USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Hamilton > Town of Hamilton Annual Report 1958 > Part 9
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In addition a Guidance Director has been added to the staff to assure that the available educational program is being best utilized by each individual, according to his or her ability and desire.
With regard to physical plant, the new Elementary School has pro- gressed at a satisfactory pace which should provide for occupancy in September of 1959. This will serve to alleviate the crowded classroom conditions which have existed during the past year in the elementary grades. Further, the Regional Planning Committee reports definite progress in their joint effort with the Town of Wenham. Their work during the past year may well be instrumental in providing a possible solution to the classroom shortage which will face us in the upper grades in the very near future.
The Committee wishes to express its appreciation to the faculty and staff for their splendid cooperation in putting into practice those policies established by the School Committee and the Superintendent of Schools.
Respectfully submitted,
DONALD L. MILLER, Chairman
FREDERICK J. CALDWELL
RICHARD M. EMERY
JAMES E. HALL
MORLEY L. PIPER
Hamilton School Committee
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REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS
December 31, 1958
To The School Committee:
It is with pleasure that I submit this, my second annual report as Superintendent of the Hamilton Public Schools. The purpose of this report is twofold : first, to review for the Committee the current status of our Schools' Philosophy, Personnel, Educational Program, Special Services, Evaluation, Maintenance, Finance and Accomplishments; and second, to provide the citizens of our community with a brief description of what our Schools are trying to do.
This report was completed with the assistance of our principals, guidance director, cafeteria manager, and other staff members who con- tributed materials included as a part of this booklet - each of whom I wish to thank for their contribution. All other members of the school staff deserve considerable credit, also, for it is their imagination, initia- tive, good thinking, and planning that has produced the activities that have made this whole report possible.
I also wish to take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks to the Chairman and Members of the School Committee for their faithful service and leadership in behalf of our schools. Although Committee meetings are normally held only twice a month, each member has put in a considerable amount of extra time trying to promote the welfare of our schools. We are very much aware of all of this conscientious effort without remuneration on their part, and we wish them to know how deeply we appreciate their outstanding contributions to the welfare of the town and its youth. Moreover, we wish to express our gratitude to the citizens of the community for all of their interest, pride in, and loyal support of what we believe to be a good school program for the children of Hamilton.
It is my belief that we can look to the future progress of the Ham- ilton Public Schools with much optimism.
Respectfully yours, JOHN H. LAWSON
Superintendent of Schools
ORGANIZATIONAL CHART OF HAMILTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
1958-1959
CITIZENS OF HAMILTON
SCHOOL COMMITTEE
-SECRETARY AND PART-TIME CLERK
FISCAL MATTERS
SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS
SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM
Budget Prepare and Control
PROFESSIONAL GROWTH OF STAFF
1 Manager
Payroll Operations
IMPROVEMENT OF INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRA
8 Workers
Purchasing Agent
FEDERAL AND STATE REGULATIONS
2 Lunch programs
Preparation of all Contracts
ADVISOR TO BUILDING COMMITTEE
4 Milk programs
MAINTENANCE MATTERS
SECRETARY TO BUILDING NEEDS COMMITTEE
HEALTH PROGRAM
Charge of janitors
PUBLIC RELATIONS
1 Nurse
All repairs supervised
1 Part-time physician
Preparation specifications
1 cooperating Dentist
TRANSPORTATION
High School
Cutler School
New Elementary
GUIDANCE
Bus routes
1 Supervising
1 Supervising
1 Principal
1 Guidance Director
Arrangements with Contractors
Principal
Principal
12 Teacher
for all grades K - 12
18 Teachers
24 Teachers
1 Custodian
Educational trips
MUSIC AND ART SUPERVISOR
} Clerk
¿ Clerk
360 Students
Preparation specifications
1 Part-time Vocal Music
2 Custodians
2 Custodians
1 Part-time Instrumental Music
365 Students
800 Students
Administrative Personnel
1 Part-time Art
Cafeteria
Cafeteria
Cafeteria
PUPIL PERSONNEL
Teaching Personnel
Consultant Personnel
Annual Examinations and Census Individual Records
CERTIFIED PERSONNEL
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PHILOSOPHY
We conceive of the curriculum as including the total environment of children and youth and all that goes on in their lives which comes under the guidance of the school. We select our learning experiences only after taking into careful consideration both the nature of the learner and of the learning process, and the desirable knowledge, skills, habits, under- standings, and attitudes which we want as outcomes of our educational program. Moreover, we recognize that provisions must be made for flexibility and continuous adjustment to meet the changing and unpre- dictable needs of all persons and of society. We believe that the principal key to the success of our educational program is the dedication of teachers to the task of promoting the finest possible growth and devel- opment of our children and young people. Our immediate guide in the selection of our curriculum is : "Is this the most valuable and significant activity that we could possibly carry on at this particular time with these particular children and youth ?"
