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Student Spotlight
Seventh grader Caylee Daigneault has been a part of the GHS community since she was in kindergarten.
“I like it,” she says of attending school here. “I find it very welcoming.”
Seventh grade advisor Ms. Liz H. says Caylee is a fabulous student.
“She’s very friendly and kind and helps others,” says Ms. Liz H. “She’s optimistic and adaptable and she works diligently. She loves to read.”
Caylee says English is her favorite subject because of her love of reading, and she also likes math “because it’s fun.”
“Ms. V.’s classroom is nice and calm, and she helps you understand things if you don’t already,” says Caylee of her math teacher.
Caylee works well with all her classmates, says Ms. Liz H.
“She empowers others,” says Ms. Liz H. “She isn’t afraid to speak up and say something that might not be agreed upon by all.”
Caylee has a love of theater and says she enjoyed the fall theater minimester.
Upcoming Events
MAP TESTING JANUARY 16-26
The second round of MAP testing for the 2023-2024 school year will take place for students in grades 3 through 12 during the window of January 16-26. Although we schedule a 10-day window to accomplish this, your child will only be engaged in testing for approximately 4 hours spread out across this window. We make every effort to administer the assessment in chunks that fit into students’ regular academic schedules.
The Measures of Academic Progress test is an adaptive, web-based assessment tool that provides both diagnostic and prescriptive data on student achievement. It contains four sub-tests — Reading, Language, Mathematics, and Science — and is administered to students in grades 3-12 three times a year. Individual student scores are used to set instructional goals for gains throughout the year.
Scores from this round of MAP testing will be shared with your child’s second-trimester progress report, which will be distributed on February 7.
BECKY WARD BENEFIT JANUARY 21
Friends of toddler teacher, Becky Ward, are hosting a benefit called "Wardstock" January 21 at Skinny Legs. This event is meant to uplift and support our dear colleague/teacher/fellow GHS parent/friend as she navigates her health journey. There are many ways the GHS community can show up for Ms. Becky:
Simply attend the event and enjoy
Volunteer for jobs like selling shirts, running games, or doing henna or face painting
Donate a raffle prize
High school students can volunteer at the event for community service hours
High school students can donate an evening of babysitting as a raffle prize
Please send questions or indicate your interest by contacting event organizer Jessica Daigneault at jessiedaig@gmail.com.
SAT PREP COURSE TO BEGIN JANUARY 22
GHS will offer an SAT course to help students prepare for the April 10 SAT test. The class will be on Mondays and Wednesdays from January 22 through March 14. There is no school February 19 so that class will instead take place February 23. The course will cost $100 which includes the latest version of the Kaplan SAT Prep study guide with practice tests. Please sign up early, as the course is open to all St. John high school students and space will be limited. To register for the course, email Mary Burks at maryburks@giffthillschool.org. Payments can be made through the GHS business office.
GHS Highlights
DROP OFF AND PICK UP PROCEDURES REMINDER!
Parents and guardians, we need your help to keep traffic from building up during drop off and pickup, particularly at the Lower Campus! Please carefully review and follow these procedures:
Lower Campus drop off is from 8:00 to 8:20 a.m. Please pull into the car line and do not allow your child to exit the vehicle until a staff member comes to help your child out of the car. Please do not get out of your car, as this slows down the process and causes traffic to back up.
Lower Campus pickup starts at 3:05 p.m. with students in kindergarten through fifth grade being dismissed first. Students in the toddler program, preschool, and pre-K should be picked up starting at 3:15 p.m. and older siblings may be picked up at the same time. GHS staff members will help buckle in younger children and again, we ask you to stay in the car during this process.
Anyone who needs to turn around after drop off or pickup should please do so at the Upper Campus as a safety precaution and to keep traffic from backing up.
Thank you for your cooperation!
AUCTION DONATIONS WELCOME
Our 38th annual auction is coming up on March 2, and we are now soliciting donations for the event. Students are coming home today with a letter detailing the kinds of auction prizes we're looking for, as well as donation forms to fill out to accompany your donation. From a bottle of wine for our highly coveted Wall of Wine prize to villa stays, boat trips, and Jeep rentals, there are many ways you can support our most important fundraiser of the year. Bottles of wine can be dropped off at the Upper Campus front office. To donate goods or services, please click here to fill out the donation form or return the paper form sent home with your child today.
DATES TO REMEMBER
See below for important dates to remember over the next two months. View the full school year calendar by clicking here.
Community Corner: News You Can Use
BROADWAY COMES TO ST. JOHN JANUARY 26
The St. John School of the Arts will host its annual Broadway Comes to St. John event for friends and family of the performers — the island's fourth graders, including GHS's own fourth grade class — on January 26. This year's show is dubbed "The Missing Map: A Journey Around the World," created by Andrew J. Hanley and Suzanna Dupree. The Angel show will take place on January 27. Tickets can be purchased by clicking here or calling 340-779-4322.
