Celebrating the holidays at Stonehedge

Creating snowman cards

Third graders involved in holiday crafts

Decorating cookies and trees

Pajama day in Mrs. Kerme's class

Story time

Feeling festive in fourth grade

Making elf pictures

Enjoying the holiday party in fourth grade

Fifth grade preparing for their fiesta...

                                               
     ...and enjoying the results!

Charles Dickens Reader's Theater with Mrs. Quick's class

Mrs. Abbott takes the "Reading Tree" on the road.

Thank you to all the families that so generously contributed to our Giving Tree.

I feel privileged and honored to be able to work in this caring and supportive community.  As the holidays approach, I want to send a message of great joy and appreciation to the entire Stonehedge community.  This has been a wonderful and exciting year.  Our students have worked hard in their classes and enjoyed the many activities we have been able to offer. Our teachers are dedicated to their students and are taking on many new and exciting methods with which to engage and challenge them. The support from our PTA and dedicated parent volunteers has never been stronger.  We are thankful to our BOE and district level administration for leading us through some of the toughest times in public education and keeping the focus on our students’ well being and learning.  With school out and our routines disrupted for the next two weeks, we may get that stressful feeling that there is too much to do with not enough time to do it all. It may help to remind ourselves what the writer Donald E. Westlake once said, “As we struggle with shopping lists and invitations, compounded by December’s bad weather, it is good to be reminded that there are people in our lives who are worth this aggravation, and people to whom we are worth the same.”

Happy Holidays!

Brent

Early December Events

"There Once was a Longhouse"

      

The Merry - Go - Round Youth Theatre presented the production “There Once was a Longhouse” to all the Stonehedge fourth grade classes last Friday. 

      First, each actor gave a classroom presentation providing the students with the background knowledge for the performance. Classes have been studying the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Nation for some time and demonstrated their tremendous knowledge when quizzed by the actors.

      The story took place in front of a longhouse in a Haudenosaunee village. Upon arriving at the gym, students were greeted by the actors and led through a longhouse to five campfires where they assumed the identity of a Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida or Mohawk tribe member. The students chose a chief of each tribe, sent their representatives to the Council of Nations, played a hunting game, and listened to a traditional Haudenosaunee story. The actors then took time to answer some of the students’ questions.

      It was a terrific experience for the students to actually “be there” to learn about the topic. 

Classroom Presentations

Sitting around the campfire.

The chief is chosen by the women of the tribe.

The Council of the 5 Nations.

Tribe members learn a traditional Haudenosaunee dance.

Playing a hunting game - who can sneak up on the "deer."

Winter Concert

      Many thanks to Mrs. Cheney and the Fifth Grade Orchestra students, and the Fourth and Fifth Grade Chorus students led by Mrs. DeMartini, for a wonderful Winter Concert.

      Stonehedge students and staff were treated to the music Monday afternoon at school, and family and friends enjoyed the music and songs at the high school in the evening.

      We all appreciate the hard work and effort everyone put in to get ready for this event.

Last minute rehearsal

                         
                                    It's Show Time!

"Cheese, Please"

     The last time tacos were on our school lunch menu, they were served without cheese.  Some students politely asked the staff about this and learned that the cheese needed to be removed in order to meet carbohydrate and sodium counts.   Our fifth grade students knew just what to do.  In Social Studies Class, they are covering a unit that includes the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  Having learned that, a group of students drafted a well written “Cheese Please” petition and circulated it among staff and students to gather support.  In no time they had collected well over 100 signatures.  The petition was sent to Dr. Brown and he took action.  Mr. Pelton, Assistant Superintendent for Management Services, had the staff re-design our taco recipe so that our tacos not only meet wellness standards, they include cheese! 

We had tacos with cheese today and our students are feeling quite thankful and proud of themselves. As you can see, it is a happy lunch room.

Yearbook Pre-Sale

Order your yearbook online by December 31 and the cost of the standard yearbook is only $11.00. After December 31 the cost of a standard yearbook will be $12.00. Go to ybpay.lifetouch.com and enter Yearbook ID Code: 8399615 to order. This special offer is only available online.

Brent

Happening in October

Family Fun Night

Our annual Family Fun Night was a blast!   Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make it a success. 

PARP 

It has been a very cool October at Stonehedge. All of the Cool Cats are really enjoying our PARP/Reading Celebration. Each classroom has been treated to a variety of guest readers. We greatly appreciate all of the VIPs who gave of their time to come in and read to our students.  Again, we owe a giant THANKS to our PTA for coordinating this!

Assistant Superintendent Brian Kesel reading to Mrs. Hammerschmidt's class

Hon. Nicholas Midey sharing a book with Mr. Perkins' class

 WGMS Principal Steve Dunham  visited Mrs. Lyons' class

 NewsChannel 9 Newscaster Ms. Staci-Lyn Honda  reads to Mrs. Harrison's class

Senator John DeFrancisco shared a book with Mrs. Lyons' class

Mr. Keith Newvine, a WGHS English teacher, shared some of his favorite poems with Mrs. Hayes' class

Officer Kelly Grace read a Halloween story to Mrs. Lilienthal's class

Half-day Dismissal This Friday 

Students will be dismissed at 11:30 AM on Friday, October 24. Please plan accordingly for dismissal and childcare! Teachers will take part in a variety of professional development opportunities in the afternoon.

Halloween Carnival

The high school’s R² committee is putting on a Halloween Carnival on Thursday, October 30th from 5:00 - 7:00 PM. in the West Genesee High School Parking Lot. Activities for elementary school age children include: It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, a costume contest, trick or treating through the school, face painting, refreshments and much more. It sounds like a lot of fun.

Halloween

Next Friday, October 31st, our Halloween Parade will begin at 10:00 AM. In planning ahead for your child’s costume, please make sure they choose something appropriate as we don’t want to scare our younger students. No costumes with any sort of weapons will be allowed. Only those parents who have signed up and have been contacted to help in the rooms during the parties will be allowed down the hallways and in the classrooms. If you will be helping out in a classroom, please don’t forget to sign in at the office. Detailed information about the parade and parties will be coming soon. 

C.O.D.E. 

Officer Brand, of the Camillus Police Department, will be presenting to each grade level on Thursday, October 30. This is our second year of an expanded Community Oriented Drug Education to all grade levels.

The Stonehedge Student Council

Stonehedge Student Council had their first meeting on October 22. Each month two new Student Council representatives are selected from each fifth grade class. These students will be representing the entire Stonehedge student body, from grades K through 5. The Stonehedge Student Council will meet at least twice a month and is ready to consider all students' ideas for making Stonehedge an even better place for everyone.

WE LOVE OUR PTA  

The Stonehedge PTA is second to none.If you have been an active member,you already know that. If you haven’t been involved, we encourage you to join and enjoy the benefits. Of course, the number-one reason to join the PTA is to make our school better for children, but there are advantages for the parent as well. Joining our PTA will strengthen your connection to our school. While we have a great school, we know that it is not yet perfect. By getting involved you become part of the solutions, helping make positive changes. Our PTA plays an important role in fundraising to provide beneficial supplies and resources for our classes and social events—all vital  to a school’s success. We all know that parenting is not easy. It helps to share ideas, concerns and experiences with other parents and educators in the community. PTA functions are opportunities to meet other parents and teachers, building rapport and discussing issues that are on your mind. By volunteering with your PTA, you gain valuable experiences. It’s an opportunity to put your skills and hobbies to good use for a good cause.

Brent