Happy birthday Horace Mann!

Horace Mann, the father of American education, was born here in Franklin, MA in 1796.

The monument along RT 140 at the edge of the Shaw's Plaza marks Horace's birthplace.

Horace Mann birthplace monument - Shaw's Plaza

The Mann family grave in the cemetery here in Franklin is not where Horace lies. Horace's grave is in the North Burial Ground in Providence, RI. I managed to go exploring last year to find the site and take these photos.

Horace Mann grave site - Providence, RI

Horace Mann grave site view

Stop by the Franklin Historical Museum. They have prepared an updated exhibit on Horace Mann.

The 6 main principles of the Common School are shown

Horace Mann - principles of the 'Common School'

These principles stand the test of time:

(1) the public should no longer remain ignorant; (2) that such education should be paid for, controlled, and sustained by an interested public; (3) that this education will be best provided in schools that embrace children from a variety of backgrounds; (4) that this education must be non-sectarian; (5) that this education must be taught by the spirit, methods, and discipline of a free society; and (6) that education should be provided by well-trained, professional teachers. 

For additional info on Horace Mann, check his page on wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horace_Mann


The Franklin Historical Museum is open

• Sunday from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM
• Thursday from 5:00 - 8:00 PM 
• Saturday from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM

If you do find yourself in Providence with time to explore the North Burial Ground, it is a fascinating place. The info on how to find Horace Mann's grave site can be found on this link:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=664

Horace Mann/Oak St: Response Plan

A message from OAK STREET ELEMENTARYDear Parents/Guardians:

Both the schools and the police have received several parent phone calls in response to the Blackboard Connect message sent to parents of Horace Mann Students yesterday afternoon regarding rumors of alleged threats to the school.

We want to reassure you that we have thoroughly investigated this matter and have found no evidence of any credible threat to the school or its students. Consistent with the District's Crisis Response Plan, the school has consulted with the Franklin Police Department to ensure that every measure is taken to maintain a safe school environment for your children.

HMMS School administration and faculty had discussions with students today about the impact of spreading rumors on individual students and the school community.

Both the administrators and counseling staff continue to be available to address any additional concerns you or your child may have regarding this matter.

Sincerely,

Shawn Fortin HMMS Principal   Katelyn Demers
HMMS Assistant Principal

Corine Minkle   
Oak Street Principal
Kathleen Gerber
Oak Street Assistant Principal

This e-mail has been sent to you by OAK STREET ELEMENTARY. To maximize their communication with you, you may be receiving this e-mail in addition to a phone call with the same message. If you wish to discontinue this service, please inform OAK STREET ELEMENTARY either IN PERSON, by US MAIL, or by TELEPHONE at 508-541-7890.

"All the weird stuff was my stuff"

Author Christopher Golden visited the Horace Mann Middle School this week.

A Framingham native, he met in the morning with more than 60 students before holding a writing workshop. He started the lecture by urging them to do what they love in life and not to let dreams of wealth cloud or defer the dreams that matter. 

"I know the focus is on how do I get a job where I can make a lot of money so I can have whatever I want," the 45-year-old said. "But what if the whatever you want is the way you can make a lot of money?" 

Golden said stories, fiction or non-fiction, have an enormous power to influence life. 

"Go back to the beginning … the images that were painted on cave walls told a story," he said. "Legends and myths and oral traditions that Native Americans told around fires that were passed along, passed along, passed along before they were ever written down — stories."

Read more: Popular fantasy author brings his magic to Franklin middle school - Franklin, MA - Wicked Local Franklin http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x90719189/Popular-fantasy-author-brings-his-magic-to-Franklin-middle-school#ixzz2U6hsztvY

In the News: school orchestras take gold

Franklin orchestras win gold at festival

The Franklin Middle Schools Combined String Orchestra and the Franklin Repertory String Orchestra both took home gold medals from the regional three-day Massachusetts Instrumental & Choral Conductors Association (MICCA) festival.

HONK - twice today!

As a result of the storm, the Franklin Footlighters (middle school) Friday night production of Honk is cancelled. There will still be a performance this Saturday, March 9 at 7:00pm which promises to sell out quickly! In order to accommodate friends, family and the general public a new show has been added, a matinee performance also this Saturday, March 9 at 3:00pm. Both shows will take place at Horace Mann Middle School, tickets are available at the door for $10.00

HONK

These poor kids have really had to battle to make this show a success. They lost a full week of rehearsal due to the blizzard. They lost their final dress rehearsal Thursday due to this most recent snow storm. Now they have have lost their Friday show. The kids have been rehearsing for this show four days a week since December.

