Friday, March 31, 2017

Principal's Notes - March 31st

Dear Memorial Families,
Looking forward to seeing you at Spring Fling tonight!!! Our DI team, Thunder Bolts, is competing at the DI State Tournament on Sunday, April 2nd right here in Bedford at BHS. Go Thunder Bolts!!!
_________________________________________________________________________________

NEW NEWS


Guidance Message
Word of the Month: Courage and Perseverance
Week of March 27:
Wed., March 29: Michael Jordan had a growth mindset.  Although his high school coach said he wasn’t good enough for the varsity team his sophomore year, he believed that he could improve and be successful.  He just wasn’t good enough YET! Many successful people share the same kind of story.  They don’t do great things easily, rather they have hard times, make mistakes and fail...just like everyone.  Their growth mindset, perseverance and belief that they can improve enable them to do great things. Peacemaker Challenge: Think of something you really want to do, but you have thought was too hard.  Decide you are going to do it and practice, practice, practice.  Maybe you can’t do it now, but you just can’t do it YET!
Fri., March 31: Walt Disney once said, “All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.”  Walt Disney was fired from his job at a newspaper because he had “no good ideas”.  Beethoven’s music teacher said that as a composer, he was “hopeless”.  Agatha Christie had a writing disability that was so severe, she had to dictate her writing for others to type.  George Washington Carver was born a slave and was sold and shipped away when he was a
baby.  These people, and others, were successful, not because they were smarter than others, but because they had the courage to try and fail, and the perseverance to keep trying until they reached their goals.  Peacemaker Challenge: Don’t give up!  Your story can be one of courage and perseverance too!

Destination Imagination State Tournament 
Bedford DI welcomes New Hampshire Destination Imagination (NH-DI) State Tournament to Bedford High School on Saturday, April 1st, 8AM – 6PM.  There is a snow date for Sunday, April 2nd, but please check website for up to date information and a schedule of events. www.nh-di.org

NH-DI will be hosting the event where the top scoring teams will be competing for a chance to go to Destination Imagination Global Finals in Knoxville, TN, with almost every state and 20 countries.  Destination Imagination is a fun, hands-on system of learning that fosters students’ creativity, courage and curiosity through open-ended academic challenges in the fields of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), fine arts and service learning.  Participants learn patience, flexibility, persistence, ethics, respect for others and their ideas, and the collaborative problem solving process. 

Good Luck to the 7 teams representing Bedford DI!

iRules: What Every Tech-Healthy Family Needs to Know About Selfies, Sexting, Gaming and Growing Up.
The Bedford High School Counseling Department is thrilled to welcome international speaker, Janell Burley Hofmann, to campus on Thursday, April 6th! The author of the original iRules Contract will workshop with students throughout the day and will present “Parenting Generation Tech: Educate, Empower, Engage” to parents that evening. This free event will begin at 6:00pm in the BHS Theater and is open to the community. 

Janell Burley Hofmann is the author of the book, iRules: What Every Tech-Healthy Family Needs to Know About Selfies, Sexting, Gaming and Growing Up. She is also a speaker and consultant on topics like technology, media, health, relationships and personal growth. Janell Burley Hofmann engages readers, clients and audiences in relevant and meaningful conversations igniting personal empowerment, awareness and purpose. Janell serves families, schools and communities in a partnership that will positively impact the lives of children and teens. She is a two-time TEDx presenter and was a featured speaker with SxSW. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, Good Morning America, USA Today, National Public Radio and thousands of international media outlets. 


Art Supplies Donation (BHS Senior Project)
As part of her Senior Project, Julie Vyhanek, a student at Bedford High School, is accepting new/lightly used art supplies to be used at the Elliot Hospital for Art Therapy.  A donation box will be placed in our main floor hallway if you would like to contribute.  Please click here for more information about her project.

Safety Educator
Please click HERE for the March/April edition of Safety Educator.




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PTG NEWS
______________________________________________________________________
  • HELP WANTED:  The PTG is looking for someone to coordinate our ORK (Opportunities Reaching Kids) program for the elementary schools.  This coordinator will be responsible for all ORK programming- such as Eyes On Owls, Tanglewood Marionettes & Bat Presentations, across the three elementary schools (Memorial, Peter Woodbury, and Riddle Brook).  This person must have good communication and organizational skills (flexible hours & work from home).  For more information please contact Sue Jennato at bedfordnhptg@gmail.com
  • Please join us on Thursday April 6th at Shorty’s in Bedford.  Every first Thursday of the month Shorty’s will give the Bedford PTG 15% of all sales when patrons show this flyer or simply let your server know you support the PTG.  Good on Dine-in and Take-out, all day long!
  • ColorBlast 5k Run/Walk – Sunday, June 4th @ 10:00 AM                                      The PTG is excited to announce that registration for our first annual ColorBlast 5K Run/Walk is open!  Register today and mark your calendar for a super-fun, family event!  Not a runner?  That’s OK.  You can walk, skip, hop, twirl, dance or stroll your way through six color stations along the 5K route that starts at Lurgio Middle school on the BHS/RAL campus.  Be sure to wear white for maximum color affect (you will be blasted with food safe colorful powder).  All funds raised from this event will go back into our schools!
_________________________________________________________________________

REMINDERS 
________________________________________________________________________

2017-18 ​Calendar Update
As families start planning for next year, we thought it would be helpful to share the new calendar. Click here for the calendar. The first day of school for students is Tuesday, August 29.

Bedford Food Pantry – Items Needed for Children
Food Insecurity is a growing concern across the nation and right here in our own backyard.  Nearly 350 adults and children in Bedford qualify for food stamps and more than 167 families in Bedford meet the income standards for the government’s free school lunch program. 
In light of these numbers, the Bedford Food Pantry has started a new program, School Lunch Plus, to provide students in Bedford who face food insecurity two lunches each weekend (with complete privacy/anonymity).  In order to provide two lunches for each student in need, the Food Pantry is looking for donations of these specific items.   
If you are able to donate these items (these are ongoing donations), please bring them by the Bedford Food Pantry at the Bedford Presbyterian Church, 4 Church Road, Bedford, NH.
Parents/guardians, please contact the school guidance counselor or school nurse if you would like your child to participate in this program. 



IMPORTANT DATES
_________________________________________________________________________
March 31 - End of Third Quarter
April 3-14 – Parent/Teacher Conferences
April 7 – Official Report Cards available on Power School 
April 10-18 – Passover
April 14 – Good Friday
April 16 – Easter

April 24 - 28 - Spring Vacation
May 5 - Tall and Small Dance - Stay tuned for more details!
May 1 -5 - Teacher Appreciation
May 11 - Grandparents/ Seniors Day
May 11 - Spring Concert ( at McKelvie)



Thanks,
Pam 

Friday, March 24, 2017

Principal's Notes - March 24th

Dear Memorial Families,
Congratulations to our Destination Imagination Team who will be moving on to represent Memorial at the State competition which will be held on April 1st at Bedford High School. 
_________________________________________________________________________________

NEW NEWS


Guidance Message
Word of the Month: Courage and Perseverance
Week of March 20:
Wed., March 22:  Discussion about growth mindset. Scientists have discovered that our brain is like a muscle. With exercise, we can make it stronger and smarter. We can exercise our brain by doing hard things, not giving up, trying harder, and asking for help when we need it.  Peacemaker Challenge: Do something really hard today, maybe something you have been afraid to try before.  Even if you make a mistake, you will still be exercising your brain and getting smarter.
Fri., March 24:  People with a growth mindset understand that, it’s not that they can’t get it, it’s just that they can’t get it YET.  They believe that, if they keep trying and ask questions, they will get it sooner or later.  Having a growth mindset helps people become successful and happy. Peacemaker Challenge: Don’t give up the next time something is hard.  Ask for help, tell yourself that you CAN do it, and keep trying!  

