Hello Clippers
As we near the end of the first quarter of the school year, our students and teachers have been highly engaged in and out of the classroom. An area I would like to draw attention to is how our Social Studies department has educated our students around the upcoming election. Please see below for this summary and below that you will also find updates in the following areas:
- Recognizing Veterans Day
- Global Citizenship and Poetry Soup
- Fall Tournament Season Is Here
- Congratulations
- Tech Club Starting
- Announcements: Class '25 Fundraiser - NEF Auction - All Sports Boosters Annual Fundraiser
- The Play That Goes Wrong - Opening NIght Nov. 16
Over the past month seniors taking Civics and Government have prepared a school-wide mock election. In this process, their teachers Matt LaChapelle, Samantha DeCarciofolo, and Leonard Provost have facilitated lessons in which students explore key issues of the election while also engaging in dialogue to gain a rich perspective on the election topics.
Engaging in dialogue is a main part of our school culture. Many of our teachers have been trained to teach students the skills for productive dialogue. As a school, we have used dialogue to help us make decisions with school policy. This has been particularly helpful when there are opposing views around a policy. Dialogue allows our students to hone speaking and listening skills and also gives a structure to ensure ideas are heard and validated so that all participants feel valued in the process, regardless of where the final decision may be made on a school-related issue.
This week our seniors have prepared lessons for our underclassmen to learn about the issues of the election, understand the different perspectives on a range of issues, and know where each candidate stands on the issue. These lessons will be delivered in the upcoming Clipper Blocks (Our Flexible Time for Students).
I want to extend a heartfelt thanks to our Social Studies department along with Ms. Cote for the work they have done to ensure our students have a meaningful learning experience through the election with special thanks to Matt LaChapelle for the planning he has done since last spring. I also want to commend our seniors for their leadership and seriousness they have taken on to ensure our underclassmen are able to share in the experience.
Please be sure to see the promotional video students created for the upcoming mock election. Also, if you missed last week's article in the Newburyport Daily News, please be sure to check it out. Thank you to Jim Sullivan for electing to do a story on this work.
VETERANS DAY RECOGNITION
Alongside their work to help the public become certified in CPR, the Red Cross Club is also making plans for how our school will recognize Veterans Day. On November 13, the club will host a Veteran Panel Discussion and Reception for our students. This will happen during the Clipper Block. After the panel discussion, students will have the opportunity to mingle with the speakers at the reception. Students and staff are all invited to sign-up for this event.
In addition to the discussion, the club is organizing a collection for the Veterans Northeast Outreach in Haverhill from November 1 - 18th.
More details about the panel and collection will be available in the coming week.
Exploring Cultural Identity Through Poetry
Students part of the Global Citizenship and Poetry Soup classes recently participated in a joint workshop to explore cultural identity through poetry.
Students participated in a reading and discussion with poets Rhina Espaillat who explored her Dominican roots, and Princess Moon whose poetry reflects on her experience as a daughter of Cambodian Refugees who escaped the genocide.
This was followed by a writing workshop in which students created their own Cultural Identity poems.
As with the prior fall season, all of our teams will be entering the tournament. Here is the link to the seedings and brackets. Soccer will be out on Nov 1 and football on Nov 3.
Congratulations to the Clipper Cheer Team for their 2nd place finish in last weekend's competition. This was their first competition in over 8 years.
Congratulations are in order for both the Newburyport Girls and Boys Cross-Country Team. This past Saturday they competed in the CAL Championships. As always, they continue to perform at a very high level..
Last great job to the NHS Band on their performance this past weekend at UMASS Amherst. As our music program grows, our students continue to represent Newburyport at the highest level.
To get emails with more info about upcoming tech club events, cancellations etc, please join our google classroom.
Google Classroom code: jlgxx2s
Tech club meets Tuesdays and Fridays, right after school in room 245 at NHS, and dismisses at 4PM.
Here are just a few things the club takes on .
- Networking
- Hands on PC building
- computer repair
- virtualization and emulation basics
- Linux how to and basics
Giuseppe's Italian Restaurant and Marketplace
On Wednesday, November 13, support the Class of 2025 by having dinner or take-out at Giuseppe's Italian Restaurant and Marketplace. The senior class will receive 10% of all market, dine in, and takeout sales, as long as people mention that it’s for Newburyport High School.
