End of the Year News!

Good afternoon and Happy Summer!!!

Grades are now available in iParent/iStudent.  Please reach out to your guidance counselor or Dean if you feel there is an inaccuracy.

The main office will be open throughout the summer with the exception of occasional vacation days.  Please call or email before coming in to make sure someone is there. I will be out of the office for most of July on vacation and attending a couple of conferences but can be reached by email.

Please follow the link below for all summer assignments:
Summer Assignments

Peer Leader applications will be available to all members of the classes of 2019 and 2020 starting early next week.  Students will receive an email with the application and should return it to me prior to August 15.  We welcome all students to apply to be a part of this program and help our new students transition to AHS.

Schedules for the 2018-2019 school year will be available on or around August 6.  Stay tuned!  Guidance and our Deans are working diligently to make sure we have a schedule that meets the needs of the most students.  It's not an easy job.

Here are some tentative dates for Start of the School Year activities/times are to be determined:
Peer Leader training- August 21
Student Leadership training (ALL students interested in having a voice at AHS are encouraged to attend!)- August 23
New Student Orientation- August 22, 2018 4-6pm


Enjoy the summer and be sure to check out the Parent Flyers  for fun around town this summer.

June 8, 2018

Good afternoon-

The year is quickly coming to a close.  Four more days of the regular school year to go!  Thursday, June 14 is the last full day of classes.  Students only need to attend during final exams when their class has an exam.  Buses run on the regular schedule and students are welcome to stay in the building for extra help and to study. Sandwiches and salads will be available for lunch.  

June 15-21: Final exams for grades 9-11


The Fall Sports meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday 6/13 at 6:30 in the high school auditorium.  Any student, along with their parent/guardian, who is interested in playing a fall sport at the high school or middle school level should attend the meeting.  Please note that incoming 6th graders are able to participate in middle school cross country only.  Information on registration, athletic fees, and tryout dates will be made available that evening.  If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to Mr. Grimes at mgrimes@ashland.k12.ma.us



Ashland High School will be hosting exchange students from China next year. The students need a home for the year.  If you are interested in hosting a student check out the attached flyer. 

Your Lego Donations Help AHS Robotics Team Succeed

The 2018 New England Regional Botball competition has come and gone, but not before the AHS Robotics Team placed second in the competition. This year marks the 16th year this team has been able to compete, and a big part of the success is due to fundraising and donations from the community. The team is now looking forward to the 2018-19 school year and fundraiser opportunities, including the sale of used Legos at Ashland Day!

Can you help? Somewhere in your garage, basement, or attic, there may be a box, bin, or tub of Legos collecting dust. Through your donations, the Lego team will turn used Legos into awesome sets that will then be sold at Ashland Day in efforts to raise funds for the 2019 competition. If you are interested and able to donate, please drop Legos to the main office at AHS when the building is open (about 9-2 daily during the summer). Simply tape “Robotics Club Donation, A219” to the top of your bin, and the Robotics Club will do the rest. Questions? Contact Chad McGowan, adviser, cmcgowan@ashland.k12.ma.us.

As to the clubs success this year? Led by seven seniors (Sabrina Liu, Nathan Savard, Conrad Tulig, Josef Komissar, Arthur Wang, Hunter Steele, Ethan Prybala, and Matt Levine) the club came in second to perennial winner, Winchester HS. With AHS’s two robots, Frank and Stein, the team made their way through the double elimination finals, where they eventually faced their second defeat of the day.

Thanks to the leadership of seniors as well as an upstart group of sophomores, the team cruised through early rounds as they prepared for an eventual head to head competition with Winchester. In a stunning move in the semifinals, AHS reprogrammed one of their bots on the fly and shocked Pembroke high by removing the oft coveted ‘Botguy’ from their robot’s reach. Unfortunately, the consistency of the Winchester team caught up with Ashland in the finals as they fell to defeat. At the end of the day, Ashland returned home with two trophies, Second Place Overall, and the KISS award for engineering and design. Congratulations AHS Robotics and Good luck next year!

 

Enjoy the weekend and be sure to check out the Parent Flyers .

Ways to Nurture a Child’s Mental Health

There are many things you can do to cultivate your child’s mental health. Children need adults to be present in their lives, treat them with respect, and model healthy behaviors and ways to handle emotions.

• Actively listen before offering your advice.
• Surround them with healthy adults.
• Teach them how to be safe.
• Use open ended questions.
• Model forgiveness.
• Be present.
• Have scheduled family time.
• Be patient.
• Share your feelings and validate theirs.
• Limit electronic time for everyone.
• Respond calmly when their emotions are elevated.
• Make play and exercise a requirement.
• Tell the truth.
• Be consistent and follow through with what you promise.
• Practice relaxation exercises together.
• Recognize positive choices.
• Set and respect boundaries.

June 2, 2018

Happy Graduation weekend to all members of the Class of 2018 and their family!

We had a great senior week and are looking forward to celebrating the graduates tomorrow.  As a reminder, the doors to AHS open at 11am and graduation starts at 1pm. The ceremony will be live-streamed by WACA for anyone that wants to tune in at home.
https://livestream.com/WACA-TVAshland/events/8227233
Here are some pictures of the week:

News from the Athletic Department:
Fall Cheer tryouts will take place on Friday 6/8, Monday 6/11, and Tuesday 6/12 from 6:30-8:30 in the High School Cafeteria.  Tryouts for the Fall Cheer Team are open to any current 8th, 9th, 10th, or 11th grader. All perspective cheerleaders must bring an up to date physical with them to the tryouts in order to participate. If you have any questions please reach out to Mr. Grimes at mgrimes@ashland.k12.ma.us or Coach Burke at mariekatherineb@gmail.com.  

Ashland Raises Healthy & Happy Kids:
The Benefits of Exercise for Teen Mental Health

One of the best things parents can do for their children is help them build an exercise habit. Summer break is a great time to start and instill this habit in children of all ages. Exercise might mean dance, yoga, swimming, hiking or organized sports. It should be something your children really enjoy so they're inspired to keep doing it.

Studies show that exercise has the following benefits for teen mental health:

• Positively impacts levels of serotonin, a chemical that helps regulate mental health.
• Releases endorphins, the body's natural "happy chemicals."
• Lowers levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
• Stimulates the neurotransmitter norepinephrine, which improves mood.
• Increases self-esteem and body positivity.
• Helps teens sleep better.
• Exercise prevents substance use disorder.