Sunday, February 10, 2019





February 10, 2019 


Dear Quashnet School Community, 



GREAT NEWS - 
The Falcon Cup is back where it belongs - Quashnet School


What a game!  Quashnet took the first half, second half, and the spirit competition.  Well done!  Be sure to check out the game pictures on the photo tab above.  Thank you, Heather Lakatos and the PTO, for organizing this great family event.  Our emcee this year, Robert Blackburn, did an amazing job and our ref, John Lopes, made all the right calls. The Quashnet band was just awesome! Thank you to all the players and families who attended to make this such a fun event. The KCC team is challenging and played hard.  Wonderful sportsmanship was displayed by all - thanks for a fun Falcon friendly night!  

Nurse Kristin has been spreading the word to stop spreading the germs!  Please encourage your children to wash their hands frequently with soap and water. We are disinfecting classrooms and common surfaces, but the more we wash our hands, the more likely we will stay healthy. There is soap in all of the school bathrooms as well as in classrooms with sinks. Hand sanitizer dispensers are in the lunchroom. Thank you for helping to promote healthy practices by reminding your children to wash their hands and cover their mouth when coughing.  Stay healthy to stay in school! 




February is Black History Month 

"FUNK & SOUL" is a Black History Month Celebration by the Zion Union Heritage Museum that will be presented at the Cotuit Center for the Arts. 

The program is a benefit for the Zion Union Heritage Museum, which was founded in part by the Community Preservation Act and the Lyndon Paul Lorusso Foundation in partnership with the Town of Barnstable. The Museum will be recognized not only as a historical landmark in the Commonwealth but a national historic landmark as well. 

This will be a fabulous night of music and entertainment with Mashpee's own GroovaLottos!  

Attendance Matters! 
What does it mean to be chronically absent from school?  The Department of Education is monitoring districts based on the percentage of students that are determined to be chronically absent. This information will be factored into a school's accountability rating from the state. 

The definition of a chronically absent student is an individual that has been absent for 10% or more of the days enrolled in a particular school.  At this point in the year, that would mean students who have been absent 10 days or more are considered "Chronically Absent."  For the entire school year, it would equal 18 days.  Currently, Quashnet School has 15% of the student population that is considered Chronically Absent.  Absent is just that - being out of school, regardless of the reason. FYI - doctors' and dentists' notes do not excuse an absence. 

School attendance is critically important for student academic success, developing perseverance and grit, it is tied to high school graduation rates and completing a four-year college degree. During these elementary foundational years, students who are not in school have gaps in learning that get harder to harder to close. When students are habitually tardy to school or dismissed early they are missing the same instruction regularly, also creating gaps in learning.  

Due to viruses and the flu, we all have to be out of school at times, but important learning is occurring every day in school and every effort should be made to be in class and on time! Thank you for your attention to attendance. Family vacations should be limit to school vacation weeks and of course over the summer. If you are interested in reading more about the impact of absenteeism click this link: https://www.attendanceworks.org/absences-add-up/.  School attendance truly matters! 

This Friday, Grade 5 will be participating in the WetFest.  This is an annual event at Quashnet School and it is brought to us through the Cape Cod Groundwater Guardian Team of the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension and AmeriCorps volunteers. Students will learn how to protect Cape Cod's precious and fragile groundwater resource through a variety of hands-on experiments and interactive stations.  This is definitely a fifth-grade favorite! 



Social Emotional Learning -SEL 

Mashpee Schools staff training key ideas 
  • Kids do well if they can 
  • It is skill, not will  
  • Teach the skill that students need to be successful (academically, socially, emotionally, & behaviorally)

(From Think Kids  - Collaborative Problem-Solving)


February Vacation is the week of February 18 - 22.  It is a great time for students to log time on the Six Flags reading incentive.  Remember the resources at Mashpee Library - many museum tickets are available as well as great books.  Check out the resources - http://www.eventkeeper.com/mars/tkflex.cfm.  Last week at the Fine Arts Museum in Boston, tickets were free with any account from Bank of America.  It is a great day and is appealing to all ages - check it out if you have time off and you are looking to get over the bridge! There are a lot of opportunities out there.  



Mark your calendar for THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28th for the Quashnet School STEAM Night from 6:00-7:30 PM. This is a family-friendly interactive evening of learning.  Looking forward to seeing you there! 


Wishing you a productive week ahead and a safe relaxing vacation week. 
Next blog post will be on Sunday, February 24, 2019.

Respectfully, 
Mrs. O'Brien, Principal 







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