Skip to main content

September 29, 2017

Good afternoon on this rainy Saturday- I hope you are all enjoying a quiet weekend.

First and foremost, thank you so much for another great Parent's Night. As always I heard a lot of positive feedback about your presentations. Please take a moment to complete this Google Survey about the evening. Many of you told me or sent emails about how much you enjoyed the earlier time. The time change was a result of a conflict with football. The game was moved forward an evening out of respect for the Jewish holiday. I will be making sure that conflict does not happen again next year.

Thanks to all of you who have submitted your self-assessment and goals which were due yesterday. I spent some time going through goals last night and was awestruck with the professional practice goal the majority of you have chosen. I can not wait to hear more about the planned benchmarks and planned activities. Your commitment to the students at AHS is amazing. Thank you for making relationship building a commitment this year. You all make such a difference as individuals and I can't wait to see the collective impact.

Keep the following dates in mind as you plan for the month of October!
October 9- No School
October 16-20- Homecoming week! More details to follow from Josh
October 17- all school assembly to hear Jamele Adams!  9th & 10th grades- 2nd block, 11th & 12th grades- 3rd block
October 18- picture retake day & early release for students at 12:35pm- see information from Asst. Supt. Vieira for what you will be doing for the day/afternoon
October 24- Courageous Conversations- Love.Inclusion.Trust- join us for a community evening with Jamele Adams to continue the conversation on equity and inclusion 
October 26- National Honor Society induction

Enjoy your weekend!
Ashland Raises Happy & Healthy Kids: Ways to Prevent Obesity and Eating Disorders in Adolescents
Below are some evidence based (scientifically researched) strategies to prevent eating issues, both obesity and eating disorders, in adolescents.
  1. Do not diet. Dieting is associated with greater weight gain and increased rates of binge eating in both boys and girls. Dieting is counterproductive to weight management efforts. Dieting can also predispose to eating disorders. In a large study of 14 and 15 year olds, students who severely restricted their calorie intake and skipped meals were 18 times more likely to develop an eating disorder than those who did not diet; those who dieted at a moderate level had a fivefold increased risk.
  2. Eat family meals when you can. Eating family dinners most days was found to be protective against purging behaviors, binge eating, and frequent dieting. Theories for why family meals are protective include the following: families will consume healthier foods than teenagers would choose on their own; parents can model healthy food choices; family meals provide a time for teenagers and parents to interact; and parents can monitor their child’s eating and address issues earlier when they are aware of their child’s eating behavior.
  3. Do not talk about weight.  Several studies have found that parental weight talk, whether it involves encouraging their children to diet or talking about their own dieting or weight, is linked to children being overweight or having eating disorders. Parents who had conversations about weight had adolescents who were more likely to engage in dieting, unhealthy weight-control behaviors, and binge eating.
  4. Focus on healthy eating. If parents talk about healthy food choices, overweight adolescents are less likely to diet and to use unhealthy weight-control behaviors.
  5. Promote a healthy body image. Approximately half of teenage girls and one-quarter of teenage boys are dissatisfied with their bodies; these numbers are higher in overweight teenagers. Instead of talking about weight and looks, emphasize what your child’s body can do and encourage healthy eating and exercise.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

August 22, 2025

Good afternoon- Thanks to everyone who helped to make New Student Orientation a success last night. It was great to see so many students and staff in the building. I am looking forward to seeing you all on Monday. We start at 8AM in the auditorium. There will be some members of the Class of 2026 painting their parking spots on Monday afternoon. Please try to park in the faculty parking lot or in the back of the building if you usually park in the student section.  New staff, please join the staff  Google Classroom . All information sent to faculty/staff will be housed here. The  class code is a5ca6a4. The custodians have been working hard to make sure each classroom has the correct number of desks (minus study halls). There may be a few classrooms off a desk or two based on student moves at the end of this week. If anyone has furniture in their rooms that is not being used, please let me know. We are short some L-shaped desks, under-desk file cabinets, and bookcases....
Post a Comment
Read more

May 12, 2025

Happy Mother's Day to all of the moms & mother figures out there- Best of luck to the special athletes competing in the 5-Town Special Olympics today!  I apologize for the late notice, but we will do a class meeting with the juniors/prom attendees on Tuesday, May 13, and the seniors on Wednesday, May 14, during x-block. Please send your second block seniors to the auditorium, as we are not able to make announcements on 5/14.  Art Saves Ashland, which includes the student art show, as well as the Spring Choral Concert, are happening back to back on Thursday, May 15, starting at 4pm.  The concert is at 7pm in the auditorium. These events showcase the amazing talent of many of our students.  Here is the Early Release schedule for Friday, May 16. You can also find it linked on the school calendar. Departments will continue work on curriculum mapping for the afternoon.  Grand March will begin at 4:30pm in the gym if you are planning to stick around to see our p...
Post a Comment
Read more

March 10, 2025

Good morning- I hope the adjustment to the clocks springing forward hasn't thrown you off too much. I love that it means more light in the afternoon/evening.  On Thursday, March 13 year 2/3 teachers from Milford and Nipmuc High Schools will be here for learning walks. I have shared a schedule with impacted teachers but it may change over the next few days. Thank you for your flexibility and willingness to welcome new educators.  I am sure you saw Jim's message that the School Committee will hear our proposal on Competency Determination for the Class of 2025 at their meeting on Wednesday, March 12. I hope to share an update at our faculty meeting on Thursday, March 13, after school in the library . The meeting will involve MCAS training. As you are aware, the state has moved to a new portal so it will be important information for everyone to hear. Training for staff that do not attend faculty meetings will be scheduled at another time. Following the training, we will be walking...
Post a Comment
Read more