And we're off...update!

First full week is behind us!  Students were still smiling as they headed to the busses this afternoon...I could interpret that in a couple of ways, but I will choose to think they were happy even before the bell rang and not only in response to the bell ringing :?)

For those of you following us on Twitter @SBSPanthers or have liked our FaceBook page (StonyBrookSchool), you would have seen the posting that thanked Arun Saigal for talking to a group of students about his journey to become the Lead Android Developer at Quizlet which is an educational start-up based in San Francisco that many of our students use on their mobile devices to more effectively study and or to simply enjoy the process more.  He shared with students the tremendous benefits of becoming a software engineer and the scope of influence it can have on society.  He ended his talk by showing the students how they could build a simple app in just two minutes using a free software program he helped develop while at MIT.  He also shared with them a way to access one of the newest Quizlet games which has not yet been released to the public.  Needless to say, the students were pretty excited about his visit.

This week I had the opportunity to watch my self-esteem initially plummet only to slowly rise back in time to end the week feeling more confident again.  I was visited by a number of students conducting research this week.  The biggest shot to my ego, came from a group of eighth graders asking to see how much of a Rubik's cube I could solve in 60 secs.  In fact, they only asked me to try and solve one side so I felt pretty good about my chances having grown-up in the 80s and had my fair share of both tricks and legitimate strategies to solving some of these 3D kinesthetic puzzles.  As I took the cube to begin my initial assessment, panic set in as they updated me on the amount of time I had left.  I simply couldn't for the life of me remember how the heck I used to do solve it.  I quickly started moving the sides and shifting the pieces left and right and up and down only to keep making the same formations on different sides.  I was talking out loud saying that I know when I see certain patterns it is possible to make specific moves that bring them all together to one side.  Then, it was done, they said time and my heart sank.  I couldn't even solve the one-side never mind the whole thing.  But worse than that, I mad the mistake of asking one of the students how long it took him to do it.  So, he apparently had enough time to try for himself...16 seconds that was all he needed.  Needless to say, I was impressed.  Deflated, but impressed.  

But the optimist in me couldn't end the week there, more research was taking place and I was able to end the week performing well on a Skittles taste test in which I was asked to identify by taste only five different types of Skittles.  While my dexterity may have failed me a bit, my taste buds have yet to disappoint.  That success will carry me confidently into the weekend!

Beyond my humiliation, other things are actually happening that I can also share with you.

Ms. Smith, our school librarian, asked me to include the following:

Author, Elizabeth Atkinson, is coming to speak to our 6th graders on October 14. Elizabeth Atkinson is the author of The Sugar Mountain Snow Ball, coming in October from Islandport Press. She is also the author of the award-winning middle-grade novel, I, Emma Freke, which Booklist called a “rich story of self-acceptance” and Kirkus Reviews described as “a poignant journey of self-discovery.” While she loves living on the North Shore of Massachusetts, her real home is in the woods of western Maine.

At the very end of this email, I will include information as to how you can order a copy of her book if you would like to do so.

Not that we want to rush through the year at all, but the 8th graders are already getting excited about the spring trip to Washington DC.  To that end, we will be having an informational session on Weds Oct 14 @ 6:00 pm regarding the trip please mark the date on your calendars.  

The first meeting of our 2015-2016 School Advisory Council will take place on Tuesday October 6, 2015 from 2:30-3:30 here at Stony Brook.  Our returning parent members include Patrick McGinn, Denise Seyffert, Marci Barnes and Gary Cutbill.  Our faculty members are Julie Ewing and Al Duffet.  I thank them all in advance for their willingness to participate in this important role.  All of the SAC meetings are open to the public.

Enjoy this first weekend of autumn; hopefully, we will be able to enjoy the Super Blood Moon eclipse on Sunday.

Chris

Dr. Christopher Chew

Principal

Stony Brook School

Westford, MA 01886

(978) 692-2708

First Update: 2015-2016 Edition

It certainly feels like summer still!

Over the first few days, I have been able to meet with all of the students in assemblies and welcome them to the new school year.  Many of them seemed disappointed that I was not sporting fancy mutton chops again this year.  Ah, well...something to consider for next year, I guess.

They did seem happy to be in school or at least in the air conditioned auditorium in which we were meeting. 

They also seemed to enjoy being outside this morning after we practiced our fire drill during Advisory.  

There is a lot of positive energy and enthusiasm in the building that we will keep nurturing as we go throughout the year.

I was able to successfully visit a number of classes which allowed me to see all of the students in action at some point during our first few days together.  Again, there were a lot of smiling faces and students seemed to be handling the hot weather without too much difficulty.  

I hope you are all able to enjoy some rest and relaxation!

Chris

Pacing Ourselves

So, the students did a full 4.5 days this week working our way up to the

big 5 day next week. Some of you might prefer to load up on carbs on

Sunday, some have been front loading the vitamins, others might simply get

a lot of sleep, I will try all three and add plenty of hydration to the

mix so as not to wither away by Friday.

This week science classes were all prepping for upcoming labs either by

reviewing safety procedures or breaking down the scientific method. It

always enjoyable to go through classes of one specific content area

throughout all of the grades to see the similarity in expectations and yet

the differences in how students are exhibiting their knowledge as they

become more and more thoughtful and articulate as they progress each year.

I was also able to enjoy a fantastic presentation by one of our Stony

Brook parents who shared with students her work as an engineer and the

work her company is doing in the world of 3D printing. I honestly had no

idea that we were already able to print food using this technology. It was

great to have her visit some classes and we appreciate the time she was

able to donate to come in

and speak with our students. Many of us have jobs that we either didn't

consider, didn't know about, or didn't even exist when we were 12-14 years

old. Part of preparing out students for their futures means to expose them

both to professional worlds outside of their daily sphere of understanding

as well as encouraging them that we also had no reference point for many

of our careers when we were their ages.

In a few weeks we will have our curriculum nights (6th grade on 9/27 w/

7th & 8th grades on 10/6) which will provide you all an opportunity to

get a small sense of the students typical day here at Stony Brook. They

are not designed as conferences and do not afford opportunities to have

individual conversations about students like the meetings we will have in

December, but remember that you can contact teachers via email at any

point throughout the year if you have specific questions about student

work or concerns about progress.

Speaking of contact, many of you have heard me say already that the 50%

rule is very helpful in maintaining strong home to school communication (

for those of you who don't know...I'll explain it at curriculum night!).

If you hear something that simply doesn't sound right or conflicts with

what we express as our priorities as educators, please reach out to us

ask. Clarity can easily get lost in translation.

Next week, the construction taking place on Farmers' Way will include

excavating into the road to establish water lines connections near the

entrances to our parking lots.

A police detail will be present and it should not have a major impact on

our traffic, but they wanted to inform us ahead of time.  I appreciate

your patience in advance and if there are any concerns please contact me

and I will relay the information to the contractors.

Please take time to read the announcements I have included below for

resources and activities for our families.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Chris

Dr. Christopher Chew

Principal

Stony Brook School

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