What’s Happening at the Y

West Suburban YMCA’s Super Bowl Raffle! The West Suburban YMCA raffled off a Super Bowl trip package, and Newton resident Assunta (Sue) Calcagni was selected as the winner! Sue received 2 tickets to Super Bowl LIII along with airfare, lodging and ground transportation provided by New England Sports Tours. The raffle netted over $20,000 for the Y’s annual fund, which provides financial assistance for programs, services and scholarships at the Y.

Try the Y: Fridays in February are free! Present a valid ID at the welcome desk and use the facilities for the day.

Early Spring Program Registration: Registration is open for early spring session programs. Early spring session runs February 25th – April 14th. Sign up for swim lessons, youth basketball, floor hockey, fitness classes, kids yoga, tai chi, tumbling, music lessons and more.

Pickle Ball – Tuesdays & Thursdays: The West Suburban YMCA hosts drop-in pickle ball on both Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:30 – 11:30 am in the gymnasium. Pickle ball is free for West Suburban YMCA members and $5.00 drop-in fee for non-members.

Guided Meditation: Take a moment out of your day for this short, guided meditation that will leave you feeling relaxed, grounded and rejuvenated. Free for West Suburban YMCA members. Led by Jenni Plym in Studio A. February 9th, 9:00 – 9:30 am

Lifeguard Training and Certification Course:Become an American Red Cross certified lifeguard this February. Learn the practical skills necessary to recognize a critical situation and provide lifesaving care to individuals in the water. CPR/AED for the Professional Rescuer and First Aid certifications are included in the course.

Weekend course: February 9th, 16th, 17th and 23rd, 11:00 am – 7:00 pm each day.
School vacation week course: February 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm each day. Students must be present for ALL days of their chosen course. Visit wsymca.org to register or call 617-244-6050.

Family Fun Night: Bring the whole family to the Y for some family fun time. Featuring arts & crafts, bouncy house, games and more! FREE and open to all. Family Fun Nights are generously sponsored by the Belmont Savings Bank Foundation and occur on the second Tuesday of every month. February 12th, 6:00 – 7:00 pm

February Vacation Programs: Do your kids need something to do while they are off from school for February vacation? The West Suburban YMCA is offering full day and half day program options February 19th – February 22nd. Call 617-244-6050 for more information or visit www.wsymca.org.

Spring YBA (Youth Basketball Association) League: Registration is open for the Y’s spring YBA league which runs March 2nd – April 14th. YBA is a fun league for boys and girls ages 4-12 to learn and play basketball. The league is separated into four age groups: Mini (ages 4-5), Biddy (ages 6-7), Rookie (ages 8-9) and Collegiate (ages 10-12). All leagues are co-ed, and volunteer coaches are encouraged. For more information and to register visit www.wsymca.org or call 617-244-6050.

Summer Camp Registration is Open! The West Suburban YMCA offers three summer camps: Camp Pikati at the Y, Camp Chickami in Wayland, MA and Camp Frank A. Day in East Brookfield, MA. Each camp offers children a unique and engaging summer experience. Attend one of the Y’s upcoming camp info sessions to learn more about summer camp.

Upcoming Camp Info Sessions at the Y:

February 6th, 9:00 – 11:00 am
February 11th, 3:00 – 5:00 pm
February 20th, 11:00 am – 2:00 pm
March 2nd, 2:00 – 4:00 pm

Work at the Y: The West Suburban YMCA is hiring for a variety of full-time and part-time positions. Great benefits, FREE membership and professional development opportunities. Please contact Laura Snow at lauras@wsymca.org or visit wsymca.org/careers.

All Newton Music School Music and Theater Summer Camp

Do you know… that All Newton Music School has a Music and Theater Summer Camp?

Music Explorers Summer Camp is a performing arts summer camp for children from 5 to 9 years old. They offer courses in theater, dance, music, and visual arts. Younger campers have more guidance and supervision, while older campers are able to take on some responsibility and have a chance to dive deeper into music study and take on more significant roles in the musical theater performance.

During theater class, campers will rehearse the songs, acting, and choreography of a musical where they will learn to let their star shine at the Festival Evening performances!

You may register your child for individual sessions or sign up for both!

Session one: $500.00
July 1st – July 12th (camp closed on July 4th), 8:45 am – 3:00 pm
Musical: Singin’ in the Rain, Jr.

Session two: $550.00
July 15th – July 26th, 8:45 am – 3:00 pm
Musical: Getting to Know: Oklahoma!

