The team in the WHS Kitchen Manager, Tess Seymour, and her team put on another amazing Turkey Dinner feast this past Thursday, November 21st. About 1,000 students, staff, family, and friends were served turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, stuffing, breads, cranberry sauce, milk, and cake for dessert. What a feast!
Our kitchen staff cooked and brought the delectables forth, and a cast of volunteers from the Laconia Police Department served up the dinners to order by our patrons. There was a nominal fee for the heaping tray of turkey dinner, to help defray the cost of the meal.
Although a bit congested at times, our service lines moved well and our dining area accommodated our guests easily. The schedule for serving and dining was well-designed by Tami Horan, our school's administrative assistant. Many other staff members were gracious hosts throughout the dining period, finding ways to pitch in and make things run smoothly, ensuring a great experience for all of our guests.
We hope that you had as much fun as we did during this special Woodland Heights traditional holiday feast. Thank you so much for joining us this year. You know how much your presence means to the kids -- a quality time that the children will never forget. Your support makes great things happen here at WHS, and we are all thankful for that. Woodland Heights continues to be a better school for your partnership and your contributions.
In other news .... The coming week will be a short one, with school in session on Monday and Tuesday, and closed on Wednesday through Friday for the Thanksgiving Holiday. All of your friends at WHS wish you and your family the very best for a relaxing and joyful holiday!
Saturday, November 23, 2013
Monday, November 11, 2013
WHS Reaches Out to Families -- Every Day, In Every Way.
Much like our school district mission, "Ensuring the success of every student, every day, in every way", members of your Woodland Heights School Team do their very best to connect with every family, every day, in every way.
In addition to our school website, class wikis, and Principal Blog; AlertNow automated telephone/email notifications; school email, phone calls, and ongoing parent meeting/conference opportunities; regular newsletters, and newsnotes; events, activities, and presentations; and in addition to our published monthly school calendar/menu document, and our electronic calendar published to our school website, we are now offering weekly podcasts (audio-recorded programs) to help families stay on top of our school calendar and activities.
We have great hopes for this weekly podcast in the future (to feature guest presenters, student work, interviews, musical preformances, etc.), but for now, it serves as a weekly overview of school activities with some commentary by the school principal.
When you get a chance, check it out!
In addition to our school website, class wikis, and Principal Blog; AlertNow automated telephone/email notifications; school email, phone calls, and ongoing parent meeting/conference opportunities; regular newsletters, and newsnotes; events, activities, and presentations; and in addition to our published monthly school calendar/menu document, and our electronic calendar published to our school website, we are now offering weekly podcasts (audio-recorded programs) to help families stay on top of our school calendar and activities.
We have great hopes for this weekly podcast in the future (to feature guest presenters, student work, interviews, musical preformances, etc.), but for now, it serves as a weekly overview of school activities with some commentary by the school principal.
When you get a chance, check it out!
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Another Strong Week at WHS Capped by Fall Parent Conference Day
Over the past week a number of important school activities were enjoyed at Woodland Heights.
Our week began with our Greater Laconia community coming together to enjoy a wellness event coordinated by our elementary school physical education teachers (with the help of many community-oriented health advocates). Our first 'Rockin' Fun Run' was held on Saturday, November 2nd, on the campus of Woodland Heights School. Students, parents, teachers, and other community members participated in this 2-mile event that was highlighted by awards, gifts, live music, a DJ, free T-shirts, a visit by WHiSkers (our school Mascot), and healthy refreshments provided by our school lunch service. Special thanks go to our WHS PE Teacher, Mitzi Tucker for providing the energy and leadership necessary to make this wonderful event happen! Here is a video produced by our dear friend, Janet Brough, to commemorate the day. Enjoy!
On Tuesday, we held a students and staff flu clinic in our school health office (thank you, Mrs. Ganchi) -- this was a nice follow up to our dental education and dental clinic held last week (and also coordinated by our School Nurse). That evening, Mrs. Kelley and I had the pleasure of updating our Laconia School Board on our school's comprehensive community engagement program (see blog post below). The presentation was well received, and reflected the proactive nature of our work to bring students, staff, and families together here at WHS.
We sent Quarter #1 progress reports home on Wednesday, and know that teachers put a great deal of effort into completing those reports so that they accurately and completely provided a picture of student progress over the first ten weeks of school. The progress reports indicated levels of individual student growth toward attainment of our curriculum standards, information on attendance rates, goals for future student learning, and general statements on student performance. we are grateful for the amount of effort and quality of work our teachers invest in this important process.
