NO SCHOOL ON MONDAY, JANUARY 19TH, IN OBSERVANCE OF MLK DAY
Hunking’s Updated Cell Phone Procedure (Gr. 5-8): Beginning Tuesday, January 20, 2026, Hunking will be updating its student cell phone procedure. Please click the link to review the new procedure (shared on 1/12/26 with all families in grades 5-8) and FAQs:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lN-_EXgz4N7B_t9ELizEPkF9tV4sP3PeeCEG2qXB3qQ/edit?usp=sharing
The Student Council and the 5th Grade Team announce:
❄️ THE SNOW BALL Semi-Formal dance!
Friday January 30th
Grades 5&6 Dance 5-6:30 pm
Grades 7&8 Dance 7-8:30 pm
Tickets $5
*Tickets on sale next week at lunch, through CheddarUp, or buy at the door
Pizza, Water, Snacks and Treats for $1-$3 each
Coming Ahead! SOMEONE SPECIAL DANCE for grades K-4!
Theme of the Month: Throughout the month of January, we will be celebrating the theme of commitment. Commitment is the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity, etc. The act of committing, or engaging oneself is a pledge, promise or obligation. Such as we have made a commitment to show up to school each and every day, and to put forward our very best effort. Commitment is being dedicated and responsible for being kind and respectful to everyone. Staff will be on the lookout this month for the students who best personify this theme.
Food Services has changed the menus this year. When you go to FD MealPlanner, and type in “Hunking” for the school location, you will see a WEEKLY menu. You will see the main lunch and other options available for the day. You will still be able to filter according to food allergens. Any questions, please contact Food Services at justin.hodgkins@haverhill-ps.org.
COMMUNITY HAPPENINGS:
SEPAC:
LEAD Hazard Reduction Program:
PTO NEWS:
Coming Soon
Someone Special Dance
Feb, 6th, 2026
Grades 3-4 Immediately after school 3:00-4:30pm
No Guest
Grades K-2 5:30-7:00pm
Must have a Guest over 18 years old
-Next Meeting Feb. 12th 5:30 with NJHS babysitting and homework help available
-Chocolate sales on Friday’s, $1 per bar.
-Coming ahead! Music Bingo and Online Auction! We are seeking support from local businesses with donations for prizes, raffle and auction items. Contact nicole.kelly@haverhill-ps.org if you’d like to support us.
NEWS FROM GUIDANCE
Terri Carney, School Counselor, grades 5-8
Upcoming: Selecting Electives for HHS
Towards the end of January, beginning of February, the 8th graders will begin selecting electives for 9th grade at HHS. This will be done during the school day, but they can then show parents/guardians/grownups the courses that they chose by going into their school brains. Below is the letter that was sent out to families. It also contains the program of studies to view the courses students may choose from. Please be aware that not all courses are offered to 9th graders. Some courses are grade level specific and some require a pre-requisite before taking the course.
HHS
- HHS CTE Admissions Lottery Will Be Held On January 29th 4:00PM
- Lottery numbers will be generated approximately a week prior to the lottery
Middle School Pathway Exploration
WVT
- WVT will assign numbers approximately a week prior to the drawing
- Lottery Drawings for the current admissions cycle will be held at the following date/time.
Class of 2030 Fall Admissions: Tuesday, January 27 4:00 PM - All lotteries will be streamed live on our YouTube Channel.
For additional information: https://www.whittiertech.org/o/wrvtd/page/admissions
Introducing Julia Rossi, Youth Wellness Coach
This year, our district is welcoming an additional community resource – a Youth Wellness Coach Intern to Hunking! Ms. Julia Rossi will be a support to our counseling team to specifically serve the middle school grades. Youth Wellness Coaches are fully trained and vetted from a local organization, C4 Innovates and HPS to serve as non-clinical behavioral health providers with our students. As youth peers, they draw on their own lived experiences to build rapport with students, model resilience, and serve as an extra set of hands to support youth directly using evidence-based practices and interventions. Ms. Rossi will be on site on Mondays and Wednesdays to provide additional non-clinical behavioral health capacity to our existing teams.
We have been contracting with C4 Innovates for the past three years. Youth Wellness Coaches are employed by C4 Innovations and will be serving in our schools at least two days a week for the next five years as part of a statewide initiative to enhance and improve SBIRT screening which is a screening tool used for grades 7 & 10. HHS has had the benefit of having a Youth Wellness Coach to support implementation of programs and students for a variety of needs and services. It’s great having friendly faces who are capable of connecting with students and staff to support initiatives.
If Ms. Rossi will be working directly with your student providing services beyond the basic daily interactions with the counselors, she will reach out to families individually for consent. If you have questions about how Youth Wellness Coaches will serve our community, please feel free to reach out to the C4 Innovations team at oasis@c4innovates.com or Ms. Terri Carney, Hunking School Counselor terri.carney@haverhill-ps.org . You can learn more about C4 Innovations at www.c4innovates.com. Watch this space for more information about how this new team member will support our school!
For all parents and caregivers!
Massachusetts Partners for Youth has a wonderful resource! Check out the Parenting Solutions Library! https://peaceathomeparenting.com/mpy-solution-libraries/
EDUCATIONAL HAPPENINGS:
Homework Help: Drop in homework support is being offered Wednesday mornings from 8:00am – 8:30am in the library with Mrs. Corcoran. You must provide transportation. If you have any questions, please email tcorcoran@haverhill-ps.org.
