First Trimester News

• New Principal • Summer Reading Program • 3D Printing • Project Lead the Way • New Music Teacher • PTA Fundraiser • Four Corners Awards • Kindergarten Potato Picking

• Kindergarten Fire Safety • Mock Election

• Nursing Home Halloween

Published by Room 213

At the end of July, Mrs. Lise Pelletier became the principal of Madawaska Elementary School. She is responsible for staff and students from pre-k through grade 6. She wanted to be a principal because she wanted to help get the school running smoothly so students can enjoy coming to school. Mrs. Lise works on the school schedules and makes sure all the students have the same amount of time in every curriculum. She makes sure to cover materials that match the standards of Maine, and she also does cafeteria duty. Mrs. Lise added, “It’s pretty interesting being the principal. I never realized the amount of work that the principal has to do. Not only are we responsible for students’ learning, we need to make sure it’s a happy place inside and out of the school building. I still have a lot to learn. I’m learning new things everyday.”

The Summer Reading Program took place in the summer of 2016 throughout the state of Maine. The challenge was put together by the Maine Department of Education and the Freemasons of Maine. The people who participated in this program are the school aged students in the state of Maine that chose to participate. The participating students had to read over 500 minutes over the summer to get the chance to win a bike. The state of Maine wanted to encourage kids to read and to be active. One of the winners from Maine was Madawaska Elementary student, Zachary Quistorf. Mrs. Shirleen Gendreau,the guidance counselor, added, “It's a great program because the students can read for their enjoyment and have a chance to win a bike.”

November 2016

Madawaska 5th/6th grade students received a 3D printer for their classroom. Mrs. Gina Jandreau, the 5th and 6th grade science teacher, instructed students on how to make a 3D design using the software program, Tinkercad, for the 3D printer. They went through a tutorial which has an end product of a printed 3D castle. They did a bit of designing and printing at the end of last year when they received the 3D printer through a Perloff Foundation grant award. Students have have been printing since the beginning of October. Mrs. Jandreau stated, “3D printing allows students to be creative, learn how to use the computer for designing, and bring their designs to life.” Students were learning the engineering process through a STEM project. They got a first hand look at what the job of an engineer entails. Student were given the problem of designing a 3D model of a bubble wand, which meets multiple constraints, to entertain their three year old cousin. They developed their bubble wands using the Tinkercad program, printed their prototypes, tested them and redesigned them. After completing the bubble wand project, students decided to design their own creations such as key chains, chicks, buttons, and houses. Mrs. Jandreau stated, “I want to thank Dave and Sandy Perloff for donating the 3D printing to our students. We recently won another 3D printer, the Makerbot Replicator +, which is an upgrade to our current printer. It will help with all the printing projects that the students have created.”

Project Lead the Way is a science curriculum to help students gain interest in engineering and bio-medical fields. The school received a grant, through Twin Rivers, in June to purchase supplies needed to implement the program. The curriculum is taught in the kindergarten, 3rd, and 5th/6th grade science classrooms. Mrs. Gina Jandreau, the 5th/6th grade science teacher, attended a week-long training in Vermont at the end of June so she could be trained in the PLTW program. She trained other teachers in September so they could teach the program to their students. The funds from the grant allowed the school to purchase the science kits needed for kindergarten, grades 3, 4 and 5/6. The school will receive more funds next year to purchase the remaining kits needed for the other grades who did not participate this year. Mrs. Jandreau stated, “The kids really enjoy learning through hands-on activities that these kits contain. They are also being introduced to computer coding, which is something that our other science curriculum was lacking. A big thank you to Twin Rivers for allowing us to be part of this project!”

Ben Meiklejohn, the new music teacher, started working on October 4th, 2016. Mr. Meiklejohn said, “The community is really supportive and the people here have a passion for music. Not every town cares about music like Madawaska.” He wanted to be the new music teacher because he’s loved music his whole life and loves teaching others about music. He’s also learning about other instruments. Mr. Meiklejohn is working at the elementary school and the high school. He teaches different skills for each grade at the elementary school. For the younger students, he teaches clapping and singing. For the older students, he teaches more complex musical concepts. He has a schedule where he sees band students twice a week. Mr. Meiklejohn works at the elementary school in the morning until lunchtime, and then he goes to the high school for the rest of the day. He teaches high school band in the morning. Mr. Meiklejohn stated, “I really enjoy teaching here in Madawaska because everybody enjoys music.”

