The weeks between the Thanksgiving and Winter Breaks at High Meadows are brimming with exciting programs, action projects, and lots of learning.
Earlier this week, our beginning and advanced bands showcased their extraordinary talent to a packed house at the annual Winter Concert.
Yesterday, our eighth graders brought the magic of the High Meadows Secret Shop to young students in Roswell's
Star House
program, which provides after school homework help for at-risk children.
And our own Secret Shop is currently being set up by a group of creative and committed parent volunteers--and the kids can't wait to start shopping!
This is also the time of year that we offer several informational programs for prospective and current parents, beginning tonight with our Evening to Inform, a primer on the High Meadows philosophy. And we hope you will join Margaret next Wednesday for Coffee and Conversation to learn more about next year's new multiage configuration.
Lots to do and enjoy as 2015 winds to a close!
Take care,
Jay Underwood
Head of School
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Put your tax dollars to work!
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Don't miss these great opportunities to join us at High Meadows!
Admissions: An Evening to Inform
Thursday, December 3rd 6:30-8:00 pm
High Meadows Library
This event is a great opportunity to hear more about our school history, philosophies on education, and to ask questions! Join us for time with our Head of School, Principals, and Director of Educational Advancement.
Coffee & Conversation on Multiage Classrooms
Wednesday, December 9th 8:45 am
Elementary Commons
Join Early Years and Elementary Principal Margaret Jones to learn more about the benefits of multiage classrooms.
Admissions: Preschool Preview
Thursday, December 10th 10:00-11:00 am followed by a campus tour from 11:00 to noon
Preschool Building
This event allows parents to spend time exploring our preschool classrooms, and to observe preschoolers in action! Stop by for a quick visit, or stay for a full campus tour.
An Evening with Alumni
Wednesday, January 13th 7:00 pm
Community Center
You might wonder what High Meadows alumni do once they've graduated and moved on to high school, college, and beyond. Come hear from our graduates about how High Meadows prepared them for their next adventures. We encourage all current High Meadows families and those considering High Meadows for their children to attend.
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Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?
By Animal Care Manager Nanci Levine
Have you ever had to stop and wait for the chickens to cross the road? At High Meadows that's a common occurrence! Our High Meadows chickens are some of the happiest chickens on earth because they have almost 400 owners that pet, feed, and most importantly, love them. Maybe you have heard your children speak of Goldie, Snow Flake or Blueberry? Sweetie, Puffy, Misty or Penny? Tanner, Houdini or Lady? These lovely "ladies" are an important part of our community, just as the ponies are!
Each day the chickens have a routine that they follow. After being released from their coop in the morning, their first stop is the Maintenance Shed, where they get their first snack! Russell Knudsen, our Maintenance Coordinator, shares his sunflower seeds with them. They usually stay there until the Early Years classes have their morning break, when the chickens head up to the Upper Meadow to have their second snack, courtesy of the children. After the students head back to their classrooms, our chickens look for bugs in the Upper Meadow before they make their way down to Middle Years for their third snack of the day! Many of our students bring them a treat every day, and the kids know where to find the chickens throughout the day.
As you can tell, our High Meadows chickens are truly free range! After a full day of "ranging" the campus, they return to their coop at sundown, where we enclose them for the night for safety.
So why do High Meadows chickens cross the road? To have snack with their friends of course!
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| Even our chickens are life-long learners! |
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Games Flying Bunnies Play--and Design!
By 1/2 Teachers Andrea Faria and Andrea Ianzito
At the start of our study of Toys and Games, the First/Second Grade Flying Bunnies watched a video entitled Caine's Arcade (see http://cainesarcade.com/). Students were incredibly enthusiastic about the games Caine created and were eager to make their own. Inspired by the then nine-year-old Caine, students collected cardboard boxes and other recycled materials and got to work creating blueprints for their own arcade games. As they worked, they had to do a lot of problem solving in order to make a functioning game. We have been so impressed with their creativity, ingenuity, and commitment to making their games. Our classroom has been transformed into an arcade laboratory where students collaborate and consult with each other as they design and test their games. All areas of the curriculum have been incorporated into making the games - math, science, literacy, and art. Next, we will be recording rules for how to play each game. When our arcade is complete, we plan to invite others to come play!
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| Using Teamwork to Create a Great Game! |
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Third Graders Become Teachers for a Day
By 3rd-Grade Teachers Jennifer Hannah and Cari Newman
Since the very first day of school, our Third-Grade students have been learning about "Social Thinking." Social Thinking is a way of seeing ourselves as members of a group; the way we act and interact with each other impacts the whole group, and in turn, affects the whole community. Learning to "Think Social" has helped us understand our Zones of Regulations, and to stay "Green" at school--ready to learn, calm, open, available. We have also started to recognize our body's signals when we get too "Blue" (slow, tired, confused), too "Yellow" (frustrated, silly, worked up), or even when we get too "Red" (angry, aggressive, out-of-control).
As we learned more about Social Thinking, the students realized that we were becoming experts at some of the fundamentals, like identifying thoughts and feelings and distinguishing between the two. We were in amazing position to share our learning with our Kindergarten "buddies" in the Mannear/Ray class. The students spent several days planning an in-depth, fast-paced lesson that would keep the interest of their younger "buddies."
With our lesson plan in hand, we headed upstairs to teach our Kindergarten friends the difference between thoughts and feelings. We started by reading a story, Thinking Thoughts and Feeling Feelings, and then reinforced the main ideas with two activities. First, we played a Social Thinking version of "I Spy." Through this game, we learned that we can figure out what a person is thinking by what they say and by their body signals. For our second activity, we looked at a picture of a group of kids and discussed what they may have been thinking and feeling based on clues, such as facial expressions and body postures.
Teaching our buddies about Social Thinking not only helped us reinforce our own understanding about the roles of thoughts and feelings, but it also helped us strengthen our leadership skills. Planning a lesson also helped us realize that understanding our audience is crucial, and that a quick lesson can take hours to plan! And last, taking our learning to our "buddies" in a caring and playful way helped us connect with younger members of our community, whom we can now cheerfully greet around campus.
We can't wait to go back to Kindergarten, and we are busy planning our next lesson. Stay tuned!
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| Third Graders Teach Kindergarteners about Thoughts and Feelings |
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Save the Date for a Roaring
Good Time!
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"A little party never hurt nobody!"
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Apply Now for the 2016-17 School Year
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Planning to submit an admissions application for the 2016-17 school year? Now is the time to get started! To apply, click here and follow the directions to set up your application account.
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Admissions: An Evening to Inform
Thursday, Dec. 3
6:30-8:00 pm
Library
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Secret Shop
Monday-Thursday,
Dec. 7-11
Community Center
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Community Gathering, Parents Welcome
Tuesday, Dec. 8
8:30-8:50 am
Community Center
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Coffee and Conversation on Multiage Classrooms with Margaret Jones
Wednesday, Dec. 9
8:45-9:45 am
Elementary Commons
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Chamber Concert
Tuesday, Dec. 15
5:00 pm
Community Center
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In 2015, High Meadows families diverted over $125,000 in state taxes to the HMS Financial Aid Fund. Since its inception seven years ago, over $740,000 has been pledged from the High Meadows community to this Fund, which has helped support the education of over 100 students. It's not too late to sign up for your tax credit! Click here to apply!
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