Rising Tide Charter Public School has officially been renewed for another five year charter! Mitchell Chester, the MA Commissioner of Education, and the MA Board of Education have approved Rising Tide's 15-year renewal without conditions. We are proud of our students, our wonderful teachers and staff members, and our families for contributing to the strong school community that we have built together over the last fifteen years!

Rising Tide, a grades 5-12 college preparatory school, is another option in public education. It is free and open to any student from Plymouth and surrounding towns.

Tours of both our Upper and Middle Schools are available daily. Please call 508-747-1889 to arrange a tour of our Upper School and 508-747-2620 to arrange a tour of our Middle School.

SPRING BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL

MAY
1 Early Release 12:00 pm
4 MS - New Student Orientation
8 HS – New Student Orientation
15 Early Release 12:00 pm
6-16 MCAS
20 Board Annual Meeting 3:30 pm
27 Memorial Day, No School
29 Early Release 12:00 pm

MODAY MEMO

 

Note from School Leaders:

At Rising Tide, the subject of social media use and safety is addressed with students throughout their time here, through the Communications and Investigations course at the Middle School, and through the Wellness course at the Upper School. Students are asked to assess the pros and cons of using certain types of social media or social networking and to think about how these can affect their identity and self-esteem. They are also given information on how to stay safe and avoid cyber bullying.

While we are confident that discussions that children have here at school are helpful, families play the most crucial role in helping children navigate the world of social media safely and appropriately. Talking to children directly about the technology they are using is key, but keeping up with networking websites, games, smartphone apps and other technology available for social media can be overwhelming. The following are are some reliable resources that can help parents assess the risks involved, find tips on communicating with children and educate themselves:

Common Sense Media has detailed reviews about websites, apps, TV, movies and games. Each rating includes age appropriateness as well as basic information. This site also has many Family Tip Sheets, such as Safe Online Talk and Digital Relationships. Additionally, the group has created examples of Family Media Agreements for elementary, middle and high school students.

The Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center (MARC) at Bridgewater State College has easy to understand explanations and tips for parents on a variety of issues. Their overview of social networking may be particularly helpful.

The Center on Media and Child Health, which is based out of Boston Children's Hospital has information for parents on how to help children use media in a positive way and explains the effects media can have on children's overall health.

Upcoming Events
and Important Dates:

Tuesday, May 21: Ms. Karen Kuskin-Smith, our College Counseling Consultant, will host a College Planning Evening at 6:30 p.m. at the Upper School for our Grade 10 parents and guardians to discuss the structure and guidance for the future planning process for students and families. Ms. Kuskin-Smith has met with the Grade 10 Students twice as a part of the planning process. While this meeting is designed for Grade 10 families, parents and guardians of all Rising Tide students are welcome.

Tuesday, May 21: Upper School students are encouraged to dress up for a "Sports Day" theme. The schedule and seriousness of the school day remain intact, but students may wear sports gear representing a team they either participate on or support.

Friday, May 24: There will be a Spirit Day at the Middle School. Students who participate in a team sport or team activity outside of school are invited to wear their team jersey. Sports gear from teams other than those students participate in (such as high school, college or professional teams) is not allowed.

Monday, May 27: There will be no school in observance of Memorial Day.

Announcements:

Spririt Challenge : Tuesday's "Sports Day" kicks off th e first day of the Spirit Challengeat the Upper School, a series of four themed dress days with advisory block competitions. The Spirit Challenge has been planned by student and teacher representatives of our Spirit Committee with the goal of promoting school spirit and building camaraderie betw een grade levels. Each team will be made up of a 9th and 10th grade advisory that will compete together and accumulate points for the duration of the Spirit Challenge. The culminating event will be a field day on Wednesday, June 26.

Additional Race Award Winner: Congratulations to Alex Phaneuf, who placed in her age category for the Manomartian 3.5 miler. Alex's name was inadvertently left out of last week's list.

Change in Bus Policy: In order to avoid overcrowding, First Student has decided that students will no longer be able to ride another bus home for the remainder of the year. Students may still bring in a note to be allowed to get off of their assigned bus at a different stop. We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.

Donations: Ms. Stanford is still looking for donations of sheets or fabric for the school production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. She does not need any more artificial trees thanks to the many families who donated!

Summer Enrichment Classes: We will again be offering Summer Courses at Rising Tide this July. These one-week courses focus on experience-based learning and provide students with an opportunity to learn new skills and further develop existing skills in a fun and stress-free environment. Class sizes are limited to 15 Rising Tide students, currently in grades 5-10. Students may participate in one course per week. The deadline to submit applications is Wednesday, May 22, 2013; however, interested students are encouraged to apply quickly, as the number of participants in each course is limited. Course descriptions and applications are available here.

Summer Food Service Program: The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) is a federally funded nutrition program that provides free meals to children ages 18 and under when school is not in session. In Massachusetts, the SFSP is administered by the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). For more information call Project Bread's Food Source Hotline at 1-800-645-8333 or visit www.meals4kids.org for details. No registration or I.D. necessary.

Bus Applications: Transportation Applications for eligible Plymouth residents for the 2013-14 school year are available on our website or in the front office of either building. Families are urged to complete the application early to take advantage of the reduced rate.

Athletics:
Softball will play at PCIS today, both baseball and softball play at Mashpee on Wednesday, and baseball visits Sacred Heart on Thursday.

SCHOOL CALENDAR

 

2013

June
4 & 5 HS - Science MCAS
12 Early Release 12:00 pm
17 Board Meeting 7:00 pm
26 Early Release Day 12:00 pm, Last Day of School

July
8-19 Summer Enrichment Program

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NATIONAL LATIN EXAM

Congratulations to Rising Tide's 8th, 9th and 10th graders for their outstanding performance on the National Latin Exam, which was administered in March to over 154,000 Latin students from all 50 states and 15 foreign countries.

 

88 Rising Tide students took the Latin I exam, and 59 won recognition for outstanding performance. 29 Latin I students earned a gold medal, 2 of whom earned a perfect score, putting them in the top .5% of all Latin I test takers. 11 students earned a silver medal, 12 students scored earned a magnā cum laude certificate and 7 students earned a cum laude certificate.

12 Rising Tide students took the Latin II exam, and 8 won awards. 3 students earned a gold medal and 5 students earned a magnā cum laude certificate.

9 Rising Tide students took the Latin III exam, and 8 won awards. 3 students earned a gold medal, 2 students earned silver medals, 2 students earned a magnā cum laude certificate and 1 student earned a cum laude certificate.

The Latin language is the foundation of the Romance languages, and a major influence on the English language. All students at Rising Tide study Roman history, culture, and language in the 6th -8th grades. Upon successful completion of the Middle School program, students are able to continue their Latin studies in the Upper School or to begin to study Spanish.

The National Latin Exam is sponsored by the American Classical League and the National Junior Classical League. The exam assesses students in grammar, comprehension, mythology, life, history, derivatives, and questions based on a short passage in Latin. 70% of Rising Tide students scored above the national average. Rising Tide is very proud of its Latin students for competing and performing so well compared to their peers from across the country and throughout the world.

 

 

 

 

 

Upper School • 57B Armstrong Road, Plymouth, MA 02360
Middle School • 6 Resnik Road, Plymouth, MA 02360