Barrington Public Schools

📚NATIONAL SUMMER LEARNING WEEK: This week, July 10-14, is National Summer Learning Week! National Summer Learning Week celebrates the many ways children and youth can engage in new and continued learning over the summer break months. Our District recognizes the social, emotional, and educational benefits of summer learning. Our students and schools have been busy this July! Here are some resources to keep learning all summer long: Our Barrington Public Schools Summer Learning site has summer reading and learning activities for all students in the District, grouped by grade level, school, and subject: https://www.barringtonschools.org/o/page/summer-learning The Barrington Public Library's Summer Reading Challenge allows Barrington children and teens to earn virtual raffle tickets for reading books and completing book reviews now through August 18 to use toward prizes: https://barringtonlibrary.beanstack.org/reader365 The National Summer Learning Association's Discover Summer website has resources, activities, and access to local programs to keep children engaged all summer long: https://discoversummer.inplay.org/

⭐BMS BEST BUDDIES RECEIVES OUTSTANDING RECOGNITION: Barrington Middle School models a respectful, responsible, and inclusive learning community where all students can excel. Recently, BMS Best Buddies was recognized as the 2023 Outstanding Middle School Chapter by Best Buddies Massachusetts & Rhode Island. The award letter written from Best Buddies MARI states that BMS "epitomize[s] our mission of inclusion" with "incredible students that lead by example and show others what kindness and inclusion truly look like." Congratulations to BMS Best Buddies and to the administrators and staff whose support of student organizations like Best Buddies enriches our students' middle school experience. As a result of receiving this award, Barrington Middle School is being considered for national recognition. Recipients of national Best Buddies awards will be announced at next week's Best Buddies International conference in Indiana. Learn more about Best Buddies in Massachusetts and Rhode Island here: https://www.bestbuddies.org/mari/ This photo was taken by Julie Furtado for East Bay Media Group.

🎫NAYATT STUDENT WINS FEINSTEIN GOLDEN TICKET: Sienna, a student at Nayatt School, won the Feinstein Golden Ticket! As part of her win, Nayatt School and a non-profit organization of Sienna's choice both received grants from The Feinstein Foundation. Sienna selected Operation Stand Down Rhode Island (OSDRI), a non-profit dedicated to ending the cycle of veteran homelessness through outreach, advocacy, and wrap-around services, to receive a $500 Feinstein grant. She and her family volunteer with OSDRI and hope the donation will expand local awareness of this important cause. Congratulations, Sienna! Thank you to the Feinstein Foundation for such a generous gift.

🎊BMS BRIDGING CEREMONY: Flashback Friday to this year's Eighth Grade Bridging Ceremony! Two weeks ago today, Barrington Middle School celebrated the end of an era for Grade 8 students completing their middle school experience. Proud parents and families packed school grounds under sunny skies for the Bridging Ceremony. Even Taylor Swift made an appearance - through Dr. Anderson's insightful and inspiring send off speech. Congratulations to our BMS Class of 2023! We'll be cheering you on as you enter high school this fall.

☀️END OF SCHOOL YEAR SUPERINTENDENT UPDATE: Summer break is now in full swing, following the last day of school on Friday, June 23. Thanks to the hard work of our students, educators, staff, and administrators and the continued support of our parents, families, and Barrington community, Barrington Public Schools had an incredible 2022-2023 school year. This year, students, staff, and schools in our District have been recognized by organizations like Rhode Island Department of Education - RIDE, US Department of Education, National History Day, Rhode Island Interscholastic League, New England League of Middle Schools, National Blue Ribbon Schools Program, and more! Congratulations to our BPS community for a year well done. Have a safe and enjoyable summer! Read the full end-of-year message from Superintendent Messore here: https://www.barringtonschools.org/article/1162725

🎉HAMPDEN MEADOWS CELEBRATES FIFTH GRADERS: If you've been by Hampden Meadows Elementary School this week, you may have noticed some special front entry decorations. Each sign celebrates a fifth grader who is completing their elementary education today, June 23! Congratulations to Grade 5 for a year well done. The District is cheering you onto your next adventure: middle school!

🪁BPS YEAR END ACTIVITIES: As the school year winds down, students across the District are enjoying outdoor field day activities. Last week, Barrington Middle School's Lime Cluster had fun sack racing, playing Capture the Flag, and more! Barrington's four elementary schools also participated in exciting year end field day traditions, with each school hosting outdoor activities for students this week. This story was covered in the Barrington Times on June 15: https://www.eastbayri.com/barrington/stories/barrington-middle-school-students-focus-on-fun-at-field-day,113461 All photos were taken by Richard Dionne, Jr. for the Barrington Times.

