EARLY RELEASE DAY: There will be an early release day for ALL students on Wednesday, November 23rd. Dismissal will be at 11:05am
NO SCHOOL ON THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24TH & FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25TH:
HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO OUR ENTIRE HUNKING COMMUNITY!!
1ST ANNUAL THANKSGIVING FEAST:
I would like to give a very special thank you to all of the students, staff, and families who came out and attended our 1st Annual Thanksgiving feast on Thursday night. This was an extremely successful event with great food, great music, and most importantly great company! I am still recovering from all of the pies that I took to the face! We’d like to also give a special thanks to all of our sponsors including Covanta, Dr. Ferlito, Dr. Carderelli, all of the families that donated, among others! Also a special thank you to our PTO for helping make this event successful. We look forward to continuing to improve upon this event and our others as we move forward each year!
ATTENDANCE CONTEST: There are exactly 25 days of school between Thanksgiving break and Winter break. Hunking will be holding an attendance contest starting Monday, November 28th. For every student who has perfect attendance from that day until December 23rd will be entered into a raffle to win an Amazon gift card. Please see the attached flyer:
Hunking Perfect Attendance Raffle
HUNKING THEME OF THE MONTH: Hunking will be embracing a theme of the month which will be focused on in and around our School building throughout each month. Hunking staff will promote and nominate students each month who they feel have personified the monthly theme on a consistent basis. Based on those nominations, one boy and one girl in each grade will be recognized as a “Hunking Hero” and receive a t-shirt.
This month’s theme is Gratitude which is the quality of being thankful and readiness to show appreciation and return kindness.
Future themes will include:
December – Generosity:
January – Commitment:
February – Kindness and Respect:
March – Patience:
April – Peace:
May –Honesty:
June – Pride:
COMMUNITY HAPPENINGS:
Ihub Game Design Studio (Grades 4-7): Family Game Design Day Flyer 2022 December
(Spanish) Family Game Design Day Flyer 2022 December
We are more than half way to our goal for roof deck furniture. If you are willing to share this on social media or with family and friends I’m sure our students will have this funded in no time and ready to enjoy as soon as snow is melted. Thank you for your support and generosity. (Please click the link “Roof Deck Glow Up!” to be connected.)
ODDS & ENDS:
-All students in grades 5-8 have been issued school IDs. It is required that they bring and wear their ID badges each day.
-Please make sure that your student(s) are coming to school daily with a fully charged chromebook.
-Please make sure that you are sending your student(s) with a water bottle. We have a limited supply of cups and we do not have access to water fountains, only water bottle filling stations.
PTO NEWS:
- The next PTO meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, December 6th at 6:00 p.m. in the school library. This meeting will last an hour and babysitters will be available. The Thanksgiving Feast and Rock-n-Roll Bingo were BIG successes, but we have a lot of exciting things planned for after the holiday break and are looking for more parents to get involved. Come to a meeting and see what it’s all about!
- Please consider donating to Heroes & Helpers! This need-based program (formerly known as “Shop with a Cop”) is for middle school students. Selected students are given $100 spending money and are paired up with a Haverhill first responder to shop and wrap presents together for their families! All funds donated through this collection will go to sponsor children for this great program! Let’s rally this holiday season around this cause: my.cheddarup.com/c/heroes-and-helpers-copy
- Check out Hunking’s 1st online auction: https://hunkingschoolpto.betterworld.org/auctions/2022-hunking-school-auction! We have some awesome experiences—courtesy of Hunking’s amazing teachers and staff—as well as some other great items!. These will make great holiday gifts and all proceeds go back to the school! Check back for updates and additional items!
- The PTO has partnered with the Celebration of Lights being offered through fiesta shows at Mann’s Orchard this year!! Located in Methuen, MA, see over 1 mile of roadway that has been transformed into a glittering display of over 1 million LED lights — featuring a 90′ Christmas Tree! Listen to music played through FM radio in your own vehicle during this safe, holiday experience. Get tickets here!
EDUCATIONAL HAPPENINGS:
Hunking’s ST Math Puzzle Clubs!
Hunking’s Snowball Challenge!
