Dear Mashpee Community, Did you know that the very best students attend the Mashpee Public Schools? They are kind, respectful,

Our students are kind, respectful, intelligent, and hard-working. Our students teach me something new every single day. They are creative problem-solvers and critical thinkers. On a daily basis we strive to ensure that academic engaged time is maximized for each student and that each student is able to demonstrate growth. In my visits to classrooms, I am impressed with the instructional strategies being used to improve learning outcomes for all students. The success and well-being of every student in our district are always at the forefront of our daily work and every decision we make. Attendance is imperative! As of today, we have completed 100 days or 55.6% of school year 18-19. If a student has been absent more than 10 days so far this year, he/she is considered to be chronically absent and academically at risk. Attending school regularly is essential to students gaining the academic and social skills they need to succeed. Chronic absence is a powerful predictor of achievement because it measures the amount of instructional time a student has missed over the course of the school year. Starting as early as preschool and kindergarten, chronic absence—missing 10 percent of the academic year—can leave third graders unable to read proficiently, sixth graders struggling with coursework and high school students off track for graduation. The good news is that chronic absence can be significantly reduced when schools, families, and community partners work together to monitor attendance data, nurture a habit of regular attendance, and address hurdles that keep children from getting to school every day such as lack of access to health care, unhealthy environmental conditions, unreliable transportation, and housing instability. We will continue to work closely with each family to improve attendance with the shared goal of every student being present as many days as possible for the remaining 80 days of school year 18-19. For more information about the impact of student absenteeism on learning, please visit https://www.attendanceworks.org. Vaping can be very addictive and harmful to the body. Even armed with this knowledge, our children seem drawn to this behavior—as do many adults. Unlike tobacco cigarettes, e-cigs or vaporizers don’t have the cigarette-smoke smell, the ashes, or the butts. What’s more, the vapor evaporates in the air more quickly than smoke. To make matters worse, e-cigarettes come in all shapes and sizes, which can be concealable or hard to distinguish from a normal pen, a USB memory stick, or any other handheld gadget. So, if your child is vaping secretly, it can be extremely hard to discover. Here are seven warning signs that your child might be vaping: 1. Mystic Aroma--E-cigarettes don’t smell bad like the smoke from combusting tobacco; however, most e-liquids have flavors in them that usually smell nice like candy, mint, vanilla, fruit punch etc. If you catch a sudden whiff of any of these but none of them is around, consider this a red flag. 2. Unfamiliar Handheld Gadgets--E-cigarettes come in various shapes. The most common ones resemble a pen and are known as vape pens. If you see such a gadget, or a pen that isn’t a pen, be aware that it could be a vaporizer. The easiest way to spot an e-cig is to look for holes on each end of the device. 3. Increased Thirstiness--Vapor from e-cigs is made of VG (Vegetable Glycerin), PG (Propylene Glycol), and flavors. The chemical characteristics of PG make it attract water molecules from its surroundings. When vapor enters the mouth, PG does its trick and keeps the vaper in a state of dry mouth. So, if your child is suddenly drinking more water, he/she may be secretly vaping. 4. Caffeine Sensitivity--Vapers develop caffeine sensitivity. If your child/teen loved coffee or Red Bulls but suddenly stops drinking them, vaping could be the cause. 5. Batteries and Chargers--Just like you have to charge your smartphone every single day, vapers need to charge their vaporizers on a regular basis. While some e-cigs can be charged with just a USB cable, most of the powerful e-cigs require 18650 batteries. So, if you see unfamiliar batteries on the charger, take a look around, and you might find a vaping device. 6. Metallic Wires and Cotton Wicks--If you find organic cotton, empty plastic vials or thin metallic coils lying in your child’s room, this is yet another red flag. 7. Discarded Atomizers--The atomizers are a vital part of e-cigs as they turn e-juice into vapor. However, they are disposable and after a while usually burn out. If you come across a discarded atomizer in your child’s trash can, it’s a clear indication that he/she has been vaping. If

Mashpee A Connected Community

February 2019 Update Superintendent Patricia DeBoer

It’s GREAT to be in MASHPEE for you, for me, for us.

