On Friday, January 24, Mr. Bob Stuart visited the 4th, 5th, and 6th graders at Albion Elementary to talk about their Future of Maine Scholarship Essays. He helped students think about their future careers and suggested colleges that could help them reach their goals. Mr. Stuart encouraged students to consider whether they want to travel or stay close to home, attend a large university or a smaller community college, and what degree they want to earn. Students will use this information to write an essay about their education plans. The essays can be entered for a chance to win a $100 scholarship to support their dreams.
Second graders at Clinton Elementary are having fun while learning their high-frequency and Spelling words from the HMH Reading Program. They use a variety of activities to practice, like writing words in shaving cream, playing "Read it, Pop-It, Write-It," and building pyramid words. These activities help students understand word meanings and improve their vocabulary, which boosts reading and writing skills.
They’re also practicing CVC words with a game called "CVC SPLAT!" In this game, students draw CVC words or SPLAT! cards from a bucket. If they draw a word, they read it; if they draw a SPLAT! card, they put all their cards back. It’s a fun way to build reading fluency!
At Benton Elementary, students in Emily Hachey's second-grade class recently completed an erosion experiment. Students first learned about weathering and erosion concepts, including problems caused by erosion and possible solutions for slowing and/or stopping erosion. Next, they worked together to apply what they had learned. Groups created plans to keep soil on a hill using the materials provided. The next day, they made models of their plans. One group had trouble making their plan work, but they persevered by making changes to their original plan. Finally, a “rain storm” was created to test each model. Once all models had been tested, students reflected on how well their plan worked, which group's plan worked the best to stop erosion, which group's plan most closely represented a real-world example, and what they would do differently next time. These second-grade scientists are showing what it means to "Learn Like a Bulldog!"
🗨️This past Saturday, the Lawrence High School Speech Team competed at the Maine State Championship Meet. Lawrence placed fourth overall out of fourteen schools. Congratulations on a successful season! Individual awards went to:
Marley Peaslee - 5th place in Dramatic Interpretation,
Addison King - 1st place in Oral Interpretation of Literature, and 3rd place in Duo Interpretation,
Brock Merrill - 3rd place in Duo Interpretation,
Ryder Bernier - 5th place in Extemporaneous Speaking, and 5th place in Informative, Speaking,
Wyatt DeMott - 3rd place in Informative Speaking,
Cooper King - 3rd place in Oratorical Declamation,
Abaigeal Marks - 4th place in storytelling, and 6th place in Original Works, and
Ronnie Allen - 2nd place in Prose Reading, and 6th place in Poetry reading.
🏀This Friday night, we have home varsity basketball games here at Folsom Gymnasium. The boys play at 6:00 PM, and the girls follow at 7:30 PM. The entrance fee is a non-perishable food item or a donation to the Backpack Room. The Backpack Room is a food cupboard for students run by JMG. Guidance will put items in backpacks for students to bring home over the weekends or whenever there is a need for food insecurity.
📚The high school this past week switched into a new semester. Students in new classes have been getting introduced to their subject matter and learning from their teachers. Please check in with them to see how they are doing in their new classes. After this week, we have two weeks left until February Break.
Have a great week!
4th graders from Clinton Elementary in Miss Swicker's class are presenting their animal research reports using technology! They’re not only sharing their findings but also enhancing their presentation and tech skills. A great way to blend research with creativity!
Building number sense to 20 at Albion Elementary! Students are constructing towers to explore numbers and strengthen their math skills in a hands-on, engaging way. This activity helps reinforce foundational math concepts in a fun and interactive way!
At Lawrence Junior High 8th grade science students explored tectonic plate movements using graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate—science has never been so sweet!
At Benton Elementary, Renee Bolduc's third graders recently wrapped up a descriptive writing unit. They celebrated by sharing their writing with their peers. Kori Whited's fourth graders reviewed for a math assessment by working in teams to create factor pair arrays on our tiled floors. As part of their Future of Maine essay project, our fifth graders had the opportunity to interview a group of college students to learn more about their college experiences.
🏈Coach Hersom has been named Coach of the Year by the Maine Principals’ Association for the season he and the football team had this past fall. Congratulations to Coach Hersom on being recognized for his success this past season, his continued commitment to the football program, and the success that it has had under his guidance.
📣Our Cheerleading team placed 1st in the KVAC Championship on Saturday! This is the first time since 1991 that they have taken such an honor. Great job, ladies! Best of luck in the State Championships which will take place on February 1, 2025, at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor.
📚Students are finishing the first semester this week and Q2 closes on Friday. We’ll start Q3 on Monday. Students can pick up a copy of their schedule from their School Counselor in the gymnasium as they arrive at school and before they head to their Block 1 class. Students who have their schedules already on their phones can just follow their schedule and head to their Block 1 class.
🎓A reminder to Seniors to check the bulletin in Infinite Campus for updates on scholarships that are available or stop by the Guidance Office. Due dates are upcoming for some. Those who take the time to fill out applications for the local ones will be the ones rewarded, more often than not. Scholarships will be selected later this spring and will be awarded the Monday night of graduation week. It will come all too quickly so please don’t delay.
Have a great week and stay warm!