4th grade: We were excited to welcome the Massachusetts Environmental Police Officers for a special visit that connected perfectly with our current read-aloud, Hatchet. During their visit, the officers shared their important role in protecting Massachusetts’ natural resources, wildlife, and waterways. Students made thoughtful connections between Brian’s experiences in the wild and the real-life work of environmental officers! This experience brought our reading to life and helped students see how literature connects to the real world. We are grateful to the Massachusetts Environmental Police for taking the time to educate and inspire our students!
In Grade 8, Science classes have moved onto the physical science standards and they are starting their unit studying “Chemical Reactions.” Students will be learning how the different elements from the periodic table interact with each other. Math classes are connecting the concepts of unit rate and proportional relationship from previous grades to learn about the slope of a line. ELA students are continuing to read Refugee, by Alan Gratz, following the story of Isabel, a teen fleeing Castro’s Cuba in 1994.
NEWS FROM OUR NURSES: Cold and flu season has arrived. Please make sure your child is wearing appropriate clothes for the weather and using good hand hygiene to prevent getting sick. Proper cough etiquette is important to keep from spreading germs so please sneeze or cough into your elbow or a tissue. If your child has an illness or medical issue, please let the health office know so we can make accommodations if needed for your child.
We are wrapping up screenings for vision and hearing. We have sent home referrals for any child who has trouble seeing or hearing. If your child did receive a referral, please send in any notes from the doctor or the completed referral form. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.
We will be starting Postural/Scoliosis screening for all 5th through 8th grade students at the beginning of February. This screening is to check the spine for scoliosis and is required by the state. The screening requires the exposure of the student’s back for assessment so we request girls wear a sports bra for gym class. The screening is done in a private space and done during gym class. If you would like your child to be opted out of this screening, a written note needs to be sent to the health office either by email or paper. We would also need a current physical showing the child was screened by his/her doctor for your child to opt out. If you have any questions or concerns, you may reach the health office at 978-420-1913.
ATHLETIC NEWS:
In order to participate in any Hunking sports a current physical exam (done within the last 12 months) needs to be provided to the health office. This is a Haverhill Public School policy.
Girls Basketball: Next game on Thursday, January 22nd @ Sacred Hearts (Girls play 1st)
Boys Basketball: Next game on Thursday, January 22nd @ Sacred Hearts (Girls play 1st)
Volleyball: We are gearing up for what we hope will be our first of several skills clinics for grades 4-8. Saturday, January 24th we have invited grades 4-6 to sign up and join us from 10:00am-11:30am. Grades 7 and 8 will be from 11:30am-1pm. If you have signed up through the Google Form but have not paid, please use this link.
A reminder that there are two coaches present at the clinic. If you have not signed up by Friday, January 16th you should wait to hear when the next clinic will be. Updates will be given through the Volleyball Google Classroom and prior to the next one we will send out a flyer for those interested. If your student has not joined that group the code is t7ezqpi.
CLUB NEWS:
Guitar Ensemble: We will continue to meet on Friday afternoons from 2:45-3:30 in Rm 143. We are accepting new members through January (grades 5-8). Reach out to Mrs. Fairbrother for more information (kfairbrother@haverhill-ps.org) or join us on Google Classroom or Remind.
Chorus: Chorus is excited to announce we are performing at a UML Basketball game on Saturday January 31st! Game starts at 2:00pm, and tickets are $13. Please come out and support your singing Bobcats!
The Hunking Bobcat Chorus proudly presents (1)
Tri-M: The next Tri-M meeting is scheduled for Wednesday January 21st until 3:30 in the music room. Please check Google Classroom for important updates!
Student Council: Monthly Meeting and Events Schedule can be found here. On Thursday January 22nd we have a field trip to Edward Kennedy Institute in Boston. Permission slips must be turned in by Tuesday January 20th.
NJHS: The NJHS calendar can be found here. Feb. meeting is being replaced by the Someone Special Dance. 8th grade MIT field trip has been rescheduled to Spring. Coming next is Bobcat Buddies on Jan. 28th.
GSA: The GSA calendar can be found here.
Lego Club: The LEGO Club calendar can be found here.
Academic Bowl: Do you love trivia? Tryouts for the Academic Bowl Team (grades 5–8) will be held on Wednesday, January 21st and Monday, January 26th from 2:45–3:20. Students should plan on attending ONE of these days to try out.
Please see Mrs. Seed or Mrs. Sciuto to pick up a permission slip for tryouts.
Technology Resources:
DESE Learning Standards for Families: learning benchmarks for math and ELA per grade level.
Technology Webpage: How to Access Parent Portal (PDF), Google Classroom, Parent controls (Qustodio), and basic iPad and Chromebook usage tips.
Remind app: How to download and use Remind to communicate with teachers.
ODDS & ENDS:
-Please make sure that your student(s) are coming to school daily with a fully charged Chromebook.
-HPS has chosen School Device Coverage (SDC) to ensure the Chromebooks that students have been issued. The cost of coverage for the year is $20 and includes accidental damage, loss, fire, and theft. As of right now, families have the option to sign up during the month of September (we will let you know if it extends). After sign-up closes, only new students will be given a special code to sign up at registration. The HPS website (under technology) explains SDC and has instructions on how to sign up online.
-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.
SCHOOL PROCEDURES: Please click on the link below to review Hunking procedures, including cell phone and pick up & drop off procedures:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1u0UOrpoO9vRnMMJuYpeJmaSGKcywt29SX94AQmSHFzQ/edit?usp=sharing