12/10 - Spaghetti with Santa
Tilden Village Dinner
12/11 - Hour of Code at Blake (see details below)
Blake Orchestra Concert
12/12 - 7th Grade to A Christmas Carol
Blake Chorus Concert
12/16 - Term 1 Report Cards go home
Site Council Mtg - 3:15 p.m.
Blake Band Concert
12/18 - 1/2 Day for Students
Professional Afternoon for Staff
Medfield Talks - Sarah Ward - 7-9 p.m. (see details below)
12/20 - 1/2 Day for Students and Staff
1/1 - Happy New Year!
Topic/Question for the Dinner Table
To help encourage conversations and dialogue about the role that courage and accepting challenges play in making growth towards goals, our topic/question for the dinner table is: What is a goal you have for yourself this year that you are willing to embrace ‘the struggle’ to try and meet? Embracing the Struggle (Week of 12/8/19) (This is an anonymous Google Form)
Term 1 Report Cards
Next Monday students will be bringing home their report cards for the first term. Time will be spent in advisory with students reflecting upon the work they accomplished, as well as setting healthy goals for the second term. If you have any questions about your child's work or the reports, please start by having a conversation with your own child. If questions still exist, you should contact the teacher directly to gain more insight.
Hour of Code at Blake
In recognition of Computer Science Week: Dec. 9-13th, Blake’s annual Hour of Code /STEAM event will take place during all Math Classes in the LMC this WEDNESDAY! The official Hour of Code week is the week of 12/9-12/15. It will be a very busy day with 12 Stations of coding, STEAM, and unplugged activities set up. The idea is to give students AND staff time to explore different approaches to integrating coding and STEAM into the curriculum.
Spirit Week at Blake - 12/16-12/20
Students & Staff are invited to join in a spirit week next week before vacation!
Monday 12/16: Blanket/Pajama day (wear pajamas and/or bring a blanket!)
Tuesday 12/17: Winter hat day (self explanatory)
Wednesday 12/18: Festive Day (wear festive clothing, holiday/winter sweaters, "ugly" sweaters, etc!)
Thursday 12/19: Summer in winter day (Short sleeves, sunglasses, flip flops, etc.)
Friday 12/20: Happy New Year Day! (2020 glasses, Black & gold clothing, etc.)
Advisory Update for Blake
During this Wednesday's Advisory, the focus will be on the 26 Days of Kindness. Advisories will be participating in a book drive that day!
Blake Wednesday Advisory Website
"Learn it Today, Use it Tomorrow! Practical Strategies to Develop Independent Executive Function Skills" - Presentation with Sarah Ward
12/18/19 from 7-9 p.m. (Medfield High School Auditorium)
Sarah Ward, M.S., CCC/SLP has over 25 years of experience in diagnostic evaluations and treatment of executive dysfunction. Ms. Ward holds a faculty appointment at the Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions. Sarah is an internationally recognized expert on executive function and presents seminars and workshops on the programs and strategies she has developed with her Co-Director Kristen Jacobsen. Their 360 Thinking Executive Function Program received the Innovative Promising Practices Award from the National Organization CHADD. She has presented to and consulted with over 1200 public and private schools in the United States, Canada and Europe.
Thanks to MCPE for their generous financial support.
Information from Mrs. Williams and Mrs. Keigan
It seems to be that time of the year when we are starting to see an increase in illness throughout the school. Our Blake school nurses, Mrs. Williams and Mrs. Keigan, have asked that we share this Illness guidelines link for information on sending your child back to school following an illness. Additionally, please note the following reminders:
- Students should go to the nurse's office if they are feeling ill, rather than text parents directly and getting dismissed via the main office. It is important that we are tracking illness in our school community and that students are cared for by an adult while they are not feeling well at school.
- Please review handwashing, hand-sanitizing, and tissue disposal ettiquette with your child so that they can minimize the spread of germs at school.
- Please remind students that sharing foods, drinks and utensils at lunch can lead to the spread of illness. It is a surprisingly common occurrence.
- Please avoid sending your sick child to school just to take a test or quiz. We are happy to provide another time for your child to take it so that they can stay home, rest, and avoid spreading illness to other students.
- If your child is out for multiple days, you may contact the grade level guidance counselor or cluster leader to request that work be left in the guidance office for someone to pick up so that your child does not fall behind.
Community Service Club Information - Coat Drive
The Community Service Club of Blake is holding its annual coat drive right now. The drive will conclude in early January. Please donate new or gently used WINTER coats. The donation box can be found at the front of the school. All coats that are donated will be delivered to Medfield's Anton Cleaners who sponsors the drive.
Lost and Found Items
The number of items in our Lost and Found has increased. Please remind students to come take a look, as there are a number of items that are unlabeled that have been collected. We will be clearing out the Lost and Found during the winter vacation.
Students for Students
SFS has been formed to provide support from high school students to middle school age students within the Medfield public school system. Our mission is to provide social support for children who have experienced or are experiencing a life-changing family illness. The founding members of SFS are people who have experienced such events and who want to help the younger students navigate the emotional impact in their lives. Please e-mail Sam Hedges ([email protected]) with any questions.
Blake Winter Intramurals
Be on the lookout for the 2020 Blake Winter Intramural offerings either later this week or early next week. The winter session will run from January 6 through March 20.If you have questions or ideas, please contact Matt Marenghi ([email protected]).
Blake is Social - Any Submissions?
