March 2009 School Wide News

Welcome back!!! I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable vacation. Although the recent storm may cause us to doubt it sometimes, spring is just around the corner and we have a number of upcoming community events to help us celebrate the season.

On the first day of spring, March 21st, we will hold our biannual auction from 5-8 at the Audubon Center in Concord. Letters with a list of the items for auction will go home at the end of this week and will also be posted on our website. The evening promises to be a fun social event and onsite childcare is available but limited so be sure to sign up as soon as possible.

Tickets for the tuition raffle can be purchased beforehand and will be on sale at the door as well—don’t miss this great opportunity to save on next year’s tuition and help out the annual fund.

We are planning a special Mayday celebration this year by combining the event with our regular theatre night performance. Grandparents will be invited to tour the school and then watch the Mayday dance and play. The performances will take place outdoors weather permitting. If you have not done so already, please provide the office with their grandparents’ name and address so that each class can send invitations out for this special day planned for Friday, May 1st.

Auditions for speaking parts in the play The Purple Finch, will take place after school on Wednesday, March 11th. All students in grades K-7 are encouraged to try out and should be aware that it requires a commitment of some after school rehearsal time. If you are interested in helping out with costumes sets and props please let us know.

Over the vacation the preschool teachers and I made a visit to the Reggio Emilia inspired Child Study and Development Center in Durham for a day of observations, discussions, and presentations. It was a very inspiring day and we have already started planning some of the changes we will implement next year in our classrooms. As always we value your input and questions as we move forward.

I am pleased to announce that Joslin Heyn will be joining our faculty as the new upper elementary teacher and Environmental Education Coordinator. Joslin comes to us from the Community School in Tamworth where she has been teaching science and working on their Rural Sustainable Schools Project. With a BA from Johns Hopkins in Environmental Studies and her MA in Forestry from the University of Montana, Joslin brings a wealth of experience in the area of wildlife conservation and environmental education. We are delighted to be welcoming her to the HIS community this June, as she will begin her job this summer as director of the Tuckernuck Environmental Camp Programs.

Speaking of Summer Camps, the brochures, schedules, and registration forms for our Beech Hill, Wind ‘N Willows, and Tuckernuck camps will soon be available. We have some fun new offerings planned for this summer and encourage you all to take a look. We will be offering group swim lessons open to the public through Swim New Hampshire in addition to our Family Swim Program. Forms for both of these are available in the office.

The children have been having a great time on their Wednesday snowshoe hikes and we will continue these excursions as weather permits. Feel free to join us any Wednesday at noon. During March and April and until the upper fields are clear and dry, we will be supplementing their wellness offerings with yoga classes that I will be helping the teachers guide. In addition, I am pleased to tell you that I will be teaching yoga for the Hopkinton Recreation Department on Monday and Friday evenings from 5:30-7:00 at the Slusser Senior Center near the library. This is an all levels class and no previous experience is necessary. See the poster on the information board in the front hall or speak with me for details.

You will have noticed by now the exquisite painting in the foyer of the barn and Snowflake the sheep. Brian Rossingnol has generously offered to make copies of this painting available to the HIS community at a reduced cost and to donate a portion of the proceeds to our annual fund.
As the days grow warmer and the snow begins to melt, conditions on the playground become mushy and muddy. Please be mindful of wiping your feet when you enter the building so that we can keep the halls and classrooms as dirt and mud free as possible.

Think spring!!



Heather Harwood