Survey: Connecting Families in the Mt. Washington Neighborhood
May 28, 2019
Dear Silver Hill Families,
I am thrilled that Mary Ellen Lucas has been nominated as the new principal of Silver Hill Elementary! Mrs. Lucas has shown her dedication to our students and staff from the minute she started as an Assistant Principal mid year and has been a tremendous asset to the school during this transition year. Staff is excited to welcome Mrs. Lucas into her new role, and I know she will provide exemplary leadership for the Silver Hill community. I wish her all the best in her new position!
This week will be my last week at Silver Hill. I want to thank you again for your partnership in sharing your children with me during their early learning years. I know I’ve learned just as much from them as they may have from me! I have been blessed to work with an amazing group of educators, custodians, cafeteria staff, families, and most all, I’ve loved my daily hugs and always interesting conversations with our wonderful students! My memories of Silver Hill will forever have a place in my heart.
I hope you all enjoyed the Memorial Day weekend and summer weather. A very special Thank You to all of our service men and woman and their families. Your sacrifices keep our country free, and our nation is truly grateful for your service.
And with Memorial Day comes the start of the summer season. The last few weeks will fly by…even faster than the rest of the year seemed to! Enjoy it all… Silver Hill ROARS on!
With gratitude and love,
Margaret
Attendance Wars (Eng)
Attendance Wars (Sp)
May 13, 2019
Dear Silver Hill Families,
MCAS is almost done! Grades 3 and 4 are complete, Grade 5 will be taking the STEM Session 1 on Tuesday, May 14, and Session 2 on May 16. Thank you for getting your child to school on time and ready to go!
Tonight is the City Wide “Arts Alive” Show from 4:00 – 7:00 PM at Haverhill High School. There will also be additional viewing times May 13 – 16 from 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM. This event is always a wonderful display of Haverhill students’ artwork, including lots from Silver Hill!
Last but not least, a huge thank you to our PTO Board, Nicole Kardos, Andrea Barman, Amy Nazzaro, Lauren MacKinnon and a HUGE special thanks to Tessa, Karlyn, and Ameila Boiselle for decorating, setting up, and organizing the staff breakfast! We have some great cooks in our school. Thank you to all of the volunteers who made Staff Appreciation Week an amazing week of being appreciated and spoiled. The umbrella is especially useful!
Have a great week,
Margaret
Planning Ahead:
May 14 – 5th Grade Science MCAS
May 16 – 5th Grade Science MCAS
May 17 – Storyteller Marty Kelley & Musician Steven Blunt
(sponsored by PTO)
May 23 – Grades 2 & 3 Band & Chorus Memorial Day Concert
May 24 – PTO Fun Run Grades 3 & 5 @ 10:15, Grades K & 2 @ 11:15,
Grades 1 & 4 @ 11:45
May 27 – Memorial Day: NO SCHOOL
May 29 – Grade 1 Patriotic Celebration @ 9:30
May 29 – Title I Night Grades 3-5: STEM Activities 6:00 – 7:30 PM
May 30 – Kindergarten Shoe Presentation 10:30 – 11:00 AM
May 31 – ROARS Assembly
June 3 – Grade 5 Luau BBQ
June 3 – Camp Tricklin Falls – Grade 4
June 3 – Grade 3 Junior Police @ 9:30
June 4 – Grade 5 Math Museum: 9:30 – 10:30
June 4 – Grade 5 Luau (rain date)
June 5 – Grade 3 Museum of Science Field Trip
June 5 – Kindergarten – Baby Beluga @ 2:00 PM
June 6 – Grade 4 Camp Tricklin Falls (rain date)
June 6 – Grade 5 Banquet 6:00 – 8:00 PM
June 6 – Math Museum @ Haverhill High School
June 7 – Field Day
June 10 – Field Day (rain date)
June 10 – Junior Police Graduation @ Bradford Elementary
June 10 – PTO Meeting 6:00 PM
June 11 – Kind is Cool Day
June 11 – Grade 4 & 5 track meet @ Haverhill High School
June 13 – Last day of school (half day) Summer time!
May 6, 2019
Dear Silver Hill Families,
Happy Staff Appreciation Week! I have been blessed to be the school leader of such a dedicated and talented group of educators. To all of you I say thank you for the caring and upbeat outlook you show each day. Your energy and commitment touch students’ lives and help make each day brighter. Your power of a positive attitude gives our children enthusiasm for learning. Silver Hill will always be a school community that works together to make a positive difference in the lives of our students. Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving our community and world a better place through our actions – that is what defines the Silver Hill community of students, parents/guardians, and staff! Our school community ROARS and as the school principal I appreciate you all!!
A special THANK YOU in advance to our awesome PTO “Cruise Directors” for planning another spectacular Teacher and Staff Appreciation Week. I know I’m ready to “set sail” for all those goodies! J
Warm regards,
Margaret
This week’s events:
May 7 – Grade 3 MCAS – Math Session 2
May 8 – Kindergarten walking field trip to Market Basket
May 9 – Grade 4 MCAS – Math Session 2
May 10 – Grade 5 MCAS – Math Session 2
Summer Program Opportunities
CONGRATULATIONS!
Academic Bowl Champions!
April 8, 2019
Dear Silver Hill Families,
Congratulations to our Academic Bowl team: Lucy Cavallini, Sam Cordes, Sophia DeFrank, Maya Lique, Ming Pineiro, Lucas Ferreira, Karick Sebastian and their awesome coach Daniela Murphy for making it to the semi finals! Come cheer them on tonight as they play Nettle at 5:00 at Hunking School!
