MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL & MAIN OFFICE NEWS

• ATTENTION NEW JGW APPARELL STORE: Whittier is having an on-line school store!  It is open from Friday, April 2nd and will only be open for 2 weeks, closing on April 16th.  You can order t-shirts, shorts, hoodies, sweat pants and light fleece pull overs in gray or Whittier green with JGWs logo. Please click the link to check out and order the merchandise: https://jgwhittiermiddleschool.itemorder.com/

• Report Cards are available via the Parent/Student Portal NOW. Please note that physical copies of the report card will not be coming home with students or mailed home. Please follow these directions to gain access:

• Go to HPS main page: https://www.haverhill-ps.org/
  • Click on Parent & Student Resources
  • Click on Parent & Student Portal Login
  • Click Log-in
  • Use your student’s username & password to login
  • Click on Student Portal (top of page)
  • Select Report Cards/Progress Reports
  • Click Download

• Teachers have or will be emailing home an electronic form acknowledging that parents have reviewed their student’s report card. Could you please make sure to fill that form out and submit it by Friday, 4/23/2021 at the latest.

• Parent Teacher Conferences are scheduled to be held remotely on the evening of Tuesday, 4/6/2021. Staff have or will be sending detailed information to families in regard to signing up for meetings.

RETURN TO SCHOOL: I will be communicating specific school changes to all families during the week of April 5^th-April 9^th. Please be on the look out for that. At this time we are planning to have all 5^th & 6^th grade students back on Monday, April 12^th and 7^th & 8^th grade students back on Monday, April 26^th (Please see the district calendar attached below):

APRIL VACATION ACADEMY:

NEWS FROM OUR NURSES OFFICE:

As previously mentioned, our school nurse, Kelsey Cartwright, has recently taken a new position in following her career path. We wish her nothing but the best in her future endeavors, and are extremely grateful for all that she contributed to our school community.

At this time, we have another Haverhill nursing staple, Jolene St. Pierre, who will be filling in with us here at JGW to provide consistency while we look for a permanent replacement.

We are continuing with pool testing twice per week. We strongly encourage you to participate in testing. As we welcome back students full time, please remember to contact the nurse with any medical concerns or questions. 

Consent form 1

Consent form 2

ATTENDANCE:

CONTEST: Congratulations to Homerooms 4 (LaCoste), 9 (Hamel), 13 (DiGloria), and 20 (Lewis) on their victories in the March Attendance Contest!! 67 Students within those homerooms had Perfect Attendance for the entire month. Even more impressively, a total of 303 students in the school had Perfect Attendance for the entire month!!

POSSIBLE STRATEGIES FOR GOOD ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION

         Please review the list and choose strategies that fit your daily schedule.

• I will make attending and participating in school every day a priority.
• I will post my class schedule of classes and log-in information in a visible location near my desk or on the refrigerator.
• I will set alarms / alerts to remind myself to wake up on time and participate in classes.
• I will try to find a quiet place at home where I can participate in class and complete my school work. If I cannot, I will ask my school or community organization if they have a safe place where I can study and log into class.
• I will keep track of my attendance and absences.
• I will find a relative, friend or neighbor who can help me resolve a problem keeping me from attending or participating in school.
• If I am absent, I will contact my teachers to find out what I missed.
• I will keep healthy by wearing a mask, as needed, and getting a flu shot.
• I will set up non-sick medical and dental appointments for weekdays after school. If I must make a non-urgent medical appointment during the school day, I will try to attend school for the majority of the day.
• When I am struggling with a challenge that is keeping me from attending or participating in school I will confide in an adult at school and seek help.