In providing the conditions through which each individual may develop in accordance with his own pattern of growth, his ability, his needs, his interests, and the demands of our democratic society, we want, among other things, to help him :
1. To build a fine character with wholesome attitudes toward life;
2. To learn and to use the fundamental skills as well as those special skills that may contribute so much to better understand- ing and appreciation of life ;
3. To develop good work habits and pride in careful workmanship;
4. To grow in self-discipline and a respect for the rights of others ;
5. To use critical thinking in reaching decisions ;
6. To be open-minded and to want to continue to learn;
7. To act upon an understanding of and loyalty to our democratic ideals ;
8. To recognize the interdependence of all peoples ;
9. To become a well-informed, responsible citizen ;
10. To learn how to use his leisure time wisely ;
11. To understand and to follow good health and safety practices ;
12. To develop a good strong body and a well-disciplined mind;
13. To participate in the planning of his learning experiences and in continually evaluating the outcomes ;
14. To become acquainted with some of the various ways of earning a living and the many qualifications needed ;
15. To develop a philosophy of life, a sense of values by which to discriminate among values and to judge and use the gifts of civilization ; and
16. To understand his fellow-men and learn to live and work to- gether with them in the same world at peace.
We consider our schools to be public schools in which all parents and citizens of the community share in the educational development of
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all our children and youth. As publie schools, we want all parents and citizens of the community to become partners with us. We want them to come to school as often as possible to visit classes, to work on all kinds of study and curriculum planning committees, to become friends of teachers, to participate in the PTA, to take part in parent-teacher conferences at reporting time, and in every way to feel completely at home with us. By working closely together, we know that we can provide learning experiences that are significant, continuous, unified, and rich in meaning and purpose for all of our children and youth.
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NATURE OF THE LEARNING PROCESS
One way to describe the learning process is as GOAL DIRECTED ACTIVITY. As such, the PRINCIPLE RESPONSIBILITY of the TEACHER is to GUIDE LEARNING.
GOAL
DIRECTED
ACTIVITY
OUTCOMES
Desirable goals
Through resourcefulness
Problem-solving
Knowledge Skills
formulated and
refined by STUDENTS
and initiative of
experiences by STUDENTS
Understandings
TEACHER in
Habits
"Setting the
Attitudes
Stage"
GUIDANCE of TEACHER
Being thoroughly conversant with the general outcomes of learning (knowledge, skills, understandings, habits, attitudes), the teacher has the responsibility of guiding learning by helping students to formulate and refine their own objectives and then, after setting the stage very carefully, leading them into significant problem-solving experiences. We believe that learning takes place only as an individual reacts to a given set of stimuli or situation. In other words, what an individual actually learns is his own reactions to something or to someone or to some situa- tion. But we also believe that one may learn several things at the same time from the same experience. Therefore, in "setting the stage" for learning, considerable resourcefulness and initiative are required on the part of the teacher to ensure the kind of desirable reactions from students that will lead to useful and valuable outcomes for them."
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EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM
"GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS OF 5, 6, 7, 8-YEAR OLDS"
1. Physical Development
Period of relatively slow growth. Girls about a year ahead of boys in physical development. Large muscles better developed than small ones. Handedness being established. Eyes not ready for much near work until eighth year. Baby teeth being replaced by permanent ones. Speech articulation steadily improving. Short attention span. Activity level high. Eleven to twelve hours of sleep needed.