you are a student in the Mashpee Public Schools you are encouraged to participate in our anti-vaping poster contest. This is an opportunity to not only win a $100, $50, or $25 gift card but also to help us educate your peers. This contest is being sponsored by the Mashpee Public Schools, the Kiwanis Club of Mashpee, and the Mashpee Substance Use Task Force. All students received a flyer about the contest this week. Posters are due by March 15, 2019. The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe recently held an Education Open House. During this wonderful event, Mrs. Marlene Perry, a retired Mashpee Public Schools educator and Tribal Elder, was honored. Mrs. Perry retired in 2013 after twenty years of service to the children of Mashpee. She is an outstanding person and educator who positively impacted her students as well as her colleagues—and still continues to do so. She is missed as a member of Team MPS. As part of a new series, we will be highlighting our amazing staff members. This month’s featured staff member is 7th grade mathematics teacher, Mrs. Patricia Donovan, who is in her 23rd year with the Mashpee Public Schools. A life-long learner, Mrs. Donovan recently completed a professional development course on flipped learning. A flipped classroom is an instructional strategy and a type of blended learning that reverses the traditional learning environment by delivering instructional content, often online, outside of the classroom. It moves activities, including those that may have traditionally been considered homework, into the classroom. Mrs. Donovan has implemented this model with her Accelerated Math 7 class and with some students in her other Math 7 classes. While students are actively engaged in applying their learning, Mrs. Donovan is able to move around the classroom and check students’ understanding, clarify their thinking, and provide guidance on problem-solving. Students now work mostly together, helping each other solve the math problems. They (respectfully) argue with each other about their answers and are becoming much more skilled at explaining their thinking. By the end of the school year, Mrs. Donovan expects that all of her students will have had an opportunity to experience the “flipped learning” model. Mrs. Donovan is also the advisor for the Class of 2020, the advisor for the National Junior Honor Society, a Google Level I certified educator, and the parent of two children who currently attend the Mashpee Public Schools. The Massachusetts Department of Education wants to hear about all aMAzing teachers. If your child/family has had an amazing experience with an educator, you can share it on this link: https://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/4492311/Favorite-Teacher-Submission-Form Let’s put Mashpee on the map! This past week has been National School Counselors Week. We are very fortunate to have amazingly talented and caring counselors who consistently go above and beyond to support the needs of our students and their families. Thank you to our Director of Guidance and College/Career Readiness Mrs. Kett; MMHS counselors: Mrs. Farrell, Ms. McCuish, Ms. Almeida, Mr. Patenaude; Quashnet School counselors Mrs. McCue, Mrs. Morrison, and Mr. Withington; and Coombs School counselors Ms. Needre and Mrs. Lambert. We are also fortunate to have three counselors from Gosnold who provide additional clinical support to students two days a week at each school: Mr. Butler is at the Mashpee Middle-High School, Ms. Doolittle is at the Quashnet School, and Ms. Griffin is at the Coombs School. The Quashnet School is also fortunate to have Ms. Lemire as a counselor intern. All of these individuals are invaluable to our Mashpee team. Don’t forget to join us tonight at the Quashnet School gymnasium (6:00 PM) for the annual Coombs School Faculty/Parents vs. the Quashnet School Faculty/Parents basketball game. Although this is a friendly rivalry, the games are often very intense. Go FALCONS!! Coombs School Preschool and Kindergarten Registration for school year 2019 – 2020 opened this past Monday. Current students do not need to re-register but should send in physicals as they are completed. Students going into Kindergarten must submit their 5-year-old physical and immunizations. New students: please visit our district website: www.mpspk12.org, click “New Student Registration for 2019-2020.” In-person registration and document drop-off times: Mornings: 2/11, 2/13, and 2/15 from 7:30 AM – 10:00 AM; Evenings: 2/12 and 2/13 from 5:00 – 7:00 PM. This year the KCC Math Committee, led by first grade teacher Stephanie Souza used math as a vehicle to celebrate the diversity of our school with a Math Around-the-World evening event. Staff, families and community members were invited to not only attend but also to help facilitate the evening. Attendees were invited to take a journey and, upon arrival, were given a Passport with 20 geographical locations they could

“visit” during the evening. Each location, such as China, Australia, or Kenya offered first a children’s book that represented that county and a math activity either based on the book or related to the country. After visiting each country, the passport was stamped and visitors moved on to another location. Students also participated in a Math Night Family Project that was completed prior to the event. Students created a flag representing their heritage and included a math fact about that place. These flags adorn our cafeteria and hallways, providing a perfect backdrop to the evening. We were so pleased to have almost 300 in attendance, even though the night was very stormy. Over 200 projects were submitted by our students and their families. This was a true community effort as the event was facilitated by 25 KCC staff members, 3 family volunteers, 5 students who are members of the math honor society at Mashpee Middle-High and members of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. Students in Mrs Wilber's kindergarten class recently presented animal reports to their peers. They used Epic, an online tool to research their topic and create a booklet final report. Presenters and the audience practiced very important speaking and listening skills. Mrs. Wilber shared a video of each child's report with their families via another on-line communication tool called SeeSaw. Our first graders have recently visited Cotuit Center for the Arts to see the “Bon Appetit” exhibit. All local artists are featured in this exhibit. The exhibit pieces are hung a foot lower than usual to engage local elementary school students who will tour the exhibit with their classes. Students will visited the “Art Barn” where they created art that is tied to the theme. We also had the opportunity to meet one of the artists in the show and hear about the process of making art. Thank you to the many parents who joined us. If you were not able to go, the exhibit is free and will be open during February Vacation. You can have your child be the “docent” and show you around! At Wednesday’s school committee meeting, Coombs paraprofessional MJ Marques was recognized for the heroic action she took on January 15th when she assisted a student who was choking at lunch in the cafeteria. Her quick, calm, and effective actions resulted in the student being correctly and effectively assisted during this medical emergency. Ms. Marques stayed with the student and communicated and collaborated with the nurse to ensure that all of the details were shared with her, the administration, and the parent. Ms. Marques also reassured and supported the student post-event which helped to keep him calm while awaiting further medical evaluation. Quashnet School Last week all Quashnet students participated in a variety of hands-on STEM activities at the annual Energy Carnival held in the gymnasium. MMHS teacher Mrs. Hough brought her students to Quashnet to teach our students about all forms of energy, robotics, and more. We appreciate this fabulous collaboration with MMHS and with Cape Light Compact. The MMHS students were so well prepared and took their “teacher” roles very seriously. Members of the Quashnet School staff continue to work on a daily basis to help all students gain the skills for a successful life. This work is aligned with our focus on social/emotional learning. The five skills are self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, social awareness, and relationship skills. Self-awareness is the ability to understand your emotions, thoughts, and how they influence your behavior. Self-management is the ability to regulate your emotions and behaviors in different situations and to set and work towards goals. Responsible decision-making is the ability to make positive choices and to take responsibility for positive and negative outcomes. Social awareness is the ability to take the perspective of and empathize with others. Relationship skills is the ability to make and maintain healthy and meaningful relationships with others. As life-long learners, we should all strive for growth in these five competencies or skills. Mashpee Middle-High School Last month the Mashpee Middle-High School held its first annual science fair. Thank you to the 23 judges who volunteered their time to support this event and thank you to our outstanding team of MMHS science educators. Every project was well done and very informative. Congratulations to the following students whose projects were recognized: First place--Addison Weiner, Ross Smith, and Nathan Howard for their project “Moody Music” ; Second Place—Eduarda Zanoni, Diana Geoffrion, and Abigail Aia for their project “What Type of Learner are You”; Third Place—Megan Binette, Brooke Johnston, and Bridget O’Neill