• ATTENDANCE POLICY AND EXPECTATIONS: Here is a reminder of our attendance policy. In this new model of schooling where students are learning from both school and home, attendance and participation in all classes is one of our major concerns. Here are some things to know and we would greatly appreciate it if you reviewed all of these expectations and policies with your students:

• If you are absent for 10% of the school year, you are considered to be “chronically” absent. That means that if you have missed 4 or more days to this point.
• We have begun reaching out via mail with attendance letters for students that we are currently concerned are missing too much time.
• It is the expectation that all students are either present physically or signed on remotely at 8:30am each day.
• It is the requirement that students attend all of their classes for the duration of the class time. Leaving a meet/class early is equivalent to walking out of class without permission.
• In addition to sending home letters, we will also be setting up attendance meetings with students and families to address concerns and lend support, and in some cases,  we will be conducting home visits to do this as well.
• The first step toward school success is attendance. You cannot be successful in school if you are not showing up. Please reach out to us so that we can set up a plan to best support you and your student(s).
• Please note that while it is good practice to make your student’s homeroom teacher aware of any absences or appointments, it is most important that you are contacting the main office of the school each and any time that your student is going to be absent. Also, please make sure to forward all doctor’s notes and other absent notes to our main office. Thank you!
  • Please click the link here to be connected to an updated district attendance policy: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AWglC4E6i12t0XcDfnpZJtOtt-xb8V_RBq4djELxd5g/edit?usp=sharing

• Wi-Fi Issues: If you are having WiFi issues at home and your student cannot log onto a Google Meet at the moment, please email the teacher or call the school so an office staff member can pass the info onto the teacher. Teachers take attendance every period and when a student does not show up for class, they don’t necessarily know that the student is having a tech issue.

PTO UPDATES

Our next PTO meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, 4/14 from 6:00-7:30pm via Zoom. We are always looking to welcome new members!

JG Whittier PTO is now listed as a charity on AmazonSmile.  What does this mean?  You shop. Amazon gives. Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to the charitable organization of your choice. AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know. Same products, same prices, same service. Support your charitable organization by starting your shopping at smile.amazon.com. Please support JG Whittier PTO by using the following link when you shop,  https://smile.amazon.com/ch/90-0135139 or by selecting John Greenleaf Whittier PTO as your charity of choice.

AmazonSmile customers can now support John Greenleaf Whittier Middle School PTO in the Amazon shopping app on iOS and Android mobile phones! Simply follow these instructions to turn on AmazonSmile and start generating donations.

1. Open the Amazon Shopping app on your device
2. Go into the main menu of the Amazon Shopping app and tap into ‘Settings’
3. Tap ‘AmazonSmile’ and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process

If you do not have the latest version of the Amazon Shopping app, update your app. Click here for instructions.

To see the impact of your marketing, visit the AmazonSmile Metrics Dashboard for John Greenleaf Whittier Middle School PTO. Simply log in at org.amazon.com and click the “View metrics” button.

CLUB NEWS:

JR VIP: Jr VIP will have a meeting on Thursday, April 8th at 3:00 on our Google Meets site.

COMMUNITY RESOURCES

HYBRID MODEL

GRADE 5:

Mrs. Sanguedolce: In math, we will begin Topic 8: Apply Understanding of Multiplication to Multiply Fractions. In social studies, we will continue to explore Chapter 7: A Growing Nation.

Ms. Delong: Science – This week, it would be helpful if families would support our learning about the water cycle and water conservation by limiting the amount of wasteful water used within the household. Students are starting to examine the human impact on the environment, and this is the first step.

Social Studies – After identifying the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation, our historians will be looking at the changes made through the Constitution and the complaints that popped up around ratification of the document that is so critical to our nation today. 

Mrs. LaCoste: Grade 5 ELA writers have been working diligently on completing their Biography essays. Next week, we’ll review and sharpen our grammar and mechanics usage skills before we welcome the whole group back (with a few new additions) and dive into poetry.   Students should continue to read for a minimum of 20 minutes each night.  Talk to your student about what they’re reading!  Feel free to reach out if you need any book recommendations or if your student needs to borrow reading books for home.

