It is a tradition at Bigelow for 7th grade parents and guardians (6th grade parents are welcome as well) to chaperone the 8th grade year-end dance.

This year the dance will be on Thursday, June 22nd, from 7-10 in the Bigelow Cafeteria.

We have two shifts available (7-8:30 pm and 8:30-10 pm) and need four people per shift. If you are interested in volunteering please sign up here or email Magda Duchnowska at froggiemagda@hotmail.com.

We have a couple folks already signed up but need more!

Thank you.

Next week we will all gather to watch our 8th graders move on from Bigelow and on to high school, and later that evening, the students will gather for the 8th grade dance.

In order to make the day celebratory, we have planned the traditional refreshments after the ceremony, and also there will be refreshments and decorations for the dance.

In the hopes of simplifying this process among the 8th grade families, instead of asking many people to each purchase a small amount, this week the committee has done all of the purchasing of snacks and decorations to make the day festive and fun for the kids. Instead of bringing anything on Thursday, we hope you will consider making a donation for these efforts so that we may share the cost of these activities among the community.

We welcome gifts of all sizes, from $5 and up. Please click here to make a donation, and when you make your gift, please make a note it is for 8th grade graduation.

Also, in preparation for the dance we are soliciting volunteer-parents that can help at 10 pm on June 22th, after the dance has closed, with the clean-up of the Bigelow Gym. Main activities will include removing decorations and getting the Gym ready for regular daily activities (assume less than 1 hour of clean-up needed). Please forward your availability to lex.vanderploeg@gmail.com.

With many thanks for helping out! As always, our kids need us! So please sign up for this and/or other activities that will occur around graduation!

Thank you so much for considering a donation! If we don’t see you on Thursday, have a wonderful summer.

Best,

8th Grade Graduation Committee

ps – If you have any questions, please e-mail Jessica Gilmartin at  jessiekgilmartin@gmail.com.

There are at least 7 eyeglasses in the school office. Do you recognize any of them?

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, by William KamKwamba

Learn how fourteen year old William became the hero of his family and community through hard work and perseverance!

Summer Reading Assignment for all grades.

From the Newton Public Schools Global Education Programs

Newton’s Chinese exchange program is urgently in need of host famillies for three high-school aged Chinese exchange students and two adult Chinese exchange teachers this fall. Please help us out! Families of middle school students have hosted before with great success. Students are fifteen years old, have excellent English, and are excited to take part in American family life. They enroll in classes at Newton North or South for the duration of their hosting dates (September 2, 2017 to January 13, 2018). Prior host families have enjoyed the experience and said this is an amazing opportunity to learn about Chinese culture while sharing their own culture and traditions. Please note that federal law prohibits us from offering financial compensation to host families.

If interested, please email Global Programs Manager Samantha Mandel at samantha_mandel@newton.k12.ma.us for more information.

Thanks to everyone who came out to support the 8th Grade Car Wash and Bake Sale on Thursday! A lot of cars got washed and a lot of treats were eaten. Fun was had by all and we raised more than $600 for eighth grade activities and scholarships. Special thanks to all the eighth grade volunteers!

Many thanks to Marian McDonagh and Andrea Katsenes for organizing the car wash and the bake sale.

Thanks to parents who helped at the car wash and all those who baked and brought treats: Oc Manos, Laura DeDominicis, Magda Duchnowska, Sami O’Reilly, Mary Lee, Beth Panella, Sepideh Sahami, Yesenia Carias. Thank you!!

A warm thank you to all that contributed your time and delectable food to the Teacher Appreciation Tea this week. The teachers and staff at Bigelow enjoyed the wonderful spread. A special thank you to Stacy Schwartz and Magda Duchnowska for leading this effort for us!!

THANK YOU: Debbie Fredberg , Andrea Hemment, Gwo-Shu Mary Lee, Marian McDonagh, Joanne Simpson, Rachel Zoob, Beth Secinaro, Monika Sawicka, Laura DeDominicis, Sarah Lee, Frances Kervin, Joana Canedo, Lisa Camesano, Quan Lu, Emily Hsieh, Karen Manning, Judy Kelly, Elsa Tsao, Klee Miller, Denice Adrianza, Xujiang Wang, Judy Kelly, Gail Fitzgerald, Nooshin Ghazi and Jordana Alford.

Newton North High School uses the same online directory software that we use here at Bigelow (MySchoolAnywhere). We will be authorizing their account to automatically import graduating students from our account so that no student is overlooked. This would be a great time to log in and make sure your information and share settings are up to date. Just login to: https://www.myschoolanywhere.com/login.a5w

If you still have children at Bigelow next year, you will be able to select which school to view upon logging in. If your child is not moving on to Newton North, please be sure to let the Newton North administration know so they can have the PTO remove your child from the directory. Let us know if you have any other questions about this.

Newton North depends on the generosity of parent/guardian volunteers to help keep our community informed, connected, and strong. Can you help? Please consider the excellent opportunities below.

Questions? Please contact co-presidents@NorthPTSO.org.

Board positions

Co-president
Work with other PTSO co-president and committee chairs to run Newton North PTSO. Strong organizational, people, and technical skills needed. Previous PTO experience is a plus, but not required. Time commitment: 10-15 hours per week.

Programming co-chair
Work with current chair and with co-presidents to determine PTSO meeting content and arrange logistics. Attend PTSO board meetings (every six weeks during the school year). Time commitment: September to June, one hour every two weeks.

Grants and projects co-chair
Screen grant requests from teachers and staff and allocate funds for classroom enrichment. Attend PTSO board meetings (every six weeks during the school year). Time commitment: November through March, one hour per week.

Recording secretary
Take notes at PTSO board meetings and publish minutes. Attend PTSO board meetings (every six weeks during the school year).

Committees

Celebration co-chair
Help oversee the post-prom party for all seniors (June). Event planning and team leading skills helpful. Time commitment: February through early June, 3 hours per week.

Class liaison
Serve as liaison between NNHS and parents in each grade. Time commitment: September to June, one hour every two weeks.

Northside Dining Adventure co-chair
Run annual parent social event (November). Time commitment: September through mid-November, one hour per week.

Just Think: Teens Making Smart Choices co-chair
Help PTSO organize yearly Just Think: Teens Making Smart Choices prevention expo (January). Time commitment: November through January, two hours per week.

Newsletter editor
Help PTSO co-presidents arrange content for the weekly e-newsletter, Tiger News, and post stories on PTSO website.

Student-Faculty Administration
Attend weekly morning meetings with students, faculty, staff, and principal in a non-voting but advisory capacity to help determine school policies.

Webmaster
Help current webmaster with technical oversight of PTSO website. Knowledge of Drupal programming helpful but not required.

The online registration process for selecting fourth period electives and for choosing Fine & Applied Arts (FAA) courses for next year is open on the school website. The registration needs to be completed by Wednesday, June 14.

Students may choose electives or “T-Time” on days 1&4, 2&5, and 3&6.  Students not choosing an elective will be assigned to “T-Time.”

For the first time next year, an FAA drama course is being offered in grade 8, and students may indicate their preference for three FAA courses.

Please note: Special Education and ELL classes are in the process of being scheduled. Students enrolled in special education and ELL classes may not be able to take an elective or “T-Time” class during fourth period.

Please register here: 7th and 8th Grade Electives