2. Characteristic Reactions
Eager to learn through active participation in concrete situations. Little abstract thought. Responsive to group activities, both spontaneous and adult supervised. Fond of team games, songs, rhythms, comics, radio, TV, adventure stories, myths, collections of all kinds. Beginning to be capable of self-evaluation; eager and able to carry some responsibility. Concerned about fairness, right and wrong, and rules. Sensitive to feelings and attitudes of both peers and adults; especially dependent on approval of adults. Often careless, noisy, argumentative, but alert, friendly, interested in people. Show purposiveness and constructiveness ; love dramatic play.
3. Special Needs
Much praise and encouragement from adults. Must still be reminded of their responsibilities, but wise guidance and channeling of their inter- ests and enthusiasms needed rather than domination or over-critical standards.
Opportunity for activity of many kinds, especially for use of large muscles. Concrete learning situations with active, direct participation. Proper combination of independence and encouraging support.
Adult help in making adjustments to the rough ways of the play- ground and in developing acceptable manners and habits.
Experience of belonging to their own age group and of forming friendships.
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EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM "GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS OF 9, 10, 11-YEAR OLDS"
1. Physical Development
Slow, steady growth continues, girls forge ahead of boys; some children reach the plateau preceding the growth spurt of pre-adolescence. Lungs, digestive, and circulating systems almost mature ; heart especially subject to strain. Teeth may need straightening. Eye-hand coordination good; hands ready for crafts and shop work. Eyes almost adult size ; ready for near work with less strain. Energy level high for those not maturing, but children often play to point of fatigue. Ten hours of sleep needed.
2. Characteristic Reactions
Decisive, responsible, dependable, reasonable, strong sense of right and wrong. Individual differences distinct, and clear abilities apparent. Capable of prolonged interest; often make plans and go ahead on their own. Gangs strong and of one sex only, of short duration and changing membership. Perfectionistic, want to do well but lose interest if discour- aged or pressured. Interested less in fairy tales and fantasy, more in their community and country and in other countries and peoples. Loy- alty to their country and pride in it. Much time spent in talk and discussion ; often outspoken and critical of adults. Much arguing over fairness in games. Friendships often break up because of different rates of maturing, resulting in different interests. Wide discrepancies in reading ability. Are often overactive, hurried, and careless because of high energy level ; may have accidents.
3. Special Needs
Active rough and tumble play. Friends and membership in a group. Organized club and group activities. Training in skills, but without pressure. Reasonable explanations; no talking down to them; definite responsibility. Frank answers to questions about the common physiolog- ical changes. Opportunities for creativity through art, music, rhythms, dramatics. Help in learning how to get along with others and in accept- ing those different from themselves. Help in learning how to meet competition.
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EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM "GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS OF 12, 13, 14-YEAR OLDS"
1. Physical Development
Rapid weight gain at beginning of adolescence; enormous appetite. Unevenness of growth and wide variations in rate of development. The "pubescent spurt" usually starts between nine and thirteen; some chil- dren grow most rapidly between ten and twelve years, others between fourteen and sixteen, some boys not until about seventeen.
Reproductive organs maturing, with accompanying physical and emotional changes. Girls are usually about two years ahead of boys. High energy among those who are maturing.
Heart not developing as rapidly as rest of body. Awkwardness, poor control, and poor posture sometimes result from uneven growth. Eight to nine or more hours of sleep needed.
2. Characteristic Reactions
Preoccupation with acceptance by the peer group; fear of ridicule and of being unpopular ; self-conscious about body changes ; strong identi- fication with an admired adult. Opinion of own group beginning to be valued more highly than that of adults. Return of habits of younger child ; nail-biting, tricks, impudence.
Interested in team games, outdoor activities, pets, hobbies, collec- tions, radio, TV, comics, earning money. Strong emphasis on rules and fairness. Willing to work cooperatively in groups. Girls usually more interested in boys than boys in girls, resulting from earlier maturing of girls.
