Mary Hogan Family Newsletter
June 16, 2025
Dear Mary Hogan Families,
This was a great year at Mary Hogan! We had about 370 students here learning, collaborating, taking risks, solving problems, creating community, and so much more. The students here worked hard each day to do their best. I am so proud of all of them and the growth they showed this year.
The end of the year is always bittersweet. I am excited for all of your kids this summer to find new adventures in life and in books. And, I will miss them all so much, especially the 5th graders as they head over to MUMS.
This newsletter is full of celebration - celebration for the community we have and the connections we built. Thank you all so much for helping to make this year happen. You got your kids to school each day and on time. You attended MESA meetings. You came to all school events. You read to your kids at night. And all of the myriad other things. Thank you. Without you, we would not be the amazing community we are!
💙, Jen
Last week, the preschoolers celebrated the warmer weather and their growing gross motor skills with a biking day. The students could bring their bikes from home or use the balance bikes that we have at Mary Hogan (thanks to Middlebury Safe Routes). They all had SO much fun biking around the black top, and they found joy in being together, outside, doing what they liked!
2nd graders went to the movies and to Peet Farm last week. The visit to Peet farm was part of their study of living things and how they grow and impact the world. The students could explore the greenhouses and all of the flowers inside them. They also got a wagon ride and ended the trip with a creemee. Each student brought home a flower too!
The 5th graders went to the Shelburne Museum last Tuesday and explored some of Vermont's history there. They got to ride carosels, visit the jail, and much much more!
5th grade families - those guide books that your child brought home will get you a family (of 4) pass to go back to the museum with your child! What a great summer trip.
The 3rd graders have been working on engineering bridges that would withstand the weight of as many dictionaries as possible after studying different bridges locally and globally. In teams, they had limited supplies to get this challenge done. Last week, they tested their bridges. One group's bridge even held a 3rd grader!
The 3rd grade and 5th grade had a pool party at the Middlebury Town pool to cap off their year. The 5th graders were the first folks in the pool after it had a huge refurbishing job - new paint and everything. Many thanks to MESA for helping make this fun happen. And thank you to Scott and his crew for getting the pool ready in time!
In their last unit of the year, the 4th graders were studying various inventions - from VR to crayons. As an extension of this unit, Miss Kate's class created their own inventions and brought them to life with models. They designed and built the models and then presented them in the Invetion Convention this past week. It was pretty awesome!
5th Grade Promotion on Friday was a chance to celebrate all of the accomplishments of our students over the past 6 years. The students shook off thier nerves and were poised as they walked in and listened to a few messages from folks - and from their peers - about their resilence, their time at Mary Hogan, and how they can keep making someone else's day a little better. And, we heard some jokes.
Here are the recollections from the 5th graders of their time at Mary Hogan. Here is the whole ceremony.
5th grade families, I will be sharing more photos and links with you tomorrow, so stay tuned!
5th graders started their last day at Mary Hogan with a delicious breakfast in the gym that families had put together. They got a chance to eat a meal together, chat, connect with teachers they have had, and sign each other's yearbooks. It was fun to see the many old photos of students in the class and see them connect with their friends and staff one last time.
We had a VERY fun last day Talent Show, with 4th and 5th grade students and staff showing off their talents. Talents ranged from the physical (gymnastics and hockey) and comedy to musical and dance. The students who performed were AMAZING at their talents. I was so impressed by how talented all of our students are!
Many thanks to MESA for making sure that we had extra fun on the last day of school with an 18 hole mini golf course! The course came to us in the early morning hours and delighted all students in Kindergarten through 5th grade. It was fun to watch the kids play and work to avoid the obstacles in each hole!
We ended this school year with a celebration as we all headed out to the busses. On the black top, we had a cheering line. First came the teachers and staff and then came Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and finally 5th grades. They all cheered one another on and it was a FUN way to end the last day together!