Blake is social is looking for winter sports submissions. We would love pictures from ski club, or from basketball, or just an amazing snapshot of your snowman. What is Blake up to in the winter??? Work and submissions can be e-mailed to [email protected] or [email protected]
Blake’s Affinity Groups
The purpose of an affinity group is to provide a forum of support for students who may feel a disconnection relative to identity to their larger school community. Such disconnections to identity may include, but not be limited to, race, ethnicity, gender, religion, ability, and sexual orientation. An affinity group’s goal is to play a vital role in ensuring an inclusive environment where all are valued, included, and empowered to succeed.
An affinity group is open to students across every grade level. It is arranged for students in an affinity group to meet at least once a month during a mutually agreed upon time and the meetings are supervised by at least one staff member at Blake.
As the need for an affinity group may stem from a lack of or weaker connection to the larger Medfield community, efforts will be made to strengthen connections to the community. To this end, members of the community are welcome and at times will be invited to attend affinity group meetings.
For more information about starting or joining an affinity group at Blake, please contact Matt Marenghi, Guidance Counselor: [email protected] or 508-359-2445.
Having a tough time making ends meet? Are basic resources such as obtaining food and covering the cost of utilities becoming more daunting? Medfield Youth Outreach, a confidential town service, may be able to help. Learn about food and utility resources as well as holiday and birthday programs that help ease the stress during difficult financial times. Reach out at 508-359-7121 to Chelsea at Medfield Youth Outreach to learn more about what help is available. This office also provides other services which you can learn about here: https://www.town.medfield.net/403/Medfield-Youth-Outreach
26 Days of Kindness
The seven year anniversary of the tragic events in Newtown will be upon us shortly. At Blake, we are continuing a tradition started six years ago by honoring those who died that day by asking everyone in the Blake community to participate in 26 Days of Kindness. On the document, you will see the acts of kindness are not 'big', nor are they complicated, yet each can make an impact on someone, including each of us. On Friday of each week you will see that the acts are a little 'bigger' in nature. We encourage you to print out the document and post it in a public spot (i.e. refrigerator) for your entire family to reference during the next month. We are going to document these days and put them together in a way that we can refer back to easily and remind ourselves that kindness is something we all can practice every day. I encourage you to check out the links for 26 Days of Kindness on Mrs. Gumas's website - mrsgumas.com.
As the weather is turning a bit cooler, I am writing with a reminder about after school supervision at Blake. Students are welcome to stay after school with a teacher, in the library, in the fitness center, or to be part of an intramural activity. Supervision of students ends at 3:15 p.m. as that is when our front office staff leaves, library closes, and activities generally conclude. Exceptions may include the theatre program or sports. Students should plan for transportation home by 3:15 and are welcome to wait for rides outside in the area by the circle or in the lobby of the school but should not be wandering around the building, playing in the gym without adult supervision, or hanging out in unsupervised areas. Student safety is our priority so we ask that students be in a supervised activity or make plans to head home.
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.
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.
The blood drive is well underway. This week we will have a guest appearance from Janice Kafka who is our Red Cross blood drive representative. Over the next two weeks our committee will be working very hard to create our recruitment campaign. Please mark your calendars, Monday, January 20 from 8am-2pm. It means so much to the kids your being a part. We will have helpers for those who need to bring young ones with them. The donation age is as young as 16yrs. with parents permission. This blood drive is perfectly geared for first time donors.
Blake Site Council Book Discussion Group - Middle School Matters
This year the Blake Site Council’s first book is Middle School Matters by Phyllis Fagell. Stay tuned for more information and we hope you can join in these discussions!
Theme of Courage for 2019-2020
Our theme for this academic year at Blake is one of Courage. We believe that this theme will extend the work we have done over the last seven years with our themes of Community, Perseverance, Creativity, Acceptance, Collaboration, Empathy, Diversity, and Happiness. As a staff we have begun brainstorming ideas and I encourage all families to join us in the brainstorming process as well. As ideas and thoughts come to mind, do not hesitate to e-mail me ([email protected]) or Kelly C. ([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 http://www.medfield.net/o/medfield-public-schools/page/employment-opportunites--7 and find applications under the tab "employment opportunities". Please contact Kelly Campbell at [email protected] with any questions.
Substitute Nurses
As with our teaching positions, from time to time our nurse, Tricia Williams, will be out of the building and we need a substitute nurse for these days. We are fortunate that we have several substitute nurses in the district who are able to work on those days. If you are a registered nurse and have an interest in potentially serving as a substitute throughout the year, please let us know. You can contact me ([email protected]) or Tricia Williams ([email protected]). By the same token, if you have friends in the area who would have an interest in serving as a substitute, please let them know that they can contact us as well. The safety and well-being of our students is always our top priority, and we would appreciate your interest in one of these roles.
Soccer Equipment Drive
Please Bring in gently used soccer equipment that will get donated to kids in Antigua through a program called MAP PASSBACK
Equipment being collected includes: Cleats, Shorts , Soccer balls, Shirts, and Soccer Socks. We are donating to Antigua because the people there desperately need and would love to receive anything soccer." Please Join is helping the children in Antigua who do not have the resources to play the Beautiful Game of Soccer. The soccer drive will run until about April break. Thank you!! Collection bins are located at the Blake middle school and Star & Glick orthodontist, Both bins are located in Medfield! More information about the drive can be found at http://www.massathlete.com/content/about-us/mapp-passback-antigua
MCPE Update
There's still time to make a 2019 donation to MCPE! We know you have many options when it comes to year-end giving. Why not choose MCPE? We are providing system-wide support and academic enrichment for Medfield Public Schools. Donate today at medfieldcoalition.org
Blake PTO Update
Volunteers Needed for Blake! Please click on the link to the volunteer form below. Thank you!!
Blake PTO: 2019-2020 Volunteer Sign-Up Form