Weekly Update 3/2
Dear NCHS Family,
Happy Early Dismissal!
It was great to see everyone at the 9th grade orientation last night. It is an exciting event, and we look forward to welcoming the New Canaan High School Class of 2022 in the building.
March is a busy month and I wanted to share some of the new events that will be taking place at NCHS. Also, I’m feeling optimistic that spring is just around the corner!
Staff/Student of the Month:
We are still collecting responses for the March staff/students of the month and will get that out to you next week.
I look forward to seeing you at the many events throughout the year.
As always, thank you for your support!
Be well and stay healthy NCHS!
Bill Egan
Upcoming Events:
3/5 Board of Ed Mtg -7:00 pm - Wagner Room
3/9 Through our Eyes Art Show opening reception, Carriage Barn 5-7pm
3/12 Safe Driving Week begins
3/13 10th Grade Networking Mtg - Wagner Room - 7:30 pm
3/15 PFA General Meeting - Wagner Room - 9:30 am
3/15-17 “42nd Street” NCHS Winter Musical
Safe Driving Week:
With a special focus on keeping our teen drivers safe, this week-long initiative will include motivational speakers and daily interactive activities for students along with a very special parent presentation on guiding our teens through the dangers of driving. Please join us and please help us by modeling safe driving habits yourselves – we are powerful role models for our students!
PARENTS – Join us for a powerful presentation on keeping our teen drivers safe. You don’t want to miss this compelling event on Thursday, March 15th as CT resident and safe driving advocate Tim Hollister shares his own story of losing his 17-year old son Reid to a single-car accident. This tragedy spurred Tim on to become part of the CT task force that created our graduated teen driving laws. Most driving literature for parents focuses on teaching our teens to drive the actual vehicle, without offering a plan to preempt the hazards teen drivers face. Topics will range from creating a parent-teen driving contract, to creating a “flight plan” for each drive, to when to say “no” and so much more. This presentation can help to keep all our teens alive, so don’t miss it!
STUDENTS will learn about the 5 riskiest teen driving behaviors: illegal passengers, texting, speeding, alcohol and drugs, the most dangerous time for teens to drive by attending a safe driving presentation, participating in hands-on simulations throughout the week, drive an obstacle course, learn how to reverse-park (for those with a license) with the help of Lewis School of Driving, and get safe driving tips on a daily basis! They won’t miss the signage in school and around the campus either – and hopefully neither will you!
Monday, March 12
Tuesday, March 13
- Interactive CDOT Roll-Over Sled
Wednesday, March 14
- SAVE A LIFE presentation for 9th and 10th grades
- SAVE A LIFE simulators
- PFA 10th Grade Networking Meeting: A Roadmap to Safe Driving, 7:30 pm for parents and students
Thursday, March 15
- CHOICES MATTER presentation for 11th and 12th grades
- CHOICES MATTER simulator
Friday, March 16
- PFA General Meeting featuring CT safe driving activist Tim Hollister, 9:30 am
- Fatal Vision Obstacle Course in back parking lot, 10:00am-1:00pm
- Giveaway Friday
SAT DAY
- 3/21 - In-School SAT
Juniors report to school at 7:30 AM for testing (lunch will be available)
A modified Day C school day -- for all grades -- will begin at 12:24 PM
Pd 8 12:24 – 1:12 PM
Pd 5 1:17 – 2:05 PM
NGSS - The State will be piloting a test for the Next Generation Science Standards. More information will be coming soon, but we wanted to make sure that you were aware of a change in how we would be running our daily schedule for a couple of days.
- 3/27-3/28 Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Pilot Assessment
To provide for recommended time for all juniors to take this through their scheduled English classes, we will use a special two-day modified block schedule.
Tuesday, March 27 (Day G – Part One)
Pd 5 7:30 AM – 8:55 AM
Pd 6 9:00 AM – 10:25 AM
Pd 7 10:30 AM – 12:35 PM
1st Lunch 10:35 – 11:05 Class 11:10 – 12:35
Art & Music, Career & Technology Education, Math, Special Education, World Languages
Class 10:35 – 12:00 2nd Lunch 12:05 – 12:35
English, Physical Education & Health, Science, Social Studies, ACES
Pd 8 12:40 PM – 2:05 PM
Wednesday, March 28 (Day G with Period 2 as if it were a Day H)
Pd 1 7:30 AM – 8:55 AM
Pd 2 9:00 AM – 10:25 AM
Pd 3 10:30 AM – 12:35 PM
1st Lunch 10:35 – 11:05 Class 11:10 – 12:35
Art & Music, Career & Technology Education, Math, Special Education, World Languages
Class 10:35 – 12:00 2nd Lunch 12:05 – 12:35
English, Physical Education & Health, Science, Social Studies, ACES
Pd 4 12:40 PM – 2:05 PM
NOTE - Juniors should bring No. 2 pencils, a calculator (not part of a phone or smart device) and snacks/drinks for breaks
Pictures from around NCHS:
Department News:
CTE News:
Advanced TV Broadcasting - Students are currently finishing up work in their first cycle of the quarter as they prepare for a few upcoming events. In a couple weeks, NCTV will live stream the annual Senior Prom Fashion Show and this morning they had a live broadcast of The Morning Announcements which can be watched here: https://www.youtube.com/
Graphic Design - Students just completed the Binder Cover project which allowed them to use two different software programs together. First, students were photographed holding a plain white board in different positions. After choosing their favorite photo, they color corrected it in Photoshop by adjusting the levels, saturation and contrast and also touched it up with the clone tool. Finally, they placed their name on top of the board in InDesign.