2017-18 ​Calendar Update
As families start planning for next year, we thought it would be helpful to share the new calendar. Click here for the calendar. The first day of school for students is Tuesday, August 29.

Spring Fling - Volunteers Needed!!! Please Help Us to Make Spring Fling a Success
Below is a link for parents to signup and volunteer to help out at Spring Fling.  Please consider giving Memorial's children the gift of your time and making our annual Spring Fling event a continued success!  If you have been looking for a way to get involved at Memorial School, as well as meet other Memorial families, this is a great opportunity for you.  We are looking for volunteers to help with a variety of duties ranging from solicitation, basket wrapping and helping out during/post event (including ticket sales, raffle room, winner look-up, contact and distribution of baskets). Any help you could give us would be very appreciated.

Spring Fling - Dinner and Raffle Ticket Forms
If you need another copy of the dinner and/or raffle ticket forms please click on the forms below:  

Destination ImagiNation
Congratulations to all the Bedford DI teams who participated in the Goffstown Regional Tournament last weekend. Team Thunder Bolts took 2nd place and will represent Memorial School at the State Tournament, in Bedford High School, on April 1st, along with 6 other teams from Bedford DI.   We are so proud of all of these kids, and would like to thank their Team Manager, Darby Bruno who stepped up to the plate, volunteering her time to coach these kids all season.  For more information on what DI is all about, please check out www.nh-di.org.

Spring Fling - March 31st 
We are looking forward to you joining us for our annual Spring Fling. It is our one fundraising event for the school year and just a great time. We could use your help with Family Baskets. Wouldn’t your children love to help you choose a theme for a fun-filled family basket for this year’s Spring Fling family event? Please consider this way to contribute to our annual fundraising efforts. Your donations are greatly appreciated! 100% of the proceeds for this event go directly towards enhancing the students and families here at Memorial. Another way to help are Business Donations.  Each year we discover how many wonderful resources we have right here in our own school community. Do you own, or know of, or work for a business that would be willing to donate to this worthy cause? Don’t worry, you do not  have to do any work…just provide us with the business name and a contact, and we will do the leg work for you! Thanks and looking forward to seeing you on March 31st.

Art Supplies Donation (BHS Senior Project)
As part of her Senior Project, Julie Vyhanek, a student at Bedford High School, is accepting new/lightly used art supplies to be used at the Elliot Hospital for Art Therapy.  A donation box will be placed in our main floor hallway if you would like to contribute.  Please click here for more information about her project.




  _______________________________________________________________________

PTG NEWS
______________________________________________________________________


Our final community night at the Manchester Monarchs is Saturday, April 1st as the Monarchs take on the Elmira Jackals at 6PM.  Enjoy discounted ticket prices and a family friendly night out.  Students can participate in the High-5 tunnel as the Monarchs take the ice.  Click here to download an order form and return to the school office by Monday, March 27th.

The Bedford PTG is proud to co-sponsor an upcoming community presentation featuring professional speaker Ed Gerety.  Ed Gerety, one of the top professional youth speakers in the country, will be doing a 60 minute program for parents and their child(ren) focusing on how you can work together in your family to help your child reach his/her full potential, have the right mindset, and achieve his/her goals.  Ed has been a part of the Lurgio Middle School Stand By Me program from its beginning, and his programs have always received rave reviews.  This program, geared toward middle school families, will take place on April 11th in the BHS Theater 6:30 - 7:30PM.  Save the date for this energetic and inspiring program!  