At Albion Elementary, Mrs. Blais had the Kindergarten students create their names with "ice cream," adding a fun and creative twist to learning! This hands-on activity helps engage young minds and makes learning exciting. Next week, Mrs. York will continue the fun with her class! 🍦📚
Right before the holiday break, the students in Clinton crafted some fun, holiday gnomes, snowman cards, and trees to gift their families.
The Students from the lower wing were matched with a student from the upper wing as partners as they visited crafting stations.
Opportunities to work together like this activity build up our school community with lasting friendships.
Lawrence High School's EMPOWER group recently visited Benton Elementary to put on puppet shows and teach our K-3 students about making healthy life choices. We love it when some of our former Benton Bulldogs come back to visit us...all grown up! These students continue to have a positive impact on our Bulldog community.
Lawrence Junior High School Theater Troupe entertained audiences with their recent performances of "Everybody Gets Eaten by Sharks". We look forward to seeing their talents again in the Spring!
Last week, the High School held a community advisory to recognize our December Students of the Month. Congratulations to Ella Minnehan (Senior), Arianna Goodwin (Junior), Taylor Beers (Sophomore), and Keon Tae Stevens (Freshman).
🎵The Choral Concert was held on Tuesday, January 14, 2025, at 6:30 PM in the Williamson Performing Arts Center. The Jr. High and High School Chorus students performed several songs and then combined to sing a song together. Both groups sounded great. It was a good performance!
📚The high school will be entering their midterms and finals week. This year we are doing it differently. Students are required to be here for full days during the entire week and are expected to follow their regular daily schedule. There is no school on Monday, a holiday, and Tuesday is an In-Service day for Teachers. Classes and finals will resume on Wednesday, January 22nd, and the last day of the quarter is Friday, January 24, 2025.
🗓️The new semester will start on Monday, January 27th. Students will pick up their schedules in the gym on Monday morning when they arrive at school and proceed to their Block 1 classes. It’s hard to believe that we’re moving into the start of the second semester at the conclusion of next week!
🥎Winter sports are in full swing with Basketball games, Cheering, and Indoor Track. We have independent students participating in Wrestling and Swimming, as well as Hockey. If you want to catch a game, please check out the Athletic Schedule for game times and locations. Also, we will be having our Unified Team starting up in a couple of weeks.
🎓A reminder that scholarship opportunities are shared on the Infinite Campus portal to students and parents from the Guidance Office. Call Guidance with any questions. Scholarship applications are available in the Guidance Office, as well.
😀Enjoy the upcoming three-day weekend and remember it will be a four-day weekend for the students as we have our Teacher In-Service day on Tuesday, 1/21/25 (no students).
On December 18th the Clinton Library Trustees sponsored the Frogtown Mountain Puppeteers performance of How the Grinch Stole Christmas for Clinton Elementary.
Frogtown Mountain Puppeteers is a puppetry troupe based in Bar Harbor, Maine, and comprised of three siblings – brothers Erik and Brian Torbeck and sister Robin (Torbeck) Erlandsen. Founded in 2000, Frogtown Mountain Puppeteers has performed at festivals, schools, libraries and theatres in the United States and Canada. They write and create all the shows they perform and have received three Citations of Excellence from UNIMA-USA, the highest national award in puppetry. After their performance they showed students how to create puppets, scenery and play elements from everyday items such as boxes, bags and socks! The siblings also reminded students about how they use their math, reading and writing skills they learned in school to write their scripts, and build their production sets.
The students loved their visit and thank the library for their special holiday gift of a professional performance!
Mrs. Ryan’s first graders from Albion Elementary having fun in gym class with Mr. Plaisted! Physical activity is crucial for building teamwork, strength, and healthy habits early on. 💪🎉
Benton Elementary continues to partner with Maine SNAP-Ed to bring nutrition education programming into our classrooms. Maine SNAP educators visit our K-3 classrooms weekly, using evidence-based curricula to help students learn about making healthy choices. This week, program coordinator Samantha Grenier visited third graders to talk about kitchen safety and the importance of eating a healthy breakfast. As a special treat, she brought in her skillet and whipped up some egg, tomato, and spinach scrambles for the students. YUM! Each week she will bring a different recipe for students to sample. Check out their website at mainesnap-ed.org for more information about their program and loads of healthy recipes for your family to try at home.
Seventh Graders Gear Up for Creative Westward Expansion Projects:
In preparation for the Westward Expansion research project, seventh grade social studies students in Mr. Carpenter’s and Ms. Longley’s classes met in the LJHS Library. They had a presentation by guest speaker, Sharon Gallant, who is an educator and artist. Students learned about design elements and how to plan an engaging project. They left with their prepared materials.Teacher-Librarian, Debra Butterfield, along with Mr. Carpenter and Ms. Longley will be welcoming Gallant back to school later in the month for students to be able to experience a range of artistic elements to include in their projects.
🎄At Clinton Elementary students spent a week reading different versions of The Gingerbread Man, comparing similarities and differences, while also getting creative by making our own gingerbread men!
🎄Albion Elementary PreK students enjoyed making gingerbread houses, fostering creativity, teamwork, and hands-on learning!
