Weekly Update: April 18, 2025

Dear Families,

We look forward to seeing everyone again the morning of April 28th!  Until then, our hope is that everyone is finding fun and relaxation - peppered with moments of helpfulness and productivity.  Are you enjoying sunny weather? Are you using your time to visit with people you love, to explore new places or try new things?  Are you helping with chores around the house? Reading a book or getting ahead on tasks?  

Whatever it is, may it bring you joy AND… whatever it is, may you be staying OFF social media. We want to remind students and parents that on-line communication is a very messy space that regularly leads to conflict. Please heighten efforts to limit and supervise.

Annual Car Wash

Mark your calendars for Sunday May 18th, 11am-2pm

How many tickets can you sell?

This fundraiser event is a blast. We hope you’ll help sell tickets, bring your own car for a wash, or really dig in and help us out with the advertising washing.  There is something for everyone on this day!

Meet SPARKS

Sparks may not be soft and cuddly like a real pet, but this robot dog is packed with personality and potential. Students can interact with Sparks or program its actions to learn key ideas in coding, robotics, and engineering. It’s a fun, hands-on way to explore how AI and real-world tech work.

We’ll create exciting “missions” and challenges for Sparks, turning the classroom into an interactive tech lab. Sparks isn’t just a cool gadget—it gives students real experience with the kinds of tools and technology used in today’s industries, helping them build skills for the future.

Upcycling Day- Save your stuff:

 Upcycle Day is an event where we all bring in our gently used items, and exchange them for other items we need or want. It is fun, keeps things from the landfill, and limits the need to purchase as much stuff.

We have 3 ways for volunteers to get involved:

• Help us set up:Tuesday, April 29, 4:15-5:15 in the Community Room

• Help us run the event: Wednesday, April 30, 11:30-4:30 in Community Room

• Pack up and deliver left over items to Gift to Give:  4:30 (1 service credit for each trip)

  Ask Ms. McSweeny if you want to help: mmcsweeny@oursistersschool.org

OSS May Calendar Raffle

OSS Family Engagement Committee has secured donations for a calendar raffle drawn during May. Each calendar entry is $10. Students are asked to sell a minimum of 3 calendars. Payments can be made by cash, Venmo, or check.

The three students who sell the most raffle tickets will each receive a 1-hour jump pass at FUNZ. Winners will be drawn weekly on Fridays and announced in our weekly newsletter.
Using Venmo to purchase tickets? Include the word “Raffle,” your. name, phone number, and OSS student’s name.

DATMA Workshop

7th graders learned about adaptive design and architecture during a multi-day workshop with DATMA and Washington State University’s Morphogenesis Lab, led by professor Mona Ghandi. Using nuts & bolts, each student assembled one of four different laser-cut wood models. They further improvised by visualizing inventions and ideas using the models and the principles learned during the workshop.

Multicultural Lunch

Our intention is to promote a greater awareness and appreciation among our students for the different cultures represented in our community. This year, we will have individual tables for each cultural representation. Students will rotate through, trying food, learning about the various cultures, and getting a stamp in their “passport.” 

The lunch will be held on May 7th from 11am to 12:30pm. 

We are hoping to have many yummy, multicultural dishes to share with our community. If you want to bring food to share, please fill out this Google Form to sign up. Please see Ms. McSweeny’s email, or the paper copy in Friday Folders, for more details. 

Summer program  late registration

If you haven’t yet signed up for summer programs at OSS or with OSS partners, please complete this summer program registration form. It’s also not too late to sign up for some sleepaway camps. ☀️

Please be in touch with Ms. Sanders at asanders@oursistersschool.org or 774.328.6694 and she’ll assist you!