In Orange SS, we’ve completed chapter 6 on the US forming a new government after the Revolutionary War.  We’ve learned about the ratification of the Constitution, the branches of the government, the Bill of Rights and the Amendments.  The chapter 6 test will take place next Thursday, April 8.  

Ms. Lees: In ELA Orange group will begin a new adventure. The new topic in Math will be multiplying fractions and in Science it is all about water. For Social Studies there will be review and a test. Students who have been given a LexiaCore5 log-in should be working at least 45 minutes a week in the program. Parents- iReady Math and Reading are also terrific programs to use in free time. Remember that Ms. Lees posts on Classroom Pages when she and Ms. Kelly are in a google classroom to help complete assignments and clarify lessons on remote Wednesdays. Please join! Before and after school time is available too – remember to ask!

GRADE 6:

Mrs. Hamel: SS: In Social Studies, we continue to travel around the continent of South America taking notice of its diverse climate, landscape and culture. We have looked at many unique landmarks such as Machu Pichu, Angel Falls, the Amazon Rainforest and River as well as the Atacama Desert. 

Students will be getting their own country in South America to research and write a report on to share with the class. We are certain they will discover some truly beautiful and interesting finds in their location. Keep up the Awesome Work Grade 6 Explorers!

Science:
Students did an AMAZING job on their Cell City Projects and are now working on their 3-D models of a labeled plant or animal cell. I am truly in awe of how creative this class has been on project work this year- incredibly proud of the work of these scientists!

We will continue our work on the anatomy of the cell and the fascinating work that such a small organism can do.  Just goes to show- small can still be mighty!!! 

I’m excited to see these projects and to EAT some of them (the edible ones of course!!).  Way to Go Grade 6 Scientists!!! 

Mr. Taylor: Things we hope to accomplish, but as we know, plans can always change. 

Onto similar things! We will continue to be working on grammar and and working on some background on mythology before we start our next story. 

Ms. Sargent: Math Grade 6:  We are beginning to work on ratios and unit rates.  For Trimester 3 students need to get their work in on time.  I have reminded them that I will accept an assignment up until 3:00 pm on the day that it is assigned.  After that it will be counted as a zero (unless there is a special circumstance in which I have spoken to the student or parent about).  I make sure that adequate time is provided during the school day to get each assignment done.  I want to thank parents in advance for helping to make sure that assignments are completed and passed in on time.  

Mrs. Guisti: Mrs. Guisti’s and Mrs. Cronin’s students have worked so hard on their multi-paragraph persuasive essays that included introductory paragraphs, body paragraphs with supporting details, and closing paragraphs.  Great work students!  In math we have been writing equations using information from Savaas Math.  Students have continued to practice computation skills as well.  Reminder:  students should be completing 45 minutes of math iReady each week and 45 minutes of online reading (iReady, Lexia and/or Read Live).  Have a wonderful long weekend!

GRADE 7:

Mrs. Berthiaume: In ELA, we have been writing short myths.  I am quite impressed with everyone’s creativity!  In Social Studies, we will begin working on the spring DBQ very soon.  This is the final trimester.  Let’s make this one the best by turning in all assignments on time and participating in classroom discussions.  

Mrs. Trombly: Mrs. Trombly‘s math class will be testing on the first half of topic eight geometry, angle measures next Wednesday. Science classes will be testing on the water cycle next week. 

Mr. Yanoff: ​The Red and Yellow teams have started to learn how to use “Sampling to Draw Inferences About Populations”.  Math and common sense are combined so that students can see how math can be used in real-life situations.  They will learn how a random sample will produce either a good or bad sampling for the entire population in question. Are the results valid?  Their do-now is a minimum of ten minutes of I-Ready and are encouraged to spend as much time as they can to better themselves.  

Parent conferences are close!

Mrs. MacKinnon/Mrs. Lane: Math: The students will move onto Topic 4-2 and learn how to generate equivalent expressions. They are learning how to use the Distributive Property, the Commutative Property to reorder and the Associative Property to regroup their expressions.    