for their project “Age vs. Hoverboard”; and Middle School Winner—Maya Brainson, Amna Iqbal, and Ava Kelley for their project “How Do Caffeine and Sugary Drinks Affect your Focus.” Congratulations to the following talented MMHS musicians who participated in last Saturday’s All-Cape Festival held at Barnstable High School: Alexia Brandt, Elise Carroll, Maggie Connolly, Jacob Eldridge, Matt Fish, Aidan Goddu, Caroline Henley, Cheyene Hendricks, William Henley, Anna Josselyn, Alison Landry, Kaylee McCarthy, David McKelvey, Shivani Patel, Hannah Phu, Clara Signs, and Zachary Taylor. Thank you to our wonderful music teachers Ms.Keller and Mr. Troyanos for all that they do for our students. Cape Cod Community College (CCCC) and the Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) provide a Commonwealth Dual Enrollment Program (CDEP) for qualified high school students. This program provides an opportunity for eligible high school students to enroll in courses at their institutions as non-degree students and have the course credit be recognized toward degree completion. These programs and courses can help meet the diverse needs of today’s high school students, can ease transition from high school to college-level work, and can enhance relationships between the Mashpee Public Schools and these secondary institutions. This year, as in past years, Mashpee Middle-High School has two students enrolled full time in the Dual Enrollment Program at CCCC. We also have students enrolled in courses offered through the MMA Dual Enrollment Program. In order to be eligible for this program, students must have a minimum cumulative high school GPA of 2.5 or demonstrate potential for academic success through submission of evidence of steadily improving high school grades, high class rank, and teacher/guidance counselor endorsement. These valued partnerships help us to provide non-traditional learning opportunities for our students.

************* There are many reasons to be proud of the Mashpee Public Schools. Our students continue to excel in every arena—in the classroom, on the athletic field, at conferences, at robotics competitions, in the arts, through extracurricular activities, and in their service to others. We are well resourced with highly-skilled and caring staff members, with instructional materials and technology, and with well-maintained facilities. Adding to this wealth is our positive partnership with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, our supportive Mashpee community, our families, and, of course, our wonderful students. We are grateful for the opportunity we have been given to serve the families of Mashpee. A multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) framework is how we ensure that every student has access to instruction, curriculum, and an environment that ensures achievement of his/her academic and social/emotional projected growth. Thank you for trusting us with your children. PLEASE STOP IN AND VISIT US AT #WeAreMashpee, OUR OUTREACH SITE LOCATED AT 12 CENTRAL SQUARE AT THE MASHPEE COMMONS. Thank you to the Mashpee Commons for this partnership. Ms. Christina Ball as our Outreach Coordinator.

It’s GREAT to be in Mashpee for YOU, for ME, for US. We are a Connected Community.

STAY CONNECTED TO US Mashpee Public Schools’ website: http://www.mpspk12.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/PDeBoerMPS or https://twitter.com/MashpeeSchools Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MashpeePublicSchools/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mashpeepublicschools/ MMHS Athletic Schedules: http://miaa.net/schools/public/MashMa MMHS Online Newspaper—The Falconer: https://www.thefalconer.net/

Mrs. Donovan—7th Grade Math Teacher

The Baumgaertel Family is enjoying Math Around-The-World Night at the Coombs School

Retired Mashpee Public Schools educator Marlene Perry is honored and recognized by the MWT.

Quashnet students Lindsey Lu and Nickolas De-Freitas always help to make their school a kind place.

MMHS Science Fair winners: Ross Smith, Adison Weiner, and Nathan Howard