On Thursday, we held parent conferences beginning at 1:00pm., and many not ending until 8:00pm. These conferences were very well-attended by our parents, and provided great opportunities for important conversation about student progress and academic goal-setting. We thank our WHS-PTO for providing dinner for our staff, most of whom met with parents non-stop through the afternoon and evening and would not have had an opportunity to enjoy dinner otherwise (the homemade casseroles, salads, soups, and desserts were fantastic!). Representatives from local agencies and youth sports programs were in attendance to meet with families and share opportunities for participation and engagement. Also on Thursday evening, we offered a clothing drive, bake sale (to benefit our 5th Grade class), Fall Book Fair evening hours, and and ongoing rotation of special presentations by the Lakes Region Family Resource Center in support of developing strong families in our school community (see blog post below for more information). This evening was definitely a highlight of our school year so far. Many thanks to everyone for their contributions!
On Friday, our Grade 1 and 2 students were awarded spirit bands for their strong academic and social skills growth over the first marking term of this school year. [Grades K & 5 received spirit bands very early in the school year for the exemplary models they set for being a 'Wildcat' at WHS, and Grades 3 & 4 received their bands in mid-October for the hard work they invested in completing a rigorous course of fall assessments this year.]
Get set, WHS, another GREAT week starts on Tuesday!!
Our week began with our Greater Laconia community coming together to enjoy a wellness event coordinated by our elementary school physical education teachers (with the help of many community-oriented health advocates). Our first 'Rockin' Fun Run' was held on Saturday, November 2nd, on the campus of Woodland Heights School. Students, parents, teachers, and other community members participated in this 2-mile event that was highlighted by awards, gifts, live music, a DJ, free T-shirts, a visit by WHiSkers (our school Mascot), and healthy refreshments provided by our school lunch service. Special thanks go to our WHS PE Teacher, Mitzi Tucker for providing the energy and leadership necessary to make this wonderful event happen! Here is a video produced by our dear friend, Janet Brough, to commemorate the day. Enjoy!
On Tuesday, we held a students and staff flu clinic in our school health office (thank you, Mrs. Ganchi) -- this was a nice follow up to our dental education and dental clinic held last week (and also coordinated by our School Nurse). That evening, Mrs. Kelley and I had the pleasure of updating our Laconia School Board on our school's comprehensive community engagement program (see blog post below). The presentation was well received, and reflected the proactive nature of our work to bring students, staff, and families together here at WHS.
We sent Quarter #1 progress reports home on Wednesday, and know that teachers put a great deal of effort into completing those reports so that they accurately and completely provided a picture of student progress over the first ten weeks of school. The progress reports indicated levels of individual student growth toward attainment of our curriculum standards, information on attendance rates, goals for future student learning, and general statements on student performance. we are grateful for the amount of effort and quality of work our teachers invest in this important process.
On Thursday, we held parent conferences beginning at 1:00pm., and many not ending until 8:00pm. These conferences were very well-attended by our parents, and provided great opportunities for important conversation about student progress and academic goal-setting. We thank our WHS-PTO for providing dinner for our staff, most of whom met with parents non-stop through the afternoon and evening and would not have had an opportunity to enjoy dinner otherwise (the homemade casseroles, salads, soups, and desserts were fantastic!). Representatives from local agencies and youth sports programs were in attendance to meet with families and share opportunities for participation and engagement. Also on Thursday evening, we offered a clothing drive, bake sale (to benefit our 5th Grade class), Fall Book Fair evening hours, and and ongoing rotation of special presentations by the Lakes Region Family Resource Center in support of developing strong families in our school community (see blog post below for more information). This evening was definitely a highlight of our school year so far. Many thanks to everyone for their contributions!
On Friday, our Grade 1 and 2 students were awarded spirit bands for their strong academic and social skills growth over the first marking term of this school year. [Grades K & 5 received spirit bands very early in the school year for the exemplary models they set for being a 'Wildcat' at WHS, and Grades 3 & 4 received their bands in mid-October for the hard work they invested in completing a rigorous course of fall assessments this year.]
Get set, WHS, another GREAT week starts on Tuesday!!
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Laconia School Board Presentation: WHS Community Engagement Program
Earlier this evening, the WHS administrative team had the opportunity to present information to the Laconia School Board about our school's Community Engagement Program.
Our efforts in this area have been integral to our work for quite a while, but now parent partnerships have additional emphasis due to our current work on Project Wildcat: Phase 3.
Some information on this topic is presented in this 'Prezi'.
If you have questions or suggestions to help strengthen our work in this area (or any other), please contact us in the WHS Main Office at 603-524-8733.
Thank you!
Our efforts in this area have been integral to our work for quite a while, but now parent partnerships have additional emphasis due to our current work on Project Wildcat: Phase 3.
Some information on this topic is presented in this 'Prezi'.
If you have questions or suggestions to help strengthen our work in this area (or any other), please contact us in the WHS Main Office at 603-524-8733.
Thank you!
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