The PTA fundraiser took place at Madawaska Elementary School, and surrounding communities from October 6, to the 21st. Mrs. Nicole Ayotte, the PTA president, was in charge of this PTA fundraiser. All of the students from pre-k to 6th graders participated in this fundraiser. Mrs. Nicole Ayotte started this fundraiser to help the PTA purchase supplies and what they might need for activities for students throughout the year. The money from the PTA fundraiser helps sponsor students’ needs throughout the year. Mrs. Shirleen Gendreau, the guidance counselor, stated, “This PTA activity is a worthwhile activity because it benefits MES kids.”

On September 29, 2016, the kindergarten classes at Madawaska Elementary School, went potato picking at Mr. and Mrs. Marcel Morin’s potato farm. Mrs. Christine Chasse and Mrs. Jenn Sirois, the kindergarten teachers, were in charge of this activity. Every September the kindergarten teachers teach French vocabulary words about potato harvest to the students. At the end of the month, when the students know their vocabulary words, they bring them on this field trip to pick potatoes. Mrs. Morin showed them where to pick the potatoes. They followed her in her car with the school bus. They went to the potato house and looked at huge potatoes. After they were done picking potatoes, they went on a hill to have a morning snack of apples and juice. The children brought home their own five pound potato bag. When they got back, the teachers made mashed potatoes, fries, and baked potatoes. The kindergarteners went to test all the potato foods and voted for the best one. The fries won. Mrs. Christine Chasse would like to add, “I think it’s very important that we teach our students about potato harvest because it’s part of our culture, and the students loved learning French words!”

The 5th and 6th grade students went to the Madawaska Four Corners Park on the morning of October 6th, at 9 A.M. Mrs. Gisele Dionne, the superintendent, wanted available students to greet those who finished the Real Cannonball Ball Race. International Land Speed Federation’s Real Cannonball Race, a cross country race for scooters, began in Imperial Beach, California, and ended at the Four Corners Park in Madawaska on October 5th. Mrs. Dionne thought it would be nice for the finishers of the race to be greeted by the friendly faces of school children. Students made posters for the finishers to welcome them to Madawaska and cheered once they arrived at the park. Mr. Joe Lachance, Four Corners Park President, made presentations to the race finishers. He also gave a tour to everyone present on the history of the Four Corners Park.

The kindergarten fire safety trip was organized by Mrs. Jen Sirois, a kindergarten teacher. Kindergarteners, teachers, and chaperones went to the presentation. Fireman, Jason Boucher, presented to the kindergarteners on October 20, 2016, at the fire station in Madawaska. They were there from 8:30 to 9:30 in the morning. Students went to the presentation because October is Fire Safety Month and fire safety is important. While they were there, the firemen got dressed in their uniforms to show the children what they would look like so that they would not be scared or frightened if they saw them. Then, they listened to a fire safety talk. Mrs. Christine Chasse, a kindergarten teacher, stated, “It was an amazing presentation, and what was cool, was that the fire truck had its ladder up in the air, eighty feet high!”

On October 25, 2016, Mrs. Bonny Tingley, a fifth and sixth grade teacher, organized the mock election for Madawaska Elementary School. The mock election is an activity where students get to vote for which president they would like. Of course, their votes don’t count as a real vote. The mock election took place in room 216. The fifth and sixth grade students were assigned jobs including; ballot clerks, ballot counters, traffic directors, ID checkers, ballot box security, and escorts. Mrs. Tingley organized the mock election for students to get a simulated voting experience. Mrs. Tingley stated, “We should vote in the mock election to practice our voice for voting for our officials.” Mrs. Tingley thinks it was a nice learning process and an excellent simulation for the students. The elementary students voted Hillary Clinton as their new president.

On October 31, kindergarten students dressed in their Halloween costumes to sing to the residents at Ridgewood Estates and Country Village Estates. Mrs. Christine Chasse and Mrs. Jenn Sirois, kindergarten teachers, were in charge of organizing this event. The kindergarteners went to sing because they wanted to see smiles from the residents from the nursing homes, and they wanted the residents to see their amazing costumes. Mrs. Sirois added, “The residents loved the kids, and the residents gave the kids Halloween treats.”