🌳KINDERGARTEN ARTWORK ON DISPLAY: Nayatt School and Primrose Hill School kindergarten students and their families attended a special open house hosted by the Barrington Tree Commission on Tuesday, June 13. With their artwork on display in the Barrington Public Library's Collis Family Gallery, kindergarteners excitedly showed off their creations and participated in conservation-learning activities. Students even had the chance to vote on the types of trees they want to see added to the town's landscape! Learn more about conservation in Barrington here: https://www.barrington.ri.gov/174/Conservation-Commission

🎷BHS JAZZ ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE: Today, June 13, Primrose Hill Elementary School students and staff had the best seats in the building for a lively concert by the Barrington High School Jazz Ensemble. Highlights of this afternoon's performance included a cover of "Good Time" Owl City & Carly Rae Jepsen and a phenomenal trombone solo. Thank you, Mrs. Hughes and the BHS Jazz Ensemble, for sharing your talents!

💼BMS CAREER DAY: Career Day returned to Barrington Middle School on Friday, June 9. Students in Grade 7 and Grade 8 experienced a full day of exploring how different career paths intersect with their interests and passions. Andrew "Mr. L" Lazouras, karate master and program director at Rocky Silva's American Karate, gave an inspiring keynote in the BMS auditorium to kick off Friday's event. Students spent time throughout the day learning from local professionals about various careers, including culinary and visual arts, and reflecting on what they learned. Career Day ended with a closing keynote from Matty Blake, Lite 105 morning co-host and host of The Curse of Oak Island: Drilling Down, and a musical performance by the band Wildflower. Career days are immersive learning experiences that help students connect their classroom learning to future paths and enable students to begin thinking about potential areas of interest. They also provide a supportive setting for students to practice their communication skills like public speaking and active listening. This year's Career Day would not have been possible without the hard work of BMS staff like Mrs. Poirier, Mrs. Nary, and Mrs. Nelson whose leadership and organization made this event such a success.

📖BMS STUDENTS PARTICIPATE IN PRIMROSE HILL SCHOOL READING WEEK: This week, a long-standing tradition returned to Barrington Public Schools: Barrington Middle School students reading to Primrose Hill School students during their Reading Week! On Tuesday, June 6, BMS students visited Primrose and read with students in five different classrooms ranging from Pre-K to Grade 3. Prior to Reading Week, middle schoolers were selected to join the in-District fieldtrip after reading aloud a few pages of a picture book on FlipGrid. BMS students say their favorite things about participating in Reading Week at Primrose Hill School include "meeting all of the kids and getting to read to them" and "getting to see [their] old teachers". Thank you to Mrs. Roy and Ms. O'Kane for bringing this very special tradition back to BPS - and to all students and teachers whose participation made this possible. What a great way to kick off the last few weeks of the 2022-2023 school year!

👩‍🏫RAZZ CLUSTER WAX MUSEUM: Barrington Middle School's Grade 7 Razz Cluster spent Tuesday morning, June 6, turning their school's Library Media Center into a wax museum. A “wax museum” is an interactive exhibit where students, costumed as well-known figures, stand at attention like a museum mannequin in front of a visual display describing the life of the person they are representing. Visitors "activate" a wax museum figure by pressing a button on the display. This signals the student to begin reciting a short monologue as their historical figure. Wax museums are immersive learning experiences - and require lots of hard work! Razz Cluster students each chose a historical figure and researched their life, their experiences, and their accomplishments. Based on their research, students designed a visual display showcasing the biographical information they learned and wrote and memorized a monologue speech to deliver as their wax museum figure. Finally, students created a costume representative of their figure to wear during the presentation. Kudos to Razz Cluster students and their teachers for today's well-attended wax museum exhibit!

🧑‍🎓BHS CLASS OF 2023 COMMENCEMENT: On Sunday, June 4, the Class of 2023 became Barrington High School's newest graduates. Congratulations to this phenomenal group of young adults for their perseverance, persistence, and determination. The future is looking very bright! The Graduation Ceremony and Saturday's Friendship Service were both livestreamed on Eagles News Network. You can view the ceremonies here: https://vimeo.com/833086541 Thank you, Ms. Miller, for capturing this video of our graduates tossing their caps yesterday.

