Wishing You a Very HEALTHY and Happy New Year!Happy New Year! For many people, the changing of the calendar brings new resolutions to change some aspect of their lives. Did you know that New Year resolutions have a very long history? They have been traced back to ancient times. According to Wikipedia, “The ancient Babylonians made promises to their gods at the start of each year that they would return borrowed objects and pay their debts. The Romans began each year by making promises to...

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December has arrived and that means that the holiday season has officially begun! If we haven’t done so already, we begin to plan for that perfect holiday season – the perfect family activities, the perfect decorations, the perfect photos, the perfect meals and, most of all, the perfect gifts. All of these things are meant to make us perfectly happy during the holidays. We do all of this, of course, for our children – to make them happy. But are these the things that they really...

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November at HOD...We Have a Lot to be Thankful For!!   It’s November… the month of Thanksgiving and giving thanks! We all put aside time this month to think about all that we have to be thankful for. Here at HOD, we do a lot of thinking, because we have a lotto be thankful for! Every day, we have “an attitude of gratitude” and do our best to foster it in our young students. During November, our gratitude is displayed in several different initiatives. One of...

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Dear Parents and Guardians of HOD Students,I am happy to report that we had a great start to the school year here at HOD! Thanks for all that you did to prepare your child(ren) for the first day of school. You helped to ensure a smooth opening! After a busy summer, it was wonderful to have our students and staff return rested, reenergized and ready for a new year of learning and growing.  We hope that you and your children have enjoyed the first month of school as much as we have! The new...

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Dear Parents and Guardians of H. Olive Day School Students, Thanks to all of you, we had a great first day of our new school year. All of our first and second grade students were settled in and ready to start their day by 9:00 a.m.! It was wonderful to see all of our students come back to school so eager to start the new year! We thank you for all that you did to prepare your child(ren) for the new school year. All of us at HOD look forward to another fabulous year of learning and growing! Now,...

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Another very busy school year is coming to a close. Especially with the lack of snow days, the school  year went by in the blink of an eye for us at HOD! With the emphasis on the Common Core and Curriculum Frameworks, MCAS testing, time and learning and accountability, elementary school has certainly changed over the past two decades. Most of these changes are good changes. We have learned that our young students can learn even more than we thought they could. We have witnessed our students...

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HOD – it’s a great place to be!  That is because all of us at HOD KNOW that it takes a village to raise and educate a child! Here are just a few people who deserve a special HOD High 5!                        Mrs. Ann Hurley, HOD school nurse, who was honored by all of us at HOD on School Nurse Day, May 9th, for her outstanding service to the children, families and...

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2-4-6-8 – Who Do WE Appreciate?ap·pre·ci·a·tion    (uh-pree-shee-ey-shuhn) n. 1. Recognition of the quality, value, significance, or magnitude of people and things.2. A judgment or opinion, especially a favorable one.3. An expression of gratitude.The dictionary definition of the word ‘appreciation’ is pretty simple and succinct. We all know, however, that the feelings behind the word are much more intense and complex! A feeling of appreciation...

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Ahhhh….. spring! Even though we had a mild winter, it was still exhilarating to have the first day of spring arrive.  After a winter with little precipitation, we hope April showers will bring those May flowers. At HOD, April brings something just as lovely and captivating as flowers - it brings an abundance of POEMS. That’s because April is National Poetry Month at the H. Olive Day School. We will highlight and celebrate poetry every day for an entire month! We all know that...

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HOD – it’s a great place to be!  That is because all of us at HOD KNOW that it takes a village to raise and educate a child! Here are just a few people who deserve a special HOD High 5! You will see more High 5’s every month. The Norfolk Teacher Parent Association for funding wonderful curriculum enhancement programs throughout the school year for all of our students. Our students not only enjoy but also learn a great deal from these curriculum related presentations! Our...

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Parent–Teacher Conferences: A Tip Sheet for ParentsTaken from: The Harvard Family Research Project Website As a parent, you are your child’s first and most important teacher. You and your child’s school have something in common: You both want your child to learn and do well. When parents and teachers talk to each other, each person can share important information about your child’s talents and needs. Each person can also learn something new about how to help your child....

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Dear Parents and Guardians, We’ve all heard the saying, “It takes a village to raise a child”. Not only do we believe that to be true at HOD, but we also believe that the “village” needs to educate the whole child.  As a result, we long ago adopted a whole child approach to education in our school. Why is a whole child approach important? When Molly McCloskey, the Managing Director of the Whole Child Initiative for the Association for Supervision and Curriculum...

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Mrs. Carolyn Kelley, HOD School Adjustment Counselor, for organizing our very successful “Eyes and Hi’s” initiative.  When you see her, say “Hi!” and give her a well deserved high 5! Mrs. Robbins and Mrs. Key, HOD secretaries, for not only assisting with every operation and task at HOD, but also for making sure that the office is decorated for every occasion! We don’t know how HOD could function without them! Coach McInnis and 12 members of the King Philip...

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On February 8th, we will celebrate our 100th Day of School at HOD! It is an educational milestone in the school year that is truly worth celebrating. On our 100th Day, we take time to marvel at all of the learning and growing that has taken place - not only with our students, but also with all of us! It is truly amazing to see the amount of learning that occurs with our young students in just 100 days. We see three year old preschool students who come through the doors without an idea of how a...

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An article on education.com relays Ramey and Ramey’s “Ten Characteristics of Children who Succeed in School”.  The following list is from that article. http://www.education.com/magazine/article/What_Kids_Succeed_School/ Are “eager to learn.” From earliest childhood, parents and community have offered interesting things to explore, and have encouraged curiosity. Pursue learning. This means they ask questions, and they seek help. When they get stuck, they know...

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In their book, Going to School, Craig and Sharon Ramey outline 7 Essentials Proven to Help Your Child Every Day.  Although most of this seems like common sense, it is reinforcing to all of us to review what we, as important people in the lives of our children and students, can do to enhance the quality of their education. Encourage exploration with all the senses, in familiar and new places, with others and alone, safely and with joy. Mentor in basic skills, showing the whats and whens,...

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  To Mrs. Beth O’Connor and Mrs. Faith Tierney, HOD reading specialists, for organizing our annual “Snuggle Up With a Good Book” reading initiative program! To our HOD readers who read 3,830 books in just the first week of the program!!  To the HOD resource teachers - Mrs. Holli Merritt, Mrs. Melissa Wig, Mrs. Kelly Dyson and Mrs. Liz Moscariello – for providing a very informative presentation on Response to Intervention to members of the South East Elementary...

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I would like to encourage parents/guardians to nominate a great teacher for the 2012-2013 Massachusetts Teacher of the year.  We have talented teachers within the Norfolk Public Schools, and this is a nice way to recognize their dedication to the teaching profession.  Please see details on how to nominate.  Nominations are due February 3, 2012.

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According to the calendar, winter has officially arrived! With the lack of snow and, for the most part, frigid temperatures, the weather doesn’t seem very “wintry”. We live in New England, however, so we know that it is coming! And what better way to spend a winter’s evening  - or a snow day – than to pull out the family collection of board games? Sure, they are a lot of fun, but board games have a lot more to offer than just good old-fashioned family and friend...

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HOD- it’s a great place to be!  That is because all of us KNOW that it takes a village to raise-and-educate!- a child!  Here are just a few people who deserve a special HOD HIGH 5! For the students, staff and administration of the H. Olive Day for their generous contributions to our Holiday Caring and Sharing Project! Thanks to their contributions, several families had a very happy holiday season! To the HOD “shopping and wrapping elves” who either spent an evening...

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