What’s new with the Hastings PTO

November 06, 2019

MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

View this week’s message from Hastings Principal Louise Lipsitz.

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Hastings News

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Cary Memorial Library Book Sale Vouchers  The Angel Fund of Lexington provided vouchers for all Hastings students for up to $5.00 to use at the Cary Memorial Library Book Sale next weekend! The fair isSaturday, Nov 16 and Sunday, Nov 17. These vouchers will be distributed by the classroom teachers, so check your child’s backpack! Check out the links below for further information: Cary Memorial Library Book Sale Information Students Get Free Books – Angel Fund of Lexington  Support reading and your public library at the same time! Questions, please contact Brenda Rich, Hastings Librarian at brich@lexingtonma.org. School Picture Retake Day School pictures were delivered last week and we hope you love your child’s portrait.  But, if you are not happy, don’t worry!  School picture retakes will be tomorrow, Thursday, November 14. On retake day, students who were absent will take their portrait photo.  And, students who wish for a retake photo, please bring your pictures and provide any notes for the photographer.Thank you! If you have question please email Grace Lee & Christine Manavian at schoolpictures@hastings-pto.org. Square 1 Art Fundraiser Deadline for paper order forms (to be returned to your child’s teacher or the Square 1 Art folder on the PTO table) isFriday, November 15 at 3:00pmand deadline foronline ordersisFriday, November 22at midnight. Celebrate your Hastings student’s artistic talents with gifts from Square 1 Art! All students have received personalized catalogs, showcasing their artwork and the many products available for purchase. Water bottles, tote bags and mugs are popular gifts for the artist and for family members. Get a jump start on your holiday shopping and support Hastings in the process. The more you buy, the more our school earns. If we are able to reach our participation goal of 45%, we receive an even higher profit percentage, so every purchase counts! All products will go home with students by Monday, December 16th. Please email squareone@hastings-pto.org if you have any questions. Halloween Photos  LHS Volunteer Photographers took photos at our Halloween Party and you can find those great pictures here: Hastings Photo Album. Water Bottles We still have plenty of Commemorative Water Bottles; Available for only $5 each.  Visit https://hastingsbottles.square.site/ or contact Dan Strollo (Dan@Strollo.net) and get yours today. Acknowledgements Big Back Yard Thank You (K, 1 & 2) Thank you for a wonderful kick off to our BBY walks! Kindergarten students kicked off their BBY journey observing seasonal signs and changes with: Christine Manavian, Jin Lee, Jaime Talkowski, Juan Yin, Julie Zhu, Heather Coogan, Joe Lei, Fang Xia, Kimberly Ryan, Ali Lynch, Robyn Piasecki, Ling Zhang and Meena Sivanarayanan.1st Graders learned about the “habitat” animals need to survive and how this changes with the seasons thanks to the help of: Ching-Ju Kuo, Indu Ananthakrishnan, Nikhil Dighe, Beth Bristol, Shaila Murdeshwar, Anita Kirmani, Jessica Holt-Carr, Andreina Toro, Erika McPhee, Rituparna Basu, Jin Chyung, Yan Jiang, Kathryn Ready, Liz Sullivan and Jaime Talkowski.2nd Graders learned about types of soil and erosion integrating our building project into this lesson as they took samples from around Hastings with help from: Saimei Feng, Marisa DeVellis, Naveen Cherukuri, Azadeh Assarpour, Emily Jochim, Ali Lynch and Fatima Syed. Upcoming Events Perfectly Puzzled Date:TOMORROW– Thursday, November 14 Time: 7:00-8:15pm Location: Hastings Gym We will be hosting our fourth annual math night this fall, which is newly named Perfectly Puzzled! A team of Hastings’ teachers will be facilitating the evening and we are thrilled to share these messages and resources with you! The event will be similar to last year as we will be focusing our evening together on facilitating math conversations at home.  If you attended last year, we hope you come again! Some messages might sound familiar, but there will be new games and resources for you to try out at home. Perfectly Puzzled is November 14th, from 7:00 – 8:15pm.  Doors open at 6:45pm! Please sign up using this link to thegoogle formso that we can plan accordingly. Click above or copy and paste the link below. https://forms.gle/KohSioKozqD4X7QR9  *Note: We welcome you to bring your children! Please only bring children that attend Hastings.  You will be together all evening and puzzling through the tasks as a team. 🙂 -From Hastings teachers across grades and roles Hastings Multicultural Potluck Date:NEXT WEEK –Wednesday, November 20 Time: 6:15-8:15pm Location: Hastings School The Hastings Multicultural Potluck is a fun annual event where we all get to celebrate the diverse cultural background of the Hastings community. In addition to a potluck dinner, the event will include the opportunity to visit cultural booths, watch/participate in a Parade of Many Cultures and a multicultural performance. (If you prefer to dine at home, you can still join for the rest of the event.) Festive/cultural attire is appreciated. All types of food welcome (pizza, take-out and macaroni and cheese included) but due to allergies at Hastings, please be sure that your dish does NOT contain any nuts, nut products, nut oils, etc. or shellfish. RSVPhere with number of participants and preferred seating time (don’t worry if something changes in the last moment – you can switch times or come without an RSVP, but getting a rough idea will help us plan). https://forms.gle/oqxzDvnPKmPSoXJ89 Volunteers needed – If you are available to assist with event set up (5-6:15pm) and/or clean-up (8:15-8:45pm) please sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080C4CADAF2FAB9-multicultural or if you would like to host a cultural booth, please write to us atpotluck@hastings-pto.org. Early Literacy Coffee with the Literacy Specialists Date:NEXT WEEK– Friday, November 22 Time: 8:15-9:00am Location: Hastings Library Join the literacy specialists, Dr. Reinhart, Miss Muzyka, and Ms. Densmore, to learn about what early literacy learning looks like in Lexington Public Schools and what you can do to support your student at home. If you have questions please email Ms. Densmore at adensmore@lexingtonma.org. Hastings Parents’ Night Out Date: Thursday, December 5 Time: 7:30-9:30pm Location: il Casale Lexington (1727 Mass Ave.) Stop by to celebrate the holiday season with old Hastings friends, and make some new Hastings friends! Light appetizers will be served. Please contact Christine with any questions at vp-planning@hastings-pto.org.  PTO Meeting with Superintendent Julie Hackett  Date: Tuesday, December 10 Time: 7-8:30pm Location: Hastings School Please mark your calendars for the next general meeting on Tuesday, December 10th. We will be joined by Superintendent Julie Hackett, who will speak about the Lexington Public School District and answer any questions you may have. Please look out for an opportunity to rsvp soon. Babysitting will be provided. If you have questions, please email president@hastings-pto.org.

