This Monday marks the beginning of MCAS testing for all grades. All grades will take the ELA MCAS on Monday and Tuesday (April 3rd and 4th). Next month, Math MCAS tests will be taken again by all students while grade 8 students also take the Science MCAS test. CMS's MCAS testing schedule is below.

The purpose of MCAS testing is to allow teachers, parents, and students know where students are excelling and where they need help. Our faculty has well-prepared your student for MCAS testing. We maintain a growth mindset and see MCAS as a formative assessment that provides data for our teachers' continued support of students. The MCAS does not provide summative assessment of our students, teachers, or our school. It measures progress and growth to which we (educators and parents) are dedicated.

Remind your child to be confident and encourage them to use the following strategies. Remember—you are very important to your child’s success in school and in life.

If you are looking for ways to support your students during MCAS, consider the following:

• Make sure that your child is well rested and eats breakfast.
• See that your child arrives at school on time and is relaxed.
• Comfort counts--encourage comfortable dress
• Encourage your child to do the best work possible and to have a positive attitude.
• Encourage your child to listen/ read carefully to all test-taking directions and to ask questions if any directions are unclear
• Remind your child to check answers for accuracy.

Test anxiety is worrying too much about doing well on a test. It can keep students from doing their best. Some ways to help reduce anxiety are:

• Talk about the test in a positive way.
• Encourage best effort.
• Encourage your child to focus on his or her strengths, such as a good memory or strong analytical skills.
• Assure your child that the test is only one measure of academic performance and provides areas the school can focus to help your child continue their strong academic development.

Your interest and support let your child know you believe in him or her and that you value education. We hope these suggestions help you help your child have a positive testing experience.

Recently a cohort of CMS students visited the Massachusetts Statehouse in Boston to attend the 84 Movement Convention. They participated as members of the Cohasset Safe Harbor Youth Ambassadors program.

Theyvisited the Statehouse in Boston for the 84 Movement Convention. It was called "Kick Butts Day". All youth groups who work on prevention of nicotine, cigarette, and vaping use got together to raise awareness of use in our communities. 84 stands for the 84% of youth who did not smoke before the movement. Currently, it is 97%.

Members of the state legislature joined the dozens of students from across the Commonwealth for the event. Cohasset's State Representative, Joan Meschino, as well as our State Senator Patrick O'Connor met with our students (see pictures below).

It was a unique experience for our students as they learned important leadership and public speaking skills as well as connecting with peers from across the state and local politicians who also hope to help students make positive and healthy choices just like we do.

"This is very important because we are trying to reduce the amount of nicotine and tobacco use in our communities. We hope to find healthier ways to help teens cope rather than using substances. The day was very educational and a great experience" shared one of the students. "It is important for parents to encourage their children to join Safe Harbor which will help all of us have a healthier and a much safer community."

Winter is behind us, but unfortunately, the viruses are not. Please continue to monitor your children for illness and keep them home with fevers or vomiting. Please continue to check your child for COVID-19 with at-home testing if indicated. We are hoping for a happy, healthy spring.

Thank you,

Nurse Erin

ekalberer@cohassetk12.org

Among the learning experiences CMS students find in our classrooms, perhaps the most memorable are guest speakers. When students can meet someone whose occupation, travel, skills, or other life experiences connect to what they are learning, the curriculum comes alive. Learning becomes authentic and grounded in the real-world.

The CMS community is rich and made up of individuals with diverse experiences. Teachers would love to invite you to meet their classes to share your knowledge. However, it is difficult to know who is willing to become a guest speaker and who had the experiences that would connect to curriculum.

In order to facilitate this, we ask any parents who have experiences and knowledge to share and are willing to be a guest speaker to fill out and submit this form which will be shared with teachers.

The CMS faculty and students thank parents willing to share their experiences as a guest speaker!

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.

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.

Since July 2014, Safe Harbor Cohasset has been working to promote awareness and implement resources to help make an impact on the substance use in the community. The group has members from across the spectrum in the community, including, but not limited to, Paul Pratt Memorial Library, Cohasset Recreation Department, Cohasset Police Department, Cohasset Public Schools, Second Congregational Church, town leaders, health professionals, parents, youth, fire personnel, and concerned citizens. In September 2017, Safe Harbor was awarded a federal Drug- Free Communities (DFC) Support Program grant, which focuses on preventing substance use among youth ages 12-17.

Since then, the group has worked to foster a strong and inclusive community that allows youth to strive and encourages healthy, educated and responsible choices about drug and alcohol use. The mission is supported by evidenced based, prevention focused, sustainable policies and youth- focused programs, such as Ground Level Café and the Safe Harbor Youth Ambassador Program. To learn more, and to find resources for both parents and teens, visit the Safe Harbor website at safeharborcohasset.org. Keep up to date on the latest news and trends by following Safe Harbor on Facebook at www.facebook.com/safeharborcohasset, on Twitter @cohsafeharbor, and on Instagram @safeharborcohasset.

Oftentimes when dealing with personal or family issues, we feel overwhelmed because we lack experience and expertise with handling these issues. We want to be sure our families know that they are not alone--there are many resources on the South Shore that can help.

Community Resources

Wellspring Multi Service

Website: wellspringmultiservice.org

Address: 814 Nantasket Ave Hull, MA 02045

Phone: 781-925-3211

Contact: Jenny Gerbis, Community Outreach, ext. 127, jenny@wellspringmultiservice.org

Baystate Community Services

Website: baystatecs.org

Address: 1120 Hancock Street, Quincy, MA 02169

Phone: 617-471-8400

Email: info@baystatecs.org

Cohasset Food Pantry

Address: 129 So. Main Street, Cohasset, MA 02025

Phone: 781-383-0219 ext. 25

Cohasset Rotary Club

Website: cohassetrotary.org

Email: cohassetrotaryclub@gmail.com or pwmcohassetrotary@gmail.com

Interfaith Social Services

Website: interfaithsocialservices.org

Address: 105 Adams Street, Quincy MA 02169

Phone: 617-773-6203

Email: info@interfaithsocialservices.org

Safe Harbor Coalition Cohasset

Website: safeharborcohasset.org

Address: 35 Ripley Road, Cohasset, MA 02025

Phone: 781-783-5293

Contact: Nicole Balaschi, Program Director,

Email: safeharborcohasset@gmail.com

Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu observed "In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity."

These are certainly difficult times and many parents and families are experiencing great stress. Our ability to cope is regularly challenged and, understandably, there may be times when individuals can no longer manage their emotions. It is important to know where to turn when we reach that point.

To help our families, we share this contact list of support providers--Mental Health and Crisis Contacts These support providers offer great opportunities to help receive help when those we love are struggling to manage.

The CMS administration and faculty communicate with our families using many digital and traditional means. Our weekly newsletter, the CMS Tide, will be sent to families and students every weekend. It is also posted on our school website and shared via Twitter (@comsprincipal).

We call it the CMS Tide because just like we find when we walk along the beach, the tide brings to us treasures from the deep. It helps us picture what is going on just beyond where we stand. The CMS Tide supplies news, images, stories about life at CMS to our families each week,

We hope you enjoy each issue this year!

The Cohasset Middle School is a grade 6-8 school dedicated to the development of the whole child. We are an inclusive, supportive, and safe learning environment committed to excellence and growth. Our community values experiential, collaborative, active learning that is rigorous and relevant, and fosters creative, responsible contributors to a global society.

Website: https://www.cohassetk12.org/Domain/9
Location: 143 Pond Street, Cohasset, MA, USA
Phone: 781.383.6100
Twitter: @comsprincipal