Science:  The students are coming to a close with the water cycle by the end of next week. They have learned their vocabulary and they have learned that they could become a meteorologist and a hydrologist someday by studying the water cycle. 

Ms. DiGloria: Next week in Green and Blue ELA, we will continue to work with reading skills. We will be reading some informational texts and working to analyze them and answer questions in preparation of MCAS. We will also work with context clues. In Social Studies, students will participate in a Peloponnesian War webquest activity and will finish the week with a writing assignment on Ancient Greek warfare technologies. Before vacation, students will be completing their second DBQ benchmark assessment in Social Studies which is the biggest grade of Trimester 3. 

Ms. Bilmazes: I hope everyone had an enjoyable long weekend. Trimester 3 is in full swing. Keep up with assignments, work diligently and ask for help.  Yellow group is continuing to work on MCAS practice, consisting of multiple choice and essays, in preparation for upcoming testing   Green group is working on text structure.

GRADE 8:

Mr. Lewis: English class has begun reading Steinbeck’s The Pearl. This is a classic tale of good and evil and greed. Students will mainly be focusing on cause and effect and how Kino’s life spirals out of control due to his decision making.

Civics has started working on their yearly project. This project has been handed to them in class and is also on our classroom. This week, we have been focusing on creating our Google Slideshow. While it is a smaller slideshow, students are practicing formatting, organizing, and rewriting major ideas in their own words.

Ms. Deblasis: In Math, we will be continuing our unit on Using Functions to Model Relationships. Specifically, this week, we will be studying intervals of increase and decrease. 

In Science, we will begin a new unit on Modeling Conservation of Mass. 

Mr. Blaustein: Green & Blue Civics: We will take the Ch 3 Test, Wednesday, April 7th and we will begin the Document based Essay the following day.

Green and Blue ELA: We are continuing to read, discuss and analyze Mark Twain’s “Cub Pilot on the Mississippi”.

Ms. Sullivan: In Math, we will be continuing our unit on Using Functions to Model Relationships. Specifically, this week, we will be studying intervals of increase and decrease. 

In Science, we will begin a new unit on Modeling Conservation of Mass. 

Ms. Senior: Welcome to April.  ELA students are reading “Cub Pilot on the Mississippi”: doing vocabulary and story maps. Other ELA students are continuing with Steinbeck’s “The Pearl” and Math students are identifying the initial value and slope of linear equations.

SPECIALISTS:

Physical Education: (Mr. Demarais): We will be fully in person in just a few short weeks!  With the gym being used for a cafeteria we will be having PE outside weather permitting.  Please dress for the weather.

Art (Ms. Boulger): The art teachers of HPS are collecting artwork created by students, either at school or at home to put together a virtual art exhibit. If you have any artwork that you would like to submit please send photographs to Ms.Boulger at emily.boulger@haverhill-ps.org     

Artwork by Zoe T

Health (Mrs. Reynolds):

grade 5 – Finishing the Self Esteem Unit and moving onto our Safety Unit

grade 6 – Continuing on with Healthy Habits and the Health Triangle.  We are exploring all aspects of staying healthy

grade 7 – Finishing Goal Setting and beginning the Alcohol and Vape Unit

grade 8 – Finishing Decision Making and beginning our Substance Abuse Unit

Music (Mr. Gariepy): Hello JGW Friends & Family!! Happy Spring!! In music class this week, I have been doing fun music with you games with the kids. We’ve been playing Kahoots, music bingo, music Jeopardy, and more. Next weeks, we will continue with some fun and exciting music games in class. After April vacation, we will begin to watch our movie musicals in class.

REMOTE LEARNING ACADEMY

GRADE 5:

Ms. MacDonald: Students have come to the end of another successful science unit! Students spent the last ten weeks learning about physical science! They observed and conducted several experiments to get learn first-hand about matter, its properties, and how it changes! Now it is time for their science test. Students will take their science test on Monday, April 5th. They have taken this test once already and we will be able to see how much they have learned by comparing their scores. Study materials are found in our Google Classroom and I encourage you to spend some time helping your child prepare! 