3. Special Needs
Varied programs to meet different maturity levels. Help in under- standing physical and emotional changes beginning to take place. Oppor- tunities for greater independence and for carrying more responsibility without pressure. Help in developing skills which make possible success- ful participation in group activities. Adult guidance which is kindly and unobtrusive. Assurance of security while adolescents are seeking botlı dependence and independence. Conformity with and acceptance by the peer group.
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EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM
"GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS OF 15, 16, 17-YEAR OLDS"
1. Physical Development
Age when adolescent period begins or ends depends on individual rate of maturing. Most children have matured by fifteen. Girls about two years ahead of boys until end of period, when boys start to catch up. Awkward period of uneven growth coming to an end. Adult appear- ance in sight. Heart stilll developing in size at beginning of period. Unstable energy level; enormous appetite. Eight or more hours of sleep needed.
2. Characteristic Reactions
Sometimes defiant and rebellious, sometimes cooperative and re- sponsible. Searching for ideals and standards; anxious about the future. Preoccupation with acceptance by the peer group by both males and females. Oversensitive to the opinions of others, self-conscious. Seek personal independence, but with moral support from adults. Often respond better to influence of a teacher than to parents. Desire responsi- bility, but unstable in judgment. Intense loyalty to own group.
3. Special Needs
Acceptance and approval of classmates.
Understanding of sexual relationships and proper attitudes toward sex.
Help in accepting themselves as they are.
Opportunity to accept responsibility and to make decisions.
Opportunities to earn and save money.
Help in choosing a career.
Opportunity to participate in the planning of group activities.
Kind, unobtrusive guidance with no threat to their feelings of free- dom.
Warm understanding by parents to give them a feeling of "belong- ing" while they are trying to establish their own individuality and independence.
Guidance to help prevent over-doing in physical activities.
Opportunities to develop their own hobbies, interests, and skills. Help in understanding and accepting others and their differences. Help in understanding themselves.
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EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM
READING
1. Elementary Grades, K - 6.
a. Kindergarten. In the kindergarten the major emphases are on Reading Readiness rather than on reading as such. The main purposes of the kindergarten are to provide those broad general experiences necessary for giving children a desire to learn to read and all those social skills needed to help children to work effectively with other children in a school situation. Some of the specific goals of the reading readiness program are: to help children adjust to the school environment; to help children to work in a group, participating in a socially accepted manner and demonstrating good listening habits; to develop an atten- tion span of sufficient duration to enable children to profit from the daily program; to build interest in printed words and a desire to read; to handle books correctly (reading from left to right on a page, reading from top to bottom, and understanding picture clues) ; to listen to, understand, and carry out direc- tions ; to recognize their names in manuscript; to hear similari- ties and differences in sounds ; to see similarities and differences in color, size, and shape ; to recognize similarities and differences in such symbols as pictures and letters; to use meaningfully a wide vocabulary which includes words used in pre-primers and primers ; to tell a story from a picture or a group of pictures ; to tell a familiar story in the proper sequence; to relate an experience coherently ; to obtain common school and community information; and to explore and experiment with many differ- ent kinds of things and the use of various media.
Some of the activities include : interacting with their class- room environment. Library Corner: books, pictures, signs, labels, names, animals, community helpers, charts of all kinds, chalkboard, bulletinboard; Arts and Crafts Corner: finger paints, crayons, scissors, clay, blocks, light wood, things made by children, toys; Music Corner: rhythm band instruments, flannel boards, record player, the piano; Science Corner: mag- nets, handbox, miniature gardens, aquarium with fish, puzzles, birds, flowers; excursions, social experiences (parties, games, dramatic play, preparation for special days, visiting other rooms) ; construction and manipulation activities (making and playing with cars, trucks, trains, boats, ships, airplanes, grocery stores, post office, houses, farms, farm animals) ; vicarious ex- periences (stories, poems, dramatic play, songs, slides, movies, table work (directed lessons and seatwork activities) ; finger plays; free play (with large building blocks, toys of various kinds, slides) ; freedom to choose own activities and develop own ideas; rhythmical experiences (with and without music; skipping, running, tip-toeing, hopping, and jumping) ; ball
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games (bouncing, throwing, and catching) ; choosing of work media (getting out and putting away of own materials) ; de- veloping pride in keeping the room neat and in good condition ; planning time (discussing topics and exploring possibilities for work and the procedures to be followed) ; news time (telling about personal experiences, they learn to verbalize when it is their turn and to listen when someone else is talking) ; evalua- tion time (telling about projects, good behavior, and working out of problems with the help of all members of the group) ; and making new friends and finding enjoyment in group situations.
