Harwood Families -
Our two ongoing Harwood goals are focused around continuing to strengthen a rigorous and
robust academic program, and cultivating community. In the coming weeks at Harwood, we are embracing both of these values as we head into harvest time, peak foliage, and stick season.
Over the next couple weeks, we are excited to be rolling out our Extended Studies options for the year in 9th and 10th grade English, social studies, and science classes! Extended Studies is one way for students to engage in topics and skills beyond that which is covered and practiced in a course. Extended Studies also offers students a way to distinguish themselves academically by being noted on the transcript when it is earned for a specific course. Check this out for more details. Students had the opportunity to sign up through their classes and TA, and each course is using ELO time to introduce the first assignment in the coming weeks. Depending on the course, students will be diving deeper by
Reading and having Harkness discussions on How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
Writing poetry that incorporates the concepts of Transcendentalism
Researching and modeling nuclear fusion and stellar evolution
Investigating and calculating how different substances absorb, retain, and give off heat
Exploring untold stories in Vermont History, including those of Vermont African American soldiers who served in the Civil War
Studying the foundational documents that led to the establishment of the United States
We look forward to continuing these options throughout the year, and supporting all students in engaging in an academic program that provides exploration and rigor.
We’re also looking forward to some Harwood Spirit next week!! During advisory and ELOs, our community will engage in some Harvest themed activities and have the opportunity to partake in service projects including gleaning at a local farm and visiting our local elementary schools to read and help with fall yard and trail work that support outdoor education across HUUSD.
In gratitude,
Laurie, Meg and Bethany
Calendar:
10/19 - Photo retake day
10/24 & 10/26 - 12:30 - 3:30 - PSAT (library)
10/26 - 9-3:30 - Blood Drive (auditorium lobby)
10/27 - Q1 ends
*Week of 10/23-10/27 - change in week schedule to gold-black-gold-black-7block due to visit a
11/08 & 11/16 - 3:45 - 6:00 - Academic conferences
*information about how to schedule your Academic Conferences will be available in the next Newsletter.
Cultivating and maintaining a sense of belonging, pride and purpose:
Topics | Information/Links |
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 Athletics | Congratulations to the Bass Fishing team who captured the State Title last weekend while setting a new State record as well. Congratulations to the boys Golf team for finishing 3rd in the State Tournament. Fall sports are winding down with a week to go in the season before playoffs. Please keep coming and support the kids. The fall schedule can be found here. Winter sports sign ups are live for middle and high school sports, please click here to register. Also the winter parents meeting for the High School and Middle School is on November 15th at 6pm at the Harwood High School. |
 Health Office Updates | Hello from the Health Office! Flu/Covid-19 Vaccine Clinics: Walmart in Berlin is going to have clinics on 10/14 & 10/28, 9am to 1pm. No appointments, walk-in only and this is not posted on their website. They are currently out of COVID-19 vaccines but are hoping to refresh their supply soon. Children under the age of 18 who are on Medicaid are not eligible for the flu vaccine but they are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available. Take care! Magge, Becca & Teal |
 | The theme for October is “Community and Belonging”. Our circle dialogues have been focused on the idea of belonging and what it means to truly belong to the school community. We followed up this week by reading a student article that demonstrated some of the strengths of our school community from their perspective and talked about how we can develop a community that is welcoming. Next week is Harvest Fest! This week offers some great opportunities to have fun, provide service in the community and to strengthen our bond with our TA groups through fun competitions. |
School Counseling | Women Can Do Conference Last week students attended the Women Can Do conference at Vermont State University’s Randolph campus. Students were able to learn about and try hands-on activities in STEM trades and careers. It was a fun and informative day!  |
Gap Year Presentation |  The Career and Personal Planning class hosted Julia Rogers this week. Julia is a highly skilled gap year consultant through her business, EnRoute Consulting. Julia provided a thorough overview of the benefits of gap years, the array of possible options from group tours to individually designed experiences and a planning guide for students interested in planning a gap year. Are you interested in learning about gap year opportunities? You should check out her webinar! Vermonter's Gap Year Information Night Studies show that taking intentional time away from formal learning to focus on personal growth can lead to better outcomes in higher education and even better life satisfaction. Join Vermont-based gap year expert Julia Rogers, founder of EnRoute Consulting, for an exciting presentation that will cover the benefits and opportunities surrounding the gap year option. You'll learn tips and tricks for planning a gap year on any budget and where to go for onward planning resources. Join us in celebrating Gap Year Exploration Month this October by joining this free event! Date: Thursday, October 19 Where: Online! Register here When: 7-8pm |
Strengthening and sustaining a rigorous and robust academic program:
Topics | Information/Links |
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 | Central Vermont Career Center will be coming to Harwood on October 23rd during ELO to share information about their programs, upcoming open house and application process. Interested students should sign up in PowerSchool. Students who are interested in applying to CVCC will want to save the date to attend the CVCC tour on November 10th. More information will be forthcoming about this opportunity. |
|  Central Vermont Career Center is hosting their annual open house on November 16th from 5:30-7:30! This is a great opportunity to see what our students are doing, participate in our auction, observe some fun demonstrations and really get to know what CVCC is about. |
 |  This week we held our Club Fair! The event provided an opportunity for all students to learn about the many club options at Harwood. Each club had a table that was staffed by current club members. Students were able to learn more about clubs of interest and could sign up to be invited to the next club meeting. Clubs at Harwood are open to every interested student. We have time during the school day when clubs meet. Students can join the club at any time in the year. Here is a list of Harwood clubs. It is our hope that every student finds a club that matches their interests. |
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Community Announcements:
Topics | Information/Links |
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|  The Ski & Skate sale, the annual fundraiser for the Waitsfield school PTA, is THIS SUNDAY 10/15, 9-4 pm at Mad River Glen. The sale is always chock full of great deals and is a terrific way to outfit our growing kids for the winter sports season ahead. There are plenty of sweet items to be had for adults too! We hope to see you at the sale!
The sale is still in need of a few volunteers for afternoon shifts. Sign up to volunteer here. ALL volunteers are entitled to participate in the early shop, from 7-8 a.m, the day of the sale -- it's like a VIP shopping pass, just for volunteering. |
 Harwood and Community Wellness |  Join facilitators from Hannah’s House and the Mad River Valley Libraries for a discussion of the book Unconditional: A Guide to Loving and Supporting Your LGBTQ Child by Telaina Erikson. We will meet at Hannah’s House in Waitsfield from 5:30-7:00 on Thursday: October 26. Thanks to support from the Warren United Church, copies of the book will be provided to all who register. This program is free, but spaces are limited. Please register here. |
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