ColorBlast 5k Run/Walk – Sunday, June 4th @ 10:00 AM
The PTG is excited to announce that registration for our first annual ColorBlast 5K Run/Walk is open!  Register today and mark your calendar for a super-fun, family event!  Not a runner?  That’s OK.  You can walk, skip, hop, twirl, dance or stroll your way through six color stations along the 5K route that starts at Lurgio Middle school on the BHS/RAL campus.  Be sure to wear white for maximum color affect (you will be blasted with food safe colorful powder).  All funds raised from this event will go back into our schools!

We are looking for volunteers and sponsors for this great event. If you or your business are interested in sponsoring the event or volunteering, please contact us at bedfordcolorblast@gmail.com, or for more information please visit www.bedfordptg.org.  This event is presented by Derry Medical Center.
_________________________________________________________________________

REMINDERS 
________________________________________________________________________


Bedford High School ​Graduation set for June 10
We are proud to announce that the students in the class of 2017 at Bedford High School will be graduating on June 10, 2017.

Kindergarten and 1st Grade Registration (2017 – 2018)
You may pick up registration packets starting Monday, February 6th, and return them by Thursday, March 9th.  K+ packets will be available on Wednesday, February 15th.  A $525 deposit is required with the K+ registration.

  • A child must attain his/her 5th birthday on or before September 30, 2017 to be eligible for kindergarten.
  • A child must attain his/her 6th birthday on or before September 30, 2017 to be eligible for first grade.
Kindergarten students who are currently enrolled at Memorial (or anywhere in the district) do not need to register for 1st grade.

B.E.E.P. 2017/2018 Open Enrollment
For information about our district’s Early Education Program (located at Memorial School) for preschool-aged students, please click here.

Bedford Food Pantry – Items Needed for Children
Food Insecurity is a growing concern across the nation and right here in our own backyard.  Nearly 350 adults and children in Bedford qualify for food stamps and more than 167 families in Bedford meet the income standards for the government’s free school lunch program. 
In light of these numbers, the Bedford Food Pantry has started a new program, School Lunch Plus, to provide students in Bedford who face food insecurity two lunches each weekend (with complete privacy/anonymity).  In order to provide two lunches for each student in need, the Food Pantry is looking for donations of these specific items.   
If you are able to donate these items (these are ongoing donations), please bring them by the Bedford Food Pantry at the Bedford Presbyterian Church, 4 Church Road, Bedford, NH.
Parents/guardians, please contact the school guidance counselor or school nurse if you would like your child to participate in this program. 



IMPORTANT DATES
_________________________________________________________________________
March 28 - Spring Fling Dinner and Raffle ticket forms due
March 31 - End of Quarter 3
March 31 - Spring Fling 5 - 8pm
March 31 - End of Third Quarter
April 3-14 – Parent/Teacher Conferences
April 7 – Official Report Cards available on Power School 
April 10-18 – Passover
April 14 – Good Friday
April 16 – Easter

April 24 - 28 - Spring Vacation
May 5 - Tall and Small Dance - Stay tuned for more details!
May 1 -5 - Teacher Appreciation
May 11 - Grandparents/ Seniors Day
May 11 - Spring Concert ( at McKelvie)



Thanks,
Pam 

Friday, March 17, 2017

Principal's Notes - March 17th

Dear Memorial Families,
Happy St. Patrick's Day!!! Again, I hope you have had the opportunity to see our new sign out front ... it is advertising Spring Fling. Thank you to our parents and the community for supporting Spring Fling. Our new sign is one of the many things that Spring Fling has made possible. We hope you will be joining us On Friday, March 31st for this fun event. 
_________________________________________________________________________________