b. Grade 1. Formal instruction in reading begins in the first grade. During the first part of the year, the child continues to receive reading readiness experiences similar to those he had in the last part of the kindergarten year, so as to increase his speaking vocabulary, his instant recognition of printed symbols, signs and words, and above all, his desire to learn to read. When the child's responses to reading readiness indicate that he is ready for reading, he begins to read from books whose stories are about experiences of the kind he is having in his daily life, and containing the words he already is using in his own speaking vocabulary. Every child reads in his own group (each class has from three to five groups depending upon the size and the varied abilities in the class) once in the morning in a basic series of readers which have a gradually increasing number of vocab- ulary words, and again in the afternoon from sight in supple- mentary readers for pleasure.
c. Grade 2. Development of ability to read for meaning and to read independently is stimulated by classroom experiences com- memorating national holidays, excursions, dramatics, construc- tion of stores, library corners, airplanes and boats, collections of various kinds, and games. Context clues, phonetic analysis, structural analysis of words, and understanding the meaning of words are stressed. Basic reading texts supplementary readers, and library books are used. Children normally read their basic readers in the morning and their supplementary readers in the afternoon.
d. Grade 3. Directed reading (both morning and afternoon) to develop the skills of reading more rapidly silently than orally, to read informational and literary materials independently with understanding. Children gain independence in word at- tack through considerable phonics and visual analysis training. Children are introduced to the mechanics of the use of the library.
e. Grade 4. More time is devoted to reading in the fourth grade than in the primary grades, but the emphasis is on improving reading skills through assimilating social studies and science information that is found in books. Some of the features of
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reading experiences at this grade level are: oral discussions about directed reading assignments; and reading for specific purposes (to follow directions, to obtain the main thought, to find the details of facts, skimming). Time is provided for supervised reading periods every day for all children at grade level plus two or three periods a week for those children above grade level.
f. Grade 5. Definite instruction continues to be provided in work recognition, vocabulary and comprehension of reading material, and library research skills. Basic reading, recreational reading, study reading, and oral reading are carried on. We emphasize vocabulary development, speed of reading, scanning for facts, finding resource material, and thinking critically about what is read.
g. Grade 6. Continued attention given to word attack, phonetic analysis, ear-training skills, vocabulary development, use of reference books simple outlining of material read, and the mak- ing of oral and written reports. A wide range of reading material is provided to meet individual differences.
SPELLING
1. Elementary Grades, K-6
a. Kindergarten. Spelling is not taught as a subject in the kinder- garten.
b. Grade 1. Spelling is not emphasized as a subject in the first half of the first grade. It is introduced the second half with lists of words from reading vocabulary. However, many oppor- tunities arise for word analysis in the teaching of reading. Stress on phonics in reading leads to good spelling.
c. Grade 2. Formally initiated in second grade. Selection of words from those the children have use for, as well as from standard word book lists. Phonetic rules are introduced formally to help seven-year-olds improve their spelling.
d. Grade 3. Standard third grade spelling lists are taught, in addition to those words that the children wish to know. Word meanings are stressed, and word analysis through phonics is emphasized.
e. Grade 4. Children are taught to give attention to the meaning of words, how to pronounce them, how to visualize the word, and how to write it from memory, checking to see if it is correct. Both basic lists of words and individual lists compiled from children's written work are used.
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f. Grade 5. Use of a Master Word List for fifth grade, in addition to words taken from oral and written work.
g. Grade 6. Word structure, phonetic skills, formation of plurals, and use of prefixes and suffixes emphasized for all word studies. Much attention given to the use of correct spelling in all written work, as well as to the correct spelling of all the words in the sixth grade basic word list.
HANDWRITING
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