Benton Elementary held a “Souper Bowl” Food Drive during the past several weeks. Students brought in non-perishable donations to be placed in shopping carts in the lobby. Our sixth graders double-checked expiration dates and updated our downstairs and upstairs team totals each day.
On Monday, February 12, the final score was 846 for the downstairs team and 959 for the upstairs team, with a combined donation of over 1,800 items for the Fairfield Interfaith Food Pantry! Nancy Marcoux, director of the pantry, says this large donation will help stock their shelves with items for families in need. Located at 23 Lawrence Avenue in Fairfield, the pantry serves residents of Fairfield and Benton on the first and third Thursdays of each month.
Thank you to Elm Plaza Hannaford for allowing us to borrow shopping carts, our sixth-grade students for sorting and counting, and our students and families for their generous donations! Well done, Benton Bulldogs!
Students at Lawrence Junior High Scool participated in an "Anything but a backpack day" that was sponsored by the Lawrence Junior High Student Council, run by Mr. Quirion. The goal was to find the most creative way to carry your belongings with you instead of the standard backpack. Students were very creative in their efforts. The mailbox won the most original vote and was indeed the talk of the school. Students enjoyed the change of pace and an opportunity to be creative.
The Lawrence Jazz Combo and Jazz Choir competed in the District Festival at Messalonskee High School. Students that will be showcasing their singing and playing talents are: (Jazz Combo): Emma Spaulding, Marley Peaslee, Brock Merrill, Harrison Bartley,
8th Grade Parent Night, Wednesday, February 28, 2024, at 6:30 PM in the Williamson Performing Arts Center. This is a presentation for parents and students of the incoming Class of 2028; where we’ll go over the Program of Studies to enable the students to make their course selections for the high school classes they will take next year.
Athletic teams and individuals that are involved in post-season play over break are the Girls’ Basketball team playing Friday night at 8:30 PM at the Augusta Civic Center. The Boys’ Basketball Team plays on Saturday at 5:30 PM. If the teams win they will play on Wednesday. Please note that tickets for the basketball tournament are not being sold at the door. You will have to purchase them online through the MPA’s GoFan website. (Like concert tickets - you download them to your phone).
I would like to recognize Hallie Firmage as this year’s recipient of the Principal’s Award for outstanding school citizenship, academic excellence, and leadership. Hallie is number one in her class, involved in NHS, Vocal Vibe, a member and captain of the Cross Country team, as well as a contributing member to the Artistic Arsenal - Lawrence High School’s student-led literary magazine. Hallie will formally be presented the award at the Maine Principals’ Association Honors Luncheon on April 6, 2024. Congratulations Hallie!
Pictured below: Mr. Bowers and Hallie Firmage
At Albion Elementary, kindergarten creativity shines as Mrs. Bearce's class unleashes their imagination with shape monsters in Art class with Mrs. Bolduc. Fostering artistic expression at a young age sparks innovation and critical thinking skills.
Clinton Pre-K dives into the importance of maintaining a healthy body. Through engaging center activities, students immerse themselves in play, creativity, and hands-on learning, reinforcing the vital lessons of wellness for life.
At Fairfield Primary Mrs. Leary’s class is unlocking the power of language. They are engaged in connecting movements to vowel sounds, paving the way for vibrant expression and literacy mastery. Movement becomes the bridge to linguistic fluency, fostering not just reading skills, but also creativity, confidence, and communication.
Emma Goodrich, daughter of Benton Elementary fifth-grade teacher Katherine Goodrich, recently visited her mom's fifth-grade class to share the book Be A Tree and teach students about the benefits of yoga. Emma is currently taking a course to become a certified children's yoga teacher. Our fifth graders enjoyed learning relaxation and de-stressing techniques, and they're looking forward to Emma returning to Benton later this year.
The high school is in the third week of Quarter 3, Semester 2. The Sophomore class heard a presentation from Mid Maine Technical Center (MMTC) in Waterville on their program offerings this past week and will be attending an in-person visit on Monday, February 12, 2024 as part of their school day. One of the new programs that MMTC is offering is in pre-engineering. They have programs for everyone, so it should be a worthwhile experience for the Sophomores.