Ready for some competition?! Starting November 28th.
Each week your class hits the puzzle goal:
40 puzzles/week – grades K and 1
60 puzzles/week – grades 2-5
Or your class solves 15 more puzzles than the previous week
Your class will get a snowball to add to the wall! The class with the most snowballs by December 22nd wins a hot chocolate and munchkin party with Mrs. Corcoran on 12/23!*
*If there are multiple classes with the same number of snowballs, we will pick a class raffle style.
NEWS FROM OUR NURSES: We will be working on hearing screenings this week for 2nd and 3rd grade. Many things can affect hearing such as wax, colds and ear infections.If your child is unable to hear, we will rescreen at a later date. If the child continues to have trouble hearing, we will be sending home a referral at that time. Please call 978-420-41913 if you have any questions or concerns.
LOST AND FOUND: Our lost and found for any clothing items is located in the locker room area in the main hallway of the school. Any lost lunch boxes or water bottles can be found on the shelves in our cafeteria. We encourage you to have your students check frequently as we plan to donate clothing that is unclaimed during Thanksgiving break and again at Winter break.
ATHLETIC NEWS:
Boys Basketball: Practice Monday 11/21 from 3:15-5:15. First game at JG Whittier on Tuesday at 3:30. Practice Wednesday 11/23 from 12-2pm.
Girls Basketball: Practice Monday 11/21 from 3:00 to 4:15
First game- AT Whittier Middle School – Tuesday 11-22 at 4:30 for girls (Boys play first starting as close to 3:30 as possible and girls start 5 minutes after the boys game ends)
Cheerleading: Practice Monday 11/21 from 3-5:30. Our first game is Tuesday 11/22 at Whittier Middle School. No practice Wednesday 11/23. Happy Thanksgiving!
CLUB NEWS:
LEAD Program (Formerly VIP): Next meeting is Thursday, December 1st
GRIT: The new round of GRIT begins with our first meeting on Monday, November 21st
MODEL UN: Next meeting will be Friday December 2nd from 2:45 to 3:30.
MUN meet at Haverhill High School will be 12/15 and 12/16. Buses and lunch will be provided for students. Permission slips will go home in early December. We ask that students dress in appropriate attire for the event: business/ business casual/ No hoodies / sweats/ripped clothing / etc. More information will be included with the permission slips.
CHORUS: Junior and Senior Bobcat Singers are getting ready for their performance at the Hunking Winter Concert on Tuesday, December 13th at 6:30PM!
Junior Bobcat Singers will have rehearsal next Tuesday, November 22nd. Senior Bobcat Singers will not meet again until Thursday, December 1st due to Thanksgiving. Mrs. Rico can’t wait to make more beautiful music together!
ART CLUB: Next meeting will be Monday November 21st in the art room from 3-4pm. Have your rides ready for 3:45pm in case you finish early!
DRAMA CLUB: Our next rehearsal for James and the Giant Peach will be Monday November 21st and November 22nd from 2:45 to 4:45 for all cast members. The December calendar will be coming out over Thanksgiving break. Please check google classroom and the remind app for rehearsal information and for ticket sales.
GUITAR ENSEMBLE: Due to the Thanksgiving holiday we will not have practice on Thursday (11/24). I will, however, be available to work with members on Tuesday morning (11/22) from 8-8:30 for anyone who would like to come.
NJHS: Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday December 6th in Mrs Sciuto’s room (118). We will be brainstorming ideas of how we can continue to support our school and community.
SKI BRADFORD: Final payment and enrollment will be accepted until Monday, November 21st. Make checks payable to Hunking PTO or electronically at https://2023-ski-club.cheddarup.com.
STUDENT COUNCIL (grades 6-8): The Student Council will be hosting a pet drive. All donations will go to the MSPCA. It will run from 11/21/22-12/16/22. Donations can be put in the boxes near the main office. Every donation counts! Donations include: treats, food, toys and gently used blankets. Thank you for your support! Also on meeting days, please be sure your child is picked up promptly at 4:00 p.m.