Evening conferences are this Wednesday, April 10. Teachers have sent out conference times. Conferences are an important part of communicating with your child’s teacher. We’re in this together! It is our goal to have every teacher have some sort of conference/communication with 100% of his/her class. We realize that this very short amount of conference time is not enough and will make every attempt to share your child’s progress with you through some form of two-way communication, whether it’s a conference, phone call, or e-mail. Mrs. Lucas, Mr. Parker, and I will be available during conference time if you’d like to stop by or schedule a time to meet.
We finished up our first week of MCAS testing, and all in all, it was a good week. We tell the students to be sure to get a good night’s sleep, get to school on time, answer every question, and just do their best. Please remember that attendance is very important. So we ask that unless it is an emergency that you do not make appointments on testing days. Also, if a student comes into school late, we cannot allow them to enter the classroom if the testing has started, and they will have to do make-ups.
We have our next ROARS Assembly this Friday. Grades 3, 4, and 5 will have their assembly at 9:30. Grades K, 1, and 2 will be at 10:30. Teachers have sent out the invitations.
Don’t forget the PTO meeting tonight is at 6:00. Get your raffle ticket!
Next week is our spring break vacation week. I hope everyone has a wonderful week off, with some fun adventures, relaxing family time, and great spring weather!
Warm regards,
Margaret
SPIRIT WEEK!
March 25-29
Spirit Week English
Spirit Week Spanish
March 19, 2019
Dear Silver Hill Families,
I hope everyone is enjoying this sunny spring like weather. A reminder that tomorrow, March 20, is an early release day for professional development for staff. Kindergarten is dismissed at 11:15, all other grades starting at 11:30, or as buses arrive. Breakfast is served as usual, but no lunch is served.
March is certainly a busy month at school. Our first annual spaghetti supper was a big success. Thank you to all of our volunteers, to Fantini Bakery for the Italian bread, to Tuscan Kitchen who supplied the pasta, and a huge thank you to our PTO Board, Nicole Kardos, Andrea Barman, Lauren MacKinnon, Amy Nazzaro, and Evan Barman our “PTO Dad” for organizing and overseeing the night . I’m sure this “First Annual” will become a yearly event!
Another thanks to PTO for the K- 3 VIP Dance. I saw lots children all dressed up showing their dance floor moves with parents/guardians and teachers dancing up a storm with their students. A fun time was had by all! The grades 4-5 VIP Dance is on March 29th.
This Thursday, March 21, is our Title 1 family reading night for grades K, 1, 2. The theme is:
Roll out the Red Carpet
Literacy Night
Lights, Camera, Read!
Title I Red Carpet Movie Night
For students in grades 3, 4, 5:
The MCAS testing dates are as follows. Schools are rated for attendance during these assessments. It is important that all students attend school every day, and critical during MCAS test dates.
MCAS
(ELA)
Grade 3: April 2 & 9
Grade 4: April 3 & 10
Grade 5: April 4 & 11
Make Ups: April 5, 8, 12 & 23-26
(Math)
Grade 3: April 30 & May 7
Grade 4: May 2 & 9
Grade 5: May 3 & 10
Make Ups: May 6, 13, 17 & 20-24
(Science)
Grade 5: May 14 & 16
March 8, 2019
Dear Silver Hill Families of current Grades K-4 Students,
You should have received a letter from Superintendent Marotta regarding siblings attending kindergarten at Silver Hill in the fall. Keeping our kindergarten students at Silver Hill is so important not only for continuity in each child’s educational programs, but also in building our relationships with families from the beginning of your child’s school experiences. This is the true concept of a neighborhood school and I am so happy to see that kindergarten will remain at Silver Hill!
In order to determine kindergarten numbers as soon as possible, the letter below went home in the mail. Included with the letter is a response form that asks parents/guardians to complete and return to the Silver Hill main office NO LATER THAN FRIDAY, MARCH 15. We must send all forms back to the Superintendent’s office on that date. Please note that we are only reaching out to the families whose children are currently in grades 1-4 and parents/guardians still need to register their children with HPS. If you have questions related to the letter, please contact:
Andrea Sheehan
Office of the Superintendent
andrea.sheehan@haverhill-ps.org
(978) 420-1907
I appreciate that the Superintendent is keeping the promise made by the previous administration in keeping our kindergarten classes at Silver Hill!
Margaret
December 11, 2018
Dear Silver Hill Families,
I hope you are all staying “calm and bright” during this often hectic holiday time! I know how busy everyone’s schedules can be, and I appreciate the time you give to your child’s school. Family engagement is so important in your child’s education. Tomorrow night is Teacher Conferences. The allotted time is not nearly enough for us to give you all the important information that we have to share with you about how your child is progressing in school. Teachers are always available through e-mail, most have a communication system such as Remind or Dojo, our web site is frequently updated, and I am always available to meet with any parents/guardians who have concerns about their child – or just to hear how things are going! Knowing how brief the conference times are, if you are planning on attending conferences tomorrow night it would be very helpful if you could send an e-mail to your child’s teacher before the meeting with any specific information you’d like. This way, the conference can be targeted to discussing your priority. If you are not able to make the conference night, please let your child’s teacher/s know and they will schedule an alternative conference. We want 100% of conferences – e-mail, phone call, or in person!
Thank you for being a partner in your child’s education,
Margaret