Good Times in Alabama
April 7th, 2017
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Next Week at Hilltop
Spring Sports
SummerFun
Save the Date
Toddler Program (TP)
Birch Room
Willow Room
Lower ELementary (LE)
Upper Elementary (UE)
Middle School (MS)
Hilltop Helpers
Community News
Next Week at Hilltop

Monday 4/10/17
Strength and Conditioning Make-up Class

Tuesday 4/11/17
Strength and Conditioning 
Sweet Treats

Wednesday 4/12/17
Girls on the Run
Spanish with Marco 

Thursday 4/13/17
Strength and Conditioning
No All School Gathering
UE Play School Performance 1-2:30pm
Night Performance 5-6:30pm

Friday 4/14/17
LE Field Trip to VINS

Coming up...

Friday 4/28/17
LE Author's Tea @
8:45am


Check out the School Calendar 
here.

Sp ring 
Sports !

It's not too late to sign up for Ultimate Frisbee! 

Frisbee
Upper El and Middle School
Start date: April 10th
Practices: Mondays and Wednesdays 3:15-4:45
Cost: $75
Coach Nate Weeks
 
If you have any questions regarding Spring Sports please contact Soren.



Notes from the Head of School

Hilltop Graduates on the Board of The Putney School!

We are proud to share that two of our 2015 graduates, Emmanuel Keppel and Greta Wolfe, have recently been elected to the Board of Trustees of The Putney School, a position of great responsibility and honor. Emmanuel graduated from Hilltop having started in the Children's House and Greta joined Hilltop for the two years of the Middle School. Both students thrived at Hilltop. "Hilltop taught us to notice all of the fine workings of a community and discover our place in the world. With that foundation, we continue to do so at Putney, and will be learning with every responsibility we take on for the rest of our lives" - Greta Wolfe.

Both Emmanuel and Greta were perhaps inspired by their father's roles on the Hilltop Board of Trustees - Patrick Keppel, Emmanuel's father, was on the board for 7 years, including three as Chair, and Rich Wolfe, Greta's father, is the current Board Chair at Hilltop. Each of five student candidates gave a speech to the school at an assembly meeting and later in the day, students, faculty, and staff all cast their votes for the position.

This is a 30 person board and the two students elected serve as full voting members. The responsibilities include discussing reports from various members of the school community, such as Diversity and Admissions, and making decisions regarding funding and planning for the school's future. Greta and Emmanuel follow in the footsteps of Maeve Campman, a 2012 graduate of Hilltop who also held a student trustee position at The Putney School, as well as many other graduates of Hilltop that have thrived in other various leadership positions at The Putney School.





We WANT YOU!
Join the 16 families who are signed up to sell at our tag sale on April 29th! 

Wow! This is going to be a great tag sale. We've got 16 families signed up! It's not too late if you want in!

ALSO WANTED: To borrow - electric griddles for the pancake breakfast portion of our program. 

Email  Amelia  to reserve a table and to let me know if you have a griddle we can borrow - $10 per table - you sell and keep proceeds. Thanks!


Saturday, April 29th
*7:30am - noon
In the Arts Barn

*come when you want, but tag sale people are an eager bunch

Hilltop's 
Multi-Family 
Tag Sale & 
Pancake Breakfast 






Toddler Program 






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Birch Room

This week Rae, from Teaching Creatures, came to visit with some very exciting friends!  The children got to learn about, meet, and even touch a python, hedgehog, and 2 rabbits. Look at some pictures below and don't forget to check out the other free events happening in the area for the Month of the Young Child! Extra brochures are at the front desk.

Please remember to sign your child in and out each day!

Have a great weekend!

-Cheryl, Serina, and Mariam













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Willow Room

Children noticed a few small changes in our classroom this week. First, our Peace Area has moved. Instead of being tucked into a corner, it is now in the center of our room, as the Peace Curriculum is at the heart of our social and emotional work.

We also have filled-up the remaining bead chains in our bead cabinet. The bead cabinet introduces the concept of skip counting, first using short squaring chains and then longer cubing chains. The largest number is 1000. In the pictures below, Julio completes a few short chains and Pasture finishes the long 7 chains.

We are looking forward to spring weather! Hopefully we can pack up those sweaters and jackets soon!

Please remember to sign your child in and out each day!










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Lower El

This week, we flew from our study of amphibians right over to the Aves class, skipping reptiles for the time being. Our reason for doing this is a good one - we are going to the  Vermont Institute of Natural Science next Friday, April 14th,  to visit their birds! Our field trip will include an orientation, a visit to the songbird sanctuary, and then a raptor show, followed by some time to explore the grounds. We will leave at 8:45  and return at approximately at 1pm.  Every child will need to bring a lunch to eat at the Science Center. If your child gets pizza lunch, it will be waiting for them when they return as an afternoon snack.

Our Author's Tea, featuring student poetry, will be held on Friday, April 28thWe will begin at  8:45am, and families are encouraged to bring a brunch-type food to share. We look forward to seeing you there!  

The Olders' autobiographies are on display in the front lobby. Please take some time to look through these wonderful writing pieces. Their efforts are evident!

Finally, we would like to extend a very belated thank you to Kiersten and her family, for giving everyone in the class a beautiful book to take home. This book,  Cynthia's Promise, was illustrated by Kiersten's grandmother, Flo Magdalena.  Many thanks for such a fun gift!

Enjoy your weekend together.
Kerstin, Patrick, and Amelia














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Upper El

We wrote a play this week! No small feat, but with the help of many creative minds, we wrote scenes about bee-eating sunflowers, ancient Olympians, traders on the Silk Road, and some talking chemical elements. Now comes the work of learning lines, rehearsing, practicing songs, making props, and turning bedsheets into togas.  The school show/dress rehearsal is next Thursday at 1pm. The family show is at 5pm in the Arts Barn.

