The Skippers' Log

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Dear CMS friends and family,

It was a great week at CMS. Mme. Scott and Mr. Erlandsen helped our eighth-grade French students make their way to Quebec. On the other end of the middle school experience, I had the chance to meet our current fifth-graders (and some of their parents/caregivers) on Wednesday and Thursday. And due to the generous support of our fabulous CEF, we were able to start planning some great events for all CMS students.

I do have to confess, though: guest-teaching Act I, Scene i of Romeo and Juliet on Thursday may have been the highlight of my week.

I hope your weekend is full of highlights. Be well!

John / Mr. Scopelleti

Two Cohasset Middle High School teachers will be presenting at the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s (DESE’s) Sharing for Success Dissemination Fair in Devens, MA on May 20th. DESE picked 77 teachers from across the State to share their best teaching practices with other teachers at this upcoming conference. Kathleen Cerruti, Cohasset Middle High School Librarian/Media Specialist and 8th grade Research teacher, and Dr. Blair Duncan, Cohasset High School Science teacher, will be presenting “Strategies for Engaging Students in Civics Projects”. They are the only non-charter school teachers from the South Shore presenting at the conference.

Kathleen Cerruti will be focusing on her popular “Sustainability Project”, a rite of passage for Cohasset Middle School’s 8th grade students, where students research a local topic of sustainability concern, interview local community experts, devise an action plan to help solve the identified issue, and present their research during a public-facing local showcase held three times per year. Kathy’s Sustainability Project is in its twelfth year and has been part of the State’s Civics Project Showcase since its inception four years ago (garnering multiple commendations along the way).

Dr. Blair Duncan will be presenting her work with her High School Marine Science class and her extracurricular Marine Club, done in collaboration with the Cohasset Center for Student Coastal Research (CSCR). Dr. Duncan’s students design their own research project on harbor health, then visit local marine sites to collect data on water chemistry, bacteria levels, and animal populations. They analyze their data, connect it to topics of concern such as climate change and pollution, and present their results at a public-facing mock scientific conference. At last year’s State Civics Project Showcase, Dr. Duncan’s Marine Science team was commended by the State. Their commendation is currently listed on the DESE website under the Research and Investigation commendation category.

Both of these teachers will be sharing their experience and expertise with teachers across the state. We are proud to see them represent the Cohasset school district at this important conference.