2/1/2010
Odyssey Day School Celebrates International Week |
| Last
week, the Odyssey Day School community embraced international
culture through its celebration of International Week. This
is an annual event during which classrooms learn about various
countries of their choice. Through an integrated theme-based
approach, students and teachers work together to create a
multicultural experience.
As a kick-off to the week, an Opening Ceremonies
is held. During this assembly, the students march in carrying
the flag of their country of study. This year we were honored
with a guest speaker, Mr. Carey Dardompre. Mr. Dardompre,
a friend of Lori Conway, Head of School, was born and raised
in Haiti. At the age of 20 he immigrated to the United States.
He now lives in Arlington, Ma with his family and teaches
French at Tufts University. In the wake of the earthquake
disaster, Odyssey is sponsoring a school-wide fundraiser
to support the Haiti-based, Pure Water for the World organization.
Mr. Dardompre's visit was a wonderfully inspiring message
of hope, as he spoke to the "resilience" of the
Haitian people and communicated to the students the history
and vibrancy of the culture.
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12/9/2009
Odyssey Open House - January 27, 6:30-8:00 p.m. |
| Please
join us for an Admissions Open House during our annual International
Week Fair. |
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11/19/2009
Sergeant Dragan Visits Odyssey |
| At
a recent Odyssey Day School assembly, retired Army Staff Sergeant
David Dragan, father of teacher Valerie O’Brien and
grandfather of students Amanda and Hannah O’Brien, demonstrated
the proper way to fold the American flag. He also explained
to the students the rules for raising and lowering the flag,
and the guidelines for respectful treatment of the flag. This
was the first in a series of assemblies planned for the year
that will focus on citizenship and patriotism. Pictured with
Sergeant Dragan are Lori Conway, Head of School, and 8th grader
Ian Schwartz, a resident of Wakefield. |
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11/2/2009
Wakefield Fire Trailer Visits Odyssey |
| The
K-8 students at Odyssey Day School in Wakefield, MA, were
treated to an important safety exercise on November 2, 2009,
presented by the Wakefield Fire Department. The “Fire
Trailer” was brought on campus and students went class
by class into the trailer to hear from firefighters about
how to escape burning buildings safely. At the end, a smoke
simulation was done and students practiced climbing out the
window and down a ladder at the back of the trailer. Pictured
here is Alexander Hubik, Grade 8, from Reading, MA. |
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11/2/2009
Odyssey Halloween Party |
| A
spooky-fun time was had by all at the Odyssey Halloween Party.
Many had their first experience with a real-live Fortune Teller,
and who knew kids could eat donuts on a string in less than
five seconds, or spit pumpkin seeds so far? Face painting
was a big hit, as was the Haunted House (special thanks to
Jamie for her Haunted creation), and much tasty food was enjoyed
along with Halloween candy! A big thank you goes out to the
more than 40 students, teachers and parents who helped in
one way or another to make it fun - your time and effort made
it the great night it was! |
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10/29/2009
2009-2010 Student Council Election Results |
| On Thursday,
October 22nd, Odyssey Day School held Student Council Elections
for the 2009-10 school year. Students in grades 5-8 are eligible
to run for office and are responsible for "running a
campaign" and are required to deliver a speech as part
of their candidacy. The following students are the newly elected
officers.
Congratulations to all who ran, and to this
year's Officers:
President - Erin Murphy
Vice President - Samantha Ross
Recording Secretary - Danielle Beaulieu
Corresponding Secretary - Jacqueline Jutras Treasurer -
Jeremy Wilkins-Keene
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7/9/2009
Odyssey Enters a Float into the Wakefield Independence Day
Parade |
| This
year for the first time, Odyssey Day School entered a float
into the Wakefield Independence Day Parade. The float theme:
Building a Better World, as we Proudly Serve Our Community.
The float design was a culmination of several winning ideas
from Odyssey students and teachers, and focused heavily on
volunteerism and environmentalism. The float highlighted projects
and ongoing activities that ODS students participated in and
sponsored throughout the year, such as the Denim Drive, Recycling,
the Red Cross Blood Drive, and Scholastic Classroom Reads!