NEW NEWS


Guidance Message
Word of the Month: Courage and Perserverance
Week of March 13:
Wed., March 15: Phrase of the Day: “You may never make a discovery if you are afraid to make a mistake. Only those who do nothing make no mistakes.”  Thomas Edison is said to have made 1000 mistakes before completing his light bulb invention.  When asked about his 1000 mistakes he replied,  “I didn’t fail 1000 times.  The light bulb was an invention that took a 1000 steps.” Peacemaker Challenge: Be GLAD when you make a mistake.  Figure out what you can learn from it and be proud of yourself for having the Courage and Perseverance to try something hard and new.
Fri., March 17:  During the last Superbowl, the Patriots showed Courage and Perseverance. They were behind by a lot in the game, even when the third quarter was coming to an end.  People stopped watching the game in their homes, thinking they would lose.  But the Patriots didn’t give up. They didn’t say to themselves, “We can’t do it” or “We’re going to lose.”  Instead, concentrated on the game, and won!  It is said to be the greatest comeback in Superbowl history!  Peacemaker Challenge: When something is hard and you feel like you are losing in school or life, think of the Patriots.  Tell yourself that you CAN do it, concentrate on the work, ask for help if you need it and keep trying.  That way, YOU can be a winner too!

Spring Fling - Volunteers Needed!!!
Below is a link for parents to signup and volunteer to help out at Spring Fling.  Please consider giving Memorial's children the gift of your time and making our annual Spring Fling event a continued success!  If you have been looking for a way to get involved at Memorial School, as well as meet other Memorial families, this is a great opportunity for you.  We are looking for volunteers to help with a variety of duties ranging from solicitation, basket wrapping and helping out during/post event (including ticket sales, raffle room, winner look-up, contact and distribution of baskets). Any help you could give us would be very appreciated.

Spring Fling - Dinner and Raffle Ticket Forms
If you need another copy of the dinner and/or raffle ticket forms please click on the forms below:  


Election Results
Thank you to all the Bedford citizens who voted on Thursday . The school district budget passed and the contracts for our teachers, support staff, and custodians passed. This will make the district's pay scale more competitive and help get health insurance costs under control. The positive results will allow the whole district to continue to focus on our core mission, teaching and learning. Thank you!

Kids' Vote ... Please have your child(ren vote)
Due to the snow day, students did not get a chance to vote. Please open the ballot in the link below and have your child vote for what they would like for Spirit Days next year.
The ballot will be available until Sunday night at 8pm.

Their vote counts!!!!

Destination ImagiNation
Bedford DI is sending 19 teams to the Goffstown Regional this weekend.  Good luck to all the teams and their team managers, who have been working hard problem solving and creating solutions since last Fall. For a full schedule of the day, check out the Goffstown Regional at www.NH-DI.org.


2017-18 ​
Calendar
As families start planning for next year, we thought it would be helpful to share the 2017-18 School Calendar. The first day of school for students is Tuesday, August 29.

Bedford High School ​Graduation set for June 10
We are proud to announce that the students in the class of 2017 at Bedford High School will be graduating on June 10, 2017.

Spring Fling - March 31st 
We are looking forward to you joining us for our annual Spring Fling. It is our one fundraising event for the school year and just a great time. We could use your help with Family Baskets. Wouldn’t your children love to help you choose a theme for a fun-filled family basket for this year’s Spring Fling family event? Please consider this way to contribute to our annual fundraising efforts. Your donations are greatly appreciated! 100% of the proceeds for this event go directly towards enhancing the students and families here at Memorial. Another way to help are Business Donations.  Each year we discover how many wonderful resources we have right here in our own school community. Do you own, or know of, or work for a business that would be willing to donate to this worthy cause? Don’t worry, you do not  have to do any work…just provide us with the business name and a contact, and we will do the leg work for you! Thanks and looking forward to seeing you on March 31st.

From the BHS Counseling Dept. and Tech Team:

We will present the film Screenagers this Tuesday the 21st, at 6:00 pm in the BHS Theater. In an age where technology is everywhere, how do we best support adolescents as they learn how to responsibly use these tools?

ABOUT THE FILM

Are you watching kids scroll through life, with their rapid-fire thumbs and a six-second attention span? Physician and filmmaker Delaney Ruston saw that with her own kids and learned that the average kid spends 6.5 hours a day looking at screens. She wondered about the impact of all this time and about the friction occurring in homes and schools around negotiating screen time—friction she knew all too well. 