School Committee

Redistricting Hearing:

• Monday, November 18 – Clarke Middle School Auditorium, 6pm

Upcoming Meetings:

• Tuesday, November 19 – Boston Meeting (6pm at Madison Park Technical Vocational High School – 75 Malcolm X Boulevard)
• Tuesday, December 3 (redistricting vote)

All meetings are at 7pm in the Selectmen’s Meeting Room (1625 Mass. Ave.) unless otherwise noted. Full schedule is posted on the town website.

Redistricting information & Timeline

October 1:  Redistricting Announcement

Proposed Redistricting Recommendations were presented to the School Committee on October 1 for review. All of the 6 Elementary Schools and the 2 Middle Schools will be impacted by these proposed changes, and Hastings will grow from 439 students to 646 students. More information is available in the School Committee Packet and Redistricting Update Website (now with searchable maps).

October 15: Redistricting Update

The School Committee agenda packet for the October 15 regular School Committee meeting is available here. It contains updated redistricting information and FAQs both in the superintendent’s report and in the redistricting section (updated slides).

October 16 and 24: School Committee Hearings 

Opportunities for public comment held.

October 31: Superintendent Dr. Julie Hackett sent out this letter Redistricting Letter – Oct 31, 2019 outlining a revised timeline for LPS Redistricting. 

• November 5, 2019 – The School Committee will receive an update on the Transportation Consultant’s analysis of the original recommendation and an alternative minimal impact scenario. 
• November 18, 2019 – The School Committee will hold an additional public hearing at Clarke Middle School Auditorium. The public hearing will begin at 6:00 p.m.
• December 3, 2019 – The School Committee will vote on the redistricting recommendation. The meeting will be held in the Selectmen’s Meeting Room and will begin at 7:00 p.m.

Please note: All questions about redistricting can be sent to president@hastings-pto.org. We will send a message to Superintendent Julie Hackett who will answer questions. There is also an online form to submit comments in addition to the hearings listed above.

School Committee Liaisons
We are still looking for additional school committee liaisons. Consider being a school committee liaison by attending or watching the School Committee meetings remotely and sharing news relevant to the Hastings community in this section of the weekly bulletin. With 3-4 parents participating the commitment would be one two-hour long meeting approximately every two months. Contact Christine at vp-planning@hastings-pto.org if you are interested!

Upcoming Month’s Calendar