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Monday, May 30, 2016

Hunt Middle School Blog - May 30, 2016

 

Hunt Middle School 2015-16  
 

It's coming quickly...
8th grade graduation and summer vacation.

But there is lots of stuff going on
in the next two weeks.


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Calendar of Hunt School Events

Wednesday,  June 1st

 
iPad Return Day
See Len’s May 12 memo that came home with all students
  • 10:15 Chorus walks to Heineberg Senior Center for a mini concert


 
Friday, June 3rd
  • 8th grade field trip to the Great Escape in Queensbury, NY (all day trip)

 
Tuesday, June 7th

 
  • Picnic day, last day of school for 8th graders

Wednesday, June 8th

 
  • 11:30 AM - Dismissal for grades 6-7
  • 1:00 PM - 8th grade Graduation
    • Reception to follow in the cafeteria
  • 8th grade dance
    • 7:00 – 9:00 PM
 
Thursday, June 9th

 
  • 11:30 AM - Early dismissal
    • Last day of school for Grade 6-7
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It's Gardening Time!
 
 

The mulch for our gardens has been delivered and is ready to be put down.  
 
Please come to the school Saturday morning June 4th at 9:30, ready to work! 
 
If you can, please bring your own wheelbarrow, garden shovel and bucket. 
 
If all of the mulch is not put down on Saturday morning, we will have another work session on Sunday morning, same time.

Let's make the front of the school look nice for Graduation. 
 
Many hands make light work! 

 

Please RSVP if you plan to come.  Thank you!
 
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SPECIAL EDUCATION AND STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES PARENT NIGHT

 
Wednesday, June 1, 6-7:30PM

Sustainability Academy, 123 North Street

 

Join Superintendent Yaw Obeng and Student Support Director Laura Nugent for an opportunity to share your experiences, thoughts and concerns.


Sunday, May 22, 2016

Hunt Middle School Blog - May 22, 2016


 
Hunt Middle School  
 
End of the Year is Coming!
 
The end of the school year is upon us.
 
Make sure to review everything as there is a lot going on as the 8th graders approach moving on to high school.



 

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May 2016 PTO Meeting Minutes

 

District Communication Report – Jen L’Equyer

Jen will be the HMS liaison for the Committee: Support our Burlington Schools. She will continue to attend all of their meetings, decipher the information, and relay it to the PTO for distribution to our community. There is a lot of information out there on the web, and we need to be prudent about what is authentic.

 
Open Forum

(1) Clarification on Languages affected for 2016-2017: The Language teachers are shared between HMS and EMS. Grade 7/8 will continue with French ; Spanish, offered every other day. There will be no World Culture Languages offered for grade 6. Also, the experimental French Extension class offered this year will be discontinued. Len is working on getting a Grant for some coding to replace this. The only other position affected at HMS is our Librarian. Will need to wait until next week, when all District contracts have been turned in to see how the bumping works. We hope to keep him!

 (2) iPad collection prior to summer: ALL student iPads must be turned in on June 1! The only exceptions are students with particular academic needs as determined by their Special Educator, which must be
submitted to Len for approval. There are stiff consequences for students who do not return them.

(3) Financial update from the District: (see above)

(4) Digital Day for parents: This is on the calendar for May 26, but will not be happening. The school
calendar is full, and this conflicts with an event at BHS. Instead, there will be a Digital Survey coming out
next week. This will give parents the opportunity to give input on what they liked/did not like about their
child’s iPad use this year. Len and his team will restructure the iPad student use next year based largely
on this input. There will be more controls and less free access to non-academic material. We will
continue with our 2nd year with Digital Promise next year.

(5) Our new Assistant Principal: is Ms. Mattie Scheidt! She comes to us from the Milton School District, but has worked in the Burlington schools in the past (Flynn and Edmunds). Like Len, she is the parent of a
Middle Schooler, so we are in good company! She will begin officially on July 1, and we got a chance to
meet her and give her a warm welcome at the meeting.

