Harwood Middle School Update, December 7, 2018

8th Grade Bakers hard at work..  or working hard at tasting the batter...  

 8th Grade Mathematician working on creating replicas of The Wheel of Theodorus, a spiral design created with right triangles that build upon the previous hypotenuse that students had to calculate. 

This year, 6 HUMS 7th graders are embarking on a journey no HUMS student has done before!  Two, 3-person teams were selected to be teen teachers for the 2019 TRY for the Environment Program, through the Vermont 4-H organization. 

TRY stands for Teens Reaching Youth and is an environmental leadership opportunity for students in grades 7‐12. It is an environmental education program taught by teens and designed to increase environmental literacy and responsibility in younger youth. TRY for the Environment includes five program areas to connect young people to real‐world environmental problems allowing them to be key change agents contributing to real‐world solutions.

On Tuesday, the students attended an all day training to learn how to deliver 6 lessons to elementary aged students on the topic of water and water conservation. Throughout the remainder of the year, these teams will deliver the 6 lessons to 2 partner elementary classrooms. 

7th Grade Artist working on a Winter Project 

7th Grade Mathematician works on a Scale Factor Poster this past week.    

In the Fall there was a request by student government to increase access time to the cafeteria in the morning. Over the break, we were able to reprogram the bell system and the revised schedule went into effect on November 26, 2018.  

This means that the first bell will ring at 8:12 am and Block 1 will begin at 8:17 am. This should allow access to the cafeteria for any student choosing to get breakfast or snacks before classes begin.  

This change does not affect the end of the day dismissal time, which will remain at 2:47pm.

HUUSD School Board Meeting Update - Nov 28, 2018

Dear members of our six town community,
      Below please find the votes and key agenda items from the HUUSD board meeting on November 28.
    1. Approved the following items as part of the consent agenda for November 28, 2018:  Approve past meeting Minutes; Accept Board warrants totaling $438,229.33; Accept Board Leadership Report; Accept Director of Finance report; Adopted Policy E1 Fiscal Management; Approve HUHS Field Trip; Approve Annual Financial Management Questionnaire; Approve First Amendment to Solar Services Energy Agreement for net metering credits allocated to Thatcher Brook Primary School.
   2. After discussion, approved an amended work plan that includes the formation of committees to do project-specific work related to the board’s goals, with first committee meetings to commence on December 12.
   3. Agreed to add a future agenda item (date TBD) for the board to discuss what role, if any, the board has with respect to the school profile and transcript; and to allocate some meeting time on Dec 12 to discuss agenda development and procedure.
       A considerable amount of time in the meeting was spent reviewing and discussing the first draft of the district budget as presented by the Director of Finance. The first draft was a “level service” scenario. Key metrics included: 3.59% increase in total expenditures, 2% decrease in number of equalized pupils, 5% increase in spending per equalized pupil. There were multiple questions and comments around what was going to happen at the state level, and around the fact that we will not get the specific numbers that we need from the state to calculate tax rates until January.
       Our next HUUSD board meeting is scheduled for 6:00 pm on Wednesday, December 12 at the HUHS library.  Please note this meeting will be the first to follow a new agenda format, with the first hour spent with committees meeting individually. The full board will come back together at 7:00 pm.
      For more information, please visit wwsu.org for board agendas and minutes and to find the link to watch board meetings. The direct link to watch this and past meetings is: https://mrvtv.com/category/school-board-meetings/
      Thank you for your continued support and engagement.
Respectfully,    The HUUSD Board:   Christine Sullivan (Waitsfield)  *Chair, Caitlin Hollister (Waterbury)  *Vice Chair, Alycia Biondo (Warren), Jill Ellis (Fayston), Gabe Gilman (Moretown). Linda Hazard (Moretown), Garett MacCurtain (Duxbury), Maureen McCracken (Waterbury),Theresa Membrino (Fayston), Melissa Phillips (Waterbury), Torrey Smith (Duxbury), Alexandra Thomsen  (Waterbury), Rosemarie White (Warren), Rob Williams (Waitsfield)

Community Announcements

Please note that the opportunities/events listed below are not specifically endorsed or screened by school staff. As always, families should use their own standards and review processes to determine appropriate activities.

Holiday Taste of the Valley Event Featuring Student Cooking Country Christmas has a new event for everyone to participate in. Teams of young cooks and bakers will be sampling their foods and treats at local shops from 12 -2 pm on Saturday 12/8.

There are 7 teams competing. In order to vote for your favorite “taste” you need to sample from at least 5 of the tables (2 from the Bridge Street area and 3 from the Mad River Green Shops). Each station will have voting papers available and stamps to indicate that you’ve sampled the “taste”. Votes can be dropped off at Whippletree Designs (where the People’s Choice Trophy will be on display) till 5 pm.

Locations for the tastes are: The Artisan’s Gallery, Mad River Valley Visitor Center, Mad River Taste Place, Product Think Tank, Opulent Design, The Collection, and Peanut and Mouse.

Ashley Woods and Mary Laulis will be judging all tastes so we can recognize what was done well by each team and those results will be shared in the Valley Reporter the week following the event. The People’s Choice Award will also be shared at that time. All recipes will be available on www.MadRiverValley.com.

Fencing Instruction    For adults and Students grade 5 and up. Students have priority and reduced cost. All non-students and adults are welcomed as well! Beginners and experienced Fencers. No experience is necessary.
When: 6:30-8:00 PM with open Fencing and individual instruction 8:00-9:00 PM. Mondays and Wednesdays Dec 10 - Jan 21, 6:30 PM-8:00 PM (no class Dec 24, 26, 31)
Where: Moretown Elementary School Gym
Why: Learn basic Fencing or refine your current skills.

Cost: $50 for Students grades 5-12. $125 for all others

Harwood annual Christmas tree and wreath sale is just around the corner! This sale is the major fundraiser for the class of 2021. Please consider purchasing a tree or wreath from the Sophomore class this year. The sale will be held at American Flatbread at Lareau Farm in Waitsfield. Sophomore parents/guardians...you are welcome to join with your student's TA group! All volunteers are welcome! Please contact the TA or Ellen Berrings (eberrings@wwsu.org) with any questions. Parent/guardian volunteers will receive a $5 voucher toward your tree purchase.

Dates and times:

Friday, 11/30; 4:00-7:00 PM

Saturday, 12/1; 10:00 AM-6:00 PM

Sunday, 12/2; 10:00 AM-5:00 PM

Friday, 12/7; 4:00-7:00 PM

Saturday, 12/8; 10:00 AM-6:00 PM

Sunday, 12/9; 10:00 AM-5:00 PM

Gifts of Kindness   Harwood Union Rotary Interact club is holding the Gifts of Kindness clothing and toy drive for our 15th year. This drive seeks to collect new and very gently used toys and clothing for families in Washington County experiencing homelessness. We plan to collect items between the dates of November 28th and December 7th. Interact works with the Good Samaritan House, the only homeless shelter in Central Vermont, and CIRCLE in Barre, who provide shelter for families experiencing domestic violence. Our goal is to brighten the holiday season for people in need. There is a box for donations in the school lobby.