Serving the communities of Hallowell and Farmingdale and the sending communities of Chelsea, North Whitefield, Jefferson, Dresden, and Windsor.
March 8, 2010
Dear Parents/guardians of Students at Hall-Dale Middle School:
This letter is in follow up to my letter of August 26, 2009 in which I informed you that the Maine Department of Education had identified Hall-Dale Middle School as a Continuous Improvement Priority School (CIPS) under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). As part of the CIPS process, Hall-Dale Middle School is required to establish a School Improvement Team, which in turn, developed a School Improvement Plan.
The School Improvement Team includes myself, Assistant Principal Blayne Frost, Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment Chris Chamberlain, parent Hilary Nickles and teachers Angela Moody and Dan Crocker. Over the course of the past several months, the team has written and revised our School Improvement Plan and we have just been notified that it has been accepted by the Maine Department of Education. The enclosed plan is comprehensive and puts in place steps that will help us address areas of student performance.
The results from the fall administration of the New England Comprehensive Assessment Program (NECAP) have been released. I am pleased to inform you that students at HDMS performed well, with 70% of students being proficient in reading and 65% of students being proficient in math. As of this date, we have not been notified by the Department of Education if HDMS has made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) under the guidelines established by NCLB.
My thanks go to the members of our School Improvement Team for their continued efforts in support of Hall-Dale Middle School. If you have questions about any part of the School Improvement Plan please let me know.
Sincerely,
Steven P. Lavoie
Principal
Attachment: Hall-Dale_MS_CIPS_plan.pdf
Student-led conferences will be held at Hall-Dale Middle School on Thursday, March 25, from 3:00 to 8:00 pm. These conferences give students the opportunity to share information about school life and what is happening currently in their academic studies. During student-led conferences students take the lead in explaining their progress, and teachers are present to offer support and encouragement. Please call the main office to schedule your student-led conference. Phone 622-4162 or drop by the our office anytime.
The 6th graders at Hall-Dale Middle School are raising money to attend an environmental education program at Chewonki. Please consider purchasing some “Hall-Dale” items and at the same time help the 6th grade class.
Items will have the name “Hall-Dale” embroidered/screen printed as well as the Bulldog. Please specify name/initials in the table below if you want your order personalized. Select items will be on display at the Middle School and photos of the items can be viewed on the Hall-Dale website at http://www.halldale.org.
Orders must be received no later than November 20th Please make checks payable to Hall-Dale Middle School and return orders and prepayment to the Middle School office. Items will be ready before Christmas.
Please use the attached form to place your order.
Thank you!
DEAR PARENTS,
Beginning this Thursday, October 1, we will be administering the New England Common Assessment Program. This test is replacing the yearly MEA testing we’re all familiar with. The testing program will run daily through October 22. Students will be given one test per day until their grade level assessment is complete.
NECAP testing is very important from several points of view. It provides a way of evaluating our school as a whole and making changes in teaching that may benefit our students. NECAP scores are also used under the No Child Left Behind Act to determine our status as a school needing or not needing improvement. Individual student scores go in permanent folders and are used as one way of determining student needs and course placements.
Please note the following reminders:
Encourage your children to attend school regularly throughout the days of testing, unless they become ill. Missing a test puts your child at a distinct disadvantage because all tests missed must be made up once the student returns to school.
Make them aware of the importance of trying hard. Encourage them to do their best throughout NECAP testing.
Get them to bed early, so they’ll be rested and ready for testing.
Be sure they eat breakfast at home or get a breakfast here at school. Well-fed children are the best test takers.
We will provide snacks for all students who test at mid-morning.
Thank you for your support in this important assessment process!
Please join us at our open House on Thursday, September 24, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Meet teachers and hear about:
We’ll begin in the theater and then visit classrooms!
We look forward to seeing you!
HALL-DALE MIDDLE/HIGH SCHOOL
97-111 Maple St.
Farmingdale, ME 04344
207-622-6211
Steven P. Lavoie, Principal
Donald Ferrara, Assistant Principal
Blayne Frost, Assistant Principal
Greg Henderson, Director of Guidance
Tim Johnson, Athletic Director
August 26, 2009
Dear Parents/Guardians of Students at Hall-Dale Middle School,
I am writing to inform you that the Maine Department of Education has identified Hall-Dale Middle School as a Continuous Improvement Priority School (CIPS) under the No Child Left Behind Act. This letter will describe the reason for this identification, the school choice option parents have for their children and our plans for improved performance for all children.
In January 2002 President Bush signed an education law called No Child Left Behind. The long-range goal of NCLB is that every child will be proficient in core areas of study according to state standards. For Maine, those standards are described in the Maine Learning Results and proficiency is measured by the Maine Educational Assessment. Schools must meet the annual state target for all required subgroups. Because our students with disabilities subgroup has not met the state target in mathematics on the MEA for two consecutive years, we have been identified as a Continuous Improvement Priority School.
