Walpole first graders broadcast Christmas play to soldiers in Afghanistan

A wonderful story from this week's Walpole Times. Click on the link below to read the full story.

Walpole first graders broadcast Christmas play to soldiers in Afghanistan

Afterschool Workshop is a Sweet Success!

One of the choices of the Fall enrichment program at Old Post Road School, was a workshop called "Haunted Village". A group of students used their artistic talents and imagination to construct a spooky village using recycled materials like cardboard shoe boxes, paper towel tubes, and found objects. The village was constructed, painted, decorated, and displayed proudly in the art room for all of the classes to enjoy. It was a huge hit!

The fun did not stop there! The student builders decided to create a "Gingerbread Village" to coincide with the annual Old Post Road School Gingerbread Bazaar. Each participant of the workshop created their own architectural masterpiece. These included the Elfamentary School and the Reindeer Restaurant. It was a sweet success!

Alice Siegel, OPR Art Teacher

Snowman Project 2011 - OPR

 

On Thursday, December 15th it was evident that the spirit of the holiday season is alive and abundant at Old Post Road School. For the sixth consecutive year, students in grades 3,4 and 5 showed their tremendous support for a very worthy cause by participating in "The Snowman Project.”

In conjunction with the Department of Children and Families (D.C.F.),  appproximately 150 students and staff members volunteered to "adopt" a child for the holidays and purchase a gift for him or her. Keeping with the school's tradition of overwhelming generosity, over 500 gifts were presented to a team of D.C.F. representatives for underpriveleged children in Southeastern Massachusetts.

One of the representatives, Rusty, took the opportunity to speak to a cafeteria filled with students and thanked them personally. He likened their efforts to those found in the popular book The Giving Tree and explained that "The Snowman Project" demonstrates a willingness to give unconditionally, much like the characters in the book. In addition to the guest speaker, students were also treated to several holiday songs performed by the OPR chorus and instrumentalists.

As 2011 comes to a close, it is a warming feeling to know that through the generosity of the Old Post Road community over 150 more children will have a happier, more enjoyable holiday season.

 

Brian Larkin

Old Post Road School

Grade 4

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Wrapping up the Holidays at Fisher with Mrs. Vose’s class

 

The spirit of the holidays was in full swing last week

in Mrs. Vose's second grade class. In an effort to support

the Cradles to Crayons foundation at Patriot Place, students

made a variety of crafts like beaded candy canes, snow globes,

sand art Santas and reindeer food to sell to other children at

Fisher School. Gifts were bought with the proceeds, and students

were invited to Patriot Place for a photo and free winter skating.

It was a great time for all and a great way for students to

learn about the true meaning of the season.

 

Happy Holidays,

Mrs. Vose

Grade 2 Fisher School

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GEOMETRY IN THREE WORDS

Wouldn't it be fun to tell people what you know in ONLY 3 words! Well I wanted to give my fourth grade students at Boyden Elementary School that same opportunity. How could I find out what they learned about Geometry without giving them the same old paper and pencil test they were used to taking? After watching an inspiring segment on Good Morning America called "Your Week in 3 Words" I got my answer. I used this same concept to test their knowledge about Geometry. Their challenge was to write and illustrate what they learned about this subject,but in ONLY 3 words.
And so we called our version, GEOMETRY IN THREE WORDS.  We hope you enjoy it as much as we have!


Christy Rockwood
Fourth Grade Teacher
Boyden Elementary School

WHS Seniors Perform Anti-bullying Skits

Fourth and fifth grade students at Fisher School attended an interactive assembly on Friday, November 18.  Emma Batting, Justin Connolly, Lorna D’Sa, and John Griffin, former Fisher students and Drama Club members, performed four skits which demonstrated physical, verbal, and nonverbal forms of conflict. 

Our students assisted with appropriate choices to make in each situation to diffuse the conflict.  Cyber-bullying or the use of technology as a means of bullying was addressed.  Parents and guardians need to closely monitor their children’s screen time on phones, computers, iPads, Xbox, etc.

