11/16 - School Committee Mtg
11/17-11/19 - Blake Play Weekend!
11/22 - ½ Day for Students
Blake Turkey Bowl (see info below)
11/23 - Happy Thanksgiving!
11/24 - No School
11/27 - Angel Run Poster Making Party
11/28 - Blake Site Council (3:30 p.m.)
12/1 - Term 1 Ends
12/4 - Samaritans Workshop for Families
12/5 - Spaghetti & Snowballs (MMA)
Blake PTO Meeting
Blake’s Question of the Week
To encourage dialogue and reflection about the ways we respond to change and uncertainty, our question for the week is: What strategies help you to adapt and live with uncertainty and change? Change and Uncertainty (Week of 11/12/23) (This is an anonymous Google Form)
Veterans Day Weekend - No Homework Weekend for Blake
Thank you to all of the Blake staff for their support and help in making our 'No Homework Weekend' this past weekend a reality. This effort was part of our continued work to provide down time for students, staff, and families.
Blake Turkey Bowl
The Blake Wellness team wanted to let you know that we are excited to resume our tradition of hosting an 8th Grade one-hand touch football tournament next Wednesday morning. To help students navigate their way through the anticipation, we thought we would send along some of the information we share with them. The event is meant to be inclusive, active and a showcase of the skills and rules they have been asked to demonstrate in class the past several weeks.
BMS Turkey Bowl
Who: Grade 8 Students
What: A 4v4 one-hand touch football tournament.
When: Wednesday (11/22) - 7:45-9:10 AM. Rain or shine.
Where: Meeting in Blake gym, then proceeding to the HS turf field.
Extra Details:
- Sign ups will take place through a live Google Form to be sent to all eighth graders in a few weeks. *Our Google Form will have an option for students unable to field an entire team of 4 to submit their interest so that we may assist them in the process.
- Sign ups must be entered by Tuesday (11/21) at 2:30PM. At this point the Google Form will be closed.
- All students participating in the Turkey Bowl should report to the gym AFTER attendance/ announcements on (11/22).
Blake Theater - 11/17-11/19
It's a Whole New World at the Blake Auditorium. Come check out our beautifully renovated space when you see the Blake Theater production of Aladdin on November 17th (7pm) and 18th (1pm and 7pm). Tickets are available now on bmstheater.booktix.net. Staff (and students) are $10. We will be having a work-still-in-progress dress rehearsal on Thursday, November 16 that we will open to staff only. It will start around 2:50ish. The list of cast and crew are below. Please come support them and the wonderful team of adults who made this show happen - Sarah LoMonaco, Deb Manning, Kathleen Burkell, Nancy McLaughlin, Joe Knaus, Tom Woods, Maureen Doctoroff, and Kim Price. Hope to see you there.
MCAS Dates for Spring 2024 at Blake
Thank you to all the students who attended the first couple of meetings of the Multicultural Awareness Club (MAC). ALL ARE WELCOME!
November Reading Challenge!
November reaching challenge is: A book recommended by your library. There is a display up in the library with some of my favorites- please come down and have a look! There are suggestions on all subject areas and all types of books. I’m also happy to make recommendations in person so stop in and let’s find the perfect book for you!! Don’t forget to fill out the Google form on the library website to let me know that you participated! Otherwise, how will I know to send you a prize?
Reminder for all Blake Students and Families - Gift Giving
This is a reminder that as a school we will not be orchestrating 'Secret Santa' type activities for students in which gifts are being purchased and/or given. For a number of reasons, school is not the proper forum for the exchange of gifts, and we appreciate your understanding and support.
Recess Reminder for All Parents/Guardians
This is a gentle reminder to families that students are going outside for recess and should bring weather-appropriate clothing like winter jackets and gloves so that they will be warm outdoors.
Private School Applications
For those families looking to apply to private school for next year, please make sure all materials (all teacher recommendation forms, transcript request, an 8x11 envelope and 4 stamps per envelope) are to the guidance office at least 3 weeks prior to the application due date. We want to make sure the teachers have sufficient time to provide thoughtful letters for all students applying. If the forms will be sent electronically to the teachers, please e-mail Mrs. Avery and your student's school counselor to inform them. Mrs. Avery tracks all applications and makes sure they get out in time. Any questions, please contact or Ms. Allen (8th), Mr. Marenghi (7th), or Mrs. Dondero (6th).
MHS Theatre Society to perform Grease, November 17-19
Grease travels all the way back to 1958, capturing a sugary and idealized view of teenhood in its early stages. Back when love, slumber parties and prom were the main worries of many teenagers, it brings the audience back to simpler times. Guaranteed to spread a wave of nostalgia to an older audience, and a perception of hope and excitement to the younger audience.
Fresh off their summer love, Danny and Sandy never thought they would see each other again. But when their paths cross again at Rydell High, cliques and popularity complicate everything.
Will Danny and Sandy be able to rekindle their love? Or should it all be left in the summer?
The cast and crew of Medfield Theatre Society cordially invites you to join Danny and Sandy as they navigate their senior year at Rydell High School. Grease: School Version is presented by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc., a Condors Theatricals Company. www.concordtheatricals.com. Book, Music, and Lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey
Show dates: November 17 and 18 @7:00 PM, and November 19 @2:00 PM
Location: MHS Auditorium, 88 South Street, Medfield, MA
To purchase tickets:
https://www.ticketsource.us/medfield-high-school-theatre-society
At Pride Alliance, we strive to create a safe space for people in the community, those who want to learn more about the LGBTQIA+ community, and also those who wish to learn how to become a better ally. Everyone is welcome to join, regardless of identity. Meetings for Pride Alliance will take place on Mondays from 2:15-2:45 in room #309. If you have any questions, please reach out to Jen Dondero ([email protected]) and Kristin Manning ([email protected]).
