Extracurricular Program Information – Winter 2012

Posted Dec 6, 2011

Center, Elmwood, Hopkins and the Middle School (Grades 1-8)

Winter Session 2012

Winter 2012 Extracurricular Catalog – Open the pdf catalog for class titles, dates, costs and descriptions.

Click Here to Register Online for Extracurricular Classes
(Registration Opens at 9:00 pm in the evening on Thursday, December 8.)

Use our online registration system to enroll your children in our popular, affordable and convenient extracurricular classes. Registration is available on a first-come first-served basis at all schools. At the time of online registration you will be able to see how many spots are left in each class. Our system accepts payments by VISA, MasterCard and eCheck.

Technical Support: Amy Ritterbusch extracurricular@hptaonline.com 508.625.0467

December 8-15 – Early Bird Registration Discounted Rates for HPTA Members Only ($15 off each class)

New members are welcome! You can sign up for membership online at the same time you sign up for extracurricular classes, so you won’t miss out on the discount. Please note that during the last session, we received over 260 registrations within the first hour of Early Bird registration. Many classes fill quickly!

Friday, December 16 at 10:00 am – General Registration Begins
All Classes are Full Price (no discounts)
Open to Non-Members and Members

Friday, January 6 – Last Day to Register for Extracurricular Classes

Week of January 17 – Winter Session Classes Begins

Center School, Elmwood School, Extracurricular Programs, Hopkins School, Middle School

Kids Night Out Keeps Sixth Graders Dancing

Posted Dec 1, 2011

On Friday, October 28, the HPTA sponsored the 6th Grade Kids Night Out at the Hopkinton Middle School.  The IGNITE team cheered on more than 200 students as they arrived.  DJ Carl Adams provided music for the night and Eric Robinson supervised activities in the gym.

Students danced the entire night and the gym was filled with constant activity.  A special thank you to the IGNITE students for keeping the party fun and festive the entire night!

All the smiling faces were proof that a great time was had by all!

Article by Stacy Burden
Photos by Liz Pomeroy

Middle School, The Runner

,

FIRST LEGO League Robotics comes to Middle School

Posted Oct 1, 2011

First LegoThe First LEGO League Robotics program kicked off its first year at the Middle School with a family orientation September 19. The lecture hall was jam packed with parents and students eager to learn about the program.

The high school robotics team competed for the first time last year in the FIRST Tech Challenge competition, advanced to the global finals, and won sixth place in the Division at the championship.

Students work in teams guided by their coaches and imaginations to solve real world engineering challenges, using LEGO MINDSTORMS robots, to complete a series of tasks for points.

They start by researching the challenge. Then they apply math and science concepts, and design, build, test, and program robots.

Amanda Fargiano , Hopkinton’s FLL Program Coordinator said she began working with Junior FLL in  1995 and coached her first FLL team in 2009. All six teams have been registered as novice teams and will be competing in the regionals at the Shrewsbury High School in December. They have eight weeks to prepare for the competition. This year’s challenge is Food Factor -“Keeping Food Safe”

Students were bubbling with excitement as Fargiano discussed the program.  Good luck to our 36 middle school students as they start their journey in the world of robotics!

Article and photos by Anjali Arora

 

 

 

Middle School, The Runner

,

Parents Go Back to School For a Night

Posted Oct 1, 2011

Hopkinton Middle School held its Back to School night on September 21, 2011. Principal Alan Keller began the night by introducing teachers and discussing Middle School and district statistics and changes.

Currently, the school has 815 students enrolled in grades 6, 7, and 8. Incoming grade 6 is about 270 students.  Keller talked about how middle school is the foundation where the children learn to get organized and to set the stage for their future success in High School.

Assistant Principal, MaryEllen Grady, talked about the middle school being the place where children will experience the maximum change and grow cognitively, hormonally, mentally and physically.  She said the best thing about teaching middle school is that the students are full of hope and enthusiasm and want to learn all the time.

She said, “Middle school years are about striving for independence. Parents, teachers and guidance counselors are the most influential.”

All 22 of the HPTA volunteers were at the school. Kathleen Karpe, Co-Vice President of the HPTA Middle School Board talked about how HPTA supports enrichment in the Hopkinton Schools. The HPTA has spent more than $2 million on Hopkinton Public Schools since 1993. It will be giving about $162,000 to the district for this school year, and $82,000 has been allocated to technology this year.

The HPTA plans to spend $15,000 on enrichment and which will support events such as Myth Masters and Yoku Watkins.  It is also planning to spend $1,200 for appreciation events such as Kids Night Out and Elders Tea.

The parents followed their child’s schedule for a day after the presentations. Each parent attended six classes of 15 minutes each.  The hallways of the school were crowded as parents tried to find their classrooms, catching up with old friends and making some new ones.
In her presentation Ms. Grant she has been teaching in Hopkinton for 30 years and is now seeing children of the students she taught. She said she hopes to retire before the grandchildren start attending the middle school!

Article and photos by Anjali Arora

Middle School, The Runner

,

The Middle School Grade Six School Council Parent Representative is Abbie Rosenberg

Posted Sep 22, 2011

Abbie Rosenberg’s bio:

My name is Abbie Rosenberg (Sisitsky). My husband and two children (Zachary, currently in
6th grade and Evan, currently in 5th grade), moved to Hopkinton almost 9 years ago from
Framingham. We chose Hopkinton due to the excellent school systems and the appealing
community.

I am a nurse practitioner in psychiatry as well as a psychologist. I have a background working
with all forms of psychiatric illness, specializing in anxiety and depression. During my training
I developed patient and family educational classes which I held for several years in many
Massachusetts communities. Currently I have a part-time private practice out of my home in
Hopkinton, serving adults with depression, anxiety, transitional issues, parenting issues and
marital issues. I also work one day per week at Lesley University, where I work with students
in need of mental health services as well as with graduate students.

Since moving to Hopkinton I have become an active member in the Hopkinton Running Club
and in multiple HPTA roles. I also established and chair the Sharon Timlin Memorial Race and
Family Fun Day which has been a successful fundraiser and community event in Hopkinton,
raising money for ALS research.

I enjoy spending time in both of my children’s classrooms and have been very impressed with
the educational system thus far. I have been on the Elmwood, Hopkins and Middle School
councils in the past and feel that I have served as a parent with a strong community voice in
these roles. I hope to continue as an active member of the Middle School Council for the next
two years and to contribute to continued growth and excellence in our schools.

Middle School, School Council