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Congratulations to Central High School's mock trial team, which won the state championship last Friday in Concord against Pinkerton Academy. The team qualifies to attend the national mock trial championship in Hartford, Connecticut, in May.  The team is in its third season since starting competition in the fall of 2014. The students have two advisors, teacher Margaret Burke and retired principal John Rist. They are coached by attorneys  Ashley Scott of McLane Middleton and Jamie Myers of Bianco PA in Concord.  Thank you to the Central Pride Foundation, which funds the program for our students!

Two years ago, a couple of ducklings hatched in Marguerite Hopey’s kindergarten classroom at Weston Elementary School. They went home to live with a friend of the school, and she has maintained the Weston connection, bringing the ducks – named Plumpty and Pierre – to visit the children several times since then. This year’s kindergarten students decided Plumpty and Pierre should get married. Once the idea was. . .well, hatched , Mrs. Hopey and the children threw themselves into planning the event and embracing learning opportunities at the same time. Members of the wedding party were interviewed by media. During interactive writing lessons, the children designed invitations, wrote the wedding vows, and created a reception menu. Math skills helped the students determine the timing of the event, calculate how much food is needed, and make seating arrangements. Weston’s music teacher is working with the students to prepare music for the ceremony, and the art teacher is gui...

Congratulations to Markus Joseph, a senior at West High School, who is New Hampshire's reigning high school wrestling champ!  Markus came from behind and tied it with 2 seconds left. . .then won it in OT! He was also given the outstanding wrestler award.

The music and physical education teachers at Jewett Street Elementary School joined forces this winter to combine lessons in rhythm and movement that culminated in a school-wide dance-off. Students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade have been exploring the relationship between music, dance, and physical activity, as well as practicing music timing, footwork, and motor skills for coordination. Each lesson started with warm-up exercises, which included jumping jacks, leg stretches, toe touches, and running in place. The teachers introduced different types of music with dance steps and choreography to go with them. Some familiar line dances – the Macarena, Cotton-Eye Joe, and the Cupid Shuffle – were on the list, along with traditional square dancing and some freestyle. The students also used drum sticks to learn about beat patterns. At the same time, the 45-minute sessions served as good cardio-vascular workouts to build endurance. The end of this cross-curriculum unit was ...

Amir Melkic is Manchester's 2017 middle school spelling bee champion. He's a seventh grader from McLaughlin Middle School and claimed victory with the correct spelling of "accordingly."  Amir also was McLaughlin's top speller last year and finished second in the 2016 city championship. Congratulations to all of the top spellers who represented their schools, and good luck to those who will compete in the state spelling bee in Concord later this month: *Athena   Vasilopoulos, 7 th  grade, Southside Paige Thibault, 7 th  grade, Southside Delaney Cote, 8 th  grade, Southside *Amir Melkic, 7 th  grade, McLaughlin Jakub Zienkiewicz, 7 th  grade, McLaughlin Paige Graziano, 8 th  grade, McLaughlin *Mario Ferro, 7 th  grade, Hillside Grace Mayhew, 8 th  grade, Hillside Aeryn Laflamme, 6 th  grade, Hillside *Salma El Boudali, 6 th  grade, Parkside Jake Donahue, 7 th  grade, Parkside Jocenya Deak, 6...

Winterfest is coordinated by the Office of Youth Services and takes place during February Vacation.  Winterfest offers an abundance of activities for families to enjoy during the break.  Check out the full schedule of events: https://www.manchesternh.gov/Portals/2/Departments/parks_and_rec/WinterfestPDF.pdf

Manchester High School West’s 46th annual inspection of the ROTC took place on February 15. This year Captain William F. Malloy, USN (Ret) inspected the cadets with family members, other special guests, Manchester Board of School Committee members Mary Georges, Leslie Want, Lisa Freeman and Arthur Beaudry in attendance, as well as Manchester West High principal Richard R. Dichard. Captain Malloy’s detailed inspection included all administrative, supply and academic areas concluding with a demonstration from the Marksmanship Team. The program included a personnel inspection, awards presentation and concluded with a pass in review.  There was also a performance by the exhibition drill team. The NJROTC Cadet Command Group consisting of CO Bradley Ewing, XO Joseph Parent, COS Brandon Sullenberger, CMC Kevin Scannell, Admin Justin O’Rourke, OPS Alica Talbot, Supply Alana N’Tapalis, Special Teams Anahi Bracero,  Commo Samantha Durand, Senior Chief Michael Anglin, and Desmond...

As you might already be aware, there was some kind of technical glitch when we put out the Nixle alert about today’s delayed opening. Some people received multiple texts; some people received an email but no text. We also hear that most people who didn’t get the texts early this morning eventually received them after 10:00 am. Too little, too late, right? We have contacted Nixle and will report back when we find out what happened. In the meantime, we want to offer a reminder about how we communicate weather-related announcements. Any closing or delay will be announced before 5:30 am. Official Manchester School District updates are available on: Facebook , Instagram and Twitter : Usually the first and fastest notifications. MSD web site : The alert will always be at the top of the home page in red. Nixle: Sign up HERE for an account to receive text notifications. If you already have an account, check your settings to make sure you are subscribed to “public schools” alerts. Y...

Southside Middle School is celebrating three victories in the basketball middle school championships over the weekend. The girls B team won over Parkside, 26-22. The boys B Spartans followed, winning 48-36 in the finals against Hillside. The Southside boys A team came out on top in a close game against Parkside, 61-58. The girls A team final was McLaughlin versus Hillside. The Cougars defeated the Hawks, 25-14. Congratulations to all!

Highland Goffe’s-Falls Elementary School’s newest staff member is a three-year-old golden retriever and a certified therapy dog. Since he started his duties once a week, Remington has been a welcome addition to the school community. “Earlier in my career, I was a reading specialist,” said principal Susan Matthews. “I’d researched the benefits of using therapy dogs in education, and it was always a dream of mine to pursue it.” A fortunate coincidence brought the opportunity to Highland this year. One of the school’s paraprofessionals, Gail Dubois, is Remington’s handler. The dog has taken obedience and other training classes to earn various certifications, including membership in Therapy Dogs International. Dubois agreed it would be a great idea to include sessions with Remington in some of the work she already does with students. It costs the school nothing. To get the program started, the parents of students in the classrooms where Dubois provides assistance were asked...