Calendar

This link to the calendar on our OSS website is a valuable reference tool.  Below are some key dates:

• April 18-25 April Break; No School 

• May 7 - Multicultural Luncheon, 11-12:30pm

• May 7 - FINAL Required Family Meeting for the school year, 5:30-6:30pm, Zoom

• May 18 - Car Wash 11am-2pm

• May 23 - All School bday party at lunch

• May 26 - Memorial Day; No School 

• May 30 - Festival of Arts and Student Achievement 3:30-7pm

• June 4 - Field Day 12:45-4pm

• June 5 & 6 - Portfolio Conferences by appointment; No School

• June 6 - 8th grade Graduation, 5:30-6:30pm 

Enjoy your vacation - and take it easy with the social media!

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Weekly Update: April 11, 2025

Dear Families,

We had an exceptionally busy last few days and so this update is later than usual, but still before Monday morning!

As you have surely noticed by now, report cards were in Friday Folders.  Our team puts a lot of effort into each comment, and we know the feedback is important. To maximize the value of the time invested in writing them, we energetically encourage families to look at comments carefully, and with their student!

Tuesday April 15th, 5:30-6:30 we are hosting our annual Zoom Admissions Presentation, so if you know of someone who has been eager to learn about OSS but can’t make it on a Saturday - this is their opportunity! Please help us spread the word.

Also, a big heads up that the NB Girl’s Lacrosse team is looking for players and we encourage students to check it out. Students can try it at no cost and, no equipment is needed! If they don’t like it, they don’t have to continue, and full scholarships are available for all OSS students, so there is absolutely no downside to giving it a shot. Register below:

Sixth Grade opens gallery at the Whaling Museum

6th graders rocked their presentation at the New Bedford Whaling Museum this week. After months of research and art making, their presentations wowed us all. The show, featuring drawings, paintings, and sculptures related to life in the 1800s  is on display through the end of the month, and we encourage everyone in the community to check it out! 

Summer program  late registration

If you haven’t yet signed up for summer programs at OSS - or with OSS partners, please complete this summer program registration form. It’s also not too late to sign up for some sleepaway camps. Please be in touch with Ms. Sanders at asanders@oursistersschool.org or 774.328.6694 and she’ll assist you!

Upcycling Day- Save your stuff:

 Upcycle Day is an event where we all bring in our gently used items, and exchange them for other items we need or want. It is fun, keeps things from the landfill, and limits the need to purchase as much stuff.

We have 3 ways for volunteers to get involved:

• Help us set up:Tuesday, April 29, 4:15-5:15 in the Community Room

• Help us run the event: Wednesday, April 30, 11:30-4:30 in Community Room

• Pack up and deliver left over items to Gift to Give:  4:30 (1 service credit for each trip)

  Ask Ms. McSweeny if you want to help: mmcsweeny@oursistersschool.org

Women in STEAM Convention

8th graders showcased their research posters to the school community at our very first Women in STEAM Convention on Thursday. Each student researched three careers within a STEAM topic of their interest, and highlighted three women within those fields to acknowledge and educate others on their accomplishments. Younger students were inspired to learn about the various career paths passion can lead us to!

Celebrating Ms. LeBlanc

Carlene LeBlanc has served for 13 years as our Director of Finance, and this spring we celebrate her dedicated service and all of her hard work. At the end of this school year she’ll finally have time to do some anticipated home renovation projects and spend more time camping!  Carlene crosses her professional finish line at a sprint - always dotting her i’s, crossing her t’s and never missing a beat.  We are so grateful for her careful stewardship of all things OSS.  Carlene, we salute you!

Calendar

This link to the calendar on our OSS website is a valuable reference tool.  Below are some key dates:

• April 15 - Virtual Admissions Presentation, 5:30pm

• April 16 - Spirit Day ~ Movie Day 

• April 18-25 April Break; No School 

• May 7 - Multicultural Luncheon, 11-12:30pm

• May 7 - FINAL Required Family Meeting for the school year, 5:30-6:30pm, Zoom

• May 18 - Car Wash 11am-2pm

• May 23 - All School bday party at lunch

• May 26 - Memorial Day; No School 

• May 30 - Festival of Arts and Student Achievement 3:30-7pm

• June 4 - Field Day 12:45-4pm

• June 5 & 6 - Portfolio Conferences by appointment; No School

• June 6 - 8th grade Graduation, 5:30-6:30pm

We hope you have a fun weekend,

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Weekly Update: April 4, 2025

