Dear NAMS families, I hope that this message finds you and your family well. Students appeared to be fully rested and recharged when they returned to school Wednesday. It was wonderful to fill this building with learning and discovery again after the break. We have 2 early release Wednesdays this month with students being dismissed at 1:05 p.m. on the following dates: Wednesday, January 9, 2019 Wednesday, January 23, 2019 NAMS PTAC Meeting The next PTAC meeting is scheduled for Thursday, January 10, 2019 @ 9:00 a.m. in the NAMS Cafeteria NAMS Music Concerts this Month We have 2 concerts scheduled for this month on the following dates: Full Year Chorus Concert - Tuesday, January 15, 2019 from 7-8 p.m. Grades 6 & 7 Band Concert - Thursday, January 17, 2019 from 7-8 p.m. Physiology of Addiction and the Adolescent Brain Dr. Ruth Potee will be presenting on the Physiology of Addiction and the Adolescent Brain on Thursday, January 10, 2019 at 6:30 p.m. in the North Andover High School Auditorium. The North Andover Police Department will also be setting up their Hidden in Plain Sight display for adults to walk through before the presentation. Attached below is a flyer with more information about this event. Looking Ahead  Monday, January 7, 2019 NAMS School Council Meeting @ 2:35 p.m. Tuesday, January 8, 2019 Wednesday, January 9, 2019 Early Release at 1:05 p.m. for students Thursday, January 10, 2019 Friday, January 11, 2019 Monday, January 14, 2019 Tuesday, January 15, 2019 Full Year Chorus Concert from 7-8 p.m. Wednesday, January 16, 2019 Thursday, January 17, 2019 Grades 6 & 7 Band Concert from 7-8 p.m. Friday, January 18, 2019 - NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS (Professional Development Day for Staff) Monday, January 21, 2019 - NO SCHOOL (Martin Luther King Day)  REMINDERS NAMS 2018-2019 Yearbooks You can order your NAMS 2018-2019 yearbook online now for $35 here.
NAMS PTAC NEWS NAMS PTAC Direct Appeal Campaign If you have not already, please donate to the NAMS PTAC. You may find the direct appeal letter to NAMS families here which provides all of the different ways that you can donate. NAMS PTAC relies mainly on direct donations from the NAMS Community to raise the funds necessary to support these programs at the middle school. Save the Dates: Thursday, January 10th - Next PTAC Meeting at 9:00 a.m. in the NAMS Cafeteria Friday, January 25th- Comedy Night Fundraiser at China Blossom Wednesday, February 13th - Book Fair along with Family Night Saturday, February 16th- Merrimack Hockey Game, see below for more information NAMS Merrimack College Hockey Night Come join us for a fun night as we watch the Men’s Merrimack College Hockey Team take on the University of Maine! Saturday, February 16, 2019 at 7:00 p.m. at Lawlor Rink at Merrimack College Tickets are $15 per person and include admission and a puck for Merrimack’s Chuck-A-Puck! Additional prizes will be given away at the game so make sure to get your tickets! TICKETS ARE LIMITED - These discounted tickets will not be available at the door. Purchase your tickets for the holidays! Please see the attached flyer for more information. Department of Children and Families Needs Foster Homes Is there room in your home and heart for a foster child? The Department of Children and Families is actively recruiting foster parents for children coming into care from North Andover, MA. We are searching for individuals or families with the love and patience to help foster children. You can be single, married, partnered, divorced or widowed. You can own your home or rent. We need homes for children aged 0 to 22 which include sibling groups, children with special needs, medically involved children, and infants born exposed to drugs. We are looking for long-term foster homes but also have a need for emergency and respite homes which involve a shorter time commitment on the part of a foster family. Our goal is to provide our foster children with a supportive and healing environment in a home in their own community until they can be reunited with their families or another plan can be made on their behalf. The rewards of providing daily care, guidance and acceptance are immeasurable. If you are thinking about becoming a foster parent, you can learn more about the application process and the supports provided by the Department by contacting Brenda Fitzgerald, Family Resource Recruiter at Brenda.Fitzgerald@state.ma.us or at 978-557-2721. Opportunity for Current NAMS Grades 7 & 8 Students FIELD ECOLOGY AND GEOLOGY COURSE – TETON MOUNTAIN SCHOOL, JACKSON, WYOMING August 2-11, 2019 Approximate Cost: $3,500 which includes everything (i.e. food, travel, lodging, instruction) Tentative Itinerary and Course Objectives: This summer field course will take place on the campus of the Teton Mountain School in Jackson, Wyoming. Jackson is just outside Teton National Park and an hour south of Yellowstone National Park, both of which are areas renowned for their biological and geological wonders. Teton Mountain School is a field school that specializes in teaching science programs about the Teton/Yellowstone ecosystems to k-12 students. This class will focus on teaching students about the local ecology and geology/geomorphology of the area. For 6 days, we will stay in dormitories at the Teton Mountain School in Jackson. Here we will look at the geology and glacial geomorphology of Jackson Hole, so that students understand the geology that created the “hole”/valley where the town is located, and the surrounding Teton Mountains. Then we will look at how the glaciers have weathered these mountains and created their current features and topography on a hike up into the valley to an active glacier. We will also study the ecology of the unique ecosystem within Jackson Hole. We will also spend 5 days and 4 nights touring and camping in Yellowstone National Park. This section of the class will cover several different subjects that are unique to Yellowstone. We will study the geology that is behind the formation of the remarkable geologic features found in Yellowstone, such as geysers and hot springs, as well as the volcanic geology that created the park itself (it is a hotspot, much like Hawaii, but in the center of a continent). We will hike to a fossil forest where entire forests were buried by volcanic ash and fossilized, leaving standing trunks of rock. We will also study fire ecology, looking at how Yellowstone has recovered from the devastating wildfires that burned much of the park a decade ago, and how this influences the ecology of the region. Finally, we will study how the reintroduction of wolves into the Yellowstone ecosystem and how this has changed the ecology of the park and the importance of top predators in other ecosystems. This class will be offered for credit through the summer school program. It will include some pre-trip and post-trip research as well as a final assessment (research paper, project and/or final exam). All meals, lodging, bedding, and transportation while in Jackson is included in the tuition price and will be handled by the Teton Mountain School. Tuition will also include transportation to Logan Airport and the cost of the airline ticket to Jackson, WY. Linens, sleeping bag and pad, and camping equipment are all included in the price. If you are interested in applying to join this trip, please complete the application here. Craig Richard richardc@northandoverpublicschools.com
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