(6) Gardening: it’s that time of year! This is in full swing, with weeding, transplanting, and mulching. Len is
checking with the District on a mulch delivery this year. Any parent interested in helping out in the
gardens, is welcome! Contact the PTO email and let us know!


President’s Report – Paula Henry

Retiring: There are (2) staff retiring next month: Mr. Amato and Mr. Rock. We discussed doing something for them in recognition of their years of service, and presenting at the 8th grade Graduation June 8. Ideas are welcome!

New members: Looking to get lots of new members next year, and anyone interested in taking on a leadership role. We will attend the 6:30 May 24 incoming 6th grade Parent information session, and pass around a sign-up. Paula will give a short presentation. Other members of PTO are welcome to attend!

 Treasurer’s Report – Paula Henry for Kathy Rossman

Current checkbook balance is $9,061 (part of which is restricted funds). This includes a $394 deposit made
following the 2 concert bake sales; raffle. To date, the PTO has paid out $732 to reimburse staff for the $200 Team Reimbursement program. There remains another $1,468 to pay out that the PTO has committed to Teams.

An email was sent May 19 to all staff, reminding them of this funding program which extends until the end of the school year.

 Fundraising Update – Paula Henry

Our last big push is coming up this Wednesday May 25 during the Choral Concert. We will be hosting 3
fundraising events! Another BAKE SALE, the annual PLANT SALE and most importantly the RAFFLE.

(1) We need lots of parents to fill the bake sale tables with goodies (Paula will monitor the sign-up genius)
and man the table. There will be lots and lots of kids and families attending this event, and we can
provide much needed refreshments for them.

(2) The plant sale is back, and will begin at 5pm out front of the school. We have a core team of gardeners
who will be transplanting lots of donated plants into donated pots over this weekend. We are still taking
both donations. If you have an interest in helping out with the plant sale, please email the PTO at
huntmiddleschool@gmail.com.

(3) Lastly, we will hold our newest fundraiser, the Raffle, for this final night and will do the drawings that
evening. Winners do not need to be present to win. Lots of good items donated from local businesses,
and this is an opportunity to raise funds for HMS students and teachers. Please participate! If you would
like a flier on what is available, please email the PTO.

Principal’s Report – Len Phelan

SBACs and NECAPs are done! Students did a great job!

Len introduced our new Assistant Principal, Ms. Mattie, and is looking forward to working with her.

The Digital Survey will be coming out next week, and is a very important piece in the One:One iPad program.

VERY BUSY school calendar for the remainder of the year!

Mon May 23

8th grade class picture (NOT the plant sale as shown on the website calendar)


Tues May 24

6:30 Incoming 5th grade parent Informational meeting (PTO participation)


Wed May 25 5:00

Plant Sale (PTO)

6:30 Bake Sale and Raffle (PTO)

7:00 Chorus Concert


Thurs May 26

Hawaiian Day, with themed clothing and a lunch


Fri May 27

11:30 dismissal for all students, due to incoming 5th graders Step-Up day


Wed Jun 1

*** iPad return day***

See Len’s May 12 memo that came home with all students

10:15 Chorus walks to Heineberg Senior Center for a mini concert


Fri Jun 3

8th grade field trip to the Great Escape in Queensbury, NY (all day trip)


Tue Jun 7

Picnic day, last day of school for 8th graders


Wed Jun 8

11:30 dismissal for grades 6-7

1:00 8th grade Graduation, followed by reception in the cafeteria

7:00 – 9:00 8th grade dance


Thurs Jun 9

11:30 early dismissal, last day of school for Grade 6-7

 
Thank you parents and staff for another great school year!
 
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Important Additional Information
 
(1) If you or your child has been unhappy during this recent school year as a result of the loss of the Healthy Living teacher and subsequent combining of PE and Health, which is offered every other day, the PTO encourages you to write a letter to the Burlington School District Superintendent's office.  We strongly believe that Middle Schooler's need both PE and the Healthy Living class, at this critical time in their lives.  If we were to get a half-time PE teacher position approved by the District, then HMS could return to offering students both PE and Healthy Living.  We need to support our school!