Dear Families,
We have just begun our 4th quarter, and the balance of our school year is jam packed.  It will fly by, so you’ll want to know that we’ve updated our school calendar for the last week of school, June 2-6.  Key highlights include:

Friday May 30th is our annual Festival of Arts and Student Achievement.  3:30-6:45pm.  Make sure this is on your calendar.  Please plan to join us - and bring friends!  This event highlights and celebrates a broad collection of work from the school year, and is always an experience worth prioritizing.  The formal event invitation is below.

Updated last week of  the school year calendar ~ also in Friday folders:

• Monday, June 2 and Tuesday, June 3 are regular school days (no Evening Study)

• Wednesday, June 4th is a regular school day (our last day of classes) and also our Field Day (no Evening Study)

• Thursday, June 5 and Friday, June 6 — are portfolio conference days, when students present reflections on their year of learning.  Each student will have an appointment, and these will be scheduled soon - but not yet.  

• Friday, June 6 — 8th grade graduation is at 5:30pm. 

Teacher Appreciation Month

Teacher Appreciation Month is around the corner!  At OSS we celebrate for the whole month of May; we find that spreading out the love makes it even more fun. 

The Family Engagement Committee coordinates our efforts, and we put a flier in your Friday Folder this week.  Please email jhachem@oursistersschool.org directly if you have any last minute ideas, suggestions or questions!

4th Quarter Tools Bundle

We strive to think through our Community Core Values and Tools. In other words, when considering life, we lean on these ideas to help guide the decisions we make. We reference these tools throughout the school day, and each quarter we focus on a new collection. 

This is our current bundle of Community Core Tools: Be Grateful, Question and Pose Problems, Value Identity, Reflect Own Values, Overcome Obstacles, Work on Personal Challenges.

Have you practiced a CC Tool today?  If so, which one(s)?!  When, and how?

We often hear from families that they embrace our CC Tools at home too, and we’ve even heard encouraging stories of dinner table conversations about them! Has your family embraced Community Core at home?  We are curious, and would love to hear about it. 

Indoor Croquet!

What fun. Glow in the dark croquet! This week we wrapped up a season of indoor croquet hosted weekly by gracious volunteers. As we like to say, “never a dull moment at OSS!”

Value Identity

This week, fifth graders explored and researched different Native American cultures. Sixth graders worked on personal challenges such as speaking in large groups, and preparing for their upcoming show. We are excited about their opening exhibit at the Whaling Museum!

Buttonwood Park Zoo Gallery

We'd love for you to join us in viewing the amazing pastel animal artwork created by 5th graders all month long at Buttonwood Park Zoo. The students put in a lot of effort, exploring new techniques and keeping an open mind as they carefully built up their designs layer by layer with pastels.

Calendar

This link to the calendar on our OSS website is a valuable reference tool.  Below are some key dates:

• April - Climate Justice, Arab American Heritage Month, and Poetry Month!

• April 6 - (Sunday) Red Cross Blood Drive in the OSS gym 9am-3pm

• April 8 - 6th Grade Whaling Museum Exhibition, 5-6:30pm

• April 9 - Spirit Day ~ “Younger You”

• April 10 - AHA Night, downtown NB 5-7pm

• April 11 - March/April all school b-day party during lunch, Volunteer Lunch 11-1pm, Report cards go home in Friday folders

• April 15 - Virtual Admissions Presentation, 5:30pm

• April 16 - Spirit Day ~ Movie Day 

• April 18-25 April Break; No School 

We hope you have a fun weekend,

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Weekly Update: March 28, 2025

Spirit Show

From slime racing to singing and dancing, our Spirit Show was so much fun! Congratulations to our Student Council for hosting an amazing event, and kudos to our brave and talented OSS performers! There were at least three heartwarming 'sibling acts,' we had multiple performances set to world music, and the whole event was capped with a surprise reprise by Mr. Spencer. The event was a hearty collection of goodness!