Substitute Applications
Blake is always looking for substitute teacher applicants. Applicants need not have teaching licensure but should be energetic, flexible and enjoy working with children. For more information or to apply, please visit Medfield Public Schools - Employment Opportunities and look under ‘Substitute Teaching’. Please contact Kelly Campbell ([email protected]) with any questions.
MCAP/Medfield Outreach Update
Your response matters! Click on the link below or scan the QR code to participate in a brief parent/guardian survey about youth substance use in Medfield. Accurate information helps decision makers effectively address community needs. *Fill out the survey for your chance to win $30!
flowcode.com/p/qAwRpcDJk?fc=0
Message from SEPAC
Medfield Special Education Parents Advisory Council (SEPAC). SEPAC is run by a group of parent and caregiver volunteers who work for the understanding of, respect for, and support of all children with special needs in the community. SEPAC has a lot of exciting things planned for this school year.
Our first-ever parent connection group for parents and caregivers of individuals with Down Syndrome meets on November 14th at 11:30 a.m. at the Medfield Library. Hope to see you there! Please email [email protected] with questions. Check out our website, Facebook, and Instagram social media pages. We share area events and more!
Reminder that the PTO serves to support Blake teachers through financial grants, hands-on support, and ongoing teacher appreciation efforts on behalf of all parents. If you have not already, please consider donating $50 for the year (or whatever amount feels appropriate) through Venmo @MedfieldTownwide-PTO or a check made out to Blake PTO. If you are interested in volunteering once or twice a month during the school day to help teachers with photocopying or bulletin boards, please email [email protected]
Message from MCPE - Grants in Action!
What’s better than one MCPE grant in action? Seeing two MCPE grants come together in this fun, creative project at Dale Street School last year! Students were tasked with using the EverBlocks life-size block system together with robotic Sphero balls to create obstacle courses and mazes for them to navigate. The EverBlocks modular building blocks were funded by MCPE in a 2019-20 grant, and the robotic Sphero balls were upgraded for the K-5 robotics program with new kits and components in a 2020-21 grant.
Follow MCPE on Instagram (@mcpe_medfield) to see more updates on how your donations make a real impact on our Medfield students!
Volunteers needed on Tuesday evening, Dec. 5, 2023 for "Spaghetti and Snowballs!" You loved this event when your children were little…please volunteer to help launch a new holiday tradition for the next generation of Medfielders!
Guests will enjoy a spaghetti dinner (with or without sauce and/or meatballs) and an ice cream dessert, music performed by Medfield students, and photos with Olaf from Frozen. 7th & 8th grade music students will be your servers for the evening. There will also be a bake sale, gift basket raffles, and many more fun surprises. Tickets for Spaghetti & Snowballs are available here: https://www.ticketsource.us/medfield-music-association
Would you like to volunteer? This event takes so many helpers to pull off. Sign up as an event helper, a baker for the bake sale, or a shopper to fill the raffle baskets using the signup genius here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050D4AADA822AA8-45674067-spaghetti#/
This event is brought to you by the Medfield Music Association (MMA)and proceeds benefit the music program in all Medfield Public Schools. Please follow us on facebook for updates.
Monday, 11/20 at 7:00 p.m.
Given today’s challenging social media and (dis)information ecosystem, it’s easy to see how many of us — teachers and students — can fall into either-or traps of thinking or to accept, as given, many dominant (and harmful) narratives we have about the most important issues of our time. Every day, we see evidence of how fear and bias are used to manipulate the public, and our kids are not immune to this.
But as psychologist Jennifer Eberhardt reminds us, “Neither our evolutionary path nor our present culture dooms us to be held hostage by bias. Change requires a kind of open-minded attention that is well within our reach” (Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think, and Do, 7). Every day in our classrooms, we can engage in an “open-minded attention” that not only protects kids against biased thinking traps, but also empowers them to seek perspectives beyond their own and beyond those loudest in the room or on their devices.
In this session, we’ll explore strategies we can practice with our students as they read, respond, and interpret texts and the world beyond those texts. We can seek answers to questions like: What other possibilities exist? Whose voice or perspective am I missing? Whose voices or perspectives have I dismissed and why? What do I have to learn here? How can I know better, think expansively, and see more clearly? We can make looking again, behind, and next to a habit of mind.
When students are practiced in perspective-taking, they exercise the flexibility and empathy required to understand issues and ideas from multiple points-of-view. With the problems we face in the world today, we need more young people who are practiced in seeing issues from varying, even contradictory perspectives.
We're thrilled to welcome back Tricia Ebarvia, author of the new book Get Free: Antibias Literacy Instruction for Stronger Readers, Writers, and Thinkers (Corwin, 2024) for this free 45-minute webinar that will help educators reframe their classroom instruction to promote critical inquiry, understanding, and expansive perspective-taking approaches.
Tips for Talking with Your Teen about Drugs & Alcohol in Today’s World - Presented by Dr. Safdar Medina
Tuesday, 12/5 at 6:00 p.m.
Dr. Medina is the Pediatric Director at Tri River Health Center in Uxbridge and an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at UMassChan Medical School. He currently serves as the school physician for the Northborough/Southborough School District. He was awarded a grant by the American Academy of Pediatrics in 2008 to work with community partners on teen substance use prevention. He treats youth who struggle with mental health conditions and addiction, including providing medication assisted treatment for opioid use disorder.
Questions or comments? Contact Natick 180 at [email protected]