The Program of Studies for next year’s course offerings will become available the week we get back from February break. We have hard copies for the incoming freshmen students and will post an electronic version for the upperclassmen. Signups will start once the school counselors have met with each individual class after break and will be completed by March 14, 2024.
Mid Maine Technical Center held their Skills Competition last Thursday night. Lawrence students who placed (medaled) are: Russell Newell - Silver Medal in Automotive Service Technology, Noah Spaulding - Bronze Medal in Criminal Justice, Alexander Johnson - Bronze Medal in Firefighting, and Kayleigh Marchetti - Silver Medal in Mobil Robotics. Also receiving a Bronze Medal in Emergency Medical Technician was Arlo Roman. Congratulations to our medalists!
Students at Albion Elementary received a visit from Dinoman. Dinoman took the students on a prehistoric journey, unraveling the mysteries of dinosaurs and fossils! Igniting curiosity and sparking their young minds, this educational adventure brings history to life, fostering a love for learning about our planet's incredible past.
At Fairfield Primary the students got a visit from Dinoman. Dinoman captivated students with a fascinating journey into the prehistoric world, unraveling the mysteries of dinosaurs and fossils. As the children embarked on this educational adventure, they not only discovered the history of Earth's ancient inhabitants but also ignited a passion for science and curiosity. Bringing learning to life, Dinoman's visit sparks imaginations, fostering a love for paleontology and the wonders of our planet's rich history. Learning becomes an adventure when dinosaurs and fossils come to life in the classroom!
At Clinton Elementary the student council school spirit activities include themed dress-up days. Last Friday the theme was dress in camo.
Here are some pictures of the kids and how they took it to the max from hats to pants!
Fun spirit days we all look forward to!
At Benton Elementary Rachel Carpenter and Kelley Cloutier’s sixth-grade students experienced an unforgettable field trip to the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, located in Portland. This trip provided students with an interactive, hands-on experience learning about the Gulf of Maine ecosystem, specifically collecting and analyzing data about lobsters and black sea bass.
Students were divided into research teams and given opportunities to not only handle and investigate live lobster but also to use other scientific and technological equipment like microscopes and an interactive touch table. Students took team photos and recorded videos of their hypotheses and conclusions using their digital “field notebooks” and then were able to compare and contrast their findings with other student teams and researchers in the field.
Thank you to the many Maine businesses and foundations - including Poland Spring, Bangor Savings Bank Foundation, Old Bug Light Charitable Foundation, M&T Bank, and Skowhegan Savings - that sponsored this field trip. It was an incredible experience for our Bulldogs!
Students at LJHS, in Ms. Turlo & Ms. Ward's 8th grade Earth Science classes have been studying minerals and their formation. In this mineral lab students performed streak and scratch tests along with observing and noting many other mineral properties like: luster, hardness, streak, texture, odor, breakage and atom array. Students used varying tools like: microscopes, pennies, paperclips, glass plates, porcelain plates, their fingernails, and magnifying glasses. These tools aided students in identifying different mineral properties to then identify each mineral. This hands-on lab helped to give students an close up image of what a day in the life of a geologist looks like!
News from Lawrence High School: On Monday, February 5th, all sophomores will be attending a presentation from Mid-Maine Technical Center during Advisory in the Auditorium. A list of programs will be shared and the students will have the chance to choose ones that they are interested in when they attend the tour the following Monday.
On Monday, February 12th, all sophomores will be going to MMTC for a tour of the programs for possible enrollment for next school year. They will leave at noon and return at 1:30. This is an opportunity for students to see what is offered and get a taste of what the hands-on courses are like.
We have five students from band and chorus that will represent LHS at the Kennebec Valley Music Educators’ Association (KVMEA) Festival. These students had to audition and were selected from among many students in Central Maine. Congratulations to the selected students: Brock Merrill, Troy Bubar, Hallie Firmage, Marley Peaslee, and Emma Spaulding
Our Vocal Vibe and Jazz Combo will compete on February 14th at Messalonskee High School.
Our five Sophomore participants in the Olympia Snowe Women’s Leadership Institute attended a meeting on February 23rd. They presented mini posters of people in the world who are living a core value. The purpose of this presentation was to recognize the more we think about how our values “show up” in life then the greater connection we will have to them
Guidance has a representative from Husson College visiting on February 9th. We also have had SGT Collin Woodhead meet with several students regarding a future in the Marines.