We are asking for the community's support to come out and make this matinee show a success. Please forward this email so we can get the word out.

Thank you so much.
The Cast of Honk

“It’s a game and a history lesson all wrapped up in one”

Mark Brady, a teacher at Horace Mann Middle School, uses a board game to help with teaching history.

“We can’t bring them back to Mesopotamia, Egypt or Greece, but this (Catan) brings it alive,” Brady said. “One student was so frustrated because he was winning at one point, and the other kids froze him out and wouldn’t trade with him. He said flat out, ‘I now understand why people go to war." 

Brady pitched the idea to administrators with help from Tricia Metrick, a science teacher. A grant from the Franklin Education Foundation, a community group that raises money for teachers, purchased the games for classes in sixth, seventh and eighth grade. 

Mark the experiment as a success, says Robert Vacca, who teaches eighth-grade world history. Vacca observed one of Brady’s classes and saw immediately that Catan was connecting with students in a way that a textbook never could. 

“The kids don’t even realize they’re learning,” he said. “It brings the curriculum to life and, in the process, brings their learning to a higher level. They have to analyze and interpret situations, and, really, that’s what history is all about."

Read more: Franklin educator uses board game to teach historical lessons - Franklin, MA - Wicked Local Franklin http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/education/x1433777900/Franklin-educator-uses-board-game-to-teach-historical-lessons#ixzz2JvNo4Kna

"Roads go ever ever on"

Students at Horace Mann are about to embark on a journey!

Turns out, the posters were written in runes, which appear in the book. (Tolkien based his fictional language off ancient Norse runes.) 

The enormous success of last year’s read-a-thon, during which 250 students devoured Suzanne Collins’ "The Hunger Games," prompted teachers to plan another one.
Those who opt to take part in the challenge have a set amount of time to read "The Hobbit," Tolkien’s epic fantasy tale about a skittish hobbit who, swayed by a learned and powerful wizard, joins a hearty company of dwarves on a quest for stolen riches. 

After tackling the dense, 19-chapter novel, they must prove they’ve followed the story all the way to its conclusion — in the shadow of the Lonely Mountain — by answering a few questions about the plot.

Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x781379724/Franklin-students-to-tackle-Tolkien#ixzz29AmZwl6y

I heartily endorse this book choice! I first read The Hobbit when I was in high school as it had just become available (yes, that dates myself). I proceeded to read and re-read the Lord of the Rings Trilogy dozens of times beginning each re-read with The Hobbit. While the Hunger Games is a decent story, The Hobbit is so much richer.

The students will come to find:

Roads go ever ever on,
Over rock and under tree,
By caves where never sun has shone,
By streams that never find the sea;
Over snow by winter sown,
And through the merry flowers of June,
Over grass and over stone,
And under mountains in the moon. 

Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star,
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar.
Eyes that fire and sword have seen
And horror in the halls of stone
Look at last on meadows green
And trees and hills they long have known.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Road_Goes_Ever_On_(song)

Horace Mann MS - School Improvement Plan

The School Improvement Plan (SIP) for the Horace Mann Middle School is scheduled for discussion at the School Committee meeting on Tuesday, Oct 9.





The full agenda for the School Committee meeting can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/10/franklin-ma-school-committee-agenda-oct.html

10th Norfolk - Democratic candidate debate - Jul 30, 2012

Mark your calendar! Hold the date!

Democratic candidates for the 10th Norfolk District, Jeffrey Roy and Peter Padula, will hold a debate on Monday, July 30, 2012, at the Thomas H Mercer Auditorium, Horace Mann Middle School, located at 224 Oak Street Franklin, MA. The debate will be from 7:30p.m. to 8:45p.m. and will be moderated by Franklin Chief of Police Stephan Semerjian. 

The debate will be broadcast on cable television and WMRC radio. The public is welcome to attend to meet the candidates. 

A second debate is scheduled for August 21, 2012 in Medway.

For additional information on the candidates, you can visit their websites

Peter Padula  http://padulaforrep.com/

Jeff Roy  http://jeffreyroy.com/


Note: yours truly is honored to be one of the panelists asking questions of the candidates. If you would like to add a question to the potential listing, feel free to do so here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/07/what-would-you-ask-candidate.html

In the News: Hunger Games, alarm system, ticks

‘Hunger Games’ recreated at Franklin school

by Alison McCall/Daily News staff

Alarm raised about new rules for public safety radio system

by David Riley

State warns residents about tick-borne diseases

by Staff reports

In the News: Jordan Hall, field trip

Franklin teens to perform at Jordan Hall Sunday, May 6

by GateHouse Media, Inc.

