Partnership with Casco Bay Japan Exchange leads to new friendships

A beautiful handmade gift from our new friends

We're excited about our new partnership with the Casco Bay Japan Exchange Program! CBJE began 23 years ago when the Namioka Junior High School and Greely Junior High School first began their partnership, which led to this wonderful opportunity for our school.

Ten students and four chaperones from schools in Aomori Prefecture (the north end of the island of Honshu, Japan) are currently participating in the Homestay program, which takes place during the first week of January. Our visitors stay with HMS 7th or 8th grade students. The second part of the program begins at the end of July when Harrison Middle School students and chaperones will visit Namioka. 

Eighth grade students Emerson Pardales, Davis Young, Harrison Pendleton, and Annabelle Lowenstein are hosting our visitors from Japan. Our thanks to these students and their families for making this visit possible! 

 

The visiting students and their chaperones arrived on January 5 and will be with us until January 11. Students from Japan will shadow their hosts at school throughout their stay.  

HMS held a welcome ceremony on January 6. Our visitors put on a wonderful and exciting presentation, which helped us learn about their country, culture and school. They invited our students and staff to take part in an impromptu, joyful dance-a-thon, which was one of the highlights of the welcome ceremony! The HMS band performed the Japanese anthem under the direction of Mr. C. 

 

Our thanks to Holly Groom and Leslie Livingston from CBJE for their support and guidance!

Special thanks to Stephanie Robison and Meghan Haugevik, HMS Liaisons to CBJE. Steph and Meghan have devoted countless hours to ensure that everything was in place for this partnership and visit. 

Huge appreciation to Mr. C. and the HMS band for their beautiful performance of the Japanese anthem. 

 

We're looking forward to many years of partnership with CBJE and the adventures this will bring to our school!

YEF Clipper Honors

The Yarmouth Education Foundation spread joy and sweetness this holiday season through their Clipper Honors program, which included delicious chocolate. These special deliveries are appreciated beyond words! 

The photos taken by Allison Flowerdew share the happiness of just a few of the lucky recipients more eloquently than words ever could : )
 

Tristen Rogers and Louise Schutt

Kathy Gardner and Liz Reinsborough

Mike Hickey and his students

Cheryl Lambert, Kelley Damboise, Brian Skilling, and Randy Dehetre

Bob Gross

5th/8th Grade Buddies Gift of Self equals gift of community

5/8 Buddies

Each year our 5th/8th grade "Buddies" participate in a Gift of Self project. This year's Gift of Self included making holiday cards and letters for community members at Brentwood, Bay Square, Bartlett Circle, and a group that meets weekly at the Historical Society. Our HMS Student Leadership Team has also participated in this activity.

Our hope is to grow relationships between HMS and Yarmouth residents, which will lead to visits in the community and at our school. We're looking forward to this in the new year!

HMS students share the importance of Mindfulness

Thanks to Susan Parr for her guidance and leadership about the benefits of practicing Mindfulness, and for sharing this update about the practice of Mindfulness in our district:

Yarmouth High School's Green Group invited eighth graders Olivia Bailey and Izabel Cox-Faxon to share their knowledge of Mindfulness with their group. 

The Green Group is dedicated to three objectives: 1) to raise awareness of mental health issues for high school kids, 2) to help de-stigmatize mental health issues among our students, and 3) to help YHS students learn more about how to access help with challenges like stress, anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues. 

Olivia and Izabel discussed how Mindfulness decreases anxiety and depression and has positive impacts on the brain. Ms. Parr led the group of over 20 high school students in a two minute Mindfulness practice. 

YHS Green Group

Math Team News

On Monday, December 19th, the 7th & 8th grade Math Teams traveled to Portland to participate in a Southern Maine Math League meet. 

Our 7th grade team's hard work, perseverance, and engagement earned them the first prize at this meet!

Georgia Herr, Emily Mickool, Elena Miller, Tyler Lucca, Milo Wiebus and Krisztian Kovacs

Congratulations to the following team members on an awesome performance: Georgia Herr, Emily Mickool, Elena Miller, Tyler Lucca, Milo Wiebus, and Krisztian Kovacs, and to both teams for their participation in this meet!
  
Georgia's teammates sang Happy Birthday to her, adding to this special day!

Thanks to Jay Harrington and Bob Gross for their guidance and leadership of these teams. 

HMS Science Club News

Sonja Bell and Gabrielle Merchi-Rossini

Bob Gross shared this interesting update from a recent Science Club meeting: 

Twenty students attended at our latest Science Club gathering. They enjoyed learning about the different types of prey found in owl pellets. Our thanks to Ellen Bennet, Jim Parmentier and Beth Fowler for their on-going support of our students' discoveries and learning about fascinating science related topics!

Sophie Smith and Chloe Bibula

HMS Winter Concerts Bring Joy to Audiences

This year's winter concerts at the YPAC showcased our students' talent, hard work and commitment to their craft. Our musicians and singers impressed and inspired the audiences under the expert direction of Mrs. Grover and Mr. C!

The HMS Symphonic Band, HMS Jazz Choir, and 7th & 8th Grade Chorus delivered beautiful performances at the YPAC. All of those attending felt the joy and emotion in the music and understand the hours of practice, focus and attention necessary for our students to create a show like this.                             

 

Mrs. Grover and her students at work

The concert was a blend of holiday favorites and songs that require an exceptionally high level of skill. The audience showed their appreciation with standing ovations for our band and concert choir. 

Mr. C. directing

Our thanks and appreciation to these students for sharing their talent with us. Our sincere appreciation to Mr. Dustin for supporting our middle school show by playing piano during the concert.

To Mrs. Grover and Mr. C., we loved taking a break from the hectic, pre-holiday pace to watch, listen, and enjoy all that our students have learned. Thank you for making this possible. 

The 5th Grade Band, 6th Grade Band, and 5th & 6th Grade Chorus wrapped up our winter concert season with wonderful performances! 

 

A capacity crowd was treated to challenging selections that demonstrated the effort, growth, and talent of our 5th and 6th grade musicians and singers. It was clear to all that the students' hard work was the foundation for these stirring performances.
 
Many thanks to Mr. Dustin for supporting our middle school show by playing piano during the concert, and to Davis Young for accompanying the Chorus on percussion. Thank you to Mrs. Renton as well, who came out of retirement to play the piccolo with the Chorus. 

 

And finally, to Mr. C and Mrs. Grover, thank you for all that you do to teach and inspire our students. Your hard work is music to our ears!

ENJOY: