For the Week of 11/7 - 11/11
Embedded Files
Welcome message from Dr. Clapp
Classroom "Peeks"
Counselor's Corner
HKMS "Happenings"
Ways to get involved at HKMS
and...Upcoming Events!
Dear HKMS Families,
Every year on Veteran's Day I always reflect on my grandfathers who both served in the Pacific theater during WWII. Joseph "Papa" Clapp was Petty-Officer and an electrician in the Navy. His destroyer made it through the war, having been clipped by a Kamakazi on one occasion. Captian Robert LaCroix (my mother's dad), was a Navy pilot. Tragically his squadron was shot down over Hawaii while on a training mission. My mom, who was six years old at the time, was the oldest of four (Uncle Paul was only 6-weeks old). When I think of the sacrifices and service our veterans and their families have made for our sake and the sake of our children, I am humbled and inspired. Inspired by our country, to represent the values and beliefs that make our imperfect union one that is always reaching for those founding ideals of liberty and equality. I am also inspired to know that through the toughest of times, our way of life perseveres and always comes out stronger. I truly believe the difficulties of the last few years will end up making us stronger. I am humbled to think of the millions who have served to give us the privilege to live in such a nation.
Today at HKMS we honored J.G. Lieutenant Paul D'Agostino and Petty-Officer First Class Kevin Rogers, two of the finest educators and human beings I have had the privilege to know. After graduating from the Naval Reserve Officer Training Program, Lieutenant D’Agostino served as a surface warfare officer aboard USS Oliver Hazard Perry, FFG 7. His unit's missions included training reservists at sea and drug interdiction operations off the southern coast of the United States. Petty Officer Rogers served 6 years of active duty in special operations during Operation Desert Storm. If your child has had the opportunity to learn from one of these fine veterans, I am sure they can relay some of the amazing stories, experiences, and opportunities military service provided. Thank you for your service gentleman!
This week we had a full moon (with a total eclipse), Election Day, an awesome EdCamp for teacher professional development, a board of education meeting, new cafeteria furniture, and Veteran's Day observances, what a week! Next week I am looking forward to our parent coffee, another in our series on the adolescent brain, this time focusing on the impact social media has on their intellectual, social, and emotional development. A description of the coffee and a link to the text for next week is below in the "get involved" section.
I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend and my deepest appreciation to all those who served and sacrificed for our country. Happy Veterans Day!
Sincerely,
Steven Clapp, Ed.D.
Principal
Helen Keller Middle School
Find your strength, build upon it, and share it!
Grade 6
Math students in Mrs. Brodeur's classes can now use positive and negative numbers to represent real-world contexts, understand their meaning in a real-world context, and interpret statements of inequalities...and they couldn't do that before!
Mrs. Terry, our school counselor, spent time in 6th grade ILA classes talking about Erasing Negative Thoughts and Breaking Down Growth Mindset. This helped to kick off their Deep Study of Character Book Clubs.
Mrs. Terry, our school counselor, spent time in 6th grade ILA classes talking about Erasing Negative Thoughts and Breaking Down Growth Mindset. This helped to kick off their Deep Study of Character Book Clubs.
Grade 7
7th grade French students are doing conversation rotations to talk about their week and their weekend plans in the target language.
Students in 7th Grade Social Studies are using WeVideo to create Public Service Announcements about important global issues. They are spreading awareness and taking action on issues like world poverty and hunger, quality education, equality and conflict, etc.
Students in 7th Grade Social Studies are using WeVideo to create Public Service Announcements about important global issues. They are spreading awareness and taking action on issues like world poverty and hunger, quality education, equality and conflict, etc.
That's sooo Baca!
Dr. Baca's beverages need efficient cooling insulation. Which compound will best insulate the beverages and even make them cool? Seventh grade scientists are designing experiments to test out their hypotheses!
Grade 8
Social studies students chose and performed dramatic moments from Founding Fathers (the play) then debated the tension between personal liberty and collective safety!
Mr. Ackley had students converting fractions with decimals into proper fractions. These students were brave enough to demonstrate how to do the conversion!
FPA
The Tournament of Champions is underway in 6th grade physical education classes.
PLTW students are designing furniture to solve a problem. Students first define the problem (e.g., a small dorm for two roommates), then students propose a solution (e.g., bunk beds!). Other students are using the laser cutter to design some holiday decorations!
by Sara Terry, MS, NCC, LPCA
School Counselor
Growth vs Fixed Mindset
This week, sixth graders participated in a Growth Mindset lesson with Mrs. Terry. This lesson consisted of understanding the differences between a growth mindset and a fixed mindset, positive versus negative self-talk, and identified ways to grow their brains in a healthy way.
Fixed Mindset Examples:
"I'm not good at this. Why even try?"
"I'm afraid I will make a mistake."
"This is too easy."
"This is good enough."
"I'm the best baseball player on my team. No need for me to practice!"
Growth Mindset Examples:
"This is challenging for me, but I will ask for help if I need it."
"I'm going to make mistakes. That is what helps me learn."
"This seems easy for me, how can I make this more challenging?"
"Let me re-check my work to make sure I did my best."
"My goal is to play D1 baseball, so I will practice every day to be an even better baseball player."
