Hamilton III is in full swing again with many projects and trips already planned by our enthusiastic faculty. Our staff is essentially the same as last year with only the loss of Chris Li Cavoli who is spending this year at the district Reading Clinic preparing to be an RIT teacher.
A foundation has given grants in the last two years to many educational institutions in the central West End. A local task force submitted a plan in June for improvement of instruction and citizen-neighborhoodparent involvement at both Hamilton and Hamilton III. Hamilton III has already begun with a full day workshop before school started. This workshop brought together a number of our parents and our staff to work on booklets which contain the goals and skills for each grade level with sections telling the parents what they can do at home to help. These will be published and in the hands of all parents very soon. A number of other parent-staff workshops will take place as well as some joint social activities bringing Hamilton and Hamilton III P.T.O.s together.
Mrs. Magraw’s room has twenty-two first graders and a new and unusual friend — a hermit crab which they have named Herman. He crawls very fast when placed on the floor. He eats bread and apples and loves to be sprayed with water. The children are wondering when he will outgrow his present shell and need a new one for his home.
Mrs. Hart-Davis has twenty-one pupils, about evenly divided between first and second graders who are getting to know themselves and each other.
The other second grade class, taught by Mrs. Kincade has twenty-seven children, many of whom took interesting trips this summer. .
Mrs. Schmink’s class is expanding this year! There are twenty-seven kindergartners in the morning class and twenty-eight in the afternoon. All the children seem:, happy to be in school and eager to experience new things. They are planning a field trip in October, probably to the Pumpkin Farm.
Mrs. Bell has a split third and fourth grade room, with ten third graders and seventeen fourth graders. They are planning to attend the Kinder Konzerts this year.
The twenty-eight fourth graders in Mrs. Billups’ room are off to a roaring start. They are busy getting used to the idea of having so many more textbooks. Gone are the carefree days of the primary grades! They feel real “grown-up” now and they know Mrs. Billups expects the best from them. They are already planning their first field trip to the 4th R Gallery in December for a Christmas project and they intend to win the attendance prize by being present every day.
Mrs. Aubertin-Smith has twenty-six third grade students and they are planning their year full of interesting activities.
We have one empty classroom this year and it is being used jointly by the speech teacher, Mrs. Wood, and our new art teacher, Mrs. Dockey, whom we are very glad to welcome.
We are all very happy to be able to have Mr. Roger Mick back as our principal for a second year.
We are looking forward to a good and productive school year.
Originally published in The Paper, October 1978.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times1978_10.pdf, printed page(s) 7; PDF page(s) 7.