In social studies, we are continuing to learn about the importance of the Revolutionary War. Students will research some key battles that took place during the war, while also understanding life for others during the war. 

Ms. Spadaro: Next week, students will review graphing data on a coordinate plane and take the Topic 14 Assessment.

GRADE 6:

Ms. Consolazio: In social studies class, we are continuing Chapter 5 Lesson 1. Students are learning about the history of early Southwest Asia.  Reminder, to access the textbook please go into ClassLink.  The textbook is red and labeled McGraw Hill. 

In science class, we will be finishing up learning about all the different body systems.  There will be an assessment on cells and the body systems.  Just a reminder, participation and attendance are very important to be successful in class.  

Mrs. Simes: In math, students were given some additional practice time within Topic 4.  They will show their understanding of various lessons within this topic by completing an assessment on Tuesday.  All students should continue to access their i-Ready individualized paths on Monday and Thursday during Success Block.  Also, intervention groups continue to meet during the week.  In science, students continue to make connections to how our different body systems work together.  This week, we will look at the digestive system and how it works with the circulatory and muscular systems.  After school help will be on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 2:45 p.m. to 3:15 p.m.  As always, if you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me at michele.simes@haverhill-ps.org.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Ms. Riley: Next week in ELA we will be finishing our unit on biographies. We will then be moving into non-fiction and MCAS prep. Please remember that i-Ready minutes are incorporated into student grades. It is important for your child to complete the required amount of time weekly. Things will be changing as of April 12th due to students moving back into in-person learning. Updates will be provided to you as soon as possible. Please be sure to look at SchoolBrains periodically for grades and missing assignments. Have a nice long weekend!

GRADE 7:

Ms. Marciano: ELA: We will be working on our argumentative essays this week. Students have picked a topic from the class list and will read several articles on that topic in order to find evidence that supports their claim.

SCIENCE: We are continuing to learn about the different components of the water cycle and how the transfer of energy throughout this system works.

Mr. LeGrand: Math:  Last week, we worked on adding and subtracting expressions.  Students learned to identify the similarity of the procedure between subtracting integers and subtracting linear expressions.  This week, we will expand on those concepts and learn to analyze equivalent expressions. 

Social Students:  Students will be working on their second Document Based Question Essay. Students are asked to analyze several documents and write an essay based on the information found in those documents.  

GRADE 8:

Mr. Harris: Math – we are almost done Functions!  Students have been working on identifying the intervals of functions, and will now be moving into how to sketch non-linear functions based on word problems/descriptions.

Science – students have just begun their learning in chemistry, with an in-depth look at the Periodic Table of Elements.  Students will continue to look at the structure of matter, and will learn about the building blocks of the universe.

Mr. Marinella: ELA– ELA has started the new term with a new book, The Outsiders! This is an amazing about a group of boys from the Midwest who run with a tough crowd but are trying to find their own identity. The story talks of loyalty, friendships, and individuality, coming of age, the differences between social and economic classes, and the connections we all share. The book is an exciting story that students will connect to in many ways. 

Civics– Civics has just started a big assignment, The Civics Project! Students will find and research an issue that they are passionate about. Over the next few weeks, we will be researching, creating a slide show, finding solutions, and making change in our community. Check in and what your student is working on. This project is dense and falling behind can get you in a deep hole. Stay focused and find something you care enough about to keep that focus! 

Ms. Blanchette: Middle schoolers are continuing to learn grade level curriculum. Students should continue to attend google meet classes and complete their online assignments. Extra help sessions are offered daily to assist students with completing their assignments. Check my google classroom for more information. Please reach out with any questions or concerns. I look forward to another great week in the Remote Learning Academy!