🎓BHS SENIOR SCHOOL WALK: Students and staff in the District showed out to congratulate the Barrington High School Class of 2023 during the first annual senior school walk! Dressed in their graduation regalia, BHS seniors visited Primrose Hill Elementary School, Nayatt School, Sowams School, Hampden Meadows Elementary School, and Barrington Middle School and walked through each school building to excited applause and cheers from students lining the hallways. Seniors stopped often to high-five elementary and middle school students and hug their former teachers. What a fantastic send off for Barrington's next graduating class as they head into graduation weekend. The graduation ceremony for the Class of 2023 is scheduled for 2:00 PM on Victory Field. Pending inclement weather, the ceremony will be moved into the large gymnasium with additional overflow seating (livestreaming the ceremony) in the auditorium.

🗺BMS GRADE 8 VISITS WASHINGTON, D.C.: Barrington Middle School eighth graders left Barrington for their class trip to Washington, D.C., on June 1 and safely arrived in the nation's capital after a 9-hour drive. Today, they kicked off Day 2 of the trip with an early morning visit to the White House. While exploring landmark locations in the District of Columbia, BMS students are learning about how the United States and its government operate. Thank you, Mr. Moran, for photographing the experience.

🍉BHS SENIOR COOKOUT: Graduation is just a few days away and Barrington High School seniors are ending their time at BHS with a familiar activity: Senior Cookout. This afternoon, the senior class gathered outside to sign yearbooks, pick up yard signs, and eat lunch together for the last time this year. Even Mr. Ashley joined in the yearbook signing fun! Congratulations to the Barrington High School Class of 2023! The graduation ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, June 4, at 2:00 PM on Victory Field.

🏫PRIMROSE HILL STUDENTS TOUR THE TOWN: Primrose Hill Elementary School third graders have been learning about local government as part of the Grade 3 Rhode Island State Standards for Social Studies. On Wednesday, May 31, they had the opportunity to see local government in action with a field trip around town! PHS Grade 3 toured Barrington's Town Hall, Public Safety Building, Public Library, Preservation Society Museum, and Prince's Hill Cemetery and met with municipal leaders including the Chief of Police, Fire Chief, Town Manager, and BPS Superintendent.

📜BHS STUDENTS RECEIVE CIVIC LEADERSHIP AWARD: Two Barrington High School students were among the 120 Rhode Island high schoolers recognized by the RI Department of State for their acts of service and community engagement. At a ceremony held at the Rhode Island State House on May 12, Samuel Barber and Sophia Ford both received the 2023 Rhode Island Civic Leadership Award. Congratulations, Sam and Sophia!

🧪BHS CHEMISTRY STUDENTS WIN FIRST PLACE: Barrington High School scientists have been busy! Last week, AP and Honors Chemistry students competed at the 2023 Annual Rhode Island High School Chemistry Contest held at the University of Rhode Island on May 26. The BHS Honors Chemistry team won the first place Joseph W. Ince Award for Division I. The Division I competition is for students who have had no more than one year of chemistry that is not AP. Iris Yang (1st) and Sam Bishop (2nd) won individual awards. The BHS AP Chemistry team won the first place Joseph W. Ince Award for Divison II. The Division II competition is for students students in AP chemistry or those who have had more than one year of chemistry. Maddox Godwin (1st) and Luke Andsager (2nd) won individual awards. Congratulations to the BHS AP & Honors Chemistry teams and their teachers - Mrs. Jayasuriya, Ms. Nicodemus and Ms. Gentile - for such outstanding achievements! Our students' success would not be possible without the support and expertise of our District's dedicated educators.

BARRINGTON MEMORIAL DAY PARADE: Barrington Public Schools students remembered those who have died in military service to the United States by participating in Barrington's Memorial Day celebrations. Barrington High School seniors walked alongside the Barrington Education Foundation in Monday's Memorial Day Parade while bands from Barrington Middle School and Barrington High School played music. Members of BMS Best Buddies also walked in the parade carrying a handmade banner honoring Barrington's fallen heroes. This story was covered in the Barrington Times on May 30: https://www.eastbayri.com/stories/photos-barrington-celebrates-memorial-day,113117?fbclid=IwAR2HfafWxMv1BZtAKM--Lcv5wytwS0yExvrO5v79rVEAunk_XlCNVRlF2S8 All photos were taken by Julie Furtado for East Bay Media Group.