Thanks to Kimberly Grover for sharing this wonderful “Together” image : )
April 30, 2021
Dear HMS Families,
We are continuing our planning to welcome the majority of HMS students back to the building on Monday, May 3. We could not think of a more perfect image to depict this transition than student voices raised together in song (masked of course!) - a lovely sound that has been missing from our school for far too long! We are excited to hear that sound again next week, along with the music created by our students playing instruments together.
Our students' health and safety is a priority for everyone at HMS. Much will feel familiar to your children as we transition from the hybrid model. They can look forward to seeing peers they haven’t been in school with since last spring and enjoying learning experiences that include full class participation. The HMS staff is working hard on shifting the instructional strategies they have been using during the hybrid model to those that will work best when the majority of students access in-person learning.
Please take time to review the following information with your children, which will support us with this goal:
- The school day will begin and end at the same time that it does now.
- Students must remain at least 3 feet apart when masks are on. Staff will focus on continued vigilance around distancing protocols from the time students arrive at school through the end of the day. Staff will be available to support students with this as they enter and exit the building and move through the hallways.
- Students may not gather in large, mixed groups before school, after school, at recess, or any other times during the day as it will make contact tracing impossible.
- Students who want to eat breakfast will enter the building and go directly to the cafe. Students who do not want to eat breakfast will go directly to their classrooms.
- Students must remain at least 6 feet apart when masks are off for eating/drinking. This is not a change from our current practice. In order to make this work some students in each class will eat in the cafeteria while others continue to eat lunch in the classrooms. Your child(ren)’s teachers will review this information with them and fill them in on where they will eat lunch.
- In order to support social distancing throughout the day, we will be working with students to walk single file and on the right as we move throughout the building.
- Students will continue to wear masks during recess and Physical Education classes.
- We will dismiss students using the same process that we currently use. Students will be dismissed by grade level and groups within those grade levels: students who ride the bus, students who walk, students who bike/board, and students who are getting a ride home from a parent/guardian. Please wait for your child to be dismissed and meet you at the car instead of asking her/him/them to walk up and meet you in the upper lot before they are officially dismissed.
We know that you are with us in this effort and that we can make this work for our students, 
Thanks very much,
Joan Adler and Tom McDowell
HMS Administrative Team
_________________________________________________________________________
We hope you enjoy these recent adventures in learning:
7th Grade Science Teachers and Students are awarded a YEF Grant
YEF is happy to bring working artist and climate scientist Jill Pelto to Harrison Middle School. She believes communicating about climate change is vital in helping more people understand how the world and their own community will look in the future. Pelto spent years studying glaciers in Antarctica and the northwestern United States. From there, she developed an innovative classroom curriculum that combines artwork with scientific data. Her lessons integrate art, science, language arts, and math - offering something for every kind of learner. Jill Pelto inspired learners at Yarmouth Elementary School in the Covid Spring of 2020, and this latest grant will now impact every 7th grade student at HMS. We are grateful to YEF for this opportunity and to Michelle Raber, Morgan Cuthbert, Janice Medenica, and Tate Gale (pictured left to right) for their work on this grant. Congratulations to all!
Charlotte Agell receives the Lupine Honor
Charlotte Agell, one of our Gifted and Talented teachers, received her 2019 Lupine Honor for Maybe Tomorrow? after a year's delay! This book is a beautiful must read in case you haven't yet ; )! Congratulations, Charlotte!
KaBAAM! A shout out to the HMS students and staff who participated in this year’s KaBaam, which was an amazing celebration of all things POETRY! The KaBaam included readings by phenomenally talented HMS alumni Lulu Rasor and Amanda Dettman - both recently on the front page of the Arts section of the Maine Sunday Telegram! Charlotte Agell and 8th grade teacher Ira Warshaw also performed together, which was a delight to witness! Thank you, Charlotte, for keeping this wonderful tradition alive and well at HMS!