Boing...an update! SB 3-22-19 | Westford Public Schools

Spring has sprung.

Even if the weather cooled again today, yesterday was bright and cheerful as many members of the Stony Brook Community were rocking crazy socks in support of 3.21 World Down Syndrome Day.

The students in our CommUnity Club created and posted wonderful Sleep Awareness reminders throughout the building to encourage better choices and provide some important facts regarding the importance of sleep. Including some of the following:

The recommended amount of sleep people our age should get is 8-10 hours per night. How many do you get?

Lack of sleep will significantly affect your physical, and emotional well-being. This can lead to poor school performance, bad decision-making and lack of motivation.

A person can survive for up to 3 weeks without any food, but only for 11 days without sleep. Sleep deprivation will kill you before food deprivation will.

If you have an iphone, there is a bedtime setting in the Clock app where you can set up a sleep schedule in order to make sure you get enough sleep.

This week I was able to enjoy a wide array of activities while visiting classes. Eighth graders were insulting each other with Shakespearean taunts while others were decoding information from A Midsummer Night’s Dream to unlock a Shakespearean Escape Room. In social studies, I was able to enjoy a vibrant debate as to how the tenets of Confucianism and Taoism would have different impacts on the perception of a fictional middle school romance riddled with drama and conflict. There were a lot of opinions flying; I was surprised that the Shakespearean insults did not make an appearance in the communication. Many of our seventh graders were spread out throughout the penthouse choreographing and filming their own “In Plain English” video explanations of ancient civilizations using paper puppets and illustrations. Finally, sixth graders were trying out the games that they created in science class based on familiar childhood games to teach others about the moon and our solar system. So, there were students in the hallway playing Twist of Science based on Twister, students playing a homemade version of Jenga that included various level of difficulties of questions. There were multiple games that included black holes as traps as students progress through moon phases and a couple of versions of Monopoly or Moonopoly. Throughout all of the grade levels, there was a lot of laughter and very clear examples of the 4Cs (critical thinking, collaboration, creativity and communication).

Each year through our participation in Project 351 we collect clothing and shoes for the non-profit organization, Cradles to Crayons. This year’s 8th Grade Ambassador representing Westford is Ryan Blagg. He has asked me to share with you the following notice:

Hello Stony Brook families, I wanted to reach out and remind all of you that we will begin collecting clothing and shoes for the non-profit organization, Cradles to Crayons this week! The drive will run up until April 8th. We are looking for lightly used clothing for children ages 0-12. All donations will be accepted and sent straight to the giving factory to be shipped off to the children in need as long as they are in good condition. A big moto of C2C (Cradles to Crayons) is “quality equals dignity.” This supports the idea of bringing in gently used clothing and shoes to make the children in need feel good about themselves in their community and proud to be wearing the clothes on their back. This is a great opportunity to clean out your closets and put those unused articles of clothing and pairs of shoes to good use! Bins will be set up around Stony Brook for donations to be placed in. Another opportunity to support this organization will be on the night of the dodgeball tournament that is open to all grades! This event will take place on April 4th at 5:00 pm. Admission is as many articles of clothing as possible and/or any dollar amount donation that will then be directly used to purchase the items. In helping a great cause, you will also be having a blast by playing dodgeball with friends. Thank you all for your support towards Cradles to Crayons, we hope to make a great impact this Spring that we can all share as a town and community.

Finally, a reminder that the Book Fair is going on through next Thurs March 28. So, if your son or daughter is asking to borrow money for the library, they could very well be telling you the truth.

The forecast seems to indicate potential for some weather we can actually attribute to spring.

Enjoy!

Chris

Dr. Christopher Chew

Principal

Stony Brook School

Westford Troop 95 Electronics Recycling Fundraiser Saturday, April 6th

Ready for Spring Cleaning? Clean out your house and support Westford Troop 95’s 4th Annual Electronics Recycling Fundraiser! Our event will be held Saturday, April 6th from 10am to 1pm at the Miller School (1 Mitchell Way.) Please see our website for items accepted and nominal fees charged:

http://www.westfordtroop95.com

Proceeds benefit Troop 95. Thank you for your support!

The Middle School Volleyball Showdown takes place Friday, March 29

We need you! We still need lots of help to run this event. Can you...

...help at the concessions or check-in table for an hour?

...set up or clean up?

...donate baked goods, drinks, or snacks?

All 8th graders are invited to PLAY, sign ups are with the gym teachers. All students are invited to come cheer on your team, tickets are $5 each and concessions will be available for only $1 per item.

Sunday, May 5, Marks The 20th Annual Westford Road Race

The Westford Charitable Foundation reaches a significant milestone in 2019: the Westford Road Race is being held for the 20th year! For two decades, runners have come from all over to participate in the Family Fun Run and the USA Track & Field sanctioned and certified 5K and 10K races. Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been raised and given back to the community to support a wide variety of local causes. Want to participate in what is sure to be a big celebration? Pre-registration (if completed before April 21) is $15 per person for the Fun Run, $25 per person for the 5K race, and $30 per person for the 10K race. After April 21, the cost increases to $30 for the 5K and $35 for the 10K. (The price for the Family Fun Run remains $15 per person.) The first 600 pre-registered runners are guaranteed t-shirts. All entries are nonrefundable. Runners can register at http://roadrace.westford.org/regform.html or can register the day of the event from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Abbot School. The Westford Road Race is held in memory of Cindie Davis Holub. For more information – about the courses, start times, numbers, and so on – go to http://roadrace.westford.org/ or contact Westford Charitable Foundation founder Lori Cogliano at lcogliano@lycos.com.