Math performance for this identification is determined by the percent of students in the school year who met the proficiency standard on the MEA. In 2008-2009, 17% of our students with disabilities subgroup met that standard, which is below Maine’s state target of 50 %. The school’s Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) information will be made public, along with the status of other Maine schools, in the near future. Hall-Dale Middle School’s Whole School Proficiency Rates of 75% in reading and 57% in math have exceeded Maine’s state target in both reading (58%) and math (50%). Proficiency rates are the percentages of students who met/exceeded the performance standards on the Maine Educational Assessment (MEA).
Our school’s short-term goal is for our school to make AYP this year and our long-term goal is to have all of our students proficient in reading/math. Our detailed plans for improvement will be available in the school office or please contact the school if you would like us to mail you a copy.
The teachers of Hall-Dale Middle School and I have made program improvements including establishing Title I services and we invite you to help in planning the next steps of our program for this year and the future. If you are interested in helping in this effort please call me. Even if you cannot join us in our planning, you can help your child by supporting their academic work at home and encouraging them to always do their best in school.
Because Hall-Dale Middle School has been identified as a Continuous Improvement Priority School, the No Child Left Behind law provides the option for parents to choose another school in this district. Within RSU #2, there are 2 middle schools available for choice: Richmond Middle School and Monmouth Middle School. For comparison purposes, I have listed below the Whole School Proficiency Rates for reading and math at Hall-Dale, Richmond and Monmouth Middle Schools. More information will be available when the state AYP results are released.
Hall-Dale MS Reading: 75% Math: 57%
Richmond MS Reading: 71% Math: 42%
Monmouth MS Reading: 73% Math: 49%
If you would like further information related to school choice, please contact me by Friday September 11, 2009. The deadline for NCLB transfer requests is September 18, 2009.
In addition to offering school choice, Hall-Dale Middle School is also required by NCLB to provide Supplemental Educational Services (SES) to qualifying students. Services in the form of tutoring by qualified and approved individuals/groups will be offered at district expense to those students identified as economically disadvantaged (those who qualify for Free/Reduced Lunch status). More information on this opportunity will be made available at a later date.
Thank you for your continued support of our efforts at Hall-Dale Middle School.
Sincerely,
Steven P. Lavoie
Principal
HALL-DALE MIDDLE SCHOOL
6th Grade Supply List
2009-2010
Math:
A 1” binder with filler paper
Marbleback composition book
1 Subject Notebook (cheap, spiral bound kind)
Sharpened Pencils! NO PENS OF ANY KIND.
For Reading, last year we had
A Two-Pocket Folder
A chapter book
3 Subject Notebook
Sharpened Pencils!
Science:
A 3 subject notebook
Pencils
Ruler (metric or both)
Sharpened Pencils!
Social Studies:
folder
2 fine tip black pens
3 subject notebook
Sharpened Pencils!
Language Arts:
3-ring binder
filler paper
labels to separate sections in binder
thesaurus
Sharpened Pencils!
1 box of any kind of facial tissues
Hall-Dale Middle School 2009-2010
7th Grade Supply List
Required Materials
Three 2” 3-ring binders, with dividers, for math, reading/writing and science/social studies.
Loose-leaf paper or spiral notebooks for binders
Blue or black pens
Pencils
Ruler
Optional Materials
pen/thumb drive to use with Gr. 7 laptop
calculator for math
markers/colored pencils
pencil box or pencil pocket for notebook
paper reinforcements
erasers
1 box of any kind of facial tissues
Hall-Dale Middle School 2009-2010 8th Grade Supply List
A personal reading book is required in ALL classes in case you have completed class work ahead of time.
Math:
School will be providing a 2” - three ring binder. Student will need plenty of loose-leafed notebook paper, a protractor, 12” ruler with metric on the other side, erasers, and folders. Students should provide pencils. A calculator will be helpful in both math and science class (a basic four function calculator with a square root key, will suffice, which are around $10.00).
Science:
Pencils, pens, 1 inch – 3-ring binder with paper, colored pencils, and highlighters.
Social Studies:
Pens, pencils, 2 inch – 3-ring binder with paper (colored pencils are optional but very helpful)
Language Arts:
2 inch – 3-ring binder with paper, dividers for the notebook, writing folders, pens, & pencils
Reading:
2 inch – 3-ring binder with paper, Marbleback composition book, dictionary & thesaurus (used in both writing and reading), pens, pencils, & colored pencils.
1 box of any kind of facial tissues
Grade Six
High Honors:
Clio Barr
Nicole Pelletier
Eva Shepherd
Greta Thiele
Ayedn Young
Jacob Young
Honors:
Luke Armentrout
Spencer Buck
Nathaniel Crocker
Samuel Day
Molly French
Morgan Rush
Nathaniel Stahlnecker
Eli Trask
Emma Wilson
Grade 7
High Honors:
Erin Ballew
Emily Loisel
Steven Longfellow
Honors:
Nicholas Benner
Kyrie Johnson
Emily Maynard
Maura Stottler
Amara Truman
Grade 8
High Honors:
Evelyn Allen
Laura Allen
Sarah Dean
Hannah Perry
Laura MacDonald
Honors:
Carly Beaudoin
Harry Cheung
Michelle Pelletier
Derek Vigue