The CMS Tide Weekly Newsletter

On Friday, under sunny autumn skies, grade 6 students attended a Garden Party in the CMS courtyard. The CMS Garden Club wanted to share their first harvest of turnips with students, administration and teachers, the Food Department, and the Cohasset Education Foundation whose generosity made the garden possible. Principal Mills welcomed the students and reminded them that "This garden was planted for you--it is your garden to enjoy and to work, and to enjoy in the cafeteria the food grown here". Food Director Vinicio Cordon added "This allows [students] to see where food comes from and better understand the relationship between the environment and where nutritious food comes from."

Students were able to wander the beds to see the other crops that will soon find their way from "farm-to-cafeteria-table". Ms. Yindra, 6th grade science teacher and Garden Club advisor reminded students that "[T]here is a lot of work to keeping a successful garden but it is fun when done together" and encouraged students to join the Garden Club.

Lastly, the CEF President Meaghan Barry and VP Ruth Steele congratulated CMS for using their grant to create the garden and accepted many thanks and much applause from all for their generosity and support.

The highlight of the party was when Zack Herman (Holly Hill Farm Education Dept), the CMS Garden Club, and CEF leaders picked the turnips simultaneously to loud applause. Chef Cordon will serve the turnips in a delicious and creative way next week in the cafeteria. (Our mouths are watering imagining it!)

Amy Dow of South Shore Technical High School in Hanover visited our eighth-grade students this Wednesday to speak to them about the possibilities that can come from going to a vocational school for high school. She did a wonderful job describing the differences between regular public high school and vocational high school and the opportunities offered by vo-tech schools. She described programs like Allied Health, which can open doors to careers like nursing and phlebotomy; Culinary Arts, which provides stepping stones for food and hospitality careers; and many more. She also emphasized to students that SSTHS is a perfect place for students who would rather pursue a direct career without college attendance, but that it also provides excellent preparation for a college education as well as real-world, hands-on experiences. SSTHS services nine districts in the South Shore community, including Cohasset!

If your child is interested in learning more about SSTHS, they are holding an open house this Saturday, 10/19, from 10 am to 1 pm. Please register to attend, and see more information at this link: https://southshore.tech/open-house-10-19-2024/

MCAS results for your child will be available beginning on October 18 for your review. The letter below, which is being emailed to you from Dr. Scollins, Assistant Superintendent, explains the process to access your student's individual MCAS report.

Did you know that CHS’s National Honor Society hosts a homework center today for our students? Check it out with your friends to get your work done and have access to help in case you need it by going to the Pratt Library. The HW Center is located at the Paul Pratt Library from 3:30-5 on Tuesdays and 6:30-8 on Thursdays.

For Immediate Release: October 10, 2024

For Information Please Contact: Aydin Tiryaki,

cohassetyouthambassadors@gmail.com

Safe Harbor Youth Ambassadors Pumpkin Decorating Contest

Happy Halloween, Cohasset! Safe Harbor would like to invite you to participate in our third annual Pumpkin Decorating Contest. Participants will receive a pumpkin and decorate it however they want, competing for a gift card prize and celebrating our community. All participants will also get a goodie bag when they drop off their pumpkins. The pumpkins will be displayed at local businesses throughout Cohasset Village during a judging period, and all Cohasset residents are invited to participate in the voting. We ask that you only submit one pumpkin per person. Pumpkins should be decorated, not carved, to make the process more sanitary.

You can register to take part in this event at

Pumpkin Contest 2024 – Safe Harbor Cohasset Coalition and it is free to all Cohasset residents!

Important Dates:

October 2: Registration opens!

October 14-15: Free pumpkin pick-up at Wheelwright Park from 10 AM to 7 PM with the voucher you receive at registration.

October 23: Last day to register! If you do not register before the 15th, you will be unable to receive a free pumpkin from the ASP pumpkin patch, but you may provide your own.

October 24: Drop off the pumpkins at Cohasset Recreation between 3 and 5 PM.

October 25-29: Pumpkin judging downtown. October 31: Winners are announced!

October 31-November 1: Participants must pick up their pumpkins from businesses.

This year, the Cohasset Youth Ambassadors are excited to host this contest with the goal of preventing under-age drinking and drug use on Halloween and promoting safer alternative activities to celebrating the holidays. Events like the pumpkin decorating contest enhance community connectivity, helping to create a safe environment for those struggling with addiction or looking for better alternatives.

Safe Harbor would like to thank the participating businesses in Cohasset Village and Appalachia Service Project for their generous contributions throughout the event. Without their assistance, this project would not have been possible. We hope to see your creation on display. Have a happy and safe Halloween!

Just a reminder that the school follows the state recommendations for preventing the spread of respiratory viruses, as stated on our website.

Per the recommendations:

• Stay home when you have symptoms of any respiratory illness like flu or COVID-19
  
• You may begin to resume normal activities with precautions if:
  

1. You have not had a fever for at least 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medicines; AND

2. Your other symptoms are improving

For more information, please refer to the mass.gov website at the following link:

https://www.mass.gov/info-details/staying-home-to-prevent-the-spread-of-respiratory-viruses

Please contact me with any questions.

Thank you,

Nurse Erin

Erin Kalberer, APRN

Cohasset Middle School Nurse

143 Pond St, Cohasset, MA 02025
Phone: (781) 236-1070

Fax: (781) 236-1040

Ekalberer@cohassetk12.org

Massachusetts General Law Chapter 76 requires that each school notify parents and guardians if their student has five (5) or more unexcused school absences. Parents and guardians will receive a letter when their child has 5, 10, and/or 15+ days of unexcused absences. The letter will also include the number of unexcused tardies and unexcused early dismissals.

For the purposes of school attendance records, a student must arrive at school before 11:35 am to be considered "present." A student who begins the school day at 8:15 a.m. must remain in school at least until 11:35 am in order to be considered "present." Refer to MGL Chapter 72, section 8: "A pupil who is not present during at least half of a session shall be marked and counted as absent for that session.."

Absences will be excused under the following circumstances:

• After a medical appointment documented with a note from the medical office

• Illness or quarantine with a note from the appropriate medical office

• Observance of a religious holiday

• Bereavement or serious illness in family

• Court appearance

• A child may also be excused for other exceptional reasons with approval of the Principal or designee in accordance with the school committee policy and the regulations set in Chapter 76

Daily attendance is essential to a student's success. Missing a significant number of days of school has a detrimental effect on academic and social development. Therefore, each school will work with individual families to support student attendance.

Safe Harbor Cohasset Coalition is excited to reintroduce the “Our Safe Home” campaign to address the issues of youth access to alcohol in the community. This effort involves parents, guardians, merchants, and youth themselves. Parents pledge their commitment to joining other parents in providing a fun, safe, and substance-free environment for our children. Merchants pledge to comply by following the law and regulations, to not sell alcohol to young people under 21 years old. Youth are increasing awareness of the issue by talking to adults in their community.

We recognize that we cannot supervise our teens 24/7, nor can we always control the choices they make. However, we will do our part to discourage underage drinking and we will do our best to help each other support and monitor our teens.

You can join us in our efforts to create a safe space for youth in Cohasset by joining the Our Safe Home Directory at our website, www.safeharborcohasset.org/oursafehome. You do not have to have school age kids to participate, it’s simply a message of support. This is not a pledge for adults to not have alcohol in the home- it is a pledge to not provide to minors. You don’t have to share more than your name if you don’t want to, to participate. Please email safeharborcohasset@gmail.com with any questions.

Check out this video to learn more: https://videopress.com/v/rhvBG5Mp