(2) Please watch for a digital survey for parents, coming out from Len Phelan next week.  This will be your chance to weigh  in on how you feel about your child's iPad experience during the  2015-2016 school year. 

(3) If families need more graduation tickets, please contact Len Phelan at 864-8469.

(4) For important information about all end of the school year events and dates, please go to the end o the PTO Meeting Minutes just above this section.

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Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Hunt Middle School blog - May 18, 2016


Hunt Middle School - May 18, 2016 


Check out the school website for all important information.
 
 
 
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PTO Meeting
 
Our next and last PTO meeting is tomorrow night in the Hunt Middle School library at 6:30 PM.
 
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IPad notification
 
 
If you did not see the letter from our principal, Len Phelan, in your child's backpack, here are some important things to know:
  • All iPads must be returned to the school on June 1st
  • Upon collection, each iPad must be in working condition.
  • Your student must bring in the charger, charging cord and case, also in good working condition.
  • If a school official deems collected iPads or charging equipment to be damaged, and of the damage is intentional or due to negligence, the student will be responsible for the replacement cost:
    • iPad Air2 WiFi & cellular - $600
    • Verizon Case - $20
    • Lightning cable - $7
    • Charging Block - $13
  • Unreturned school iPads will be considered lost/stolen property and will be located using the MDM location system and recovered through local law enforcement procedures.
  • Students who fail to return the iPads to school are responsible for the replacement cost of the device.
  • Additionally, students who do not return their iPads are at risk for not being allowed to participate in end-of-school year activities including: receiving yearbooks, attending field trips, sporting events, our school picnic and or the 8th grade Field Trip. 
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Burlington High School Scheduling Update
 
 
May 18, 2016
Thank you to all who took the time to share your thoughts and words of encouragement. We are working quickly to develop a course schedule that reflects student needs and wanted to share GOOD NEWS on our progress!
                      
We are in the “Second Stage” of scheduling, with all core subjects complete. The stringent scheduling process and budget savings are allowing us to add sections to accommodate students’ choices.
As we review students’ elective choices, we will make decisions on adding courses in Art, World Languages, (Advanced Level and/or AP), Social Studies (AP) and Math (Algebra and/or Pre-Algebra).
Students will soon start conversations with counselors regarding potential conflicts in their schedules. Please note that students have not received their schedules yet. This is a continuous process and we need to ensure we have covered core subjects before allocating electives.
We will complete all student schedules in a timely manner.
 By taking the approach of adding requested courses to those that are needed, we are able to develop a reasonable course of action. These actions keep us in line with our budget objectives. While the original budget design called for up to 10 FTE position reductions from the High School, we expect to achieve our budget target with substantially less than that, given the adjustments being made. This puts us in a position to add some, if not all, of the above courses. We intend to meet the needs of our students, through an alignment of our financial resources with a fresh perspective and approach to scheduling challenges.
Do not expect continuous course offering adds. We still have to meet our budget goals, in order to not be facing the same situation next year.
Look for the next scheduling update in the first week of June, sooner if possible.
Sincerely,
Yaw Obeng
Superintendent
 
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Gluten Free Support Group
 
We are having our first Generation GF kick-off meeting from 2-4pm on May 21st at the Fletcher Free Library.  
Our goal is to provide a community of support, education, and encouragement; and to instill confidence in our kids as we navigate the gluten-free lifestyle.
We have several social and informational activities in the works such as a pot-luck beach party, cookie decorating, grocery store scavenger hunt, presentation by GF college students, GF product sampling, and nutritionist/physician talks. 
 
 
WANTED
Gluten-Free Kids&Teens - For support, information, and fun!
Join the families at Generation GF Greater Burlington, a new support group for kids and teens (and their families!) who are on a gluten-free diet.
Our first meet-and-greet:
Saturday, May 21st, 2016 ~ 2:00-4:00 pm
Fletcher Free Library (Community Room)
  •  Taste-test GF products (burger/hot dog buns, ice cream cones, graham crackers – just in time for the summer BBQ season!)
  •  Share reviews of your favorite restaurants
  •  Connect with others navigating the gluten-free lifestyle
 - Tracey McVetty, Team Leader GenerationGF.GreaterBurlington@gluten.org
 
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Plant Sale
 
Next Wednesday, May 25th at the final (Choral ) Concert, the PTO will host our annual plant sale.
 
This weekend, we will be transpotting all of the donated plants
 
WE NEED POTS! 
 
We'll take those disposable black ones that purchased plants come in, if you have any to spare please.  We are looking for the gallon and half gallon size (not the little 4" pots).
If you have any to donate, please drop them off by the park bench under the large tree in the parking lot green strip, BEFORE this weekend.
 
Plan to plant your garden with some amazing Hunt plants.
Support are school and make sure to attend our final choral concert of the year the same night.
 
Here is all the information:
 
Plant Sale, Bake Sale... and Raffle
( All proceeds benefit the Hunt PTO- all money goes out to Hunt students for enrichment activities, 
teacher grants, 8th grade field trip, 8th grade graduation and much more)

NEXT WEDNESDAY- May 25th- (before, during and after the Hunt Chorus Concert)  

  • Plant Sale starts at 5pm
  • Goodies available at 6:30
  • Buy before the concert while you are waiting...  send your neighbors to shop during the show... finish the night with a delectable goody from the bake sale table...
 
Plants Available (there may be more varieties not yet listed...):

Red and pink raspberries,  Lilies, irises, Hydrangea bush, Monkshood, Pink tall Phlox, Phlox- Sherwood purple. Blue Thistle, Bee Balm, Gooseneck Loostrife, Black eyed Susan, Cone flower, Rose of Sharon, Trumpet vine, Lily of the valley, hostas and some other.
 
All just $5 each.
 
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Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Hunt Middle School blog - May 10, 2016

Hunt Middle School - May 10, 2016 





 Remember to check out the Hunt website for upcoming events.
 
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Silent Auction Raffle
Bring cash to buy raffle tickets to win great prizes in our new Silent Auction gone Raffle! 
This event will be held alongside the bake sale at each concert. 
One does not have to be present to win.
If you would like to signup to help at the bake sale, here is the link to find out about opportunities:

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0F44ABA92FAAF85-spring
 
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SBAC 7th & 8th Grade Testing
 
Hunt SBAC testing begins today and goes all week.
Check the website for details as mods are different each day.
 
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Principal Coffee and Chat
 
 
Meet with Len Phelan this Friday morning from 8:15 - 9:15 at the school
 
 
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Sports and Activities
 
Remember to check the Hunt calendar as there plenty of events to check out this month.
 
Here are the musical events. Come and support your amazing musicians!
 
May 11 - 7 PM - Band Concert
May 18 - 7 PM - Orchestra Concert
May 25 - 7 PM - Chorus Concert
 
 
 
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Sunday, May 1, 2016

Hunt Middle School - April 30, 2016

Hunt Middle School - April 30, 2016 


Lots of great Hunt middle School events coming up. Check out the school website for all important information.
 

  

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  April PTO Minutes 
New Business
 
Carol McCleary brought samples of newly designed HMS logos to be used for school apparel
  • PTO members voted on our top 3 choices.
  • Len will connect with Val Lodish to create an online survey for students to vote.
  • Apparel would be available to sell in the school store for Fall 2016.
  • Carol will check on sourcing t-shirts and sweatshirts.
  • We could also make euro car stickers and magnets.
Silent Auction fundraiser is back and redesigned for 2016!
  • It will be in the form of a Raffle to allow equitable participation.
  • We will auction off a smaller number of large ticket items, on the nights of all 3 May concerts, with drawings at the final Choral concert May 25 th .
  • Donations are coming in (7 th Gen, Bonnie Acker, Simplicity Spa, Burlington Park & Rec and others)!
  • We will use staggered priced/colored tickets for higher priced items, make fliers for local shops, restaurants, and senior homes, advertise on FPF and in North Ave News, and put on the Blog!
  • We discussed making a “concert bill” with names of all performers, and get donors to put in an ad.
  • Other fundraising along with the Auction are bake sales at each concert, and possibly the plant sale on the final night May 25 th .
  • Tammy K will check on getting plants from Dismas house.
  • If we cannot get their free ready-to- sell plants, we will not do the plant sale this year.
 