In SCREENAGERS, as with her award-winning documentaries on mental health, Delaney takes a deeply personal approach as she probes into the vulnerable corners of family life, including her own, to explore struggles over social media, video games, academics and internet addiction. Through poignant, and unexpectedly funny stories, along with surprising insights from authors, psychologists, and brain scientists, SCREENAGERS reveals how tech time impacts kids’ development and offers solutions on how adults can empower kids to best navigate the digital world and find balance.



Art Supplies Donation (BHS Senior Project)
As part of her Senior Project, Julie Vyhanek, a student at Bedford High School, is accepting new/lightly used art supplies to be used at the Elliot Hospital for Art Therapy.  A donation box will be placed in our main floor hallway if you would like to contribute.  Please click here for more information about her project.




  _______________________________________________________________________

PTG NEWS
______________________________________________________________________


Sunday, June 4th @ 10:00a.m.
The PTG is excited to announce that registration for our first annual ColorBlast 5K Run/Walk is open! Register today and mark your calendar for a super-fun, family event! Not a runner? That’s OK. You can walk, skip, hop, twirl, dance or stroll your way through six color stations along the 5K route that starts at Lurgio Middle school on the BHS/RAL campus. Be sure to wear white for maximum color affect (you will be blasted with food safe colorful powder). All funds raised from this event will go back into our schools!

We are looking for volunteers and sponsors for this great event. If you or your business are interested in sponsoring the event or volunteering, please contact us at bedfordcolorblast@gmail.comor for more information please visit www.bedfordptg.org. This event is presented by Derry Medical Center.
_________________________________________________________________________

REMINDERS 
________________________________________________________________________

Kindergarten and 1st Grade Registration (2017 – 2018)
You may pick up registration packets starting Monday, February 6th, and return them by Thursday, March 9th.  K+ packets will be available on Wednesday, February 15th.  A $525 deposit is required with the K+ registration.

  • A child must attain his/her 5th birthday on or before September 30, 2017 to be eligible for kindergarten.
  • A child must attain his/her 6th birthday on or before September 30, 2017 to be eligible for first grade.
Kindergarten students who are currently enrolled at Memorial (or anywhere in the district) do not need to register for 1st grade.

B.E.E.P. 2017/2018 Open Enrollment
For information about our district’s Early Education Program (located at Memorial School) for preschool-aged students, please click here.

Bedford Food Pantry – Items Needed for Children
Food Insecurity is a growing concern across the nation and right here in our own backyard.  Nearly 350 adults and children in Bedford qualify for food stamps and more than 167 families in Bedford meet the income standards for the government’s free school lunch program. 
In light of these numbers, the Bedford Food Pantry has started a new program, School Lunch Plus, to provide students in Bedford who face food insecurity two lunches each weekend (with complete privacy/anonymity).  In order to provide two lunches for each student in need, the Food Pantry is looking for donations of these specific items.   
If you are able to donate these items (these are ongoing donations), please bring them by the Bedford Food Pantry at the Bedford Presbyterian Church, 4 Church Road, Bedford, NH.
Parents/guardians, please contact the school guidance counselor or school nurse if you would like your child to participate in this program. 



IMPORTANT DATES
_________________________________________________________________________
March 21  Spirit Day: Wear Neon/Fluorescent clothing
March 24 - Spring Fling Dinner and Raffle ticket forms due

March 31 - End of Quarter 3
March 31 - Spring Fling 5 - 8pm
March 31 - End of Third Quarter
April 3-14 – Parent/Teacher Conferences
April 7 – Official Report Cards available on Power School 
April 10-18 – Passover
April 14 – Good Friday
April 16 – Easter

March 21 - Spirit Day: Wear Neon/Fluorescent clothing
April 24 - 28 - Spring Vacation



Thanks,
Pam