YEARBOOK: The Yearbook Committee needs your help gathering photos! Any and all throwbacks, candids, group shots or selfies of the graduating 8th grade class will be considered. There are two ways to upload:
- Students can use this Google drive folder – Instructions
- Anyone without an HPS email account can use this link to TreeRing
- Note: This method requires creating a username/password
SCHOOL POLICIES:
Lower school pick up: If you are walking to pick up your K student please wait near the kindergarten doors and if you are walking to pick up your grade 1-4 student please wait at the lower school walker pick up door. DO NOT come to the lower school playground to pick up your child. The students in the playground area are waiting for car pick up only.
Chromebook Insurance Policy: Haverhill Public Schools has chosen School Device Coverage (SDC) to insure the devices that will be given to your student as part of this year’s 1:1 device program. For only $20 per student, this insurance program will protect you and your student(s) in the event that your device is lost, stolen, or damaged accidentally over the course of the school year. Please follow this link for more information and to sign up. Haverhill Student Device Insurance
This information is also posted on the Parent and Student Resources page, Our Technology page, and the HPS Student Technology Device Policy (Spanish Version) document.
https://www.haverhill-ps.org/technology/device-insurance/
Student Dress Code: I have attached the dress code policy that can be found on page 23 of the HPS student handbook for all families to review:
“The responsibility for the dress and appearance of the students will rest with individual students and parents.
They have the right to determine how the student will dress providing that attire is not destructive to school property, complies with requirements for health and safety, and does not cause disorder or disruption. The administration is authorized to take action in instances where individual dress does not meet the stated requirements.
This does not mean that student, faculty, or parent groups may not recommend appropriate dress for school or special occasions. It means that students will not be prevented from attending school or a school function, or otherwise be discriminated against, so long as their dress and appearance meet the requirements set forth above.
Students are not permitted to dress in any manner that is distracting to teaching or learning, to other students or disrupting to the educational process or environment of the school. Clothing that is considered to be distracting includes but may not be limited to the following:
- Extremely short skirts or shorts rising more than 7″ above the knee.
- Shirts or blouses baring midriffs.
- See-through clothing.
- Halters or tank tops with less than 1″ straps, tube-tops, or blouses with excessively low cut tops.
- Low rider pants and pants that do not cover underwear.
- Clothing or jewelry that advertises or promotes products or activities that are illegal.
- Clothing containing inappropriate or suggestive language or pictures.
- Clothing that identifies students as members of a gang or an imitation of gang paraphernalia will not be permitted. This includes but is not limited to bandanas, pins, insignias, colors, jewelry, emblems, wave caps, etc.
- Studded accessories such as belt buckles, bracelets, chains, etc. are not permitted.
- Any other dress that distracts, disrupts, intimidates or provokes can be deemed inappropriate by the Principal or Assistant Principal.
The Principal and Assistant Principal have the final decision in making the determination that there has been a violation of the dress code policy. In the event that the Principal is unavailable, the Assistant Principal has the full authority to make the final determination on whether a student’s clothing is in violation of the dress code policy.”
CELL PHONE POLICY:
-Cell phones are not allowed to be used throughout the school day. The expectation is that the phone is turned off and put away.
-If students are found to be using their cell phone for any purpose the following policy will be followed:
-1st offense: Cell phone will be confiscated and submitted to the main office where the student can get the phone back at the end of the day with a warning.
-2nd offense: Cell phone will be confiscated and submitted to the main office where a parent/guardian will need to pick up the phone.
-3rd offense: Cell phone will be confiscated and submitted to the main office where a parent/guardian will need to pick up the phone and the student will be issued an office detention.
-4th offense: Cell phone will be confiscated and submitted to the main office where a parent/guardian will need to pick up the phone and a meeting will need to take place in order to establish a contract where phone can either be dropped off at arrival time and picked up at dismissal, or the phone is not allowed in school.
-Students will not be allowed to have cell phones in the bathroom. Students will need to leave their phones face down on their desk when leaving for the bathroom.
-We recognize the importance for students to have cell phones, but we respectfully ask for your support in reinforcing the cell phone rules. If there is ever a reason for a student to call home, I am happy to allow them to utilize my office phone. Also, if you have to get in touch with your student, we would ask that you please contact the main office during school hours.