Journalism - With the February print issue released just before break, the Courant has started their next reporting cycle. This week, students submitted story proposals and are now brainstorming together in small collaboration groups to determine the best way to tell each story. In addition, the Courant is also working on a special report on school safety. Stories will be posted online throughout the month with a special section appearing in the April print issue. You can find the Courant online at nchscourant.com.
School Counseling:
Course Selection for next year has begun. Students should create a preliminary schedule now, prior to meeting with their counselor. Hitting submit only saves selections, it does not lock in the schedule. Counselors and students can make changes during their meeting. Here is a tutorial on how to create your schedule:
TutorialAdministrator's Perspective:
This week, Mr. Gusitsch reflected on the February break and what it means to have a “change of pace”. Please feel free to check out this week’s blog post, here.
Athletics:
Here are a few photos from our Unified Basketball Tournament, which took place at St Luke’s on Monday.
English Department:
In Ms. Fitzpatrick’s Film and Lit class students are examining the heroic by viewing the the movie The Dark Knight and analyzing the different strands of the heroic. Speaking of superheros, in Ms. Week’s ECE film class students are attending a film trip to see the new Marvel movie Black Panther. Below are two students from that class creating a live critical commentary on Hitchcock’s North by Northwest using film editing software in our mac lab:
Meanwhile, our very own intern Kristen Lee, has begun her student teaching in Ms. Hernberg’s class! Below is a picture of the two of them performing a class demonstration on narrative perspective for the Literature of the Holocaust class. Students witness an event and write about it from pre-assigned perspectives. It is a warm-up for a creative writing piece in which students rewrite a major scene from a minor character's perspective.
Science:
Students in Biology are growing different generations of plants to see how certain traits are passed on from one generation to another.
Chemistry students are now balancing equations and learning to predict products of reactions.
Physics students studied circular motion and are shown conducting an experiment to determine centripetal acceleration as it depends on a centripetal force.
Following their unit on rotation, students studied rotational mechanics and did several experiments to measure torque, beginning with known masses (weights) and using their knowledge to solve for unknown masses (weights).
VPA News:
Students in Mrs. Moody’s Music Tech IV and Theory class as well as Mrs. Gleason’s AP Music Theory students were given the royal treatment yesterday when they attended a taping of The Harry Show starring Harry Connick, Jr. After the show, Harry met with the students and talked about their favorite subject - making music. The show airs on Thursday, May 3rd. Be sure to set your DVR to record the show because there is a special surprise! (Hint: the picture)
World Language:
28 Students and three parents visited the Roman and Greek Galleries at the MET on February 28. This annual visit organized by Mrs. Corona exposes Latin students to the most extensive Etruscan, Greek and Roman art collection in the North America. Although the short time spent there does not allow for a comprehensive view of the 17000 works in the museum, nevertheless students experience the magnificence of Roman and Greek architecture and art, while, sometimes for the first time, they get a more realistic idea of how Romans lived and celebrated important events in their lives. Notable this year was an exhibition on 12 silver-gilt standing cups, known collectively as the Aldobrandini Tazze. Properly reassembled, the tazze bring to life the history of the first 12 Caesars, as recounted by the Roman historian Suetonius in his De Vitis Caesarum. More info here and if interested in viewing it, the exhibition closes on March 11.
Students have already started writing small essays on their favorite piece of art and their work will adorn our hallway soon.
On March 15, 2018 ( snow date March 16, 2018) the National Latin Exam will be administered. This assessment, sponsored by the American Classical League and the National Junior Classical League, aligned with our program, not only challenges students to retain what they have learned over time(each level builds up on material learned in previous years ), but allows them to compete with approximately 150000 peers world wide.
The philosophy of the National Latin Exam is to provide all Latin student the opportunity to experience a sense of personal accomplishment and success in his or her study of the Latin language and culture. This opportunity exists for all students since, in the National Latin Exam, they are not competing with their fellow students on a comparative basis, but are evaluated solely on their own performance on the exam. Additionally, for the first time for our school, 12 students from the Latin Club will be taking the National Roman Civilization Exam (NRCE) which tests a student's knowledge of ancient Roman society.