Treasurer’s Report
  • Current checkbook balance is $8,182 after checks written for African Drumming, Junior Iron Chef, e-books, and Team Galaxy!
  • Of this, $4,620 is in unrestricted funds. If remaining 10 teams use the $200 we have given them, we will have a balance of $2,620.
 
Principal’s Report
  • The Play last week was a huge success, VMT was awesome!
  • We are thankful for all of the student and parent support.
  • Spring sports have started.
  • There will be no baseball this year, due to lack of players, possibly the result of the growing interest in Lacrosse.
  • Available sports are Track & Field along with Softball.
  • Remedial summer school will be available this summer.
  • No formal summer school will be offered for the Middle schools again this summer due to a lack of funding.
  • SBAC testing will take place after Break: 6 th grade on May 3 rd &; 4 th (L/A), and May 5 th & 6 th (Math). The following week May 10-13, 7 th /8 th grades will follow the same schedule.
  • NECAP Science for 8 th graders May 17 th & 18 th , all testing is posted on school calendar.
  • Talent show was this week during the school day.
  • It’s a great fun school event.
  • Some parents expressed an interest in seeing the show, if we could offer it in the evening.
  • A discussion followed about the possibility.
  • Mr. Rock announced his retirement after 40+ years at HMS!
From VCAT:
  • Linda Crosby, whose son was killed by a drunk driver on the Heineburg Bridge some years ago, gave a very moving school-wide presentation on drunk driving and making good choices.
  • Mr. Dabritz, our school Librarian, has been awarded the National Geographic Educator of the week, for his work with Ms. Orlando’s class. Congratulations!!
  • May 3 rd is Teacher Appreciation Day.
  • We will set up a Sign-Up Genius for treats in the Staff room.
  • The faculty is planning a Digital Learning Day in the evening on May 26 th for parents and students.
  • It will be similar to an open house with students showcasing their work on their devices, a dialogue on the 1:1 program, and sharing plans for next year.
  • All ipads will be kept at school over the summer, and will be issued again in the Fall.
  • Parents would like to see more restrictions on personal use.
  • Can we see data on high usage of apps?
  • Just a reminder that parents have the authority to keep their child’s ipad at school each day.
Future Business
 
Agenda for May:
We need to start thinking of fundraising opportunities for next year, and put together our 2016-2017 budget.
Historically, budget target has been $8,000-$10,000, but heading into next year with $5,000 would be acceptable.
Ideas included:
Online projects!
Tshirt sales!
Getting parents more involved early in the year.
Being present at 6th grade open house/ice cream social.
Doing fundraisers by parent/grade.
Our next meeting is the final meeting of the 2015-2016 school year on May 19 th at 6:30.


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Play Production Meeting


It's time to debrief this year's play production and start making plans for next year!  Anyone who is interested in working on Hunt middle school's annual play production with Very Merry Theatre is invited to attend this meeting.  We will be selecting next year's show and also recruiting volunteers to take on leadership roles on the production team.  


Date: Tuesday 5/31/16
Time: 6:30pm
Location: Hunt Library

 

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Summer Programs
 
 
  • Reminder to parents about filling out Summer programs... spots go QUICKLY!
  • If you have questions, please contact Rebecca Reese (rreese@bsdvt.org)
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Music Programs
 
Reminder also big month coming up for MUSIC Wednesdays! 
  • Wed May 11 BAND
  • Wed May 18 ORCHESTRA
  • Wed May 25 CHORUS
 
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Auction Raffle
 
A sneak preview!!
Final drawings on May 25
Everyone will have an opportunity to win since this year it is in a raffle format.
Stay tuned for further details.
 
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