Women’s Advocacy Day

On March 24, 7th and 8th grade students attended Women’s Advocacy Day on the Hill, an event organized annually by the Mass Commission on the Status of Women. Students spent the week before preparing a pitch on something they care about that relates to present legislation. Students did an amazing job using their voice to speak on issues such as affordable housing, reproductive freedom, racial and economic justice, and immigration rights. Despite the rainy day, it was a trip filled with sunny moments. They even got to hear Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell speak! Thanks to the YWCA for partnering with us to get our students up to the State House and to work together as a community to #AccelerateAction.

Monkey App Concerns

We are aware that some parents may need to be aware of a digital app called Monkey which allows users to Facetime with strangers.  The following are some details about Monkey.  The rating for this app is mature, but underage users can access and use it:

• Safety Concerns:
  The Monkey app, which is a video chat-based platform similar to Omegle, was removed from Apple's App Store due to safety concerns, specifically the ease with which underage users could join and the lack of robust safety features to protect them. 

• Age Requirement:
  The app's terms of service state that users must be 18 or older, but the platform's design and lack of strong verification measures made it vulnerable to misuse by minors. 

• Google Play Store:
  While Apple removed the app, it's still available for download from the Google Play Store, where it's rated "mature 17+".

We appreciate you, Ms. Goulding!

Georgie Goulding has served for 11 impressive years as our Director of Advancement, and this week we celebrate all of her hard work. Now she has a well deserved chance to kick back and relax for a bit as we welcome Amy Duffell, our arriving Director of Advancement. Thank you Ms. Goulding - and Tully!

Our Sisters’ School at the New Bedford Whaling Museum

Calendar

This link to the calendar on our OSS website is a valuable reference tool.  Below are some key dates:

• March 29 (Saturday) - 8:30-12:30 ~ Greenlight for Girls at Bridgewater State University

• Sunday April 6, 9am-3pm - The American Red Cross is holding a blood drive in the OSS gym.  

  Please sign up if you want to participate. 

• April 8 - 6th Grade Whaling Museum Exhibition, 5-6:30pm

• April 10 - AHA Night, downtown NB 5-7pm

• April 11 - March/April all school b-day party during lunch, Volunteer Lunch 11-1pm, Report cards go home in Friday folders

• April 15 - Virtual Admissions Presentation, 5:30pm

• April 18-25 April Break; No School 

We hope you have a fun weekend,

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Weekly Update: March 21, 2025

On Monday OSS teachers invested our Professional Development day in visiting other schools in the area. We toured buildings, admired art work, murals and inspirational quotes. We checked out classrooms, observed instruction in science, math and humanities classes. We learned how other schools organize tutoring, summer programming and even their own professional development. We returned to OSS energized and motivated to keep striving on behalf of all of students and families!

Tomorrow, Saturday March 22nd, we are hosting a 10am Admissions Presentation and an optional Family Service Day. Twelve people are already signed up - and we can still include more. Please wear clothing for outside projects so you can get dirty.

Friday Folders have interesting materials including sign up sheets for Wednesday evening yoga classes, information about the annual Hunger Heroes project, and an April vacation opportunity to earn a Chromebook through participation with an organization called Tech Goes Home. Take a close look!

Admissions Presentation

Saturday, March 22, 10:00am
Share the OSS experience! Word of mouth is how we fill our school and encourage you to invite family and friends with students in 4th grade to learn about us! Our upcoming Admissions Presentations will be held on Saturday, March 22nd at 10 am and virtually on April 15th. Link to register.

Women’s Advocacy Day

Monday, March 24 | 8:30-4:30pm

As part of our efforts to prepare, this week our students met with State Representative Mark Sylvia, and Monday 7th and 8th graders will participate in an Advocacy Day field trip organized by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women. They’ll visit the State House in Boston and have the chance to use their voices to advocate for laws that support the health, safety, and well-being of women and girls. The bus leaves at 8:30am sharp and will return by 4:30pm. Students must wear collared OSS shirts and jeans (without holes), khakis, or other formal pants, and walking shoes (sneakers preferred).