Next Thursday, the day of our play, students should be picked up at regular dismissal time. Students do need to be back at school by 4:30.

Please join us after the play for an Upper El potluck supper here at school. All contributions welcomed and appreciated! This potluck is a wonderful way to celebrate our classroom community and this very big accomplishment!





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Middle School

We're back from Alabama, a little sleepy eyed, but full of a remarkable week of learning, generosity, confusion, complexity, living history, and gratitude. Our nightly blog found on the website can never fully reveal the fullness and richness of our experience but contains many beautiful photos and videos taken by Finn and articulate journal excerpts from the students. We hope that everyone takes a look.


















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Before and After Care

Even though it's getting warmer, children may need a jacket for starting the mornings outdoors!









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Hilltop Helpers

A big THANK YOU to Hazel for providing our students and staff with delicious pizza each week!


Julia Fedoruk 
in the Middle School would like to thank all of you who have helped refugees through donations of clothing and funds to Carry Me Home, the Brattleboro-based 501c3 non-profit that sends clothing to refugees in Eastern Europe. We are currently shipping spring items, with special focus on items for refugee children who have begun attending schools in Greece. We are also beginning to stockpile fall/winter items to begin shipping in late summer. Please bring items from the list below to the collection box in the lobby. Carry Me Home is also in need of funds to pay for shipping. A 44 pound box costs $164 to ship. Please make donations via Indiegogo Generosity , or leave a check made out to Carry Me Home With Love in the collection box.

NEEDED ITEMS  (In gently-used or better condition, washed, without stains, rips, or holes)

Clothing:
Adult (men's and women's small or medium, no L or XL please) and children's (all sizes) items:
-long pants, jeans, and leggings
-long skirts
-long or short sleeve tops
-sweaters and sweatshirts
-new underwear
-socks
-raincoats and winter coats
Shoes:
-rainboots and sturdy shoes, all sizes
-men's flip flops sizes 8-10.5
For shipping: 
-Essentials brand vacuum storage bags, size large, 17.5 x 27.5 inches. These are intermittently available at the Dollar Tree Stores in Brattleboro and Keene, and fit our shipping boxes perfectly.
 
 

You can find more information about Carry Me Home on Facebook  or via email. You may be interested in PBS Frontline's Exodus , a documentary on the refugee crisis that aired in December 2016 and is still available to watch on line.
 


Many thanks to Brattleboro Tire, 558 Putney Road in Brattleboro for donating
snow tires for our Hilltop van . Please visit Dan and the boys at Brattleboro Tire for your car's needs and be sure to say "Thanks" on Hilltop's behalf. 
www.brattleborotire.com  or call them at 802-254-5411.





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Community News

M'BOLO Performing at the Root Cellar, Friday, April 7th in Greenfield! 
Doors Open: 8pm, music begins at 9pm
Cover: $7


M'bolo, a band from the Boston area led by Senegalese lead vocalist Cheikh Ngom, will be performing Senegalese Rock and Afro-pop at the Root Cellar this Friday  night. Great energy and fun dancing, with a " rhythmically intricate lattice of propulsive licks, snaking leads and hypnotizing grooves, punctuated by the rapid-fire attack of the sabar drums." VT Shakedown (Afrobeat/funk) opening @ 9, doors open at 8! The Root Cellar is a new, homey venue in Greenfield, with an excellent sound system, big dance floor, and quality craft beers and drinks: cheers in advance!


Summer Language Camp August 7th-10th 
Express Fluency is offering Spanish, French, and Latin classes August 7th-10th, at BUHS. The classes run from 9-12pm each morning (9-11:30 Thursday). They will engage and delight students ages 7- adult. World-class language teachers are coming to Brattleboro from OR, CO, LA, MN, ME and MI to teach these classes and teachers from all over the US are coming to observe them and participate in teacher workshops in the afternoons. 

Offerings Include:
  • Elementary Spanish taught by Annabelle Allen (Ages 7-11)
  • Beginner Spanish taught by Grant Boulanger (Ages 12-adult)
  • Intermediate Spanish taught by Becca Lynch Nichols (High School to adult)
  • Beginner French with Tina Hargaden (Ages 12-adult)
  • Beginner Latin* with Justin Slocum Bailey(Ages 12- adult)

We expect these classes to fill up, so recommend registering early.
More info and registration can be found here:

Full time student price: $125 (before June 1st) 

*A note about Latin from Elissa McLean: My daughter (Emmy, age 12) and I took Justin's Latin class together last summer and had the best time! Justin is a gifted teacher and he literally brings Latin to life in the class. Before the class I was honestly a little unsure of why anyone would want to take a Latin class, but now I recommend it to everyone. There are so many connections to English and all the Romance Languages. This would be a great class for someone facing PSATS or SATS, wanting a base from which to explore many other languages, interested in science and medicine, and so much more! Plus, it is a ton of fun.  Emmy and I still remember the Latin from the class now  7 months later and its like we have our own secret language at home.



Creating with Clay Summer Camp 2017


Green Mountain Girls Camp
News Flash! Green Mt Camp for Girls, the beloved 100 year old summer camp in nearby Dummerston has openings for girls ages 4-13 this summer! They are welcoming 4 year olds for Session #1 (June 19-23)  for day camp from 8:30-4:30  and all other ages are welcome to come for the day or stay the night as this is a Try Me Camp week! Arts and Crafts, Drama and Dance, Nature, Music, Sports and Games, Swimming and so much more! They also have a pay by the day option that week if you have limited availability! Financial Aid is available if income eligible! This is a great chance for you to check out the camp during a time when our summer program hasn't started yet and there are still openings! Call Billie at 802-257-1751 today or go online to register at u nder the Come To Camp tab.


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