Learn more and Online Registration: allnewton.org/summer-camp. For other questions, please email or call the Registrar at naomi@allnewton.org or 617-527-4553.

Congratulations to Bigelow Geography Bee champion

Congratulations to Bigelow Geography Bee champion Kiran and to all the students who participated in the competition on 01/29/2019! A special thank you to Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller for moderating this year’s Bee.

“I had a terrific time moderating the Bigelow Middle School’s annual Geography Bee along with Principal Todd Harrison on Tuesday morning. The school band played “We are the Champions” as the finalists walked-in. Take a look.”

New England Camp Fair – Sunday 2/10


The New England Camp Fair will hold its 4th annual event on Sunday, February 10, 2019 at Underwood  School from 11:30am – 2:30pm. Sponsored by the Underwood PTO, the Camp Fair is FREE and open to the public, and brings together camps serving kids ages 5-14.

Bring your camper(s) and engage with staff from 20+ premier day and sleepaway camps from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and Connecticut. Participating camps run the gamut, including traditional day and overnight camps, sports camps, theater camps, computer camps, fencing camps, arts camps, as well as many other themed camps. 

Visit www.newenglandcampfair.org for a complete list of camps attending.

Parking and refreshments are also free! If you have any questions, feel free contacting the Underwood PTO at underwoodpto@gmail.com. 

Teen Summer Expo

The Teen Summer Expo is FREE and open to everyone!

Meet personally with the directors of a wide variety of enriching summer programs for high school and middle school students. Programs for every budget and every interest including academic enrichment, adventure travel, teen tours, teen camps, community service, internships, intensive sport instruction, language immersion, arts, theatre, music, college prep, STEM and gap year programs.

The Expo lets you efficiently cut through the overwhelming amount of information online and make informed decisions about programming, costs, safety, camp and supervision.

For more information visit www.teensummerexpos/newton-south

January 28th, 5:30 – 8:00 pm
Newton South High School Cafeteria

PRE-REGISTER to receive a list of exhibiting programs.

Mason-Rice PTO online auction

The Mason-Rice Elementary School PTO’s annual online auction is now live and runs until January 28th!

Go to www.biddingforgood.com/masonrice. The auction has something for everyone…discounts on all of the popular kids’ summer camps, classes for kids, fitness classes and health club memberships, vacation rentals, tickets to games, museum passes, theater tickets, gift cards to local salons, spas, stores, restaurants…and SO MUCH MORE!

Ward PTO online auction

Please visit the Ward Elementary School PTO Auction and get ready to be wow’ed by:

  • Fantastic Sports Tickets and Memorabilia
  • Luxurious Gold Outings
  • Relaxing Beauty and Spa Services
  • Exciting adventures and hotel stays
  • Stimulating lessons and activities for kids including many camps
  • Gift cards to all your favorite restaurants
  • and much more!!

Bidding is open January 24th – 31st
BID Here EARLY AND OFTEN!

Future Chefs Challenge

Once again, the Newton Public Schools food service partner Sodexo, is hosting the Future Chefs culinary competition! This year, the theme is Mexican. Just fill out the entry form with your favorite Mexican recipe. One winner from each school will be chosen to participate in a cooking contest at Newton North High School on March 26th. We can’t wait to see your creative recipes and taste those amazing dishes!

Entries are due February 8th. Forms can be picked up in the main office or the cafeteria at each elementary school and then returned to either location by the deadline. For more information, please visit the NPS website.

Executive Function Skills in Children and Adolescents

Teach children to manage their time, space and materials and keep their emotions in check!

This presentation will cover powerful strategies to help your child develop independent executive function; teach students to internally sense the sweep of time, self-monitor in order to sustain concentration, manage pace, and complete tasks in allocated time frames; improve students’ motivation and task initiation, help them to plan homework and long-term projects/papers, and coach students to think in an organized way; and encourage self-initiative to manage homework and personal belongings.

Ms. Kristen Jacobsen, MS CCC-SLP is a trained speech-language pathologist who is Co-Director at the Cognitive Connections Executive Function Practice. She is currently working with Newton Public Schools to develop an Executive Function program for middle school students. She provides training and coaching for teachers and professionals, parent consultations, as well as student coaching services. Ms. Jacobsen has worked as an educational consultant and speech-language pathologist in public education, private schools and hospital settings, and has provided teacher training seminars and school consultations nationally.

Sponsored by Newton SEPAC and Newton Public Schools

February 13th, 7:30 – 9:00 pm
Newton North High School Auditorium
457 Walnut Street, Newton