We thank our WHS seniors for reminding our students how they can be powerful in social situations by not participating in the “put downs” or passing on the “gossip” and reporting to teachers and adults.  We will highlight how we can spread compassion during “No Name Calling” week- January 23-27, 2012.

Colleen Duggan
Principal, Fisher School

Colonial Days

Stepping back in time with the Bay Colony Educators, the fourth grade students learned what life was like for boys and girls living in Walpole in the 1760's.   Dressed in colonial garb, Tim and Carol Greene spoke to the children about their clothing and the long, arduous process to produce one item.  Students were amazed to learn that chores such as making soap, fetching water (that might weigh up to 50 pounds) and planting flax seed were common for children in those days.  Information was shared about school, homes, toys and more.  The program ended literally with a bang, as Tim was allowed to fire a musket that would have been used in the Revolutionary War.   In the upcoming week the students will compare and contrast their lives to those of their colonial counterparts and will also have the opportunity to write with a quill pen!   The Bay Colony Educators certainly made history come to life!

 

The Grade 4 Team

Boyden School

 

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Day of the Dead Celebrations at JMS

Day of the Dead is a Mexican holiday celebrated on November 1st and 2nd. "Dia de los Muertos," as it is called in Spanish, is a happy celebration remembering loved ones who have passed away. Family members and friends create alters and they decorate them with the deceased's favorite things and foods. An important part of the holiday is the "pan de muerto" (bread of the dead) and it is usually shaped in the form of a skull. Something else children in Mexico like to do on this holiday is decorate sugar skulls. One way students in Senorita Loughlin's Spanish classes celebrated the holiday was by bringing in authentic Mexican foods to enjoy. Here are some pictures of the delicious breads and some beautifully decorated sugar skulls from Dia de los Muertos at JMS.

Emily Loughlin
Spanish Teacher
Eleanor N. Johnson Middle School

Bird Middle School Students Connect Globally

Students in Ms. Ekholm's and Ms. Carresi's ELA skills class have begun a pen pal project with students in other parts of the world. Sixth grade students in ELA Skills classes are practicing their grammar and writing skills by communicating through a program called epals.com. EPALS allows teachers and students to collaborate with classrooms in countries such as Turkey, Italy, Serbia and Greece.
When introduced to the project, the sixth grade students were very enthusiastic. They were excited to communicate and learn about children their age in other countries. Bird Middle School students have been matched up with students in their age and grade level and have already begun corresponding though EPALS. Epals allows teachers to monitor the emails between students and also gives teachers ideas for collaborative projects. Through this technology, students are able to connect globally in a protected, project-based learning network.

Visiting Artist Inspires 4th Graders

Recently, Bren Bataclan, Boston Artist and author of "Everything Will Be Alright"  visited the Boyden School. The fourth graders were inspired by this young man and his story of art and acts of kindness. He taught them how to create his 'signature' characters. At the end of the presentation the students created 8 characters. My class then went back into our classroom to create a final "Bataclan Creature". When everyone had finished their drawings we set out out 'describe' our creatures using the Elaborative Detail writing techniques as described using the Empowering Writers method. The students created clear descriptions of their creatures. We then created a Voicethread to share their writing sample. Hearing the students describe their Bataclan Creatures adds a personal touch to their writing.



Click on the arrow to start video, then click on arrows to advance the show.
By Mrs. Carroll, Grade 4 Teacher, Boyden Elementary

JMS Spanish Classes Attend "In School" Field Trip

On October 20th and 21st Bird and Johnson Middle Schools were delighted to welcome two visiting Mexican artists: Manuel Abeiro Horta and Modesto Horta.

 

The Horta brothers traveled from Michoacan, Mexico. They were visiting with Margarita's Restaurant Education Outreach Program. The program works with New England schools to showcase Mexican life, culture, and art. Manuel Abeiro and Modesto spent the day carving and painting while talking about their lives and their cultures.