The float won the Gertrude
Spaulding Award for Environmental Awareness!!!! It was
quite an experience from beginning to end...Hopefully we can
do it again next year! |
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5/14/2009
Students Hold Health Fair |
| On
Wednesday, May 13th, the students in grades 7 and 8 held a
school-wide Health Fair. The fair was a project intended to
share helpful health information with the younger students
at Odyssey. Through carnival style games and activities, and
a magic show, students learned important health facts while
having a lot of fun. The fair also included a Gluten/dairy
free snack shack along with facts about gluten/dairy-free
eating. |
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5/8/2009
Odyssey Day School supports Woburn Feral Cat Coalition |
| Students
in Grade 3-4 at Odyssey Day School organized a school wide
drive to support the Woburn Feral Cat Coalition. The coalition
is non-profit no kill organization of dedicated volunteers
committed to controlling the stray and feral cat population
through a humane trap, neuter and release program. Primary
activities include humane education to the public regarding
pet overpopulation and providing assistance to cats in life
threatening situations. The school collected food, carriers,
pillows, toys and blankets for donation to the coalition. |
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3/30/2009
Odyssey Students Hold "Denim Drive" |
| Students
in the 5th through 8th grades at Odyssey Day School have recently
participated in a "Denim Drive." The project was
taken on by the students as a community service project. Students
jumped right into the project and received the full experience
of staging a grassroots campaign. They made their own signs
and flyers and spread the word through phone calls and by
speaking at community events. The Denim Drive was very successful
and the students were able to collect many pairs of old blue
jeans that will be donated to the COTTON.
FROM BLUE TO GREEN.® program. This denim drive recycles
jeans into Ultra Touch insulation, which is used to help build
houses in places that have been damaged by hurricanes, tornadoes,
and other natural disasters. |
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2/6/2009
Odyssey Day School Students Honored at Boston Globe Scholastic
Art Awards |
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The
Boston Globe Scholastic Art Award committee recently announced
that Mackenzie Mildram of Odyssey Day School received a Silver
Key for her photographic essay, while Ryan Frank and Tatiana
Frid, also of Odyssey Day School, received Honorable Mention
for their drawings. Seven students from the 7th and 8th grades
at the school entered the contest. Students at Odyssey Day
School have art class twice a week, studying a wide variety
of art styles and media under the direction of art specialist
Jamie McDonough.
More than 3,500 students in grades 7-12 entered the statewide
contest. Of those, 150 received Golden Keys, 291 received
Silver Keys, and 459 received Honorable Mention. Artworks
were submitted in twelve different categories, including animation,
ceramics and glass, computer art, design, digital imagery,
drawing, mixed media, painting, photography, printmaking,
sculpture, and video and film.
The Silver and Gold Key Awards will be presented on February
8th at John Hancock Hall. The award-winning artwork is being
exhibited at the State Transportation Building. The Odyssey
Day School entries will be on display at the school in March.
Please stop by and view it! |
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1/28/2009
International Week at Odyssey |
| Odyssey
students were treated to many interesting cultural events
during the recent International Week. Pictured here, teacher
Mitra Maxey stands with students Lizzy Warncke (Grade 5) and
Jacqui Jutras (Grade 4) in Lori’s office, which was
beautifully transformed into a Persian tea house. We all enjoyed
this culinary and visual introduction into Iranian culture,
and thank Mitra, and her friend Soheila (not pictured), for
all of their hard work to make the day such a success! |
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1/16/2009
International Week Open House at Odyssey
Day School
Wednesday January 28th 7:00-8:30pm. |
| Come
meet our faculty and join our current families as we celebrate
International Week! |
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11/15/2008
Odyssey Recognizes National Chemistry
Week with Unique Recycling Project |
| This
year the theme for National Chemistry Week (October 19-25)
was “Having a Ball with Chemistry!” In celebration
of this, the American Chemical Society partnered with Nike
to promote the “ReUse a Shoe” recycling program.
The students at Odyssey Day School participated in this recycling
program and were able to collect two big boxes of used athletic
shoes. These will be turned in to the Nike recycling center
in Framingham and converted into material that will be used
for playgrounds and sports field surfaces for young people
around the world. |
Ian Schwartz,
Grade 7, and Lori Conway, Head of School, proudly display
the used athletic shoes collected by the students at Odyssey. |
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10/29/2008
Student Council Election Results are In |
Following
the courageous and engaging candidate speeches held on October
20th, the student body has voted, and the results are in.
Congratulations to our new Student Council President Isabel
Gramolini, VP Emily Douglas, Secretary Samantha Ross, and
Treasurer Jeremy Wilkins-Keene! The faculty and administration
are so proud of all of the candidates who ran for office,
and wish all the best to Isabel, Emily, Samantha, and Jeremy
as they take on their new leadership roles in the school.