Spirit Show

Wednesday, March 26⋅11:00 – 11:45 am
Students have been working hard preparing this year’s Spirit Show. It is mid-day so understandably tricky timing, but families are welcome to join - even if only for a bit.

Calendar

This link to the calendar on our OSS website is a valuable reference tool.  Below are some key dates:

• March 22 - Optional Family Service Day and OSS Admissions Presentation, 10am 

• March 25 - Spirit Show Dress Rehearsal

• March 26 - SPIRIT SHOW 11am, OSS gym

• March 28 - End of Q3; Dendrites Conference, 1:15-3pm

• March 29 (Saturday) - 8:30-12:30 ~ Greenlight for Girls at Bridgewater

• April 6 - (Sunday) Red Cross Blood Drive in the OSS gym 9am-3pm

• April 8 - 6th Grade Whaling Museum Exhibition, 5-6:30pm

• April 10 - AHA Night, downtown NB 5-7pm

• April 11 - March/April all school b-day party during lunch, Volunteer Lunch 11-1pm, Report cards go home in Friday folders

• April 15 - Virtual Admissions Presentation, 5:30pm

• April 18-25 April Break; No School 

We hope you have a fun weekend,

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team

Weekly Update: March 14, 2024

If you are interested in adding fun activities to your summer plans, we have free programs available for OSS families. We would love to have your student join us! Please use this link to access our summer program registration form; be sure to complete registration by Friday, March 21. 

If you’d like more information about any program, reach out to Ms. Sanders (email asanders@oursistersschool.org or call/text 774-328-6694). Thank you!

STEAM the Streets

OSS and Nativity Prep students shared an assembly presented by STEAM the Streets, featuring DJ Angelli (also known as Mr. Diaz). The event highlighted the impact of STEAM beyond school, introduced green careers, and inspired students to be part of the solution in protecting the planet.

Anti Bullying at Winslow

Last week, two 8th graders presented their capstone projects at Winslow Elementary School, focusing on bullying prevention and mental health awareness. They shared a video and slideshow with younger students, and led discussions about handling bullying situations.

Women’s Advocacy Day

In 7th and 8th grade Friday Folders you will find a permission slip for Women’s Advocacy Day, organized annually by the Mass Commission on the Status of Women. Next week, students will have lessons on local government, advocacy, and persuasive speaking. On March 24, our plan is to bring them to the State House in Boston where they will practice using their voices to persuade elected officials to pass laws that benefit the health, safety, and livelihood of women and girls. Please sign the permission slip and return it Monday.

Quilt-Patterned Mural

Joan DeCollibus is a dedicated OSS volunteer who collaborated with all of our students to design a quilt-patterned mural which will adorn our front stairwell. She met with each grade to gather sketches and ideas reflecting the spirit of OSS. All of this planning will guide a finished product to be unveiled later this Spring.

Impact Craters

In our space unit, we’re learning about the impact cratering process, which affects all solid astronomical bodies. Last week we made our own “craters” by dropping marbles from different heights into layered pie trays. We took quantitative measurements of our craters, like diameter and depth.

Calendar

This link to the calendar on our OSS website is a valuable reference tool.  Below are some key dates:

• March 17 - Professional Day; No School for students

• March 19 – Tool Belt / Fire Stamp Ceremony at Community Meeting

• March 22 - Optional Family Service Day and OSS Admissions Presentation, 10am - noon

• March 28 - End of 3rd Quarter

• March 29 (Saturday) - 8:30-12:30 ~ Greenlight for Girls at Bridgewater

• April 11 - March/April all school birthday party during lunch

• April 18-25 April Break; No School 

We hope you have a fun weekend and get to enjoy some sunshine,

Ms. Herman and the OSS Team