Franklin students raise funds for field trip

by Brian Benson/Daily News staff

Things to do - many choices

Sunrise Montessori Spring Fair
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/05/reminder-sunrise-montessori-school.html

The Cake Bar grand opening
Franklin Art Center One Year Anniversary
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/05/exciting-saturday-downtown-franklin-may.html

Horace Mann Destination Imagination Fund raiser - Panera Bread
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/05/franklin-destination-imagination-group.html

Cub Scouts shoe recycling
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/05/cub-scouts-to-franklin-residents-if.html

Franklin Destination Imagination Group This Saturday

Hi all-

This is an exciting honor for the team from Horace Mann Middle school, they placed 2^nd in the Destination Imagination State tournament and qualified to go to the Finals in Tennessee!!  Please consider participating in the Panera fundraiser tomorrow from 11 to 8 to help them earn the money to be able to travel  to the Global Tournament.  Attached flyer must be presented.

The team will also have a bake table set up at the Horace Mann Community Yard sale from 8-1.

Thanks!

Terri Attinello

From: Carla DrakeUnderkoffler [mailto:carla@lovebeingamom.com]
Sent: Friday, May 04, 2012 2:13 PM
To: Spencer DrakeUnderkoffler
Subject: Franklin Destination Imagination Group This Saturday

Please pass this on to anyone you know in Franklin or associated with the Franklin Public Schools !!!!!!!   THANK YOU !

As many of you may have seen in the paper the Horace Mann Middle School Destination Imagination Team  made it to the Global Finals in Tennessee!  They have less than 20 days left to raise the $8500 needed to represent our town and our state!  

 Please help us spread the word about their bake sale this Saturday at Horace Mann from 8-1 and please print and use the flyer below for Panera from 11 - 8 pm tomorrow!!!!!!!!!

Panera fundraiser THIS SATURDAY May 5th from 11- 8 ! 

Please print and bring the flyer below.There are two so feel free to share one.    Lunch and/or dinner !

THANK YOU SO MUCH !!!!!!!!!!!!

Link to the DI group website for more information:  franklindiglobals2012.webs.com

FHS and HMMS students visit the US Army Natick Labs

“This is the U.S. Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center. I know it’s a long name, but the most important word here is Soldier,” said Bulger, NSRDEC workforce development manager. “Everything we do here is to support the Soldier.” 

That is how Bulger greeted the 65 students assembled May 16 in Hunter Auditorium from Franklin (Mass.) High School and Franklin’s Horace Mann Middle School. About 40 high school students and 25 middle school students, accompanied by nine chaperones, divided into small groups to tour facilities on the installation. 

At each destination, an expert walked them through the lab, explained the basics of his or her job, answered questions, and provided a demonstration. Middle school children visited the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Lab, Sensory Lab, and Prototype Shop while high school students saw the Thermal Test Facility, Doriot Climatic Chambers, and Fiber Facility. 

The middle school kids really enjoyed the science experiments; one seventh grade student in particular was amazed by the MREs: “We had three-year-old cake! But it tasted the same as the other fresh cakes!” A fellow student commented: “The food stuff was really cool. I had never thought of doing this kind of job, but this visit definitely sparked my interest.” 

That’s what STEM visits are designed to do. Students are afforded the opportunity to glimpse what they could do in the future should they choose to pursue degrees in science, mathematics, education or technology. Students became scientists when they experimented here, while at the STEM Lab, students created mini bottle rockets, tested fabrics that repelled water, made silly putty, and performed chromatography tests.

Continue reading the remainder of the article on the US Army website here

"They're like a family to me"

Davis Thayer Principal Shirley Babcock and Keller Principal Mary Jane Wiles are both retiring. Horace Mann's Michael Levine was brought in for one year as an interim principal while the district searched for a replacement for Anne Bergen, who retired last year. 

The district recently named Remington Middle School Assistant Principal Shawn Fortin as the new Horace Mann principal and they plan to begin searches for two new elementary principals after February vacation, Assistant Superintendent Sally Winslow said. 

"Shawn rose to the top throughout the (interview) process," Winslow said, adding there were five candidates from outside the district in addition to Fortin. "Shawn really showed himself to be visionary in his approach. ... He's done a fabulous job (at Remington) looking at MCAS scores and working with the principal and teachers around instructional strategies so kids can perform better on those tests."

