Principal’s Report

April 2008

Bon Voyage: Only three more wake-ups in Maine for the 7th and 8th graders…then we’re off to France. Teacher Sandrine Nusbaum’s e-mail this morning, from St. Castin, said: “There is tremendous excitement here with the idea of sharing with you our beautiful region. The children are very happy…and, good news: the nice weather has returned this afternoon.” So we’re confident of a wonderful welcome, and we’re bringing many things to share and leave behind. This morning, Rich Hewitt (Bangor Daily News) interviewed us for a story that will appear before we leave. Stay tuned for great stories and pictures on our return.

How about those Jazz players! Both at MDI (district) and Westbrook (state) our middle level jazz band did an awesome job—for their first time in competition! Perhaps you saw Meredith Olivari’s photo on the front page of the Patriot last week? And by the second round of the competition, the kids were really hungry to improve and do their best. Kudos to Bill Schubeck for inspiring this extra effort by the kids, and to all the players for working hard and “going for it.” We’ll take a disk of their performance to France.

Heating bids: We finally have a bid from Ray Plumbing in Ellsworth. See attached.

Head Lice: After five weeks of lice and nit free heads for Deb Candage’s weekly checks, I think it’s safe to say we have survived an outbreak and that it is over. We now know more than we ever wanted to know about pediculosis. Still, compared with many schools, we had a very mild and focused outbreak.

Faculty in Charge: During my absence next week, various teachers will perform the dutiers of principal. I don’t expect anything to need emergency attention, and Barb Thomas can handle anything that arises. They can always call the superintendent if need be.

Final Readers Theater event: Multi-cultural stories…this Saturday, at school.

Castine Long Range Plan: I submitted the following to the committee writing the long range plan for the town. I sought to augment what the “numbers say” about Adams School:

    “Addition by Principal Todd Nelson, March 2008:

“For school year 2008-2009, however, there may be a slight upturn, as the school graduates 7 eighth graders in June 2008, and has the potential for enrolling as many as 9 students in kindergarten in September, 2008. Enrollment predictions can be a fickle enterprise!
“Adams School has some remarkable programs and accomplishments for a school of any size, much less a small rural school. It has a vibrant arts and music program. Eighty percent of the students in 4-8th grade play in the school band, and the middle school students won 4th place at the state middle school jazz fest this year—their first time competing. Younger students participate in Readers Theater, performing for the community three times a year. And there is an annual school play that, for the last three years, has been an original musical production. The school building is covered in vibrant works created in the studio art program, and the arts overlaps into all areas of the curriculum. Three times a year there are afternoon activities periods in which community members and parents come into school to share skills or interests ranging from archery to knot-tying to Asian fusion cooking!

“85% of the students in grades 5-8 participate in extra-curricular athletics: soccer, basketball, and tennis.
“The school’s science program includes Lego robotics, field studies in the surrounding watershed, and a Right Whale preservation group that has twice made presentations to the Right Whale Consortium (professional scientists) in New Bedford, and the Castine Men’s Club.

“The school has an active and dedicated parent body. Over the last three years, parents and students have built a timber frame nature center on the school yard, felling trees, milling timbers, cutting mortise and tenon joints and raising, roofing and shingling the structure as a curriculum project. Parents have designed and built an ice rink behind the school for the last three winters…and enlisted the Castine Fire Department to fill it and maintain the ice.  In March, 2008, the crew of the RV Argo arranged for the school to adopt a NOAA drifter buoy, whereby kids track ocean current data through a satellite uplink—a nice connection between science curricula and local maritime careers.
“The school has numerous interactions with Castine community organizations: the Woman’s Club, Men’s Club, Arts Association, Garden Club, Fire Department, Golf Club. And individual citizens are always welcome at school functions and performances. In recent years, a great effort has been expended to keep the community informed about school through newspaper articles and photos and slide shows at town meetings “putting a face” on the lives of elementary school-age children in Castine.
“In April, 2008 the combined 7th and 8th grade class journeyed to St. Castin, France to inaugurate an exchange program with our “historical cousins” and sister town, culminating two years of correspondence with the French students.”

Reports for T2: We had pretty smooth sailing producing our reports last term, without Power School. There are further changes we would make in terms of content, and variety of information related to parents, particularly in the middle level grades. But the actual “template” and production of comments from all teachers worked encouragingly well. Time is always a factor…ending the term and then producing reports quickly. We might give ourselves a little more of a buffer next term.

Staffing: We have discussed our reconfiguration this year with an eye toward making changes next year. We do not foresee needing any major reassignments of teaching staff, and we would really like another year to catch our breath and get up to speed on new and changing curricula. One change we will make: Separate 7th grade from 5-7th grade for Language Arts. Thus, the principal would teach Language arts to 7th and 8th graders in separate classes, and Social Studies to 7th and 8th graders in a combined class. This creates smaller groups for 5-6th grade LA and SS, taught by Cheryl McFadden as she does now; and a two year, smaller group sequence in LA for 7th and 8th graders.

GSA, Bapst, High schools: Libby Rosemeier came from GSA on 3/19 to enroll our 8th graders interested or planning to attend; students who have applied to Bapst should hear this week as to acceptances.


Todd R. Nelson