We know you will do a great job, and will be honored by
your service! |
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10/28/2008
Students Enjoy Fall Trip to Maine
After studying the literary genre of tall tales, some of
our older students embarked on an adventure to Bangor, Maine,
the land of Paul Bunyan. A good time was had by all in the
cozy cabins of the Point Lookout Resort. The Paul Bunyan
statue and birthplace were highlights of the trip, as was
a delicious legendary pancake breakfast. A stop outside
Stephen King’s house just a week before Halloween
was a special treat as well. Everyone returned tired but
exhilarated, sharing their own, shall we say, “tall
tales” from the trip! |
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10/26/2008
Odyssey Day School Reading Challenge Met |
The
3-4 grade class has met the challenge of reading 100 books
before December 19th. Those third- and fourth-grade students
are now listed under the Hall of Fame section on the Classroom
Cares site through Scholastic. Now Scholastic will donate
100 books to our chosen charity, Open World Family Services
in New Orleans, LA. This agency works to strengthen family
relationships through literacy and job training. Many of
the libraries were destroyed during hurricane Katrina, so
this is an area where Odyssey students can really make a
difference! And they have! |
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10/24/2008
Children’s Book Author Comes to Odyssey |
The
Odyssey Day School community is proud of former Spanish
teacher Ana Nuncio, who has published a new children’s
book! Written by Lupina Vela and illustrated by Mauricio
Luengas, the book has been printed in both English and Spanish
versions, and is titled When My Dad Comes Home (Cuando regrese
mi papa in Spanish). It is about a child who is awaiting
his father’s return from military deployment in the
Middle East. What perfect timing with Veteran’s Day
right around the corner. There have been book signings across
the country. Following Ms. Vela’s appearance at Oddyssey,
she will be doing a presentation at the House of Seven Gables
in Salem, MA. The book is currently available in hardcover
for children ages five and up. If anyone is interested in
purchasing a copy of the book, please be in touch with Ana.
We look forward to November 4th, when the author will do
a reading and signing with the students during All School
Meeting. !Las felicitaciones a todos! |
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10/8/2008
Successful Blood Drive Spearheaded by 7th and 8th Graders
at Odyssey |
On
Wednesday, October 8, 2008, the Odyssey Day School gymnasium
was temporarily converted into a M*A*S*H unit filled with
blood donor stations, beds, tables with orange juice and
cookies, and lots of students and volunteer nurses! The
blood drive, coordinated by the 7th and 8th grade students
with the American Red Cross, brought together dozens of
members of the local community in a service project to collect
much-needed blood donations. The faculty and staff at Odyssey
congratulate Isabel and Ryan for their leadership role in
this effort, and thank all of the students who helped make
the blood drive such a success! |
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Odyssey
Day School 8th grade student Ryan Frank, Head of
School Lori Conway, and 8th grade student Isabel
Gramolini await blood donors at the recent blood
drive. |
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9/25/2008
Odyssey Day School Reading Challenge |
The
3-4 grade class is busy reading books! We are taking the
challenge to read 100 books by December 19th. Upon completion
of this challenge, Scholastic, Inc. will donate books our
chosen charity, Open World Family Services in New Orleans,
LA. This agency works to strengthen family relationships
through literacy and job training. Many of the libraries
were destroyed during hurricane Katrina, so this is an area
where we feel we can help. |
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9/25/2008
Student Elections Coming Up |
The
Student Council began three years ago. It has evolved into
an integral part of the school with a significant number
of students enthusiastically participating. Over the next
few weeks, students running for office will campaign. Student
speeches will be held on October 20th. Elections will be
held on October 28th. Last year the students raised a total
of $1,950 for the school through fundraising activities.
The members of the council meet on a weekly basis to plan
events and discuss various student related issues. |
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7/1/2008
Lori M. Conway Appointed Head of School |
The
Odyssey Day School community is pleased to announce the
appointment of a new Head of School effective July 1, 2008.
Since 1988, Lori has served in varied roles in educational
institutions. She has been a school psychologist in many
public schools in Virginia and Massachusetts, and was a
member of the Admissions Committee at MIT for three years.
Most recently she has spent the last seven years as Director
of Admissions and Financial Aid at The Fenn School in Concord,
MA.
In
addition to her work in schools, Lori has worked as a freelance
copyeditor, developing educational materials and publications
for The Trustees of Reservations in Beverly, Massachusetts.
She co-edited the award-winning book Land of the Commonwealth:
A Portrait of the Conserved Landscapes of Massachusetts.
Lori
grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, where she attended Trinity
School for grades K-5, and The Lovett School for grades
6-12. She holds a B.A. in Psychology from the University
of Virginia, as well as an M.Ed. and an Ed.S. in School
Psychology from The College of William and Mary. Lori lives
in Concord with her daughter, Charlotte, a student at Concord
Academy.
When
not working, Lori enjoys spending time with her family,
reading, writing fiction and poetry, blogging, traveling,
cooking, and volunteering. |
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