We then discussed how our thoughts affect our feelings which then affect our actions. If I have a positive attitude towards something that may be challenging, I am more likely to feel somewhat positive about the situation which will in turn allow for me to make positive decisions towards that thought. For example, if Math is a challenge for me, and I have a math test, I may think, "I'm going to fail this." That may lead to feeling nervous, anxious, and down on myself. In return, I am likely not going to be my best self while taking the test because I am telling myself I am going to fail.
On the contrary, if I tell myself, "This math test is going to be hard. I'm not good at this, but I studied so I will try my best." I will likely feel more motivated to do well even if I still feel nervous, which will allow for me to concentrate on my work and try my very best.
As a Counseling Team, we know that it is impossible to stay in the "growth mindset" or "positive mindset" realm all the time. Life is not full of rainbows and butterflies all the time, but when we are having negative thoughts or negative situations occurring around us, there are ways to cope with it and ways to reframe. Pair all of this with rapidly developing teenage brains being pumped with hormones... of course our students may have a challenging time regulating emotions and thinking in a positive way!
Our role is to help students break the cycle of negative thoughts (when they occur) and help them reframe to feel better and act better. It's what you do with those thoughts and how you attempt to reframe to break the negative thinking cycle.
Negative Thinking Patterns with Examples (some of them are cheesy, bare with me):
All or Nothing: believing everything is either right or wrong with no exceptions; no in between Example: If I do not get an A, then I am a failure.
Magnifying: letting one negative event define everything; making a big deal out of something small. Example: I didn't score a goal in soccer, I am such an embarrassment and can't go to the next game.
Personalization: taking something personally that does not actually have anything to do with you Example: The person at Starbucks didn't hold the door for me. How rude! She must not have liked me enough to hold the door.
Mind Reading: assuming what others are thinking or feeling Example: My teacher didn't call on me when I raised my hand. He must not like me.
Predicting the Future: expecting bad things to happen without giving it a chance Example: I'm going to fail my test today. I don't know any of this.
Stewing: going over something in your mind over and over again Example: My friend didn't say hi to me this morning. Is she mad at me? Did I do something wrong? Maybe I should text Kim and ask if she knows anything? Maybe it's because I forgot her birthday last month. I should call her. No.. maybe not.
Students concluded their growth mindset lesson by identifying ways to grow their brains. We talked about neuroplasticity, and how the small things add up to the big things. For instance, healthy snacks, music, goal-setting, and exercise allow for our brains to continue to developing in a healthy way.
Veteran's Day at HKMS!
On Tuesday educators from John Read Middle School and Helen Keller Middle School came together for our first-ever middle school EdCamp! From inter-town-vertical team meetings to professional learning on high-impact instructional strategies, teachers had lots of options and pathways they could choose. It was a fantastic day of learning and planning for all involved!
Dr. McKinnon lead the way with an inspirational and informative keynote on student engagement and high impact instructional strategies!
Pictures of teachers leading teachers about high impact instructional strategies, and working with colleagues from JRMS!
A huge SHOUT OUT to the PTOs of both Easton and Redding who provided an amazing lunch to all the campers! Hardly a scrap was left and everyone was well fed!
The School Play is BACK!
The School Play is BACK!
We are in school play season. Many people ask us what the differences are between the school play and drama club, so we made this handy chart! To see the full doc. just click here.
The announcement you've all been waiting for...
the return of the HKMS - PTO Ski Club!
2022-2023 HKMS Ski Club INFORMATION.pdf
Come to this month's parent coffee!
Come to this month's parent coffee!
"Why young brains are especially vulnerable to social media" (Abrams, 2022)
"Why young brains are especially vulnerable to social media" (Abrams, 2022)
You can find the article we will be discussing linked here.
Keller Educational Discussions
Keller Educational Discussions
Do you have an area of expertise middle schoolers can learn from? Do you like sharing? We want you to give a KED-Talk!
Click here for more information and to sign up!
The first batch of furniture for our new innovation space arrived this week, and the students are already enjoying it! If you want to help the cause please consider making a donation to ELF for the HKMS Innovation Spaces Project! Thank you! https://www.eastonlearningfoundation.org/shop
Help the Keller Cooking Club!!
Help the Keller Cooking Club!!
A group of students created and presented a proposal to start a cooking club at HKMS and thanks to the PTO, it is going to happen!! We need to your help gather basic equipment to get the club up and running. If you have some extra mixing bowls or cutting boards laying around, you can donate them to the KCC (Keller Cooking Club)! Simply click on the sign up genius link below then drop off your donations inside the front door of HKMS. There is a box waiting to receive it all.
November 16th -18th: SSES has Early Dismissals, HKMS Has Full Days of School
November 17th: Principal's Coffee Sponsored by PTO 9:30 AM
(TOPIC: Adolescent Brains and Social Media)
November 19th: The return of the HKMS Pancake Breakfast! 8:45 - 11:00 Proceeds go to 8th-Grade EOY Events!
November 23rd: Minimum Day - Thanksgiving Break - Dismissal at 12:50
November 24th-25th: No School - Thanksgiving Break
December 15th: Principal's Coffee Sponsored by PTO 9:30 AM
(TOPIC: Adolescent Brains and Restorative Practices)
December 23rd - 30th: Holiday Break - No School
2023!
January 18th: Winter Chorus Concert 6:00 PM (snow date 1/19)
January 25th: Instrumental Concert 6:00 PM (snowdate 1/26)
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