Ram Rally

This morning I attended  a "Ram Rally" at the  middle school.  A Ram Rally, for the uninitiated, is a whole school assembly to celebrate the accomplishments of our students.  Today, some of the things students were congratulated for include:  making the honor roll, working hard in  their classes, receiving a Ram O'Gram, and for attending a summer enrichment program "Raymond Roundtables".  The soccer teams were also introduced and showed everyone some of their skills with a soccer ball.  There was also time for a friendly contest between the grades.

This event is held monthly and is a wonderful way to remind our students that hard work pays off and provides our middle school students a time to be recognized for their work and good citizenship. These students should all go home and tell their families about their recognition.  I know that these celebrations also serve to encourage other students to always do their best.

The First Weeks of School

The first few weeks of a new school year are very exciting- for both staff and students.  Students continue their learning with new teachers, new classmates, and, hopefully, a new topic or subject that gets them  excited to be in school.  Teachers have new students and a new appreciation for their topic or subject matter.  Believe me, it is so much fun to pass on knowledge and information on what one loves!  It is also exciting to see that spark of interest or the light of understanding come on in a student- sometimes it takes extra help and a new way of looking at things.  Here is some of what I have seen around the district these first weeks of school.

• Middle school students excited about band

• Spanish I students making connections to Spanish words by naming foods they like to eat

• Students getting acquainted with their kitchens and setting them up in FCS

• Morning meetings 

• 5^th graders learning how to open a combination lock  

•  Pre-school students learning a song about the days of the week  

• High school science students doing a lesson on categorizing (disguised as a get acquainted lesson) 

• Teachers working collaboratively on writing competencies

• Safety drills

• Kindergarten students learning about letter sounds using the SmartBoard

• 4th grade students writing poem bios about themselves on computers

• A football game where our students played with heart

• Welcoming bulletin boards at every level (I'll write about these in a future posting)

• Peers congratulating our 2016-2017 NH Art Teacher of the Year- Mary Lessard

• 2nd grade students writing their goals for the year (I hope I am better this year in......)

• Middle school and elementary school students excited to pick out books in the library

• High school students working on homecoming floats

• Students working on wall size drawings and information for Constitution Day

• The school nurse taking student temperatures (those back to school sicknesses!)

• Reading teachers screening elementary school students for reading levels 

• Voting

• Snack time

• Physical Education classes held outside in some beautiful weather 

• Teachers sharing books they have read

• An aide assisting a student in a wheel chair  

And so much more!  My favorite part of any day is visiting the schools and talking/helping/listening and being with our students! 

Community Partners

All of us in Raymond are so lucky to have the support of area businesses.  No matter the situation or need, one of our many partners steps forward to help.  Recently, ths happened again.  Do you remember the excitement of a few weeks ago when the Power Ball winning ticket was sold at Hannaford?  (I know I checked my ticket more than a few times!)  As part of this, the NH Lottery Commission awarded Hannaford with $75,000.

So what did our local store decide to do with these winnings?  They added $25,000 to the total and donated $100,000 to local non-profit organizations.  The Raymond Coalition for Youth was given a check for $30,000; the NH End 68 Hours of Hunger Program was given $40,000 ($20,000 of this will go directly to our Raymond Program); and area food banks were given checks ranging from $3000 to $11,000.  This generosity is amazing!  When I think of all the things a store could spend money on, I never imagined it would be given back to the community.

The money from the End 68 Hours of Hunger Program helps fund our existing program for the coming year and will allow us to bring this program to the high school.  I was so proud that we were offering this to our elementary school kids, then added the middle school- that this is the  cherry on top- all of our students will have access to food that will provide them with nourishment over the weekends.

We are grateful to all our community partners:  RCFY, Wal-Mart Distribution Center, McDonald's, End 68 Hours of Hunger and so many more groups that, if I try to list all of them, I will forget some! These groups are involved in so many things: our JAG program, supporting our students' field trips, supplying students with needed food, providing prizes and programs for literacy contests, work as volunteers, and sponsor some of our student clubs. Raymond has always been a great place for community and is an example to every town of what community means.