues, napkins, coffee filters, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, deodorant, and laundry detergent.

The above food and non-perishable paper products will be collected throughout the months of November and December.  If every student brought in just three items from this list, we would have well over 1000 items for families in need, and think of how many will benefit!

Giving Tree

We will sponsor a "Giving Tree" in our school lobby the first week of December.  On the tree, we will place paper ornaments with an item from the Holiday wish lists* of families in need.  For example, a paper ornament will list an item such as a toy, or winter clothing needed by either a boy or girl, and specify the size or the toy but NO NAMES of families or children will be used.   

 ***If you need help or personally know of a family in need of help, please contact Ms. O'Sullivan at 382-5251, ext. 106 or by email [email protected], and submit their name and "wish list" in confidence. We will need the wish lists by December 1st.   

Thank you in advance for your generous response to our food drive and for helping us teach children to reach out to others in need. 

Thank you,

Odds Bodkins - Master Storyteller, spent Thursday, October 30th with all of us for an Artist In Residence event.    

Grades 4 and 5 were amazed by the strong narrative realism brought to life with abundant details: "The Storm chaser", American lore rooted in history; "Paul Bunyan and the Mosquitoes" tying in with land forms. Grades K through 3 delighted in all the sensory details of "The African Tree", where all our senses of smell, sight, sound, touch and taste were engaged.

Introducing the 2014-2015 PTO Board:

Dinner Fundraiser & 50/50 Raffle

Dine-In or Carry-out

A portion of pizza sales will be donated to

 Memorial Elementary!!

Date:     Tuesday, November 18th 2014

Time:    5:00 -9:00 pm

Where:  5 Market Square, Amesbury, MA

www.flatbreadcompany.com /978-834-9800

Top 5 reasons to go OUT for dinner

1.  You deserve a night out.

2.  No cooking. No clean-up.

3.  The food is GREAT and so is the company.

4.  You could win CASH!!

5.  Dine in or Carryout and Flatbread will donate a portion of pizza sales to Memorial School.

No flier needed to participate.

Please share this information with your family & friends.  EVERYONE who dines that night will be supporting Newton Memorial School.

Don't forget - the Harlem Wizards will be at Memorial School this  

spring - Thursday, March 12th.

Our next meeting will be Thursday, November 13th.

An Hour of Code

- it could be a life-altering experience.

Requirements to participate:

Age: 4 - 104

School:  Seacoast School of Technology Regional student/parent

Inquisitive: Yes

Location: Seacoast School of Technology, Computer Programming Lab

Date: December 10 and 11, 2014

Time: 4:00 - 7:00 PM

More Information available at http://www.code.org

What people are saying about coding:

Bill Gates

Chairman, Microsoft

"Learning to write programs stretches your mind, and helps you think better, creates a way of thinking about things that I think is helpful in all domains."

Chris Bosh

NBA All-star, Miami Heat

"Coding is very important when you think about the future, where everything is going. With more phones and tablets and computers being made, and more people having access to everything and information being shared, I think it's very important to be able to learn the language of coding and programming."

Stephen Hawking

Theoretical Physicist, Cosmologist, and Author

"Whether you want to uncover the secrets of the universe, or you just want to pursue a career in the 21st century, basic computer programming is an essential skill to learn."

Hilary Mason

Chief Scientist, Bitly

"I believe technology should give us superpowers. Everyone should have the opportunity to learn to think, analyze, and create with technology."