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

In addition to the principals in the article, Michele Kingsland-Smith, Director of Instructional Services also announced her retirement this week to be effective after the school year. She apparently will continue to work with the district in a part-time consultative capacity.


Franklin, MA

"Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity"

... people with mental disabilities haven't always had access to such organizations. Those with developmental challenges used to be sequestered to state institutions, or their families had to absorb the stress of caring for them, with parents often divorcing because there was no support network to help, said Michael E. Moloney, Horace Mann's president and CEO.

"We've moved to not only tolerance and acceptance but appreciation of diversity," he said. "People are not hidden away any more. ... In general, people with a disability bring as much to our lives as we do to theirs."

Moloney, a North Attleboro resident, came to Horace Mann 17 years ago after a state job with people who had mental disabilities. He returned briefly to the public sector but has spent much of the past two decades at Horace Mann.

"This has been a phenomenal career field for me," he said. "I've seen what amounted to a social justice movement."

Initially known as the Wrentham Research Foundation, Horace Mann was based on the grounds of the Wrentham Developmental Center, where its primary mission was to conduct research about mental retardation. In 1982, the agency moved to Franklin and was renamed Horace Mann Educational Associates after Horace Mann, an educator who was born in Franklin.

The quote in the title comes from the article and is credited to Franklin's 'Father of Pubilc Education' - Horace Mann.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

The 10th Annual Independence Walk/Run will be held on May 22 centered on the EMC facilities in the Forge Park Industrial Park (behind the Franklin Fire Station #2 on King St). More information on the event can be found here. The road race is 5K and I'll be volunteering at the registration desk for the race.



Franklin, MA

In the News - birthdays

By Ashley Studley/Daily News correspondent

Milford Daily News

Posted May 27, 2010 @ 12:45 AM

FRANKLIN —

Horace Mann Middle School students know a good party when they see it.

From Barbie Jeeps to Hannah Montana concerts, one group of students looked back on their special birthdays fondly yesterday afternoon, and remembered that not everyone is as fortunate.

That's why they raised about $500 for the Birthday Wishes charity to provide homeless children with birthday parties.

"You just threw an entire party," shelter coordinator Rachel Freeman said yesterday. "You just made a lot of kids really happy."

Franklin, MA

Horace Mann Middle School - Yard Sale - 5/8/10

The Horace Mann Middle School in Franklin will hold its second annual yard sale on Saturday, May 8, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the school on Oak Street. Proceeds from the sale will help fund school programs such as field trips and guest speakers.

Among the great finds awaiting bargain hunters are sporting goods, toys, bikes, antiques, furniture, lamps and books. Shoppers can browse booths by local vendors for Mother’s Day gifts including theme gift baskets, jewelry, crafts and potted plants.

The PCC will provide donuts and coffee for sale for early shoppers, and will grill up hamburgers and hotdogs for lunch. They invite residents to spend the day!

In case of rain, the sale will be moved inside the school. The sale starts promptly at 9:00; please no early birds. Anyone interested in donating an item or participating as a crafter can contact the school at (508)-541-6230.



Franklin, MA

Horace Mann Middle School Plans Yard Sale

The Horace Mann Middle School in Franklin will hold its second annual yard sale on Saturday, May 8, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the school on Oak Street. Proceeds from the sale will help fund school programs such as field trips and guest speakers.

Among the great finds awaiting bargain hunters are sporting goods, toys, bikes, antiques, furniture, lamps and books. Shoppers can browse booths by local vendors for Mother’s Day gifts including theme gift baskets, jewelry, crafts and potted plants.

The PCC will provide donuts and coffee for sale for early shoppers, and will grill up hamburgers and hotdogs for lunch. They invite residents to spend the day!

In case of rain, the sale will be moved inside the school. The sale starts promptly at 9:00; please no early birds. Anyone interested in donating an item or participating as a crafter can contact the school at (508)-541-6230.



Franklin, MA

What's on your plate?

Come seen the documentary film on food for kids and families. This will be shown as part of a film and discussion with local farmers.

When:
Tuesday, April 13th at 6:00 PM. The film starts promptly at 6:15 and the vent should complete about 7:30 PM

Where:
Thomas Mercer Auditorium at the Horace Mann Middle School on Oak St in Franklin, MA


More info on the film itself can be found here: http://www.whatsonyourplateproject.org/


Sponsored by the Healthy Futures Task Force