Blue Knight Highlights

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Congratulations to Sandwich Middle High School junior Breanna Prindle for her outstanding Poetry Out Loud performance last Sunday at the State Finals at the Old South Meeting House in Boston. Breanna placed in the top five of the 17 state-wide finalists, as she was the finalist representative from Cape Cod. She recited three poems: When You Are Old by William Butler Yeats, What to Say Upon Being Asked to Be Friends by Julian Talamantez Brolaski, and Candles by Carl Dennis.

The Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Contest is managed nationally by the National Endowment for the Arts (the nation’s largest annual funder of the arts) and The Poetry Foundation (the nation’s largest literary organization). POL is in its twentieth year taking place in high schools in all 50 states in the nation, as well as America Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, and Washington DC. Breanna's accomplishment is remarkable, considering that over 17,400 students from 65 different high schools across Massachusetts competed this year, the 20th year of the contest in our state!

This week at Oak Ridge, the 6th-grade science teachers and science instructional coach Christine Skirvan set up microscope stations in the library. Throughout the week classes rotated through to explore cells and practiced using the microscopes. Students explored basic plant and animal cells and learned to use microscopes through hands-on station activities, including the proper preparation of a microscope slide. The students gave overwhelmingly positive feedback about how much they enjoyed the experience—they were excited, engaged, and eager to continue their learning back in their classrooms!

Last Thursday, March 20 the Forestdale English language arts and mathematics general intervention team held a breakfast for families of students who currently receive or have received general education services. They highlighted that general education intervention is a way that students who may have a learning gap can receive services (generally 4-6 weeks) to fill that learning gap. These services are generally performed in the classroom in small groups of no more than 4-5 students. Thursday's breakfast was a relaxed event where families could meet the intervention staff and participate, with their student, in some of the unique strategies and games used to support students. Many thanks to the Forestdale team for putting on this event!

Allergy season is here, and for many students, that means sniffles, sneezes, and itchy eyes making school days a little tougher. If your child seems extra tired or distracted, it might not be the homework—it could be the pollen! Stay prepared, and here’s to a season of clear skies and clear sinuses! 🌷

Girls on the Run is back for its 6th season!

Thank you to everyone who came out to support our Wellness Fair! Your participation helped make the event a fantastic success, with great energy, valuable resources, and engaging activities for all. We appreciate the community’s commitment to health and wellness, and we look forward to seeing you again in the future!

If you would like to share your ideas for a future Wellness Fair please join us for our next

SPS Wellness Committee meeting on Wednesday, April 2nd - 4:15 PM at the SMHS.

Feedback is always appreciated & volunteers are always welcome!

Are you a grandparent raising a grandchild? The Family Resource Center of Cape Cod hosts a support group called Grandparents Raising Grandchildren which meets on the 3rd Tuesday of each month with dinner and childcare provided.

Please call to register: (508) 815-5100.

🌎 Fun for the whole family! 🌎

Visit the Shark Center Chatham on Tuesday, April 22nd, for a Family Earth Day event

from 9:00 - 10:30 AM.

An April vacation week offering for students interested in STEM from Shark Center Chatham:

The next rotation of the Young Artists Gallery at the Sandwich Arts Alliance is now open. SMHS student interns Isabelle Anders and Lee Schauber have been hard at work preparing a beautiful gallery that showcases talented Sandwich artists, grades K-12. The SAA Gallery is open each Tuesday-Saturday from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm. There will also be an Open House & Reception for the artists and their families on Wednesday, March 26 from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. New artwork from our students will be displayed seasonally.