At Fairfield Primary School in Jennifer Sweat's class, the students are currently studying owls. In the pictures below you can see that they are dissecting owl pellets which provides them with hands-on learning about anatomy in a captivating and interactive way.
Mrs. Smith's first graders and Miss Wood's second graders visit the Albion Public Library on the 2nd Wednesday of each month.
Barbara Kennedy and Lynnda Sawtelle are at the library to greet the students. Mrs. Sawtelle shares poems, stories, and read-alouds. All students are offered public library cards and encouraged to visit with their families.
The Bulldog Future of Maine Scholarship program empowers fourth, fifth, and sixth-grade students to build a brighter future for themselves and for their community. Benton Elementary’s fifth-grade students are preparing to write essays for this year’s program, a process that involves interviewing current college students to learn about their college experiences. Students from Thomas College, Colby College, Smith College, and Long Island University spent a recent afternoon talking with our students and answering their questions. Our fifth graders learned about choosing a college that’s a “good fit” for them and how to apply for financial aid, scholarships, and grants that can help make secondary education more affordable. They also learned about dorm life and dining options, as well as various majors, clubs, and campus activities.
At Clinton Elementary the fifth graders are working on nitrotype.com, which is part of our classroom routine of "ten minutes of typing". The program keeps track of their words per minute and accuracy, to show them how much they've been improving and how they can continue to. It's a competitive racing style game, in which they can earn cars, stickers, and other rewards and race their friends.
The first graders have been working on learning the letters on their keyboards to prepare them for typing. We use the Typetastic program. In these pictures, though, they are having their earned choice time at the end of class.
On Saturday, January 20th, Lawrence Junior High School 7th & 8th grade cheerleaders competed in the KVAC Cheer Competition held at the Augusta Civic Center. Hard work and determination paid off for this team! They placed 5th out of 11 teams in the competition while competing with much larger cheering squads from across the region. They performed their routine with zero deductions which is an amazing accomplishment. We are proud of our Bulldog Cheerleaders and wish them the best of luck at their next competition. Well done!
At Lawrence High School the second semester has started this week which means that the Add/Drop period has begun. Students can be added to a class or Drop a class for the first five days of the quarter for quarter classes or the first ten days for semester classes. If a student is added to a new class after the first day of the quarter or semester, they will probably have to do some catch-up work, so it behooves them to make their moves early. Students should schedule times to meet with their School Counselor if they desire a schedule change.
With the start of the new semester and coming off a week of midterms and finals, we do not have any pictures of cool happenings. We will look to get some for next week’s report.
This past Monday, on our Teacher In-service day, we, along with other teachers in the district, worked on creating teacher clarity when thinking about lesson planning and writing learning targets (what they want the students to learn from the lesson). Identifying what it is we want our students to know and be able to do as a result of our lesson. We want students to be able to answer the question, “What is it that you are learning?” and have them indicate the learning target that the teacher has identified for them. We’ll also be working on identifying what the success criteria are for students to show that they’ve learned the material. What that looks like for the students and the teachers: it may be a test, or it may be a student teaching the content to another student to prove understanding of the content. All things that we do within the profession, whether it’s given a new name or terminology, it’s about teaching and learning and refining our work as educators. It may not be glamorous but it is essential to revisit and reflect on and be deliberate about our practice.
On February 8, 2024, we will have some Seniors who have been randomly selected to participate in the NAEP Assessment. NAEP stands for National Assessment of Educational Progress and is a common measure of achievement across the country. It is administered by the National Center for Education Statistics and results will be reported in The Nation’s Report Card, which provides information about student achievement to policymakers, parents, educators, and the public. Our students will not need to study for it; just put forth their best effort should they be one of the selected student participants. A letter will be sent home to the parents/guardians of those randomly selected students.
If you have questions regarding your student’s schedule or with a particular class, or activity please reach out to their teacher, coach/advisor, school counselor, or school administrator.
Finally, to involve parents and guardians, I have included a link to a short Google survey form for those interested and ask you to please fill it out. Thanks and have a great week.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1McjUisJqv90rhAHP2IrZwfHzCZ1wQ6znSqMESRCeWzs/viewform?edit_requested=true