April 1, 2018 


Greetings Quashnet School Community, 


MCAS is HERE!  Tuesday, April 3, and Wednesday,  April 4, all students will be participating in MCAS testing.  Grade 3 will be tested in Reading and Grades 4-6 will be tested in English Language Arts. The following are ways to help prepare your child for testing-

1.  Go to bed early the day before testing to get a good night sleep. 
2.  Have a healthy breakfast with protein for energy. 
3. Share with your child that the expectations are to try their best - effort does make a difference!
4. Read each question thoroughly and answer every question asked fully. 
5. MCAS is a time to "show off" everything you know! 
6. Be to school ON TIME - once testing begins, a student will not be able to enter the classroom per Dept. of Education regulations.  

Teachers teach strategies to students as academic skills. They teach students how to organize their thoughts to write a cohesive response to reading or when writing a narrative. It is these taught strategies that students should use during testing.  The Next Generation MCAS, aka MCAS 2.0, is an untimed test.  Students should take their time to read directions carefully, organize their thoughts, and use scratch paper to help plan their writing. A combine effort from home and school reinforcing to students to take their time, is a fabulous message.  Thank you for your support! Please note, for those families new to MCAS - results of the testing will be sent to families in the fall.   

Congratulations to Hayden Shvonski! Hayden was recognized yesterday for winning First Place for Grades 4-6  sports writing in the Cape Cod Times' annual Classroom Times student contest. Hayden is a fourth grader in Mrs. McKay's homeroom. Way to go Hayden - we are so proud of you! 

Beijing here we come! Mrs. Avtges and I will be heading to Beijing over April vacation. We will be joining a group of Cape Cod administrators from districts who have hosted exchange students from China.  We are looking forward to visiting our two sister schools in Beijing and hopefully seeing some of the exchange students who visited Quashnet School last winter. The purpose of the trip is not only have a deeper understanding of the Chinese culture, but also to explore the potential option of expanding our exchange opportunities. We hope to be tweeting from the schools, the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, and other cultural sites.  


Fundraising and helping others is a big part of the Quashnet Community.  I am happy to share these updates -

From K-Kids: Pennies for Patients total for Leukemia and Lymphoma Society:  $2828.79 

Thank you to the very generous Quashnet Community!  

National Honor Society: 
A check was presented this week to the Massachusetts Special Olympics for $850.  This was from donations collected at the Family Skate event. Thank you! 

Our new initiative is to help one of our own. A Quashnet family is going through a challenging time. Their young son is undergoing a stem cell transplant in Boston. His sister is in third grade here at Quashnet and he has a brother with additional medical needs at MMHS.  With all medical treatments in Boston, the child will be there for at least 8 weeks, and then there will be multiple follow-up visits to Children's. Through a generous donation of a beautiful Specialized bike and a helmet we are selling chance tickets for any donation.  If you are in school, stop by the office and check it out. We appreciate your support and help for this Falcon family. We will draw a winner for the bike on May 1, 2018. 

Buckle up Quashnet - construction is just around the corner. We should see the contractor beginning to mobilize equipment starting the week of April 9th. We ask for everyone's patience and understanding as we enter into the first phase of construction. Four third grade classrooms will be relocating in the building for approximately a 2-3 week period while windows are installed for this 1st phase.  The move will take place on April 13 for Mrs. Arsenault, Mrs. Fullam, Mrs. Porter, and Mrs. Schreiner's students. Please note - there will be NO construction during testing. This Wednesday during School Committee, I will be sharing the general scope of the project.  Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns now or during each phase of construction. Safety is ALWAYS my biggest concern for students and staff and I appreciate hearing any concerns or input you may have. 

Happy Easter! 

 Have a wonderful week ahead! 

Respectfully, 

Mrs. O'Brien

PS  Don't forget the PTO family movie night this Friday in the Quashnet Cafe. Movie begins @6:00PM.