Here is a video of the beginning of the day where Manuel Abeiro started to carve the mask out of wood. Modesto is in the background painting a pre-carved mask. The man speaking is Pat Picciano, the education outreach coordinator and translator.
http://youtu.be/yrhIYRKchJY 

Please visit my teacher website to see additional videos of the mask making presentations made throughout the day at JMS.
http://walpole.k12.ma.us/teachers/tpage.php?view=t&pid=2039

Thank you/Gracias to Margarita's and PAC for making these presentations possible! The children loved this enrichment activity!

Emily Loughlin

Spanish Teacher

Eleanor N. Johnson Middle School

WHS Rebels featured on Fox 25 "High School Friday"

Fox 25 News was in Walpole this week for their "High School Friday" segment. Didn't get to the game? Check out how Coach Barry Greener and his team made out against the Newton North Tigers.

High School Friday: MyFoxBOSTON.com

A Special Surprise for a Special Teacher

Recently, Old Post Road School had a very special, surprise assembly for a wonderful teacher.  As part of the Office Max’s Adopt-a-Classroom Program, the company has created a special day to recognize approximately 1,000 educators throughout the United States.  The teacher is awarded numerous supplies for the classroom from a new teacher’s chair ..a digital camera…to crayons and glue sticks.  Additionally, this year, many individuals from OPR, Walpole and surrounding communities donated many supplies to our school as part of this fantastic program.  This very special Kindergarten teacher is Kim Oliveira who was recognized as this year’s “A Day Made Better” teacher from the eastern Massachusetts area!

In honoring Mrs. Oliveira, we are truly recognizing a teacher who helps to build a foundation for future successes for all of her children.  Below is the press release about Mrs. Oliveira which will be forwarded to various newspapers in the area: 

Kim Oliveira is a master teacher in the Old Post Road School. She is an always exuberant and very creative Kindergarten teacher. Her students learn in an orderly, positive, and warm environment. Kim is a teacher who has embraced new technology and is always looking to improve her classroom environment. She is currently in the midst of a Masters program which she is excited to be a part of. Undoubtedly, the ideas and concepts that she has gained from this program will be put to great use in her classroom. She is the type of teacher that students remember long after they have left her. It is amazing to hear about the number of students who are high school age or older who can remember so much from being in Ms. Oliveira’s classroom so long ago. She helps all of her students build an excellent foundation for the future which is so vital. We cannot think of anyone more deserving of being recognized in your "A Day Made Better Program." 

                                                                                               

We thank the many Office Max staff and Patriots cornerback Leigh Bodden who presented Mrs. Oliveira with well over $3,000 of supplies for her classroom, as well as the school.   It was a great day for OPR and one that Mrs. Oliveira will always remember.  Again, thank you parents and friend of OPR who donated hundreds of items for our school.  We appreciate all that was done in bringing this day about.  An OPR ‘Standing O’ goes out to Office Max, Leigh Bodden, contributing friends of OPR, and, most importantly, Mrs. Oliveira!  

Stephen J. Fortin

Principal

Old Post Road School

99 Old Post Road

E. Walpole, MA 02032

508-660-7219

New floor in lower Gym at Fisher

A capital budget project, the lower gym floor replacement at Fisher School, was recently completed under the direction of Mr. Don Anderson, Building and Maintenance for the Walpole Public Schools.  The removal and preparation for the multipurpose new floor occurred this summer.  After several contractors, consultants, and EPA assessments, the new floor was installed in late September 2011.  Mrs. Jen Hornsleth, Physical Education Teacher, welcomed her first class of fourth graders to the lower gym on Friday, October 7, 2011.  Students delighted in the new floor surface for their physical activities each week.  Fisher School would like to thank the numerous PAC parents, School Committee, Finance Committee members, Town Meeting members, and senior citizens who supported this project.     

 

Colleen Duggan

Principal, Fisher School

 

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Walpole students go back to school after delayed first day

From the Walpole Times - Click on the link below to read the story.

Walpole students go back to school after delayed first day