ART: The art teachers of HPS are collecting artwork created by students, either at school or at home to put together a virtual art exhibit. If you have any artwork that you would like to submit please send photographs to Ms.Boulger at emily.boulger@haverhill-ps.org     

Artwork by Shaina Santiago

Health:

RLA grade 7- Beginning Advertising and Media Awareness

RLA grade 8 – Finishing the Violence Prevention Unit

SCHOOL SUPPORT STAFF

Guidance (Mrs. Vlahos): 8th Grade Students and Families,

I have visited all 8th grade classes (in person and remote) to explain the course registration process for Haverhill High School.  All 8th grade students (no matter which high school they plan to attend) must complete the course request google form by 4/9.  The google form can be accessed in Mrs. Vlahos’s Google Classroom or by clicking the links below:

https://forms.gle/q4RqkYoPoZFKAwCAA  (English Version of Google Form)
https://forms.gle/q1ZXxTqAHyZRUMzA9 (Spanish Version of Google Form)

I will be available during parent teacher conferences for an optional Q&A drop-in session for any parents/guardians that have questions or want to connect about the HHS course registration process.

Tuesday, 4/6 from 5-6:30pm (same link to join):
https://meet.google.com/iry-bthf-opd?hs=122&authuser=0

Also, please do not hesitate to reach out to me via email. I continue to be available to connect with and support all students and families throughout the school week via Google Meet, email and by phone.  If desired, please email me to connect and request a check in and I will coordinate a meeting with you.  I look forward to continued work with you in support of a healthy, safe, and successful school year! 

Student Support Coordinator (Mr. Newell): I am available for help with chrome books, attendance concerns and everything in general. Please contact me at jonathan.newell@haverhill-ps.org

Student Adjustment Counselor (Mrs. Midolo): Loyalty, Compassion and Self-Sacrifice: SEL Lesson on the four dragons.

This origin story folktale of the four major rivers in China teaches empathy and accountability. Four Dragons take pity on a village that has not had rain and suffers destruction due to drought.  The Dragons contradict the authority of the Jade Emperor and pay the ultimate price for their empathy.  It introduces 4 Awesome Questions** to initiate an open ethical discussion that fosters critical thinking and social emotional learning objectives.

*Like many old tales, the four Dragons teaches a social emotional lesson as well as reinforcing geography. Use this lesson in conjunction with world studies, diversity, and social justice curriculum.

**Four Awesome Questions: Before you speak or act, firs ask . . . Is it True?, Is it Fair? Will it Build Community and Better Friendship? Will it be Helpful to those Involved?

Have a great weekend and a Happy Easter!

Middle School Support Program (Mrs. Leydon & Mr. Diffin): Hope everyone has a great long weekend! Hard to believe we are already on our last trimester of the year. Please remind your children to continue checking all their Google Classrooms so we can start this trimester off right. Look forward to our group time with everyone during their specials period. As always, reach out with any questions or concerns.

Parent Liaison (Ms. Arias-Reyes): Quiero dejarles saber que continúo estando disponible para ayudar a las familias de JGW. Si tienen alguna pregunta o preocupación no duden en contactarme.  Mi número de teléfono es (781) 666-4085 y la dirección de correo electrónico es maria.ariasreyes@haverhill-ps.org. 

Student Support Center (Mrs. Greenwood): The SSC is ready and waiting for you all to return to the building on next Monday. Ms Greenwood and Ms Christine wish you all a Happy and Healthy Easter ! We hope you enjoy your long weekend.

Reading Coach/Interventionist (Mrs. Guthrie): Intervention groups are working on nonfiction text features and academic vocabulary. The 5th, 6th and 7th grade classes are practicing process writing, while the 8th graders are making inferences while reading fiction text. Our 5th grade book club starts this week.  I am pleased so many students joined.  We will start out working online, and hopefully when the weather gets nice, we will be able to meet in person. Have a wonderful weekend.